Felicia Posted May 25, 2015 Author Share Posted May 25, 2015 That's good to hear as some have had trouble getting dwarf zebras to eat after getting them from their LFS. That's really funny because I can't get qianlong to take silversides he will swallow a chunk and after about a minute spits it out...lol What type of canopy do you have for falkor? Yeah I was a tad worried about that, which was why I made the LFS offer him a ghost shrimp before I'd buy him. He had just arrived from the wholesaler in a box and they were acclimating him in a big container and he hadn't even gone into the tank yet. They were like, there is no way he's going to eat right now, but sure. When he snatched up the shrimp in under a minute, I was like ok that is a good fish right there! Even if it takes me a while to get him onto frozen, the ghost shrimp are super easy, so I'm not stressed at all about any of the new additions and they're eating habits Yeah Mushu is the exact opposite. I gave him a couple jumbo mysis the other night and he finally ate them after some serious prompting and then proceeded to spit them back out. He likes his silversides. Gotta figure out what else he likes so I can get him some variety. I don't have any equipment or cords that go over the rim of the tank, so I just have a snug fitting DIY screen lid with the 1/4" BRS netting. The 1/4" netting is too small for the eel to fit through and since it fits snug to the tank, it works well for preventing escape. Only issue is that its super light, so in theory the eel could push it up and slither under it. To fix that, I've just been taping all 4 corners of the lid to the rim so it can't lift up. Great idea Felicia, born quickly out of necessity but you do what makes sense right away. You're good with that!!! Thanks, Annette! Yeah it was just a quick easy setup. This is when its nice having space equipment laying around. The ghost shrimp are alive and well today and seem to be enjoying their new homes. I'm going to be feeding them Formula One flakes and pellets to gut load them so they're nice and nutritious for the lionfish. Whaaaaat is going on over here?? I leave for a month and the whole place has been redone. Beautiful fish! Haha! Seriously right? I was just so in a rut with this hobby and just made the decision to find something new and exciting and make a change. So far I'm so much more into the tank again and I'm loving the new fish. They're more interactive and I love feeding them. If you want to see a crazy change though, go check out Gena's thread! Alright, so its water change day! First water change with the lionfish in the tank (last water change was last Saturday morning before I picked up Mushu). Gotta be extra careful and wear my big thick, over the shoulder gloves. Wish me luck! Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 25, 2015 Author Share Posted May 25, 2015 In other fun news, I'm having a Memorial Day BBQ tomorrow, so I just made some sangria. I'm making sparkling citrus sangria, so I mixed a can of limeade concentrate with a cup of Captain Morgan Limebite Rum and then sliced up a bunch of citrus fruit. All of that soaks in the fridge overnight and then right before I serve it tomorrow, I add in 2 bottles of sparkling white muscato wine. I was super excited because I got to use some lemons from my Meyer lemon tree in the sangria. I got the little lemon tree a while back and these were its first ripe lemons! It has a ton of green lemons right now that should start to ripen soon. I grew these! 4 Quote Link to comment
FlowerMama Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Too bad I don't live closer! I'm thirsty now. 1 Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 25, 2015 Author Share Posted May 25, 2015 Too bad I don't live closer! I'm thirsty now. I'm making myself thirsty, but I can't drink it until tomorrow. I always make this for BBQ's and its super refreshing. Kind of like adult lemonade or something. 1 Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 25, 2015 Author Share Posted May 25, 2015 Ok, so I have some FUN new videos for you guys. These may be my favorite tank videos to date! First one is of Draco being a little too curious and getting a bit too close to Mushu. Don't worry, no lionfish were harmed in the making of this video! Mushu established his dominance and went right back to ignoring Draco, so its all ok. The second video is feeding time! Draco ate yesterday, so I didn't get a video of him, but you can see Mushu and Falkor chowing down on some silverside chunks. 4 Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 25, 2015 Author Share Posted May 25, 2015 And some photos I snapped. Here's Mushu and Draco having their little showdown. Draco Mushu I decided to play around with the cheap macro lens that goes on my iPhone. Here are some cool macro shots of Mushu. 10 Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 25, 2015 Author Share Posted May 25, 2015 Couple more photos from tonight. The blenny has been chilling on the clam lately. I find it funny that the clam doesn't seem bothered and doesn't close. Draco out swimming in the water column. He's finally getting settled in and swimming a bit more! 9 Quote Link to comment
Rehype Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Awesome pics and video felicia! Qianlong is the same way in my tank...Hes definitely the alpha lion lol! 1 Quote Link to comment
HarryPotter Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Wow- just incredible! LionFisjh are poisonous- right? They aren't aggressive to the clowns? 1 Quote Link to comment
markalot Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Great videos and pictures. That eel is a drama queen ... it's already dead, just eat it! 2 Quote Link to comment
gena Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Post #407, middle photo . I'm going to watch the video later since i have something else going right now. Can't wait! 1 Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 25, 2015 Author Share Posted May 25, 2015 Awesome pics and video felicia! Qianlong is the same way in my tank...Hes definitely the alpha lion lol! Thanks, Rehype! The lions were being super photogenic and fun last night, so I was having way too much fun with the photos and videos That's interesting that your Fu is also the dominant one. Mine is quite a bit larger than Draco, so I figured that would be the case. Once Qianlong developed his dominance, do yours fight at all? Btw, I love Qianlong's name Wow- just incredible! LionFisjh are poisonous- right? They aren't aggressive to the clowns? Thank you! Yes, with lionfish their top dorsal spines are venomous. Honestly, lionfish aren't particularly aggressive and the venom is more for protection. They can however eat any fish that's smaller than about 3/4 of their size since they have huge mouths, but the clowns are big enough that neither of mine find them appealing so far. Plus I keep them well fed so they're probably pretty lazy about hunting. When they hunt though, its not what you would think of as traditional aggression, like chasing the other fish and picking on them. Lionfish just hold still and wait for food to come by and then they just suck it up. Great videos and pictures. That eel is a drama queen ... it's already dead, just eat it! Thanks, Mark! Tell me about it. That eel is so hilarious. Quite the ham! He always acts like I starve him to death and begs for food every single night. He's also very curious and outgoing. Cracked me up with that chunk of silverside. He had to shake it to death! Post #407, middle photo . I'm going to watch the video later since i have something else going right now. Can't wait! I figured you'd like that one! I think its my favorite too You'll love the videos since you get to see Draco go for a nice long swim. He hadn't been swimming much since he was still pretty shy, but then Mushu startled him up into the water and now its like he's realized its safe to swim. Since that happened he's been swimming a lot. Its so fun to watch 2 Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 25, 2015 Author Share Posted May 25, 2015 Oh, btw, sorry about the dirty glass in the videos yesterday. It was due for a scraping. I cleaning the tank and the glass last night after I took those videos. I made it through my regular cleaning routine without any lionfish stings! I'm just wearing the thick, rubber, over-the-elbow gloves now when I have my hands in the tank as a precaution. Also tested the water parameters right before the water change. Alk: 9.9 Ca: 400 Mg: 1200 PO4: 0.1 Looking pretty good and stable! I'm glad I've got the dosing pump all dialed in. Also, the GFO and carbon was 18 days old so I'm sure it was exhausted, hence the PO4 being up a bit. I changed out the reactor media last night. Quote Link to comment
FlowerMama Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 I love your videos. Love the drama in your tank. It's like watching National Geo! 2 Quote Link to comment
Rehype Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Thanks, Rehype! The lions were being super photogenic and fun last night, so I was having way too much fun with the photos and videos That's interesting that your Fu is also the dominant one. Mine is quite a bit larger than Draco, so I figured that would be the case. Once Qianlong developed his dominance, do yours fight at all? Btw, I love Qianlong's name Nope no issues. qianlong just occasionally "reminds" penthesilea who's in charge if shes in his cave when he doesnt want her there. Thanks! 1 Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 25, 2015 Author Share Posted May 25, 2015 I love your videos. Love the drama in your tank. It's like watching National Geo! Thanks! Yep way more drama in this tank now. I am fascinated watching it all. I spent forever last night just staring at the tank. Nope no issues. qianlong just occasionally "reminds" penthesilea who's in charge if shes in his cave when he doesnt want her there. Thanks! That's good to hear. Didn't want to have to worry about any fighting. Mushu charged Draco last night and then they've gone back to ignoring each other since then. Seems like Mushu was just reminding Draco that he's in charge. Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share Posted May 27, 2015 Alright, so I have some exciting news... Introducing... The new antennata lionfish! My plan was to have three lionfish: Fu Manchu, Dwarf Zebra, Dwarf Fuzzy. However, I found out from Rehype that some people have issues keeping a fuzzy with a zebra. That messed up my original stocking plan, so after researching the lionfish species again, I decided that an antennata was a better choice than a fuzzy. Well it turns out that my LFS got in an antennata a few days ago. The owner knew I was looking for lionfish, so he had texted me telling me they got in a couple different species, but none of them were fuzzies, so I had told him I would wait for a fuzzy. Then I found out the fuzzy wouldn't work and went and snatched up the antennata that was in stock. Seems to be a very healthy and active fish so far. It isn't eating frozen (lionfish pretty never are when they arrive from the wholesaler), but it took a live ghost shrimp at the store with no hesitation, so its got a good appetite and is eating well. Its the smallest of my three lions now. Its just a bit smaller than Draco (the zebra). Anyways, I'm working on a huge photo and video update, so stay tuned! 8 Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share Posted May 27, 2015 Draco was being really photogenic. I was right in front of the tank while I was acclimating the new lionfish, and Draco has already learned that I mean food. He was swimming all over and sitting up close to the front glass where I was, watching me. His personality is super adorable. With the starry blenny. With the eel. Played around with the cheap iPhone macro lens again. Here are two macros of Draco's fin. Not the best shots, but he even decided to land on the clam for a moment and the clam just stayed open for it. And here's how lionfish can devour big fish and shrimp. 8 Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share Posted May 27, 2015 Here's a few shots of the snowflake eel. The starry blenny. The clowns. Fox coral Squamosa clam Derasa clam Underside of the derasa clam mantle. Shots of the derasa mantle with the macro lens. Right after adding the antennata, Draco had to investigate. Luckily Draco decided they could be buddies. 9 Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share Posted May 27, 2015 Video of the new antennata and some antics by the other tank inhabitants. 7 Quote Link to comment
kimberbee Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 Looks awesome! Those lionfish are cute!! 1 Quote Link to comment
gena Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 I figured you'd like that one! I think its my favorite too You'll love the videos since you get to see Draco go for a nice long swim. He hadn't been swimming much since he was still pretty shy, but then Mushu startled him up into the water and now its like he's realized its safe to swim. Since that happened he's been swimming a lot. Its so fun to watch Finally watched!!!! OMG I LOVE this tank!!!!!! Draco is my favorite . Looks like squammy clammy is right on schedule . 1 Quote Link to comment
Felicia Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share Posted May 27, 2015 Looks awesome! Those lionfish are cute!! Thanks, Kimber! You wouldn't think predator fish would be so cute, but they're adorable! So much fun personality Finally watched!!!! OMG I LOVE this tank!!!!!! Draco is my favorite . Looks like squammy clammy is right on schedule . Glad you enjoyed the videos. I'm so thrilled with this new direction for the tank. Glad you like it as well I'm partial to Draco too just since he has the most personality right now. He's the least colorful, but he acts like a little puppy dog and has such a cute face. Yep! Should be ready for me to go pick it up any minute now! Super excited!!! For anyone who didn't see in Gena's thread, she's downsizing so I bought her huge squamosa clam! Its on the way right now! 2 Quote Link to comment
gena Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 Wait until you guys see my squammy in her tank . She sent me a photo . 2 Quote Link to comment
Pinner Reef Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 Wow! Lots going on in this system, and ALL of it awesome. Good work Felicia! Cracked me up watching Mushu so hypnotized by the food he fell over on his back. 1 Quote Link to comment
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