Educational Touch Tank (cold water)

[kaiserc175]

Hi, all,

I work at an outdoor educational facility on the coast of California, and I've been tasked with resurrecting our touch tank that we use with students. Over the past year, I've worked with an aquarium technician to get all the parts replaced/functional, and now I'm entering the process of how to best stock the touch tank and could use some guidance.

For reference, it's about a 75 gallon cold water touch tank. In the past, we had tegula snails, hermit crabs, urchins, bat stars, ochre stars, kelp fish, purple urchins, etc. We use it with students primarily 4th through 8th grade.

1. Recommendations for getting a SCP through the government? I need to get one regardless for stocking kelp and the tegula snails, etc., but I'm not sure if I should try to list other animals (like a gumboot chiton or a giant green anemone) on the permit as well. I work in science education but I'm not a trained scientist, so I'm not sure they'd let me be the principal investigator (we do have a local marine biologist we could list on the permits, but it'd be more convenient not to).

2. Recommendations on where to buy marine inverts? Any ethical retailers?

3. Any species you would or would not recommend?

4. Any feedback/suggestions/thoughts are welcomed. I am very new to this and a little overwhelmed, so I'll happily take any of the guidance I can get.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Hi, all,

I work at an outdoor educational facility on the coast of California, and I've been tasked with resurrecting our touch tank that we use with students. Over the past year, I've worked with an aquarium technician to get all the parts replaced/functional, and now I'm entering the process of how to best stock the touch tank and could use some guidance.

For reference, it's about a 75 gallon cold water touch tank. In the past, we had tegula snails, hermit crabs, urchins, bat stars, ochre stars, kelp fish, purple urchins, etc. We use it with students primarily 4th through 8th grade.

1. Recommendations for getting a SCP through the government? I need to get one regardless for stocking kelp and the tegula snails, etc., but I'm not sure if I should try to list other animals (like a gumboot chiton or a giant green anemone) on the permit as well. I work in science education but I'm not a trained scientist, so I'm not sure they'd let me be the principal investigator (we do have a local marine biologist we could list on the permits, but it'd be more convenient not to).

2. Recommendations on where to buy marine inverts? Any ethical retailers?

3. Any species you would or would not recommend?

4. Any feedback/suggestions/thoughts are welcomed. I am very new to this and a little overwhelmed, so I'll happily take any of the guidance I can get.

Thanks in advance!

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

Matsu Collections is in San Diego. You could contact them.

I’d avoid starfish at the moment - with the wasting disease going on, there aren’t many around and they do poorly.

Jay

 

[Andreas' Reef]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

Matsu Collections is in San Diego. You could contact them.

I’d avoid starfish at the moment - with the wasting disease going on, there aren’t many around and they do poorly.

Jay

What wasting disease are you refering to? Is there something going on with starfish recently?

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

What wasting disease are you refering to? Is there something going on with starfish recently?

Has been for quite some time up and down the Pacific coast - Most species were decimated. The sun star may become endangered due to an almost total die off. Some populations rebound, but then often die off again.

https://marine.ucsc.edu/data-products/sea-star-wasting/
Jay

 

[Andreas' Reef]

Has been for quite some time up and down the Pacific coast - Most species were decimated. The sun star may become endangered due to an almost total die off. Some populations rebound, but then often die off again.

https://marine.ucsc.edu/data-products/sea-star-wasting/
Jay

Wow I can't believe I haven't heard of this.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Wow I can't believe I haven't heard of this.

It’s awful. We had some sea stars on exhibit for 20+ years and added some new ones before the infection was well known, and we lost almost all of them.
Jay