by xeniaforever | Sep 5, 2016 | Contest, Events, Industry, MACNA, Reef
Congratulations, Joe Yaiullo! The annual Marine Aquarium Societies of North America (MASNA) Aquarist of the Year award will be presented to Joe this weekend, at the 2016 Marine Aquarium Conference of North America‘s Saturday night... by AquaNerd | Sep 5, 2016 | Reef, Science, Technology
James Cook University, University of Sydney and Queensland University of Technology scientists working with laser data from the Royal Australian Navy have discovered a vast reef behind the familiar Great Barrier Reef. JCU’s Dr Robin Beaman says the high-resolution seafloor data provided by LiDAR-equipped aircraft have revealed great fields of unusual donut-shaped circular mounds, each 200-300 meters across and up to 10 meters deep at the center. Halimeda is a green macroalgae composed of calcified leaf-like segments. As these plants die, these segments turn white and accumulate over thousands of years forming thick mounds called bioherms. Where these plants have died, A living layer of Halimeda algae covers the bioherms and stretches across an area of 6095 km2 on the landward side of the reef. by Saltwater Smarts | Sep 4, 2016 | Corals, Equipment, Reef, Science
Ensuring proper flow in your aquarium should be the number one priority, then aestheticsQuestionI have a new 60-gallon reef tank, and I’m using two powerheads to provide water circulation. One is mounted in the upper right-hand corner of the tank near the back and the other is in the lower left-hand corner near the front. My problem is, while the powerheads are providing good water flow, I hate the look of them. To my eye, they stand out like a sore thumb, and I want my tank to look as naturalistic as possible. Is there any reason I can’t hide them in the rocks?” – Submitted by Amir Answer Thanks for your question, Amir. It is possible to conceal powerheads among the rockwork in a reef system, but before attempting to do so, you’ll need to consider each of the following important points: Proper flow trumps aesthetics Good water circulation is absolutely essential in a reef system, so any aesthetic consideration with respect to powerheads should come in a very distant second to the flow they provide. Keep in mind that hiding powerheads in rockwork can easily limit their output if you’re not careful in their placement. If you’re unable to achieve the desired water movement with the powerheads tucked away behind rocks, it’s better to leave them out in the open. by AquaNerd | Sep 4, 2016 | Conservation, Fish, Reef, Science, Travel
OCHEARCH, an ocean research organization, has discovered a Great White nursery/birthing site in the North Atlantic, off the coast of Montauk, Long Island. Chris Fischer, the founding chairman of Ocearch (the organization behind the development) told CBS News that they had “definitely [found]the nursery, likely the birthing site.” The find is “probably the most significant discovery we’ve ever made on the ocean,” Fischer added. Locating sites where North Atlantic great white sharks give birth and raise their young in the North Atlantic can lead to better efforts to protect and better understand these apex predators. Great White sharks are described as “vulnerable.” A vulnerable species is one which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as likely to by Admin | Sep 3, 2016 | Photography, Reef
Humans have been chucking things into the water since…well, possibly since before we were humans. Until the last few millennia though, most things just rotted away. The odd jawbone from an ox, stone tool or the remains of Ogg from the tribe next door... by ReefBum | Sep 2, 2016 | Corals, Reef, Science
SPS Deep Dive – ORA Red Planet The ORA Red Planet is one of my favorite SPS for a number of reasons. Number one, it is red and who doesn’t love a splash of red in their reef to color things up. Number two, it is a tabling acropora so it looks like it is a natural part of a reef and number three is its fast growth rate. The last one I had was about a foot and a half wide and it didn’t take too long to get there! The ORA Red Planet was acquired by ORA in May of 2006 and quickly became a popular coral among SPS enthusiasts once it became available for sale. There was certainly an excitement when ORA released it and
