Samnaz's 20L (upgrading to IM Nuvo Black 30L)

[Polarcollision]

Hi there. :-) Great read through your tank thread. How's the new setup coming along?

[samnaz]

On 12/3/2017 at 3:28 AM, Polarcollision said:

Hi there. :-) Great read through your tank thread. How's the new setup coming along?

Thank you! I'm flattered you even took the time to browse through it... :-)

 

I forced myself to put the new setup on hold until the new year, or I'm trying to anyway. I'm getting new carpet in a few weeks annnd just booked a two week long trip to florida for the holidays. Have to get my current tank under control and ready for my absence, which quite frankly terrifies me.

 

On top of that, digitate hydroids are quickly multiplying and I'm seriously concerned they will completely take over my tank in the coming weeks. I think you mentioned you have a colonial hydroid problem, any plans for eradication? In the small amount of research I've done on hydroids, most people claim that populations die down on their own/for unknown reasons. I'm not sure I'm comfortable waiting to see what happens and hoping for the best. I'd rather take action now, before it's too late. 

[Polarcollision]

19 hours ago, samnaz said:

Thank you! I'm flattered you even took the time to browse through it... :-)

 

I forced myself to put the new setup on hold until the new year, or I'm trying to anyway. I'm getting new carpet in a few weeks annnd just booked a two week long trip to florida for the holidays. Have to get my current tank under control and ready for my absence, which quite frankly terrifies me.

 

On top of that, digitate hydroids are quickly multiplying and I'm seriously concerned they will completely take over my tank in the coming weeks. I think you mentioned you have a colonial hydroid problem, any plans for eradication? In the small amount of research I've done on hydroids, most people claim that populations die down on their own/for unknown reasons. I'm not sure I'm comfortable waiting to see what happens and hoping for the best. I'd rather take action now, before it's too late. 

 

these guys? Mine went away in a few weeks or months. The ones I have now will die back but have never gone away. They bloom on every single surface when I feed ova to the mandarin. I’ve looked everywhere but don’t even find mention of my type of hydroid. I tried berghias—that the wrasse ate. I’ve used toothbrush. Changed the sand out completely. Stopped feeding the mandarin. Current hope is an army of emerald crabs. Hoping they just pick them off in the hunt for algae.

 

best wishes for your tank while you’re away. You’re thorough so I’m sure things will go as well as they possibly can. I used to live in FL, care to share where you’re headed? Hopefully for some white sand beaches

[samnaz]

On 12/6/2017 at 6:31 PM, Polarcollision said:

 

these guys? Mine went away in a few weeks or months. The ones I have now will die back but have never gone away. They bloom on every single surface when I feed ova to the mandarin. I’ve looked everywhere but don’t even find mention of my type of hydroid. I tried berghias—that the wrasse ate. I’ve used toothbrush. Changed the sand out completely. Stopped feeding the mandarin. Current hope is an army of emerald crabs. Hoping they just pick them off in the hunt for algae.

 

best wishes for your tank while you’re away. You’re thorough so I’m sure things will go as well as they possibly can. I used to live in FL, care to share where you’re headed? Hopefully for some white sand beaches

Yep, those guys. Do the ones that you have seem to be bothering or stinging any other creatures in your tank? I think you're onto something with the army of emerald crabs idea. The one I had would aggressively pick at anything in search of food (even metal tongs). Luckily he lived in a hole within an isolated rock with no corals, so his aggressive tendencies were never an issue. And he had his rock looking immaculate. 

 

Whereabouts in FL? I'm from Orlando. I'm headed to Palm Harbor, near Tampa. When I think of a white sand beach all I can picture is Clearwater beach, which isn't exactly my cup of tea. I enjoy the white sand but I don't enjoy an overcrowded beach. I prefer the untouched, rockier beaches like Honeymoon Island. I haven't explored many beaches in FL though, and I'm definitely all ears for some recommendations on the gulf coast. I will be spending most of my time beachcombing :-)

[samnaz]

Made a delightful discovery while observing the tank tonight - tons of tiny baby shrimp swimming about! Of course my first thought was sexy shrimp babies, but as far as know procreation among captive sexy shrimp is uncommon/unlikely. Maybe mysis? Gunna do some searching to figure out exactly what they are.

 

In the mean time, trying to keep them all alive (turned off the skimmer and filter for the time being). Here's to hoping they can out complete the hydroids and vermetids *wishful thinking*....

[samnaz]

Dusted off the $7 microscope iphone lens. Managed to get a couple good photos of the tiny shrimp. 

 

 

[Cannedfish]

6 hours ago, samnaz said:

Dusted off the $7 microscope iphone lens. Managed to get a couple good photos of the tiny shrimp. 

 

 

This is pretty awesome, and for someone in your tank, probably pretty tasty. As the old adage goes, "when life brings you shrimp, make scampi!"

[mitten_reef]

 

6 hours ago, samnaz said:

 

 

 

So cool! Do you have any shrimp other than the sexy that may have hatched? My skunk cleaner used to carry around a bunch of eggs but nothing ever came of it that I knew of. 

 

On 12/6/2017 at 6:31 PM, Polarcollision said:

I used to have a handful of these guys. They disappeared a long while after I added a peppermint shrimp. Can’t say for sure if that the cause of disappearance. 

[samnaz]

After doing some researching, I've come to the conclusion the tiny shrimps were in fact Sexy Shrimp larve.

 

Unfortunately, as I suspected, all are now dead and gone 24 hours later. A great deal of planning and lots of time and effort is absolutely required to successfully raise these shrimp. 

 

As soon as the holidays have passed and I have the new tank all set up, I'll finally have some free time and I'm gunna tackle sexy shrimp breeding. And I'm gunna keep at it until I'm successful and have too many sexies to know what to do with.

 

Mark my words!

[Nixperience]

Too sexy!

[Polarcollision]

On 12/10/2017 at 9:46 PM, samnaz said:

Yep, those guys. Do the ones that you have seem to be bothering or stinging any other creatures in your tank? I think you're onto something with the army of emerald crabs idea. The one I had would aggressively pick at anything in search of food (even metal tongs). Luckily he lived in a hole within an isolated rock with no corals, so his aggressive tendencies were never an issue. And he had his rock looking immaculate. 

 

Whereabouts in FL? I'm from Orlando. I'm headed to Palm Harbor, near Tampa. When I think of a white sand beach all I can picture is Clearwater beach, which isn't exactly my cup of tea. I enjoy the white sand but I don't enjoy an overcrowded beach. I prefer the untouched, rockier beaches like Honeymoon Island. I haven't explored many beaches in FL though, and I'm definitely all ears for some recommendations on the gulf coast. I will be spending most of my time beachcombing :-)

Yeah, if you ever see colonial hydroids, burn them. I have now been emotionally tortured by every pest but AEFW and redbugs, so bring it on hydroids. Let's do battle. The hydroids sting zoas, making them close up. They sting acros, eventually causing them to recede. Even my prized oregon tort RTN'd from them. They're literally growing on everything not an actual living coral. AND they must be sticky because they're coated in detritus. It's gross. 4 emeralds are making headway. Thinking about getting 3 more... I'm picturing your emerald crab as grumpy cat now.

 

Me too! I lived in the Orlando area and the Lakeland area before moving to Seattle. My best friend and I used to go every weekend to Clearwater since it was closest. Before that, I used to go to a little white sandy beach south of anna maria island called Longboat Key. At the north end of the island is a quiet little lagoon where you can hang out with stingrays, cucumbers, and pretty much no one else. If you're there at the right time of year there's sometimes a nutrient bloom and the beach looks like the milky way at night with little specks of blue glow. Sometimes there's a HUGE bloom and the beach explodes in light with every step. Magical! A friend went to sanibel island for the seashells and birdwatching. Oh! In the area you can take a small boat out towards evening to go fishing. The most magical night I spent in FL was in the water between the mainland and the mangrove keys along the gulf-side. Dolphins swimming nearby as sun set, then the diatom bloom made our wake glow as needlefish lept out of the water into our boat. I was constantly tossing them back in. Such magic. Wow. It's been 12 years since I've been back and now you've got me itching to buy a plane ticket.

 

On 12/11/2017 at 6:55 AM, micoastreefing said:

 

So cool! Do you have any shrimp other than the sexy that may have hatched? My skunk cleaner used to carry around a bunch of eggs but nothing ever came of it that I knew of. 

 

I used to have a handful of these guys. They disappeared a long while after I added a peppermint shrimp. Can’t say for sure if that the cause of disappearance. 

I've already written a book to you, so I'll keep it breif and just say that is the most unique (in a good way, not the passive aggressive way) thing I've seen so far! How exciting to raise sexy shrimp!

[samnaz]

On 12/21/2017 at 12:13 AM, Polarcollision said:

Yeah, if you ever see colonial hydroids, burn them. I have now been emotionally tortured by every pest but AEFW and redbugs, so bring it on hydroids. Let's do battle. The hydroids sting zoas, making them close up. They sting acros, eventually causing them to recede. Even my prized oregon tort RTN'd from them. They're literally growing on everything not an actual living coral. AND they must be sticky because they're coated in detritus. It's gross. 4 emeralds are making headway. Thinking about getting 3 more... I'm picturing your emerald crab as grumpy cat now.

 

Me too! I lived in the Orlando area and the Lakeland area before moving to Seattle. My best friend and I used to go every weekend to Clearwater since it was closest. Before that, I used to go to a little white sandy beach south of anna maria island called Longboat Key. At the north end of the island is a quiet little lagoon where you can hang out with stingrays, cucumbers, and pretty much no one else. If you're there at the right time of year there's sometimes a nutrient bloom and the beach looks like the milky way at night with little specks of blue glow. Sometimes there's a HUGE bloom and the beach explodes in light with every step. Magical! A friend went to sanibel island for the seashells and birdwatching. Oh! In the area you can take a small boat out towards evening to go fishing. The most magical night I spent in FL was in the water between the mainland and the mangrove keys along the gulf-side. Dolphins swimming nearby as sun set, then the diatom bloom made our wake glow as needlefish lept out of the water into our boat. I was constantly tossing them back in. Such magic. Wow. It's been 12 years since I've been back and now you've got me itching to buy a plane ticket.

 

I've already written a book to you, so I'll keep it breif and just say that is the most unique (in a good way, not the passive aggressive way) thing I've seen so far! How exciting to raise sexy shrimp!

Wow. That sounds absolutely magical. Nothing fascinates me as much as bioluminescence does. I never thought in my wildest dreams I'd be able witness it in person any time soon, and so close! I never even thought to visit the beach after dark. I hope now is the right time of year and there just so happens to be a huge bloom occurring nearby in the next few days. Only way to be sure is to head to the beach. 

 

Nothin's better than the pacific northwest though (in my mind).

[Polarcollision]

16 hours ago, samnaz said:

Wow. That sounds absolutely magical. Nothing fascinates me as much as bioluminescence does. I never thought in my wildest dreams I'd be able witness it in person any time soon, and so close! I never even thought to visit the beach after dark. I hope now is the right time of year and there just so happens to be a huge bloom occurring nearby in the next few days. Only way to be sure is to head to the beach. 

 

Nothin's better than the pacific northwest though (in my mind).

OMG!! so you have to watch this: https://app.curiositystream.com/video/1571/david-attenboroughs-light-on-earth

 

I really, really hope there's a bloom when you're there! Here in Puget Sound I can follow the dinoflagellate blooms online, maybe there's something like it for your beach destination too. Enjoy your vacation!

 

Have you been up our way? I have to agree -- this is home.

[samnaz]

On 12/30/2017 at 4:47 PM, Polarcollision said:

OMG!! so you have to watch this: https://app.curiositystream.com/video/1571/david-attenboroughs-light-on-earth

 

I really, really hope there's a bloom when you're there! Here in Puget Sound I can follow the dinoflagellate blooms online, maybe there's something like it for your beach destination too. Enjoy your vacation!

 

Have you been up our way? I have to agree -- this is home.

Seen it! I actually got a subscription a while ago in preparation for that documentary. I'm ocean documentary crazy tbh. 

 

Haven't had any luck finding blooms at the beaches nearby nor following them online. Seems they are more likely at other times of the year. 

 

I'm actually going to be visiting my cousin who got an internship in Seattle for the summer! I'm so soo excited. Have you been to the San Juan Islands? I'm dying to go, have been for years. Can't wait. Only place I've been on the west coast is San Diego, which I liked a lot but I can't wait to see and hike up some real mountains that aren't filled with people. Any suggestions? :-)

[samnaz]

So my shrimps spawned again the night before I left for Florida! This time I managed to snap some photos with the camera. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Polarcollision]

6 hours ago, samnaz said:

Seen it! I actually got a subscription a while ago in preparation for that documentary. I'm ocean documentary crazy tbh. 

 

Haven't had any luck finding blooms at the beaches nearby nor following them online. Seems they are more likely at other times of the year. 

 

I'm actually going to be visiting my cousin who got an internship in Seattle for the summer! I'm so soo excited. Have you been to the San Juan Islands? I'm dying to go, have been for years. Can't wait. Only place I've been on the west coast is San Diego, which I liked a lot but I can't wait to see and hike up some real mountains that aren't filled with people. Any suggestions? :-)

What?! No way! That's awesome! It was pretty good, right? Before watching it I didn't know mushrooms bioluminesced. We don't have fireflies, so now I'm on a hunt for those shrooms, though even the regional mushroom group on FB doesn't quite agree on whether they're in our forests or not.

 

Trying to recall other details from around that time. I remember it being warm at night, so it might have been anytime from May through October, and I think I was wearing flip flops so, yeah, probably not this time of year unfortunately. Now I feel bad for sending you on a wild goose chase. Sorry about that...

 

The San Juan's are amazing. Friday Harbor is the largest town, which is on San Juan Island. Further from the ferry dock you'll find a couple lighthouses. I've seen seals at Lime Kiln lighthouse and others have seen orcas, there's even a local population of photogenic red foxes. There's a famous lavender farm which blooms mid-July. Orcas Island is the next largest island with a hike (or drive) to the top of a 'mountain' hill. The best views of the area from there and a great place to see sunset. Down towards Doe Bay (nudist colony) the beaches often have hooded nudibranchs, and our seastar wasting is turning the corner so be sure to find some of the robust survivors. Not much to speak of on the other islands, though Lopez has a park with nice photogenic views. If you can get a boat out to Sucia Island, that's my favorite uninhabited one.

 

For hikes, I'd have to know what time of year you were coming out. Mountain hiking sort-of starts in June, but snow hasn't fully melted until mid-July at some of my favorite higher elevation places. August is a sure bet for the most sunny days. I organized the Seattle Hiking and Photography Meetup group for around 8 years, so ask me about any hike in the area. :-) You can peek through my flikr page for places that look good and I'll give you the low-down. My personal top 5 are: 1) Park Butte/Railroad Grade 2) Skyline Divide 3) Mt Pilchuck 4) Spray Park 5) A trail off Windy Ridge towards Loowit falls at St Helens. https://www.flickr.com/photos/polarcollision/  While you're up here, we should at least get coffee! I bet we'd have a lot to chat about.

 

Will there be any shrimp left when you get home... That is something I've never seen before. Amazing!

[samnaz]

On 1/1/2018 at 1:51 AM, Polarcollision said:

What?! No way! That's awesome! It was pretty good, right? Before watching it I didn't know mushrooms bioluminesced. We don't have fireflies, so now I'm on a hunt for those shrooms, though even the regional mushroom group on FB doesn't quite agree on whether they're in our forests or not.

 

Trying to recall other details from around that time. I remember it being warm at night, so it might have been anytime from May through October, and I think I was wearing flip flops so, yeah, probably not this time of year unfortunately. Now I feel bad for sending you on a wild goose chase. Sorry about that...

 

The San Juan's are amazing. Friday Harbor is the largest town, which is on San Juan Island. Further from the ferry dock you'll find a couple lighthouses. I've seen seals at Lime Kiln lighthouse and others have seen orcas, there's even a local population of photogenic red foxes. There's a famous lavender farm which blooms mid-July. Orcas Island is the next largest island with a hike (or drive) to the top of a 'mountain' hill. The best views of the area from there and a great place to see sunset. Down towards Doe Bay (nudist colony) the beaches often have hooded nudibranchs, and our seastar wasting is turning the corner so be sure to find some of the robust survivors. Not much to speak of on the other islands, though Lopez has a park with nice photogenic views. If you can get a boat out to Sucia Island, that's my favorite uninhabited one.

 

For hikes, I'd have to know what time of year you were coming out. Mountain hiking sort-of starts in June, but snow hasn't fully melted until mid-July at some of my favorite higher elevation places. August is a sure bet for the most sunny days. I organized the Seattle Hiking and Photography Meetup group for around 8 years, so ask me about any hike in the area. :-) You can peek through my flikr page for places that look good and I'll give you the low-down. My personal top 5 are: 1) Park Butte/Railroad Grade 2) Skyline Divide 3) Mt Pilchuck 4) Spray Park 5) A trail off Windy Ridge towards Loowit falls at St Helens. https://www.flickr.com/photos/polarcollision/  While you're up here, we should at least get coffee! I bet we'd have a lot to chat about.

 

Will there be any shrimp left when you get home... That is something I've never seen before. Amazing!

Don't be sorry, there's always next time. I'll be back to the area soon, at the right time of year so it'll happen eventually. Nothing I'd rather do than spend time exploring in and around the ocean. As long as I witness a bioluminescent sea creature at some point in my life I'll be happy. Good luck on your quest to find the glowing fungi in your forests. You'd think it wouldn't be too hard to find out if they exist in the area or not, I mean, it's a mushroom that lights up...kinda hard to go unnoticed isn't it? Then again, there are always fascinating incredible wonders of the natural world that go unnoticed, or better yet unexplored and unseen.  

 

I will be visiting Seattle in the summer months. I'm so glad I asked, you are clearly a pro (at hiking AND photos). I'm going to look into the hikes you mentioned and poke around your flickr page. I should have mentioned... I'm not a hiker, and I have zero experience so I'm not looking for anything intense by any means. Just a nice stroll up a mountain (or hill haha), nice views, and the closer to the ocean the better.

 

I'm definitely hoping to head to Lime Kiln. The southern resident orcas that frequent those waters were the reason I wanted to go to Washington in the first place. Since then I've found a hundred other reasons to go, but seeing orca is definitely number one. I've "adopted" at least 10 individuals from the resident pods. I could ID any member by their dorsal fin. I even have laminated/waterproof genealogy and identification charts. I've been waiting for this trip for years. Oh and the whale museum in Friday Harbor, number two on my list of things to do. 

 

Coffee chat sounds great. As you know, I'm your biggest fan, haha.

 

Oh, and the shrimp babies... long gone. I've only noticed the larve twice, and both times I couldn't find a single survivor a day later. No way they'd survive more than a couple days without a specialized system, which I will hopefully have setup in a few months time. Until then, I can expect a new freshly hatched batch of babies every ~13 days. It's a huge bummer I can only enjoy them for a few hours before they get eaten or sucked up into the filter/skimmer and die. 

[Polarcollision]

On 1/4/2018 at 10:54 PM, samnaz said:

Don't be sorry, there's always next time. I'll be back to the area soon, at the right time of year so it'll happen eventually. Nothing I'd rather do than spend time exploring in and around the ocean. As long as I witness a bioluminescent sea creature at some point in my life I'll be happy. Good luck on your quest to find the glowing fungi in your forests. You'd think it wouldn't be too hard to find out if they exist in the area or not, I mean, it's a mushroom that lights up...kinda hard to go unnoticed isn't it? Then again, there are always fascinating incredible wonders of the natural world that go unnoticed, or better yet unexplored and unseen.  

 

I will be visiting Seattle in the summer months. I'm so glad I asked, you are clearly a pro (at hiking AND photos). I'm going to look into the hikes you mentioned and poke around your flickr page. I should have mentioned... I'm not a hiker, and I have zero experience so I'm not looking for anything intense by any means. Just a nice stroll up a mountain (or hill haha), nice views, and the closer to the ocean the better.

 

I'm definitely hoping to head to Lime Kiln. The southern resident orcas that frequent those waters were the reason I wanted to go to Washington in the first place. Since then I've found a hundred other reasons to go, but seeing orca is definitely number one. I've "adopted" at least 10 individuals from the resident pods. I could ID any member by their dorsal fin. I even have laminated/waterproof genealogy and identification charts. I've been waiting for this trip for years. Oh and the whale museum in Friday Harbor, number two on my list of things to do. 

 

Coffee chat sounds great. As you know, I'm your biggest fan, haha.

 

Oh, and the shrimp babies... long gone. I've only noticed the larve twice, and both times I couldn't find a single survivor a day later. No way they'd survive more than a couple days without a specialized system, which I will hopefully have setup in a few months time. Until then, I can expect a new freshly hatched batch of babies every ~13 days. It's a huge bummer I can only enjoy them for a few hours before they get eaten or sucked up into the filter/skimmer and die. 

That's exactly what I thought - that the mushroom peeps on the FB ID page would be all over the bioluminescence, but I think they're mostly there for the chanterelles, morels, and 'wavy caps'. There's a micological society group down at the UW, maybe they're worth hitting up before I'm looking for something that just doesn't exist here.

 

If you time it right, there's bioluminescence in Puget Sound, too. I used to watch fish jet around and flash pale blue at night while laying at the end of my dock in Seattle. And every time I dropped a line in the water it would fizz like alka seltzer, except in blue light rather than bubbles. It was warm in the evening, so I'm guessing August or early Sept. Here's a cool post Floris posted about photographing it in the San Juans. https://www.artinnaturephotography.com/wordpress/2011/bioluminescence-noctiluca-scintillans-in-the-san-juan-islands/

 

and just so you know what to look for in FL. Notice how the sand is kinda damp but firm and it looks muddy or slimy? That's what you want to find. I really want to relive this through you! :-)

 

 

OK, when you frame hiking like that I totally understand and highly suggest a drive up to Artist Point on Mt. Baker. Wander the trails there on any mostly-clear day. They have very little elevation gain and some of the best scenery around of Baker and Shuksan. And then for closer to ocean, I'd definitely visit the top of Orcas Island for the views. There's the option to drive up to the top and then wander the trails as far as you'd like from there. It's pretty stunning at both places. Elevation is easy if it's done slowly and you're already a walker or runner. You might also like "Second Beach" out on the Peninsula. If it's timed with low tide, the pools there are pretty good. I once startled a seal napping in a little bathtub-like pool. Haha! And "beach 4" just north of Kalaloch has fabulous tide pools too. There are all these channel-worn rocks with nems, sea stars, barnacles, etc. In May I spent the morning with an otter mom and her pup, 3 grey whales, (and cougar tracks). And if ya look really closely the good stuff appears. Pink-hearted hydroids, nudibranchs, feather dusters, etc.

 

That link I sent you will definitely help you find your orcas. :-) You'll have to tell me more about the resident pods. I know we had a bumper year for babies not too long ago and also the matriarch recently passed away. I think J and K pods are locals... beyond that I don't know much about them.

 

Coffee is a done deal then! Looking forward to it.

 

Well, it's still pretty cool to have so many babies at all. I know mandarins LOOOOOVE shrimp eggs. I wonder how feasable t is to add sexy shrimp to  the tank to help feed her. I tried sexy shrimp as my first residents in the 8 gallon nuvo and all they did was eat zoas. They were probably starving. poor things. But it put me off of them. What do you feed them? I'm slightly hopeful they like eating cyano. LOL Post more pics of the shrimp when you have some spare time!

 

[samnaz]

On 1/7/2018 at 5:46 PM, Polarcollision said:

That's exactly what I thought - that the mushroom peeps on the FB ID page would be all over the bioluminescence, but I think they're mostly there for the chanterelles, morels, and 'wavy caps'. There's a micological society group down at the UW, maybe they're worth hitting up before I'm looking for something that just doesn't exist here.

 

If you time it right, there's bioluminescence in Puget Sound, too. I used to watch fish jet around and flash pale blue at night while laying at the end of my dock in Seattle. And every time I dropped a line in the water it would fizz like alka seltzer, except in blue light rather than bubbles. It was warm in the evening, so I'm guessing August or early Sept. Here's a cool post Floris posted about photographing it in the San Juans. https://www.artinnaturephotography.com/wordpress/2011/bioluminescence-noctiluca-scintillans-in-the-san-juan-islands/

 

and just so you know what to look for in FL. Notice how the sand is kinda damp but firm and it looks muddy or slimy? That's what you want to find. I really want to relive this through you! :-)

 

 

OK, when you frame hiking like that I totally understand and highly suggest a drive up to Artist Point on Mt. Baker. Wander the trails there on any mostly-clear day. They have very little elevation gain and some of the best scenery around of Baker and Shuksan. And then for closer to ocean, I'd definitely visit the top of Orcas Island for the views. There's the option to drive up to the top and then wander the trails as far as you'd like from there. It's pretty stunning at both places. Elevation is easy if it's done slowly and you're already a walker or runner. You might also like "Second Beach" out on the Peninsula. If it's timed with low tide, the pools there are pretty good. I once startled a seal napping in a little bathtub-like pool. Haha! And "beach 4" just north of Kalaloch has fabulous tide pools too. There are all these channel-worn rocks with nems, sea stars, barnacles, etc. In May I spent the morning with an otter mom and her pup, 3 grey whales, (and cougar tracks). And if ya look really closely the good stuff appears. Pink-hearted hydroids, nudibranchs, feather dusters, etc.

 

That link I sent you will definitely help you find your orcas. :-) You'll have to tell me more about the resident pods. I know we had a bumper year for babies not too long ago and also the matriarch recently passed away. I think J and K pods are locals... beyond that I don't know much about them.

 

Coffee is a done deal then! Looking forward to it.

 

Well, it's still pretty cool to have so many babies at all. I know mandarins LOOOOOVE shrimp eggs. I wonder how feasable t is to add sexy shrimp to  the tank to help feed her. I tried sexy shrimp as my first residents in the 8 gallon nuvo and all they did was eat zoas. They were probably starving. poor things. But it put me off of them. What do you feed them? I'm slightly hopeful they like eating cyano. LOL Post more pics of the shrimp when you have some spare time!

 

UW has a mycological society group?? Dang, they have everything. I've been considering transferring there (in my dreams). Not a bad idea to hit them up, if there is bioluminescent fungi in the area they should know. 

 

Wait so you have your own dock!? omg, I am *so* jealous. I would lay there every night. 

 

I'm sold on "beach 4", sounds just like what I'm looking for... fantastic tide pools full of life. Guess we're gunna have to rent a car if I wanna see all the best places. 

 

I was almost kind of close to buying a captive bred biota mandarin from the LFS earlier today. There are only like, 3 fish I would ever want in my tank and the mandarin is one of them.  But with my limited knowledge about fish keeping in addition to the sales person's recommendations, I decided I had better wait until the new 30L is set up and established. I don't even know how often mandarins need to be fed. Apparently, the sexy shrimp spawn about every ~12-14 days or so. I'm sure that would be a tasty treat to help feed her.

 

I feed my shrimps about twice a week. If I stretch it and don't feed them for ~5 days, they will nibble on coral tissue. I feed them what the LFS recommended when I bought the shrimpies about a year ago... I think it's Fluval brand shrimp pellets, and they love it so I haven't tried anything else.

 

Unfortunately I haven't seen the shrimp spawn, despite checking the tank multiple times a day/night... Not since my last photos from before my trip about a month ago. However, I have got some good ones of my lady shrimp carrying a bunch of eggs, will be posting them shortly! 

[samnaz]

I finished painting the inside of the stand white, finished the waterproof gloss top coat on the exterior, and cut a yoga mat to fit along the bottom for extra protection. Also buffed all the scratches out of the used trigger ruby sump (looks brand new if I don't say so myself).

Also finally decided on the location - right around the corner from the current setup. I originally wanted it to go in the same place, but setting it up around the corner is going to make everything 10x easier and less stressful. I'll probably end up keeping both tanks cause let's be honest, even their combined 50 gallons isn't big enough...

 

 

 

 

Next, drilling for the overflow and return. Should be fun. 

[mitten_reef]

1 hour ago, samnaz said:

I finished painting the inside of the stand white, finished the waterproof gloss top coat on the exterior, and cut a yoga mat to fit along the bottom for extra protection. Also buffed all the scratches out of the used trigger ruby sump (looks brand new if I don't say so myself).

Also finally decided on the location - right around the corner from the current setup. I originally wanted it to go in the same place, but setting it up around the corner is going to make everything 10x easier and less stressful. I'll probably end up keeping both tanks cause let's be honest, even their combined 50 gallons isn't big enough...

 

 

 

 

Next, drilling for the overflow and return. Should be fun. 

I like how this upgrade is coming along slowly, but very thoughtfully. And that trigger sump looks brand-new to me! 

What are you using for the stand?

And, please post some of your pick-up's from the swap!

[samnaz]

6 hours ago, micoastreefing said:

I like how this upgrade is coming along slowly, but very thoughtfully. And that trigger sump looks brand-new to me! 

What are you using for the stand?

And, please post some of your pick-up's from the swap!

I'm glad someone appreciates how slow I'm goin with this one. It'll be worth it in the end, I'm sure. 

 

Most importantly, I got myself a branching Cyphastrea! Finally. I've wanted one for a year. I also got spongodes monti, bubblegum digi, rainbow cloves, a blasto, vivid zoas, some other zoas, and that's all I have room for unfortunately. 

 

[samnaz]

I placed an order a couple weeks ago with AquaSD. Unfortunately the package was delayed and arrived a day late. As a result two of the frags didn't make it - cloves and pipe organs. I'm glad I ordered three different colors of cloves, but I'm super bummed about the pipe organs.

 

Man are the stalks of cloves ugly! Are they supposed to be covered in brown hair algae like this? Here they are a couple days after they arrived.

 

 

 

This one didn't make it out alive.

 

 

 

Got this Blasto as a freebie! Accidentally broke the poor thing in half when I popped it off the plug it came on. Thought for sure I killed it but it's perfectly fine. (this is a blasto...right?)

 

 

 

[samnaz]

Black sponge has completely taken over a frag of GSP I threw in a dark back corner and forgot about. The sponge is way more awesome than the GSP so I'm just letting it grow.

 

 

 

 

These tiny little hydroids are popping up everywhere.

 

There is a little patch of them on this pavona, and it doesn't seem to mind at all... guess they are the harmless type?

[Polarcollision]

Oh no, those look like the hydroids I have. If it's still in just a few places, take them out now before they spawn/spread. I believe H2O2 will kill them. They sting SPS causing tissue regression and irritate zoas until they shrink away. I got them under control by not feeding any small particle foods or frozen foods, just pellets for the lifetime of my tank. Once the mandarin and her OVA were introduced, they once again took over everything. Emerald crabs are helping a little.

 

On the plus side, I once had a clove polyp completely melt away, only to return 5 months later. Maybe that can happen with yours too?? Must have been a couple of cells left. LOL

 

More thoughtful reply to yours above later... it's been a fast-paced week or two.