by AquaNerd | May 7, 2014 | Fish, Photography, Shark Week, Tanks
It is always easy to underestimate the feeding abilities of predatory fish, in this case a sand tiger shark at a marine park in Japan. You see the animal and think, “surely, it can’t eat that” when referring to its tankmates. But the 9-foot sand tiger at Aqua World surprised its keepers when after an extended fasting period, perhaps in preparation of the swimming meal it was eyeballing, the shark tried to eat a 3-foot long whitetip reef shark. The aquarium’s staff had been worried for days because the sand tiger was showing no interest in feeding. That is until, however, the tasty little whitetip morsel came a little too close. The shark attacked the much smaller whitetip and even managed to get most of victim into its mouth. But the 3-foot long shark proved to be a bit too much, as it was seen sticking out of the sand tiger’s mouth and was eventually spit out. Obviously dead at this point, the aquarium keepers removed the whitetip in fear that the sand tiger would return and try to finish the job by AquaNerd | May 1, 2014 | Corals, Eye Candy, Photography
Saying something is the best or the greatest is always a lofty claim, but this scolymia, with its kaleidoscope of colors, can easily lay claim to the title of “Best Scoly on Earth”…at least until it is dethroned by some other insane piece. A top shelf piece from Sexy Corals that was recently featured on Reef2Reef, this bad boy doesn’t fit nicely into the common scoly nicknames of bleeding apple, warpaint, or master, as it seems to represent some features of all varieties all rolled into one. We lost count of the distinguishable colors at 8, but at this point it doesn’t even matter. This piece wasn’t presented with any information, such as price or size, as it was apparently reserved for a special Sexy Corals customer. That said, we are certain that the price tag jumped into the four figures since it is just such an amazing and unique piece. by AquaNerd | Apr 29, 2014 | Conservation, Fish, Industry
The production team that filmed “The Cove”, a popular documentary that brought to light the extreme dolphin slaughtering in Japan, is back with a brand new movie that will focus on the larger issues of illegal wildlife trafficking and the possibility of mass extinction that are both taking place in oceans and seas across the globe as we speak. Simply called “6″, this movie utilizes state-of-the-art equipment and undercover tactics to expose the black market trading of endangered species, such as products made from whale sharks, giant clams, and hundreds of others. The trailer for the movie, posted above, shows some of the guerrilla reporting tactics used by the team, as they scour the streets of various Asian communities exposing black market dealers, who obviously aren’t always thrilled to find out they’re being investigated by the production team. Also displayed in the brief promo is a more positive side effect of the team’s efforts…a public awareness campaign involving a mobile projector, a fast car, and one very talented NASCAR driver. The trailer shows Leilani Munter driving a Jaguar fitted with a video projector around various parts of what we presume to be cities in the United States. The projector blasts imagery of marine life onto surrounding buildings, no doubt captivating pedestrians and drivers alike. Since increasing public awareness about travesties such as those currently taking place on the black market is so paramount to sparking a change. by AquaNerd | Feb 16, 2014 | Corals, Opinion, Science, Tanks
Sunny delight Zoas, Photo Credit: ReefKoi Corals In this hobby we see coral and invert phases come and go. From clams to chalices and even maxi mini anemones, it seems like they all go through a lot of initial hype then slowly decline in popularity. One of the mainstays in the hobby have been zoanthids and palythoas, which have been the craze for quite a while now. They have been in demand for what seems like an eternity and they do not appear to be getting less popular. Instead, it seems like they’re constantly on the rise. Zoas and palys are highly favored in the hobby by both beginner and expert reefers alike. They don’t require much in terms of care like other specimens and they grow under many types of lighting from T5s to LEDs. Polyps grow at the bottom of the sand bed or on your highest rock. They don’t necessarily need to be target fed like other corals and they also do not require us to dose things like calcium. by AquaNerd | Feb 16, 2014 | Fish, Science
Last year saw the worldwide debut of one very unique clownfish from Sustainable Aquatics. Dubbed the Longfin Clownfish, this particular individual had the most elaborate finnage we’ve ever seen from an otherwise normal looking Amphiprion percula, and according to a very recent announcement, that trait has been successfully passed down to a whole new generation of longfin clowns. Admittedly, these are some terrible photographs of the fish, which were shared on the Sustainable Aquatics Facebook page, but the fish do show significant signs of the same elaborate finnage that were just so intriguing in their parent. We hope to see a few more images of the “Longfin Jr.” clownfish in the very near future, and while the fins may not be as elaborate, it’s a step in the right direction in getting a whole new type of designer clownfish. The original longfin clownfish is pictured immediately below.
