The Long Island Aquarium: A Pleasant Surprise Near the Tip of the Island

If you are ever visiting NYC and have time for a day trip out on Long Island, I would highly suggest the Long Island Aquarium and Exhibition Center out in Riverhead as an excellent family destination. The center is about a one-hour drive from Queens on the Long Island Expressway. As an added benefit, there is a hotel right next door to the facility if you decide to spend additional time in the area. I have been to many small public aquariums during my work travels around the world, and due to its initial apparent size, I expected to spend no more than one or two hours going through the entire exhibit with my wife and seven-year-old daughter. I usually grade any attraction by the quality of the exhibits and how well it holds my daughter’s attention. I must say the Long Island Aquarium surprised me as we ended up spending up to four hours there and it was a lot bigger than I expected. My daughter was pleasantly entertained the entire time without any complaints. As you walk towards the entrance, a beautiful fountain greets you and draws you in

ReefGen Superduperman Zoanthid

The AquaNerd featured coral of the week originated from a zoa colony collected by ReefGen, called the Superduperman Zoanthid.  These beautiful zoas are brightly colored, very hardy, and grow rapidly once established in the aquarium.  For optimum growth, the Superduperman Zoa  prefers moderate lighting and moderate water flow.  We went to the ReefGen site to locate a price but it appears their site is currently under construction, however we were able to find these for sale at Unique Corals.  For Eight to Ten polyps a nice frag sells for $34.00. Photo by Unique Corals Care: CARE LEVEL:  Intermediate TEMPERAMENT: Semi-Aggressive PLACEMENT: On rock-work or rubble WATER MOVEMENT: Moderate LIGHTING:  Moderate HUSBANDRY NOTES: Unique Corals grows their zoas out under a combination of LED and

In Praise of Pipe Organ

When I was new to the reef hobby, I encountered a vendor with morals. I was fascinated with Pipe Organ coral (Tubipora musica) and wanted to purchase one. I was promptly educated that this coral, much like Goniopora at that time, was impossible to keep.…