Aviators IM Fusion 20 ( New photos 08/17)

[FlowerMama]

Yeah, what else have you seen, whether it be little worms or feathers, or macro or stuff you're just clueless about but looks cool. Are your bivalves just as big as mine? Ha, ok, that sounds funny.

[jedimasterben]

Yeah, what else have you seen, whether it be little worms or feathers, or macro or stuff you're just clueless about but looks cool. Are your bivalves just as big as mine? Ha, ok, that sounds funny.

 

Pics of your bivalve?

[FlowerMama]

Ha! I know. Pick my words carefully or they become the next quoted signature.

 

I was gonna say I have something that looks like brown skin and another area that's black. I assume some kind of sponge but it's really weird, like a stretched canvas and it's crackled in some places. I don't know what it is.

 

Do you have any of this kind of stuff????

 

 

[aviator300]

I'll take pics of my Itzy Bitzy Bi valves later when I get home but they are much smaller than yours. My rock came USPS and took 3 days to arrive so it appeared to be much drier than the pics of yours. The only life I've seen so far is the coralline, the Halimeda, 3 bi valves, a yellow sponge, several bristle worms which I removed, and the 2 little Anemones that I mentioned earlier. I do have misc areas of soft coloration (kind of like your red and black areas) that I have no clue what they are.

 

I really do love this rock despite no, because of all these mysteries. Keep in mind, you have almost 10 times the amount of rock than what I ordered, which means much more life and many more surprises to come.

[FlowerMama]

I'll take pics of my Itzy Bitzy Bi valves later when I get home but they are much smaller than yours. My rock came USPS and took 3 days to arrive so it appeared to be much drier than the pics of yours. The only life I've seen so far is the coralline, the Halimeda, 3 bi valves, a yellow sponge, several bristle worms which I removed, and the 2 little Anemones that I mentioned earlier. I do have misc areas of soft coloration (kind of like your red and black areas) that I have no clue what they are.

 

I really do love this rock despite no, because of all these mysteries. Keep in mind, you have almost 10 times the amount of rock than what I ordered, which means much more life and many more surprises to come.

 

I do wish it was more porous. If I could have the KP Aquatics rock w/ this much GulfLiveRock live stuff on it, it'd be perfect. Ammonia shot up to 8 from last night. I used that stuff that helps it cycle faster so not sure if I should just let it do it's thing or still do water change.

[aviator300]

I added a bottle of Seachem Bio Spira (same as Dr Tims, in fact he developed Bio Spira first, then quit Seachem and started his own company with the same recipe. Both patents are in his name with all the same info). I add one to all my new tanks, live rock or dry rock.

 

On another subject, I found this in the sand today. I don't know what it is but I wonder if I have some unseen creature lurking in the rock. It looks like some sort of claw or appendage that came off something. I thought it may have been some sort of plant or Macro algae tip but it's hard as a rock and you really have to bend it hard to snap it. The tip is as sharp as a needle.

 

Maybe someone will recognize what it is. That is a dime it's next to.

 

 

[aviator300]

Could someone help me ID what this appendage may be from?

[FlowerMama]

?

[Pinner Reef]

looks like a macro algae

 

Neomeris Annulata maybe?

[aviator300]

looks like a macro algae

 

Neomeris Annulata maybe?

After reading about this, I sure hope that's not what it is and I don't really think so for a couple reasons.

 

1. All the pics of Neomeris Annulata show that it has small bands or striations "around" the staff but what I have has longitudinal lines

running from top to bottom.

 

2. If it was plant material, you would think it would be kind of soft and bendable, but this thing is as hard as a rock and snaps when you

bend it but took pliers to snap it.

 

I love a mystery and am not worried about finding it at all but I'd really enjoy finding out what it is..So come on everyone and help me out.

[FlowerMama]

Almost like it's the skeleton of a fish bone, those fish with the pointy thing in front. I know, so descriptive. But you know what I'm talking about.

[aviator300]

Almost like it's the skeleton of a fish bone, those fish with the pointy thing in front. I know, so descriptive. But you know what I'm talking about.

SWORDFISH..HAha. The close up photos make the tip look blunt but in reality, this thing is only about 1/4" long and very sharp. Most likely

left over from something that once lived on the rock.

[FlowerMama]

They also have those dolphins with that long swirly bone out the nose.

[aviator300]

They also have those dolphins with that long swirly bone out the nose.

I'm sure a lot of stuff comes out their noses besides "long swirly bones" yukyukyukyuk.

[FlowerMama]

Hey, how's the large grey coral skeleton doing? Any growth slowly coming from within? I'm seeing a mint green color coming through in my rose coral. I was also wondering about your yellow sponge since I have one too and it looks deflated but also like it could be shedding some white.

[ml86743]

Kinda looks like a tusk shell, phylum mollusca, class scaphopoda. Was it hollow? was there anything inside? Those suckers have some pretty tough shells. But..they are usually opened at both ends and from the picture it doesn't seem that way. Plus they are usually curved :/ I know there are plenty of species so maybe? hahah

[aviator300]

Hey, how's the large grey coral skeleton doing? Any growth slowly coming from within? I'm seeing a mint green color coming through in my rose coral. I was also wondering about your yellow sponge since I have one too and it looks deflated but also like it could be shedding some white.

That Coral skeleton turns out to be just that (dead and hard as a door nail) but the yellow sponge is thriving. I think ill slide over and see what your new tank's up to..Tata

[aviator300]

Got some frags Tuesday from legendary Corals. The frags are the best I've ordered. They all opened fully within an hour of putting them in my quarantine tank. (yes, after many other tanks that got algae of all kinds, tons of bristle worms and other itsy bitsy coral predators, I'm quarantining everything this time around). Anyway, the packaging was first rate with everything sealed (not rubber banded) in individual bags. Darwin at LC had advised me there water spgr was 1.026. I tested it and guess what, 1.026. Every plug was clean with no algae, excessive dirt, or anything else bad that I could see. The only gripe I have is that their plug shafts are so hard, they told me I'd need a band saw or something like that to cut them off. Anyone out there have experience mounting LC plugs.

 

Here are pics of two out of the six of them and please excuse the terrible off color pics.

 

Devils Armor..

 

Petroglyphs

[FlowerMama]

They are pretty! Do what I did, get out the dremel, put the cutting wheel on it and cut off the ends, then mount it, it'll be flat at least and won't stick out. I love the dremel. I have an old one that I only used after my husband died. I used it for cutting the frag plug off and then to fix the glass I got professionally cut, as it wasn't cut right and wouldn't go in perfectly straight/down into the sump, so I had to put the diamond tip on it and shave away with water on it. It was fun and I felt bad ass doing it.

[aviator300]

Pics of your bivalve?

Here is a pic of the only one surviving and it appears to be thriving.

 

 

Here is a shot of an Anemone hitchhiking on my "Gulf Live Rock" Kind of looks like Aptasia but it's a fairly benign species of Anemone which grows on most all Florida live rock. I've had them before and they grow pretty big and the one I had never spread. I have 3 of them in my tank in the same area of rock. They are pretty cool looking as they grow and I haven't decided whether to leave them alone or try to eradicate them.

 

 

OK, now on to my problem. I bought 5 Zoas last week from Legendary Corals and they all arrived in great shape and fully opened the first day in the tank. They were all doing great until this morning when one of the Zoas (Petroglyphs) was totally closed with all its polyps shrunken very small. I tested everything and all parameters were WNL. I had inspected all frags very carefully with a magnifying glass and dipped them in Coral Rx. There is no LR in the tank to harbor badies and it is BB. All other Zoas are close together and they are thriving. Here is a pic of the affected frag before and after it shrunk. Does anyone have any idea why a healthy looking Zoa if great and fully opened one day and possibly dying the next.

 

[FlowerMama]

Any amphipods pestering it?

[aviator300]

Any amphipods pestering it?

That's what I thought it might be but this Q tank is pretty sterile except for the coral food 2x week. I've seen no pods at all yet and I looked carefully with a MG glass. It's the suddenness of the decline that I cant figure out.

[FlowerMama]

How long did it take your cycle from beginning to end? Only this am I registered no ammonia so it was 10 days for ammonia cycle w/ this live rock.

[aviator300]

How long did it take your cycle from beginning to end? Only this am I registered no ammonia so it was 10 days for ammonia cycle w/ this live rock.

Only about a week but my Ammonia never got over 0.25. That melting Zoa is still hanging on and the polyps try to come out every morning but they open only slightly and they have shrunk in size also. All the other Zoas are still thriving and I mounted them in Zen 5 today. Pics when they open (tomorrow I hope).

[FlowerMama]

A lot has happened quickly after the ammonia cycle was done a couple days ago. I'm at 40 for nitrate now so it's going towards zero, almost there.