JamesL

A little bit of time cropped up to take some more pictures of the tank. Here are the results. One of the many asterna stars in the tank (not too shabby considering I was holding the camera): Finally got a decent picture of these zoas: Killed off some aptasia's around these, so they should start spreading onto the main rockwork: My little kryptonite candy cane that I traded for at the last meeting: Beware of the guard damsel! And a decent full tank shot (contrast/brightness adjusted to lighten up the pic - click for xlarge version):

I finally got a decent FTS tonight. I lightened it up, so the contrast/brightness is a bit off, but shows things better.

They sound like rock anemones, and clowns do not host in them. Not sure if they would try or not to though, but as Keeper said I think they are fairly aggressive. But rock anemones are sold by different resellers, so some people keep them in tanks.

I believe you need to call and make an appointment. I do not think they carry livestock (I could be wrong on this), but mainly deal in hardware and custom built stuff.

Heck, the seaweed washing in to the beach normally has a lot of life in it. Lots of shrimps and crabs that are not reef safe. Last year when were were at Port A on the beach, we shook a black and white frogfish out of the seaweed into a pail. We released him after taking some video.

While clown gobies are small, I have had some that were not aggressive per say, but would hold their won. And + 1 on the Scopas tang. To add to the list: - Twinspot Bristletooth Tang - Yellowhead Jawfish are pretty docile, they just protect their hole.

It sounds like you might be trying to create an album in a place where only admins can. You can try this: Click on the the "Gallery" link at the top of the page. Scroll down and click on "Members Gallery". Then click on the "New Album" button in the upper right corner of the page. From here, give it a name, and click on the "Public Album" check box if you want to have others see it. Then click on "Create Album", and that should get you going. Let me know if you still have issues.

Get those shots in, the contest entry closes tomorrow.

Nice shots! 18-70mm is a wide angle to normal lense. I believe 50mm is considered "normal" view. The small the mm, the wider the picture. I have a 70-200mm zoom lense that I do my macro shots with.

Fixed the topic title for you.

Alligator Grill has closed down (some dispute over the rent or something). Long live the flair

Fixed that for ya

This whole time we have been talking about how to set up a saltwater tank. But we have not talked about one very important decision which prompted you to delve into this adventure: what do you plan to put in it? This actually will influence the aquascaping (landscaping done underwater) and equipment needs. If you are wanting to keep sharks, whales, dolphins, or sea turtles at home… well, then you are heading down the wrong path. All of those creatures need much more space than we can provide them. Leave them be in the oceans and public aquariums. And before you think I was being too comical with that last statement, shark eggs do show up for sale. Some actually hatch, and it is possible to keep them alive in a home aquarium for a short time. But most grow too big for home aquariums. Octopi also show up for sale. They normally have specialized requirements of cold water (something hard to do down here in Texas, but possible with a water chiller), and a very well sealed aquarium. They are escape artists, and will find a way to squeeze through the smallest hole, or push open lids. They normally do not last long in captivity, expect when kept by experts who have studied their exact needs. Also put eels into the category of being master escape artists. Even though they need water to live, they still try to make a slither for it across the waterless floor. So what does that leave you… well, lots of choices. To simplify we will break down choices into Fish Only, Reef, and Specialized Care. For the fish only option, you are basically looking to see bright colored fish swimming around in a tank. Fish only setups work great for aggressive fish that either like to re-arrange the rock work (such as triggers), or eat other fish (such as lionfish, eels, groupers, etc.). The plus side with fish only tanks, is lighting is not a critical element, thus you do not need to invest in expensive fixtures. One downside to aggressive fish only tanks is that eating live food tends to make the tank messy, thus keeping up with water quality is important. Reef tanks are probably some of the more commonly kept tanks these days. They consists of a mixture of both corals and fish. These type of tanks give you the most diversity of life, as you have the fish swimming and darting in and out of the rock work. Plus you have corals growing, opening, and swaying in the current. These type of setups require different specialized lights depending on the type of corals being kept. And finally you have what I call specialized care tanks. Seahorses are a good example of this. While they are harder to keep than most fish, it is possible. They need specialized care in that they can not be kept with fast or aggressive fish (who would eat their food before hay can get it). They also can not be kept with most corals, as the corals would sting them. Seahorses require places to hitch, so they need some no-stinging branching corals or thin rocks to wrap their tails around. Most people dedicate tanks exclusively to them. As you see, there are many choices on what to fill your box of water with. It all comes down to personal preference on what you would like to see swimming around in your tank. James has been keeping saltwater fish on and off for almost 20 years. He has worked at various pet stores along the way, fueling his love of fish. His first saltwater tank was a small 5 gallon custom tank. Today he maintains a 75 gallon mixed reef and saltwater tank and is a member of the Austin Reef Club, http://www.austinreefclub.com/.

So now you know the basics of what life is like out in the big blue ocean (you *did* read the last article, didn't you?). Armed with this information, you are still gung-ho to capture a mere slice of this in your own home. As mentioned previously, it is a bit more complicated than adding the salt to the water. To successfully keep a saltwater tank you must become a junior chemist. Chemistry? Yuck! Well, that is my reaction when I hear the word chemistry. I hated that subject to no end while in college. But fear not intrepid fish keepers, you just need a little chemical know-how to keep things alive. In the simplest tank, where you are keeping just saltwater fish, you need to become familiar with 4 chemical measurements: pH, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. The first, pH, is the simplest. It measures the acidity/alkalinity of the water… the acidity-what? To keep things simple, basically it is important to keep the pH at a stable reading in your tank. And thankfully, this is done pretty much automatically with regular water changes. Now the next three work in conjunction in what is known as the Nitrogen Cycle. You might have heard of people "cycling" their saltwater fish tanks. This term is derived from the nitrogen cycle, which means they are establishing the tank so it can support life. The nitrogen cycle starts with ammonia. Ammonia is caused by things decaying in the tank. This could be from a dead animal or from the waste products of live animals. More than a trace amount of ammonia is lethal to life in a fish tank, so it needs to be dealt with. Thankfully, nature provides a bacteria that loves to eat ammonia. This bacteria converts ammonia into nitrite, which brings us to the second stage in the nitrogen cycle. Well guess what, nitrites are also lethal to fish tank inhabitants also. Those initial bacteria don't seem so nice now, do they? Well, this is where nature steps in yet again. There are another type of bacteria who's sole purpose in life is to convert nitrites to nitrates, the last stop on our trip along the nitrogen cycle. Pretty convenient, wouldn't you say? And thankfully, nitrates are not harmfully to tank life as long as they don't get too high. The most common way to keep nitrates in check is regular water changes (this is where you remove a small portion, say 20%, of the water and replace it with new). With this method you are physically removing the nitrates with the old water. This whole process of the nitrogen cycle generally takes around 30 days. The nitrogen cycle can be kicked off by adding what is known as "live rock" or adding starter bacteria. After you have established your bacteria colonies, fish and other inhabitants can be slowly added. So now you have graduated from saltwater chemistry 101. Those wishing to keep corals need an extra lesson in monitoring calcium, magnesium, iodine, and other elements. Testing for most things is pretty easy, with the added bonus of you getting to look like a mad scientist complete with vials and different colored liquids. I just want to take a brief moment to mention that these articles are meant to pique your interest in keeping saltwater fish. They are in no manner fully complete on what needs to be done. Magazines, books, and people who already own saltwater tanks are all great resources of information. And of course there is the internet. A combination of the internet and real life people people is the Austin Reef Club (which I am a member of). Their web site, http://www.austinreefclub.com/, is great place for beginners to advanced aquarists to hang out. They also offer monthly meetings where you can go visit some of the fantastic fish tanks located in the greater Austin area. James has been keeping saltwater fish on and off for almost 20 years. He has worked at various pet stores along the way, fueling his love of fish. His first saltwater tank was a small 5 gallon custom tank. Today he maintains a 75 gallon mixed reef and saltwater tank.

In the last article we explored the fascinating world of clownfish. But what does it take to keep these, and other saltwater fish, in your own home? To better understand the needs to keep these creatures in a tiny glass box, we first need to understand what their natural environment is like. Saltwater fish come from the ocean which is, well, saltwater. The ocean has very distinct zones with some being tidal, deep water, open water, and reef. And each zone has different life that lives in it. Sharks, whales, and other large fish like the wide open water to swim and hunt for food. These obviously make bad candidates for home living, as we just can not provide the needed space for them to flourish. Deep water contains the fish of nightmares: long toothed, big googly eyed creatures. These are only seem on nature programs, due to trying to bring these creatures to the surface generally results in death. They are adapted to the vast pressures the ocean puts on them at the depths they inhabit. If you scuba dive, you understand that coming from deep water requires much caution to prevent gas build up in the blood stream. Tidal areas are those near the shore line which get battered by the incoming waves. Creatures that live hear are normally really hardy, as they have to endure not only the pounding surf, but also exposure to air when the tide goes out. Some creatures here do make their way into the saltwater hobby. The main spot in the ocean where we see the most life, and the most suit- able creatures to keep at home, are the reefs. Reefs inhabit the shallower (between 5 to 40 feet) sections of the ocean. Water is generally very clear here, thus allowing lots of sunshine to penetrate the water and sustain those organisms (corals) which depend on the light. The corals provide both shelter and food for many a fish. The diversity of life on a reef is truly staggering. In a very small section, you can find hundreds of animals living in harmony. This is why a reef is the best suited to be recreated in a smaller setting, such as an aquarium. We can easily re-create the shallow water, intensity of the light, and habitat for corals and fish. So letʼs start with the key element: the fish tank itself. They come in all shapes and sizes, rectangular being the most common. While glass has been the old stand by in aquariums for a long time, acrylic has offered the ability to produce unique shapes such as spherical. The size and shape really boil down to personal preference. The key take away is generally to go with the biggest tank you can afford and have space for. The thought behind this is the more water you have, the more “buffering” capability the aquarium has in case some- thing goes wrong. Think of it this way. Say you pour a cup of bleach into the ocean, what is going to happen? Most likely nothing, as the bazillion gallons of water dilutes that bleach into nothingness. Now pour that same cup of bleach into a small bucket is water. The bleach stays concentrated, thus killing anything in that bucket. Now to the second important part: water. Is it more complicated than just taking table salt and adding it to water? Very definitely yes. Creatures, such as corals, extract minerals out of the water to grow and survive. Table salt does not contain these needed minerals. You could go down to the ocean and take buckets of saltwater and add it to a tank, but this has itʼs own issues such as unwanted parasites and pollution. Thank- fully there is an easy solution. You can buy specialized salt, which you mix with water and presto!, you have saltwater that has the needed minerals in it to sustain sea life. There are many brands, all with their own merits. And the third very key part to a saltwater tank is light. As mentioned before, reefs are located in very clear shallow water. Most are located near the equator, thus get very intense sunshine. This is important to recreate in the home if you plan on keeping corals (they contain algae inside them which uses the light to produce food for the coral). Again, manufactures have you covered with multiple options ranging from compact fluorescent to metal halide bulbs. I will save the discussion on what is needed for a later article. So you have your three key elements: tank, water, and light. Next step is to put it all together and add fish ... but hold your seahorses! You didnʼt think it would be that easy did you? In the next article we will look into what it takes to go from brand new tank to ready for life. Till then, keep an eye out for sharks. James has been keeping saltwater fish on and off for over 15 years. He has worked at various pet stores along the way, fueling his love of fish.

Who has not heard a child screaming this at the top of their lungs? You hear it in pet stores, in supermarkets, department stores, heck even on air planes. And for those that have no idea what these kids are talking about, you must not be a movie fan. Nemo, an ever-so-cute little orange with white stripes clownfish, was popularized by Pixar's blockbuster Finding Nemo film in 2003. This little fish has been catapulted into stardom, with his face adorning everything from cereal boxes to bicycles. But how much do you know about clownfish? Nemo represents a wide family of saltwater fish lumped together under the clownfish name. Specifically, Nemo is a Percula clownfish, Amphiprion percula. But there are many more types of clownfish, and their colors span orange, black, pink, and red. They get their name partially from their bright colors, but also from the way they swim, swaggering back and forth. All clownfish are born as males, and as they mature a dominant fish becomes a female. If that dominant fish ever dies, then another male makes the transformation to become a female. But their talents extend beyond being able to switch genders. Clownfish are one of the only types of fish that have formed a symbiotic relationship with anemones (some damselfish can also). What is an anemone you ask? To put is simply, it is a basic animal with many tentacles whose sole goal in life is to capture and eat things. Each tentacle contains millions of stinging cells that help the anemone to sting and capture their prey. The clownfish uses the anemone as protection by hiding between it's tentacles. So how does the clownfish avoid being stung? While not fully understood, the most common theory is the clownfish secretes a special mucus which prevents the anemone from stinging it. The anemone benefits from the relationship by getting bits of food that the clownfish does not eat. Even before the hit movie came out, clownfish were a favorite of saltwater tank keepers. So what does it take to keep these (and other) fish? Well, that is for another article. But till then, "just keep swimming".

My wife publishes a newsletter for a couple of neighborhoods here in Hays county. She asked my if I would be interested in writing articles about fish keeping. So I have been writing articles for it, and decided I would post them up here also. They are mainly targeted at people looking to get into the hobby, so most people on this site probably won't get much out of them... but new people might.

Very nice looking! You have some great tentacle extension on that maze brain (and your acans too).

Harlequins require a constant supply of live starfish to eat. They will wipe out a population of asterna stars pretty quickly. I think most people buy a chocolate chip stars to feed them. I would love to have a pair of them in my tank, but I don't think my wife would like the idea of feeding them live starfish

My maroon (from Mama) is mean to me ... always comes over and bites me, even when I am on the opposite side of the tank. From my experience, the closer a clown is to fully red, the meaner it is As Derek mentioned, skunks generally are pretty laid back. I also have a skunk in my tank, and it is shy. I wanted to try a group of skunks, because supposedly when they are in a large group they start "croaking" (not dieing, but making the actual sound).

I would image surface area is of more importance than the actually gallonage. Since rays are bottom dwellers, they would like lots of sand area to move around on.

Hm.. sorry to hear. In the future, I have read that tang maintain their best health when regularly fed nori/seaweed. They will eat other "fleshy" foods, but by their nature they are mostly vegetarians.

You might also try the mirror trick mentioned multiple times on this board. Put a mirror next to the tank, and when the tang tries to attack it's image, catch it with a net (might require 2 people ).

Many moons ago, people used to think bristleworms were bad, and went out of their way to get rid of them (Arrow crabs eat them, but they are creepy looking in their own manner). Now they are generally accepted as a great addition to your cleanup crew. I saw leave them be .. they will help eat any excess food that finds it's way to the bottom of the tank.