Caribbean Biotope Seagrass Tank

[sam.basye]

Is Mr. Pederson living with the condy full time?? Or is the pic from a few days ago him just stopping by to check on it?

I still like how your little snails crawl all over the seagrass blades. Pretty cool.

Why do you think Zippy's kind isn't very popular? They are definitely one of the best looking IMO; especially if you can get your hands on a juvi. It's like getting two fish in one as it changes colors.

[Michael Hoaster]

That's Spot in the anemone-he lives there full-time. Mr Pederson never goes into the anemone. He just forages around the DSB. I've thought of adding another host organism for him, like a ricordea, flower or even another condylactis anemone.

The giant army of tiny snails is amazing. They keep everything clean and free of micro algae. They are everywhere.

I think the reason atlantic blue tangs are less popular, is because they start out gorgeous in the yellow phase, but turn blue and perhaps a bit duller, as they age. Plus they get pretty big, requiring tanks 180 gallons and up. If it started blue and turned yellow, I bet it would be much more popular. I agree it's like two fish in one, and I have really enjoyed the yellow phase. With the vivd blue accents, it's beautiful! I also look forward to the blue. If he's healthy and well fed, he should still look good.

[sam.basye]

Originally Posted by Michael Hoaster

That's Spot in the anemone-he lives there full-time. Mr Pederson never goes into the anemone.

Hmmmm... You sure? Lol

Apparently my shrimp recollection in the 'tope has escaped me.. Haha


It's slowly coming back to me now.

What kind of shrimp is Spot?

[Michael Hoaster]

No. One's a White Spot Anemone Shrimp, the other's a Pederson Cleaner Shrimp. They're both in the Periclimenes genus.


Periclimenes pedersoni




Periclimenes yucatanicus

[sam.basye]

Ah, does Zippy let Mr. Pederson clean him? It's a species of cleaner shrimp, but how comparable to a scarlet skunk cleaner are they?

I was looking around online and think you should add a carribean pipefish pair to live among the grasses!
Unless of course Zippy would harass them or there is to much root flow going on.. Lol

[Michael Hoaster]

Good question. Indeed, these two should form a cleaner/client relationship, but they haven't yet, as far as I know. These shrimp are considerably smaller than skunk cleaners, barely more than an inch. They do have the big white antennae, like all cleaners, but are still pretty hard to find on the sand bed. I got the tang pretty young, so he might not have figured out the cleaner thing yet, and there are no bigger, mature fish to demonstrate the process.

I'd love to do some pipefishes! But I'd worry that they would decimate my pods and/or not be able to compete at feeding time. I have looked for seagrass-living fish. How about some of those fish that swim vertically, shrimp fish? Cowfish are grass dwellers as well, and could work, if gotten rid of it before they got too big. I'm not sure they could compete at feeding time either.

I don't want to have to target feed anything in my aquarium. I know from experience I won't keep up with it.

[Michael Hoaster]

A tiny red plant starting up, just above the grasilaria hayi, on the fake root.




Obligatory end shot.




I'm getting some nice coralline algae.




One more.

[Michael Hoaster]

All of a sudden, one of the grammas is bigger, and is starting to challenge Big Daddy. If it is a male, I may have to remove it. I don't think two males will coexist peacefully. Could be time for the old soda bottle fish trap!

I'll have to keep an eye on them and see if it progresses. It is possible they could chill I guess. Maybe they could split the harem? Seems unlikely in the relative confines of my 180.

Hypnea pannosa, Botryocladia, and the weird macro have all been nearly wiped out by Mr Zippy. Other than the G. hayi, there aren't many red macros left in my tank, except for a few, mostly hidden under caulerpa. It's fun to study his grazing habits, and see how he changes the landscape. Except for a few small targeted prunings, I haven't had to export macro algae for months. The way he picks at the caulerpa seems to help it grow more robust. It looks better!

I'm starting the second week of Iodide dosing. I think the grasilaria hayi is showing slight improvement, but it's still a bit soon to know. The tiny red plant I pointed out in the above post, may be another G. hayi. That would indicate progress. There are also some red wine colored spots on the fake root. I'm hoping they are the bases for new cotton candy algae. They may just be more coralline algae though.

The manatee grass is doing very well, growing more tall leaves. The plant with the suspected flower has not changed in a couple weeks. That reinforces the flower theory. If it was just branching, there would be growth. I'm guessing it's a male plant. The bud looks tall and thin, rather than round, like a female flower. There's no sign of any other plants flowering. But hey, it's still winter! As the temps warm up, that could cue other plants to flower.

[sam.basye]

The plating coraline is pretty cool!
Do you keep your calcium levels at a specific number/range or just winging it and letting your nature in a box fluctuate on its own?

[Michael Hoaster]

Thanks, Sam! I'm getting coralline all over lately.

I'm pretty much winging it with calcium levels, but the coralline growth reveals my "calcium reactor" chamber in the canister filter is working.

[nawilson89]

Updates are looking great!

[sam.basye]

How often do you change out media/clean your canister reactor? Lol

I completely gave up on putting anything in mine because it is a pita to remove. Lol

[Michael Hoaster]

I'll change out media whenever I want to try something different. I'll clean it when I do water changes-about once a month, these days.

[sam.basye]

Once a month water changes?? That seems obsessive... Lol

Wasn't the original plan to not do any water changes? What changed your mind.

[Michael Hoaster]

I did talk about not doing water changes, as an ideal, but I never seriously considered not doing them. Things build up, things get depleted. Water changes help. For all my talk of letting Mother Nature do most of the work for me, I still think water changes are good practice. Lucky for me, I don't need to do them very often!

[Michael Hoaster]

I've noted several threads in this forum, with folks having difficulty growing various macros in their sumps or refugiums. I think the main problem is a lack of commitment to caring for these plants. They are not foolproof. They are not filtration media, meant to fit in a small compartment in a sump. They require bright light and good flow, like corals, but more nutrients than sensitive sps corals need.

So, if you are committed to keeping nutrients low for your corals, you won't be able to grow macros. There is a happy medium in there somewhere, where there is enough nutrients to keep a few macros growing, and few enough nutrients to keep SOME corals happy. At the other end of the spectrum, you can keep nutrients higher and keep lots of macros, but fewer corals.

The more you understand the different plants' needs, the better you can taylor your "macro-filter" to your suit your ecosystem.

[Subsea]

Originally Posted by Michael Hoaster

Thanks, Sam! I'm getting coralline all over lately.

I'm pretty much winging it with calcium levels, but the coralline growth reveals my "calcium reactor" chamber in the canister filter is working.

I agree with Sam, the plating corraline looks very unique. Would you describe the set up of a calcium reactor section in your cannistar filter?

[Michael Hoaster]

Thanks, Subsea.

First of all, I have CO2 regulator and a tank of CO2. I got these for a full size calcium reactor I was running when I had the tank set up as a reef, a few years back. Instead of running the airline tubing to a reactor, I run it to the intake tube of my canister filter. So CO2 gets sucked into the canister filter with incoming water. I put crushed coral (in a mesh media bag) in one of the media baskets. And that's about it. I usually run around a bubble a second, around the clock. I don't shut it down at night as some people do. It may be necessary to do so in a smaller, less heavily planted tank.

[Subsea]

Originally Posted by Michael Hoaster

Thanks, Subsea.

First of all, I have CO2 regulator and a tank of CO2. I got these for a full size calcium reactor I was running when I had the tank set up as a reef, a few years back. Instead of running the airline tubing to a reactor, I run it to the intake tube of my canister filter. So CO2 gets sucked into the canister filter with incoming water. I put crushed coral (in a mesh media bag) in one of the media baskets. And that's about it. I usually run around a bubble a second, around the clock. I don't shut it down at night as some people do. It may be necessary to do so in a smaller, less heavily planted tank.

Thank you for the explanation of the calcium rector in a cannistar.
I would expect lower pH from carbon dioxide produced by plants during lights out. I suspect this is natural in lagoons and grass flats to see fluctuating pH between day and night.

[Michael Hoaster]

Right, pH fluctuation isn't too big a concern. The biggest concern is too much CO2 in the water column at night, stressing fish and other organisms. If your fish are gasping at the surface in the morning, you are probably accumulating too much CO2 overnight.

[sam.basye]

If you don't mind me asking; what is the overall cost per month to run CO² like you are? Like tank refills and how long they last.

[Michael Hoaster]

I'm not sure, Sam.

Let's see, I rent a 5 pound tank for around $17. I guess it lasts for around 6 months, so about $35 a year.

Are you thinking of using a similar setup for your reef tank?

[sam.basye]

That's way cheaper than I thought it would be. Way less CO² also. I assume it has a pressure gauge so you know when it's empty.

Who rents them out? Never even realized that was an option.

I'm considering it, as long as it conforms to my laziness.. Haha

I honestly don't remember the last time I did a water change.. Other than the water change clock going off in my head saying I should probably do one. Lol
I've been contemplating re-foaming the top of the wall during a water change intermission, but nervous about it. Soo, that's the other half of my excuse, the other is laziness.

[Michael Hoaster]

Well that's good to hear. Yes, there are two gauges on the regulator-THAT'S where your money goes-the whole regulator assembly. I have an Airgas store in Boulder. I would think most towns would have a similar thing. Google CO2 tanks Lynchburg, VA.

Very smart of you, taking the "lazy factor" into account. When planning ahead, think the worst of yourself.

Wow, that's amazing you've gotten away without doing water changes! And your tank looks great, so try to remain slack.

What do you want to accomplish with the re-foam? God, I hope I never touch that stuff again! Though I know I'll have to do a better one on the next tank…

[Michael Hoaster]

Quick update on the royal gramma issue. It appears that one has turned into a male, and is now challenging the previously only male. They mostly avoid each other, but occasionally they get after each other. From what I've read this is a deadly combination, but, so far, mine haven't gotten too rough. So I wonder if it will get worse and worse, or they will reach some kind of truce. I'll keep an eye on them, but obviously I can't watch all day. I want to call it before someone gets hurt/killed.