by Saltwater Smarts | Mar 5, 2016 | Aquaculture, Equipment, Fish, Invertebrates, Photography, Reef, Science, Tanks
There are a number of choices when it comes to the rock you use for aquascaping, my personal favorite is live rockToday’s marine aquarists have more options than ever before when it comes to the types of rock used to aquascape their tanks—from live rocks, whether aquacultured or wild-harvested, to all manner of dry rocks and even natural-looking man-made rocks. Each type has its advantages and drawbacks, and the choice that’s best for any given hobbyist depends on, among other factors, his or her aquascaping goals, budget, risk tolerance, and desired level of control over the system’s biodiversity. Call me old-school (or Lord Admiral Jeff of the Universe—whichever you prefer), but my aquascaping material of choice has always been live rock, whether comprising the rockwork entirely or at least a major portion of it. Here’s why:Fascinating biodiversity Live rocks come loaded with organisms that emerge or hatch out for many weeks and months—even years—after they’re added to a tank. Various “pods,” fan worms, sponges, tunicates, mollusks, worms, coral colonies, macroalgae, and coralline algae are just a sampling of what might appear. And this process/progression is truly amazing to observe. I’ve never tried it, but I think it would be fascinating to set up a live-rock-only (LRO?) tank, with no fish or intentionally introduced invertebrates, and just sit back and watch what pops out of the rocks over time by Admin | Feb 17, 2016 | Photography, Travel
Following my post about shipwrecks as reefs, I thought I’d share a few images and a bit of history about the SS Thistlegorm, possibly one of the most famous wrecks in the world.… by Saltwater Smarts | Feb 15, 2016 | Equipment, Fish, Photography, Reef, Science
Indiscriminately scrubbing live rock can destroy much of the life you paid for, and thus the benefit of doing soQuestionI’ll be receiving a shipment of live rocks in a few days, and I could use some advice on how to clean them up before putting them in my tank. Do I just need to give them a good going over with a scrub brush?” – Submitted by Chuck S. Answer I wouldn’t use the term “good going over” with respect to cleaning your new live rocks. Remember, you paid good money for the organisms encrusting those rocks, so you don’t want to scrub the entire surface of each rock indiscriminately. Rather, what you want to do is very selectively scrub/scrape/pluck away any obviously dead/decomposing organisms, slimy films, unwanted algae, and clinging sediments or debris. Encrusting sponges that have been exposed to air will also need to be removed, as they’re likely to die and decompose. Otherwise, if a rock looks pretty “clean” and healthy right out of the box, all it needs is a good rinse. by Admin | Feb 15, 2016 | Corals, Photography
TV nature shows about reefs often mention how shipwrecks can become artificial reefs. I thought I’d put together a post of some of my favorite shots that best show just how true this can... by Austin Lefevre | Feb 10, 2016 | Corals, Equipment, Eye Candy, Industry, Photography, Reef, Science, Tanks, Technology
T5 lighting is still very popular among aquarists, with ATI bulbs generally being the number one choice. “What’s the best bulb combo?” is probably the most frequently discussed topic in the T5... by Barry Brown | Feb 10, 2016 | Fish, Photography, Reef, Science
Good morning all, I have a fun Lionfish portrait for you all today that I shot yesterday with my trusty 105 macro. We still see these beautiful invasive fish on every dive but on some reefs they are really doing a good job at keeping the numbers down. We ended up doing three dives yesterday, two of them were with my intern trying to teach him something about the difficulties of underwater photography, he’s finding out it’s not so easy…. Pretty much everything about the venomous lionfish—its red-and-white zebra stripes, long, showy pectoral fins, and generally cantankerous demeanor—says, “Don’t touch!” The venom of the lionfish, delivered via an array of up to 18 needle-like dorsal fins, is purely defensive. It relies on camouflage and lightning-fast reflexes to capture prey, mainly fish and shrimp.
