Banasophia’s Biocube 32 - Return of the DragonReef 🐉

[mitten_reef]

On 1/11/2020 at 6:44 PM, banasophia said:

I love this new coral I picked up the other day. Can anyone tell me what it is? The LFS got it from a local hobbyist and they weren’t sure. 

 

 

acro, probably comes from an under/ugly side of a colony.  The tip of the long branch is kinda why I went with acro.    

[A.m.P]

47 minutes ago, mitten_reef said:

acro, probably comes from an under/ugly side of a colony.  The tip of the long branch is kinda why I went with acro.    

I think they were asking for an ID on what kind of acro it is XD
Gotta' agree though, without the long tip it almost looks like a monti.

[banasophia]

3 hours ago, mitten_reef said:

acro, probably comes from an under/ugly side of a colony.  The tip of the long branch is kinda why I went with acro.    

 

2 hours ago, Amphrites said:

I think they were asking for an ID on what kind of acro it is XD
Gotta' agree though, without the long tip it almost looks like a monti.

 

Hey!! Is someone calling my baby ugly?!!!  😂😂🤣

[banasophia]

My fishies! I can’t imagine a saltwater tank without a clownfish pair, and I already adore these little snowflakes. 💛 I didn’t think my LFSs would ever get the black ice snowflakes in stock and these guys were so cute anyway... of course my LFS does have the black ice snowflakes now, but these little fish were apparently meant for me. They seem to have bonded very quickly and sleep together in the front right corner every night. 
 

 

 

 

 

[banasophia]

Oh and good news - the water’s funky smell went away, and the diatoms are almost gone! I’m finding I need to dose about 3 ml of Red Sea Alkalinity daily, but no calcium yet because it started a little higher than my target range. I think the corals may possibly be startling to grow already, though I could be imagining it, but I’m seeing some signs of coralline on the back wall and gyre.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sancho]

7 minutes ago, banasophia said:

My fishies! I can’t imagine a saltwater tank without a clownfish pair, and I already adore these little snowflakes. 💛 I didn’t think my LFSs would ever get the black ice snowflakes in stock and these guys were so cute anyway... of course my LFS does have the black ice snowflakes now, but these little fish were apparently meant for me. They seem to have bonded very quickly and sleep together in the front right corner every night. 
 

 

 

 

 

They are awesome! 

[banasophia]

Just now, Sancho said:

They are awesome! 

Thanks! I love how closely they seem to have bonded!! My other clowns hang out some but not all the time, and they don’t sleep together. 

[Sancho]

15 hours ago, banasophia said:

Thanks! I love how closely they seem to have bonded!! My other clowns hang out some but not all the time, and they don’t sleep together. 

Your other clowns are odd, what’s the point in bonding if their not sleeping together 🤷‍♂️😂 Wonder if fish snore and bug their partner?  

[banasophia]

Oh yeah, forgot to post these pics of what looks to me like the start of coralline growth. I was pretty happy to see this, as it doesn’t grow much in the 16, except on the branches of the branching dendro. 

 

 

 

 

[Sancho]

18 minutes ago, banasophia said:

Oh yeah, forgot to post these pics of what looks to me like the start of coralline growth. I was pretty happy to see this, as it doesn’t grow much in the 16, except on the branches of the branching dendro. 

 

 

 

 

Nice!!! I loves me a tank with all kinds of coraline growing on the back wall! Looks like it’s off to a good start considering you didn’t use live rock! 

[banasophia]

28 minutes ago, Sancho said:

Nice!!! I loves me a tank with all kinds of coraline growing on the back wall! Looks like it’s off to a good start considering you didn’t use live rock! 

Yeah, I think it came in on the turbo snails... not sure... I didn’t add any purple helix. 

[banasophia]

Hey friends, I need your help! Just got my first SPS pests... what are they? They look kinda like amphipods, seem attracted to this coral and looked like some were embedded in the coral but may have just been retracted polyps. Many are green in the same color as the polyps like they were eating it. Check out the video I took after I dipped the coral. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

[A.m.P]

42 minutes ago, banasophia said:

Hey friends, I need your help! Just got my first SPS pests... what are they? They look kinda like amphipods, seem attracted to this coral and looked like some were embedded in the coral but may have just been retracted polyps. Many are green in the same color as the polyps like they were eating it. Check out the video I took after I dipped the coral. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Parasitic amphipods?
Could try a wrasse or chrysiptera damselfish to keep numbers down? Otherwise pull-and bayer/rx dip once a week ti'll one or the other stops thriving =/

[banasophia]

2 hours ago, Amphrites said:

Parasitic amphipods?
Could try a wrasse or chrysiptera damselfish to keep numbers down? Otherwise pull-and bayer/rx dip once a week ti'll one or the other stops thriving =/

Yeah, maybe parasitic amphipods... 

 

I’d been holding off getting my pest-eating fish, hoping I’d be able to get a possum wrasse, but it looks like I should go ahead and get a different type of fish at this point rather than waiting for someone to get my dream fish in stock. I could keep dipping but those little buggers looked like they had egg sacs, and they weren’t totally isolated to the coral... I saw one scurry from the rock onto the coral as soon as I returned it to the tank. 
 

Here’s another video that I didn’t post earlier... unfortunately I don’t think it really helps too much.

 

 

[banasophia]

So these are my top 4 choices (in order of preference) at this point for a pest eating fish that I can possibly get at my LFS. Let me know your thoughts on these 4, or if there are any others you would recommend. 
 

The tank is stocked with peaceful fish that all get along except for the bangaii cardinals; I think are both male, and the larger one tends to keep the smaller shy one in its place. I’ll be trying again to catch and return one of the bangaii cardinals tomorrow. 

pink streaked possum wrasse

Talbots damsel

yellow coris wrasse

sixline wrasse

[Ratvan]

I've wanted a pink streak for a while now, gorgoues looking fish.

 

I have a yellow coris and between that and leopard wrasse my CuC gets eviscerated. So do any feather dusters, vermatid worms and seen her go for flatworms on glass. But I have 1 living Snail now who hides on the wall behind the heater

[Jackal227]

6 hours ago, banasophia said:

Hey friends, I need your help! Just got my first SPS pests... what are they? They look kinda like amphipods, seem attracted to this coral and looked like some were embedded in the coral but may have just been retracted polyps. Many are green in the same color as the polyps like they were eating it. Check out the video I took after I dipped the coral. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

The shape and movement resemble Amphipods, it's hard to get a clear image when they are tiny.  They are normally harmless and the Acro in the picture looks very happy.  Have you noticed any issues with it?

 

I'm sure Finnick would vacuum them up for you if needed 😆

[NanoRox]

look like amphipods to me.  the coral does not look stressed so while I would keep an eye open, I wouldn't worry.  

[Snow_Phoenix]

2 hours ago, banasophia said:

So these are my top 4 choices (in order of preference) at this point for a pest eating fish that I can possibly get at my LFS. Let me know your thoughts on these 4, or if there are any others you would recommend. 
 

The tank is stocked with peaceful fish that all get along except for the bangaii cardinals; I think are both male, and the larger one tends to keep the smaller shy one in its place. I’ll be trying again to catch and return one of the bangaii cardinals tomorrow. 

pink streaked possum wrasse

Talbots damsel

yellow coris wrasse

sixline wrasse

Pink streaked wrasse are very peaceful and stay small. Yellow coris are good at eating pests, but they can/do get large (I've seen some thick, 6" ones at my LFS) and they can snack on inverts if they get the munchies. I have a Talbot in my nano. BME, it's a beautiful fish, but a bit of a butthead. Mine always tries to take on my bicolor blenny in the 10G, but thankfully the blenny can hold his own. I'm not sure if this behavior will be lessened in a larger tank (like yours), or if you might get a butthead like mine. 😛

 

I think you should avoid the sixline. It's a stunning fish but can become very aggressive over time. I've kept sixlines twice before (or was it thrice?) but I remember, on all occasions, after it was added to my tank, I couldn't add another fish (even a small goby) because it would harass the poor thing to death. 

 

I vote pink streaked. I like mine, and I think you *might like one too. 🙂 

 

Also, pink streaks eat pods and flatworms. 

[A.m.P]

I love pink streaks, they don't exist where I'm at lol.

 

Talbot's get ugly and mean later in life, springers, azure, yellowtail are all better bets.

[banasophia]

7 hours ago, Ratvan said:

I've wanted a pink streak for a while now, gorgoues looking fish.

 

I have a yellow coris and between that and leopard wrasse my CuC gets eviscerated. So do any feather dusters, vermatid worms and seen her go for flatworms on glass. But I have 1 living Snail now who hides on the wall behind the heater

Yes, they actually had a pink streak at my LFS a few weeks ago... hopefully it’s still there. It seemed extremely shy so I’m hoping no one else swooped it up. I was holding out for a Tanaka’s or white banded just cuz their coloration is likely to really pop under the biocube beauty lights. Good to know about the yellow coris and the leopard... your poor little lone snail! 
 

6 hours ago, Jackal227 said:

The shape and movement resemble Amphipods, it's hard to get a clear image when they are tiny.  They are normally harmless and the Acro in the picture looks very happy.  Have you noticed any issues with it?

 

I'm sure Finnick would vacuum them up for you if needed 😆

Yes, they were itty bitty, so they were very hard to photograph clearly; I wish I had thought to use my macro lens. The acro had been looking great up until last night, but I could definitely see irritated areas and partially retracted polyps. The fact that the critters appeared green inside when I zoomed in makes me think they’re eating the coral. I think I’m just catching the issue really early, so I think there isn’t much damage yet, but the coral definitely appears to be responding negatively. 

 

So funny you say that about Finnick... that was actually the very reason I got him in the 16. I had wanted a mandarin eventually in that tank, and then I got what appeared to be parasitic amphipods attacking my torch coral. After the fact I thought I must’ve been mistaken because my impression is that parasitic amphipods are fairly uncommon in home aquaria, but maybe they’re not so uncommon... 

 

6 hours ago, NanoRox said:

look like amphipods to me.  the coral does not look stressed so while I would keep an eye open, I wouldn't worry.  

True, I don’t think the coral looks too bad yet, but I suspect it’s because I’m catching it really early. I will confess I spend inordinate amounts of time starting at my tanks (grow, babies, grow!), so I notice fairly minor changes, but the coral definitely looks affected, albeit only slightly at this point. I would be less worried if so many hadn’t come off during dipping - there were maybe 10-15 - and the green coloration of their GI tracts matching the color of the coral definitely made me more suspicious... 

 

6 hours ago, Snow_Phoenix said:

Pink streaked wrasse are very peaceful and stay small. Yellow coris are good at eating pests, but they can/do get large (I've seen some thick, 6" ones at my LFS) and they can snack on inverts if they get the munchies. I have a Talbot in my nano. BME, it's a beautiful fish, but a bit of a butthead. Mine always tries to take on my bicolor blenny in the 10G, but thankfully the blenny can hold his own. I'm not sure if this behavior will be lessened in a larger tank (like yours), or if you might get a butthead like mine. 😛

 

I think you should avoid the sixline. It's a stunning fish but can become very aggressive over time. I've kept sixlines twice before (or was it thrice?) but I remember, on all occasions, after it was added to my tank, I couldn't add another fish (even a small goby) because it would harass the poor thing to death. 

 

I vote pink streaked. I like mine, and I think you *might like one too. 🙂 

 

Also, pink streaks eat pods and flatworms. 

Thanks so much, Snow, sounds like the pink streak will be my best option if I can get one. The Talbots is so pretty, but I’d definitely prefer to avoid buttheads haha. 🙂

 

2 hours ago, Amphrites said:

 I love pink streaks, they don't exist where I'm at lol.

 

Talbot's get ugly and mean later in life, springers, azure, yellowtail are all better bets.

Yes, sounds like the pink streak will be my best bet. 
 

Interesting about the Talbots; it had seemed from a couple things I read it was the most peaceful of them all... so glad I double checked!! Will the other types you mentioned eat other pests like nudibranchs and flatworms? I’d love to have a backup option in case I can’t get a pink streaked wrasse.

 

 

 

 

Thank you everyone for your help, I really appreciate it! 🤗

[banasophia]

These little guys are just so cute together! 💕

 

 

[olive]

1 hour ago, banasophia said:

These little guys are just so cute together! 💕

 

 

This video convinced me into getting a pair of clowns for my first tank. I didn't really want clowns because everyone has them, but these two are sooooo cute! 😍

[A.m.P]

4 hours ago, banasophia said:

Interesting about the Talbots; it had seemed from a couple things I read it was the most peaceful of them all... so glad I double checked!! Will the other types you mentioned eat other pests like nudibranchs and flatworms? I’d love to have a backup option in case I can’t get a pink streaked wrasse.

 

 

 

 

Thank you everyone for your help, I really appreciate it! 🤗

First off, I adore your clownfish.
Secondly, most if not all of them will graze on flatworms and pods, Talbots are super-peaceful as juveniles but some folks end up with them turning-nasty once they sexually-mature.

The best at eating flatworms seem to be rollands and springeri (mostly springeri and the black-bodied "sapphire" look-alike), I would venture to guess all chrysiptera from around the same region (southwest pacific) likely graze on flatworms and pods (so chrysiptera Rex may also eat flatworms but I've no experience with their temperament), however it seems that azure and yellowtail's are usually not interested in eating flatworms (I didn't think rollands did either but all signs of flatworms vanished after adding my rollandi pair - after re-surging post-springeri).

[banasophia]

2 hours ago, olive said:

This video convinced me into getting a pair of clowns for my first tank. I didn't really want clowns because everyone has them, but these two are sooooo cute! 😍

Oh yes, everyone has them for sure, but I can’t imagine a saltwater tank without a clownfish pair. They are hardy, beautiful, and entertaining. 🐠🐠 You know it’s kinda surprising there’s no clownfish emoji. 🤔
 

Anyway, they’re photogenic too, once you get the hang of photographing them! Pics of my standard ocellaris clownfish are always my most popular posts on Instagram, and I think my clownfish pic may have just won the photo contest on here... not sure if it has been announced yet so I don’t think it’s official, but I hope so, I really need a doser which is this month’s prize.🤞🤞🤞
 

5 minutes ago, Amphrites said:

First off, I adore your clownfish.
Secondly, most if not all of them will graze on flatworms and pods and Talbots are super-peaceful as juveniles but some folks end up with them turning-nasty once they sexually-mature.

The best at eating flatworms seem to be rollands and springeri (mostly springeri and the black-bodied "sapphire" look-alike), I would venture to guess all chrysiptera from around the same region (southwest pacific) likely graze on flatworms and pods (so chrysiptera Rex may also eat flatworms but I've no experience with their temperament), however it seems that azure and yellowtail's are usually not interested in eating flatworms (I didn't think rollands did either but all signs of flatworms vanished after adding my rollandi pair - after re-surging post-springeri).

Thanks, they are very cute little fish! 😊

 

And good news, the LFS just told me they do still have the pink streaked possum wrasse, so I’ll probably go with that one. They said they’ll hold it for me, so I’ll plan to pick it up this evening.