by Saltwater Smarts | Apr 9, 2016 | Equipment, Fish, Invertebrates, Reef, Science
Smaller fish, such as Blue-Green Chromis (Chromis viridis), are most likely to be affected by chronic elevated dissolved gas levels in your aquariumIf you’re like most marine aquarium hobbyists, you probably don’t give a great deal of thought to the levels of dissolved gases in your system beyond making sure you’re providing good aeration and circulation. But under certain circumstances, these levels can get out of whack to the detriment of marine livestock. Jay Hemdal, Curator of Fishes and Invertebrates for the Toledo Zoo, explains how in the following excerpt from his book The Salt Smart Guide to Preventing, Diagnosing, and Treating Diseases of Marine Fishes.Dissolved gases All aquarists are aware that their aquariums require a minimum concentration of dissolved oxygen in the water for their fish to survive. Many aquarists are also aware that if gases are dissolved in too great an amount, supersaturation can occur, causing serious health problems in their animals. Due to a lack of appropriate test equipment, most home aquarists can do little about measuring for potential problems with dissolved gas levels. There are four basic concerns regarding the level of dissolved gases in aquarium water: acute supersaturation, chronic supersaturation, low dissolved oxygen tension, and high carbon dioxide tension. by Admin | Apr 7, 2016 | Invertebrates, Photography, Reef
Condylactis gigantea is a common anemone from the Caribbean region and is encountered on shallow reefs throughout the West Indies and up into Floridian waters. It is often used in aquaria, but I still find it odd when I see the animal in the... by AquaNerd | Mar 29, 2016 | Corals, Fish, Invertebrates, Reef, Science
ProDibio the makers of BioDigest, Bioptim and other aquarium supplements have developed an FDA approved line of freshwater and saltwater fish medications. The medication lineup includes 6 new products; three for freshwater ailments and three for marine. The 6 products include: Spots & Velvets for Freshwater Fish Spots & Velvets for Marine Fish Worms & Parasites for Freshwater Fish Worms & Parasites for Marine Fish Bacteria & Fungi for Freshwater Fish Bacteria & Fungi for Marine Fish <![CDATA[ #gallery-1 { margin: auto; } #gallery-1 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-1 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-1 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } ]]> Like all of the other Prodibo products, each medication is packaged and dispersed by Saltwater Smarts | Mar 28, 2016 | Corals, Fish, Funny, Invertebrates, Opinion, Reef, Science
The blue-throat triggerfish (X. auromarginatus) in my aquarium exhibited repetitive behavior prior to transitioning the system to a reefFor today’s post, I’d like to elicit your thoughts on an interesting phenomenon I’ve observed in my aquarium, specifically involving an aggravating repetitive behavior exhibited until fairly recently by my pair of blue-throat triggerfish (Xanthichthys auromarginatus). Allow me to set the stage: I introduced the blue-throats to my 125-gallon about a year and a half ago when it was still a FOWLR system. Their tankmates at the time included a one-spot foxface (Siganus unimaculatus), yellow tang (Zebrasoma flavescens), tomato clownfish (Amphiprion frenatus), and sixline wrasse (Pseudocheilinus hexataenia).The repetitive behavior I’m referring to—and both the male and female exhibited it—was repeatedly swimming around the base of a powerhead mounted at the far left end of the tank (as I usually face it—you can actually view the tank from either side and one end) about 5 inches below the surface. They would swim in a circle 10, 15, even 20 times or more, briefly break away and swim about half the length of the tank, and then come right back to the powerhead to swim another set of “laps.” Both triggers fed with gusto and would swim up to greet me whenever I approached the tank, no doubt assuming more food was forthcoming, and sometimes they would stop the lap swimming and explore more of the tank for brief periods. But they would always revert to that same maddening behavior. I tried moving the powerhead next to my overflow box and closer to the surface so it would be harder to swim in a loop around it, but the triggers just wiggled their way through the narrowed pathway anyway. Afraid they’d get injured or flip out of the tank, I moved the powerhead back to its original location. by Saltwater Smarts | Mar 12, 2016 | Fish, Invertebrates, Reef, Science, Tanks
Yasha Shrimp Goby (Stonogobiops yasha)Certain marine fish pack a lot of visual and behavioral interest into a very small package. Such is the case with the yasha shrimp goby (Stonogobiops yasha), also sold under the common names whiteray shrimp goby, orange-striped shrimp goby, clown shrimp goby, and others. This little goby, hailing from the western Pacific, is strikingly colored and patterned, very peaceful, and well-suited to smaller systems. Fairly recently identified, S. yasha is also somewhat uncommon in the hobby and (to my pocketbook anyway) a little on the expensive side, but it’s well worth the price if you can source a specimen. Shrimp symbiontS. yasha is among the various goby species that have a symbiotic relationship with Alpheus spp. by Admin | Mar 10, 2016 | Invertebrates, Photography
Big fleas have little fleas, Upon their backs to bite ’em, And little fleas have lesser fleas, and so, ad...
