How To Prevent Nipping

[Liquid360]

Today I found my CB nipping at my scoly, a defense punishable by death. However seeing as I can't catch this fish I figured a new solution....

 

[Squishie89]

Is your CB too big to fit in there? Your goby looks wary of this new addition =P

 

[Liquid360]

he's just big enough that its awkward for him to even try. He can't swim straight down nor can he calculate trajectory to enter at an angle. I'll see how it does but I THINK perhaps it'll work and I can still see my scoly.

 

[mike007]

Time out for the scoli?

 

[Liquid360]

Totally! BAD SCOLY!! YOU ARE A BAD CORAL!! BAD!!

Time out for the scoli?

 

[Mike J.]

This would be my suggestion, they work great. I think because they are so clear in the water.Aquarium Acclimation Kit: Reef Gently AccliMate Pro

 

[Liquid360]

Yeah but mine was .10 at the thrift store.

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

I would think long term that this would not be good for the scoly considering the limited flow it will receive. I would choose the scoly over the fish! HA!

 

[backpack]

A strawberry container works fairly well and wont kill flow.

 

[NanaReefer]

You'll also get tired real quick of taking it out to clean. To say nothing of ticking off your Scoly. That glass it going to get dirty quick. Speaking from experience :)


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[Liquid360]

I've got two dozen. Can't imagine I will but appreciate the advice. I'm using them primarily in feeding to prevent the fish from grabbing the shrimp off the scoly.

You'll also get tired real quick of taking it out to clean. To say nothing of ticking off your Scoly. That glass it going to get dirty quick. Speaking from experience :)


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[Liquid360]

Also it's glass... as is my aquarium. Why would it be any different?

 

[SeymourDuncan]

If there was a reef safe chicken wire I would recommend that. Either way, rev is right. In this case your best off picking one or the other, which is a grand excuse for another tank setup! 3 months from now you will most likely be over the whole deal with covering cleaning and feeding with the barrier. Don't feel bad, I have a baby humu humu I may have to capture before he turns on my corals. Until then my damsel being territorial helps, he claims the whole visible side of the rock haha. Greedy damsel

 

[mcarroll]

If the glass on your aquarium never gets dirty or grows algae (or this is only in for short periods) then you're in good shape, but this still seems like a very short term solution.

Personally I would catch the Butterfly and sell him....not hard (and you should get a nice price for one that's already feeding!), but most traditional methods are very hit or miss and typically require tons of time and a lot of patience unless you are willing to temporarily remove your rock. (Depending on your situation, not a huge deal if you plan it right.). A better alternative is a very small fly-fishing hook baited with his favorite food. Get the correct line for the hook too. File the barb off the hook if the idea of it bothers you, but wait til you see a (e.g.) #2 hook in person - it's already tiny, tiny, tiny! :) Very fast catch IME and 99% less stressful on him - and the rest of the tank - than an all-day chase or tank breakdown.

(If you can be patient and a little creative, even just a net - no chasing - can work. Can also require a lot of attention too though.)

Hope this helps! :)

-Matt

 

[Liquid360]

You type as though I haven't tried everything else including capturing the CB.... yes I must clean my glass every couple weeks. I hardly consider it a chore. Chicken wire would be great if it came in stainless.

 

[bct15]

Are you planning to do this long term? I see this being more problematic than beneficial if intended to be used long term.

Also, stainless steel is not aquarium safe...putting stainless chicken wire in there would most likely be the demise of your whole system.

 

[Mike J.]

All I can say, Liquid, is you're never boring. The trap I linked works better than anything I've seen.

 

[Liquid360]

the ONLY purpose, and it does this FLAWLESSLY, is so I can feed my scolys without the fish and shrimp stealing their food. It seems a scoly requires a couple minutes to consume their dinner. Did I mention that it serves this purpose flawlessly?
Lol Thanks mike I try.
Ps. For short term exposure I believe stainless is superior for saltwater environments. I could be wrong... but I'm not. I wasn't suggesting a tank full of stainless steel chicken wire. Give me a little credit. I was recommending a tiny glass globe!!!

 

[bct15]

From your first few posts and the title it seemed you were deeming this as a method to eliminate nipping from a butterfly fish, that is why I asked if you plan to do this long term.

About stainless steel, it is definitely not superior to anything at all in a salt water aquarium environment. (not a single stainless steel is suitable for aquarium use) It is highy corrosive in salt water and will start releasing all elements in its chemical makeup almost immediately. You are by far mistaken, you don't have to take my word for it...I'm just finishing my phd on crystalline metals, specifically steels. Below is a screenshot of just some of the chemical makeup on your typical stainless steel, obviously each grade is a little different which is why they give a range.

And a wiki link of you prefer to read about the corrosiveness of stainless steel and the different grades. The second paragraph tells it all.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stainless_steel

 

[Mike J.]

I think CB stands for Coral Beauty not Butterflyfish. But that doesn't have any bearing on the topic at hand. Carry on.