Good Invert for tank with no heater?

[Be11yDancer]

I'm cycling a 150 gallon tank. Mid-september I plan to drive to Maryland ( www.dracomarine.org ) from where I live in NJ and pick-up a pair of breeding H. erectus (Seahorses), they are, among other places, native to the NJ shores!

I am getting many of my ideas from this site: NJ Scuba Diver: www.njscuba.net/biology/index.html. But, of course, it's more difficult to obtain the local stuff pictured there than stuff from Hawaii!!

My tank is sparsely decorated with a deep bed of a variety of sand & coral rubble. I would really like to add a chocolate chip starfish or urchin. QUESTION ONE: would those survive without a heater? Temp won't go below 70.

QUESTION TWO: Can anyone give me some ideas of what other inverts will work in a tank like this? I have normal lighting.

I see peppermint shrimp might work as long as they don't steal seahorse food . ..

 

[Anonymous]

Just my two cents but I believe Sea Horses do best in smaller tanks, where the food is more concentrated. Anything you add with them to a tank that size will likely be more efficient at capturing food.

 

[Be11yDancer]

I have a tank divider, which can be adjusted so I can get the proper food concentration. On the other side of the divider are breeding mollies which can provide a supplement food source to frozen mysid and live brine.

So any help with:

A sea urchin or other invert species that might survive in cooler waters?

How far North can Chocolate Chip starfish survive?

 

[Anonymous]

Just my two cents but I believe Sea Horses do best in smaller tanks, where the food is more concentrated. Anything you add with them to a tank that size will likely be more efficient at capturing food.

Sorry Belly, but I totally agree with Rover and speak from experience, having kept horses for years. They will have a lot of difficulities in a tank that big-not only feeding but just everyday living-unless the flow is very low and there isn't any other fish with them. Also, you can't really keep any type of stinging coral with them as they will hitch on them and get stung.

I stongly suggest before you go to the trouble of getting them and being disappointed, you spend some time searching through this website and consider perhaps having a smaller species only tank:

http://www.seahorse.org/

http://forum.seahorse.org/

 

[Be11yDancer]

Let's forget I EVER mentioned seahorses!

I have TWO very good personal contacts helping me with my set-up there.

Here are my questions:

Can I safely put a chocolate chip starfish in this tank or not?

And what SPECIES of sea urchin might work?

 

[Anonymous]

Are you planning on having any corals? The chocolate chip would be out then. And I wouldn't even know if it could take the cold water. 70 is pretty cold.

 

[Be11yDancer]

No, no corals, I don't have the lighting.

 

[Anonymous]

Let's forget I EVER mentioned seahorses!

I have TWO very good personal contacts helping me with my set-up there.

Here are my questions:

Can I safely put a chocolate chip starfish in this tank or not?

And what SPECIES of sea urchin might work?

Suit yourself but why would you ask for advice, and then get upset when people give answer contrary to what you would like to hear?

 

[Be11yDancer]

Suit yourself but why would you ask for advice, and then get upset when people give answer contrary to what you would like to hear?

I appreciate very much all the advice you have ever given me.

But 'contrary' is the wrong word.

The correct word is 'irrelevant'.

Your advice was 'irrelevant' to the the questions I asked.

I don't mind extra advice when accompanied by a useful answer, but just posting irrelevant advice???????? A sign of too much time on one's hands.

For you, I have now joined the seahorse forum, waiting for membership approval, I'd prefer to stay here, at this forum and get my questions answered because being a member of too many boards is a pain.

So let me re-iterate:

Do Chocolate Chip starfish live at colder temps like 70-72?

What species sea urchins live in colder water?

I'm actually thinking about the ones labeled Atlantic on this page:

http://www.fish2u.com/starfish.html


Got to go pack for Hawaii now!

Guess I should be in a better mood, huh.

 

[Anonymous]

Be11yDancer, thanks for answering my question and making my point for me :lol:

 

[Be11yDancer]

Wow this is getting really ridiculous FAST!

I must have missed your question . ..

I think I will take my business elsewhere . . . .

See you at the sanctuary . . . .

 

[bleedingthought]

Wow this is getting really ridiculous FAST!

I must have missed your question . ..

I think I will take my business elsewhere . . . .

See you at the sanctuary . . . .

Suggestions never hurt anybody.

Good luck with your endeavors!

 

[Meloco14]

Wow this thread spiraled way out of control over a simple misunderstanding.

Bellydancer, if you read this, I would suggest searching for a website with more information about urchins and starfish. Just google chocolate chip starfish or the scientific name, if you know it. You can do the same with sea urchins. Very few reef hobbiests have any experience with temperate animals, so you probably won't get too many responses here. The seahorse forum may be able to help you a little better as most seahorse tanks are temperate. HTH

 

[Anonymous]

FWIW, there are several species of snails that do well in cooler temps, the orange footed turbo snail (if I'm remebering correctly) for one. Very neat looking. After looking at the link you posted I do know that a couple of the teaching labs around here use the rose anemone urchins in their labs which I doubt are heated, so they would work, although from personal experience they get big and clumsy and knock everything over in your tank. Also without a lot of light in your tank your live rock may not produce enough food for the urchins to properly graze.

Relevant enough?

 

[Anonymous]

For cool water stuff, I'd contact floridapets.com or billsreef.com and ask them what they think will do well. Choc. chip stars are harlequin shrimp food, IMO, wouldn't do well in a cool tank, and will not be appropriate tanksmates. I agree that a 150 is large for a single pair o' horses, but using a feeding station will help them find their food without expending more calories hunting for food than the food itself provides.

Redfooted moon snails and margarita snails are good in cool water. Catalina gobies like it cool, too, and are appropriate with seahorses.

Oh, and if you're picky about getting answers that provide only the info you seek, with no other observations or suggestions, good luck at seahorse.org. It's not for the ultrasensitive or the folks who already have the answers, trust me. :lol: