My 20gal marine tank!

[Emma_fish]

Xenia does spread. It’s part of the fun though, to watch it grow! Placing some on a small island rock will help keep it contained.

Do you have any ideas where I could put an island in my tank ?

 

[Dark_Knightt]

I love the sound of I sea star so much I will have to do a bit more research though because I don’t like the brittle and serpent sea stars so what kind would you recommend that are reef safe?
I don’t really want Zoas because of the risk of palytoxin I would just rather not have the risk as I would stress out and likely never touch my tank again - bad
I like hammers so I will have a closer look into those and do GSP spread like Xenia’s ?

GSP can spread quite fast, but if you isolate it on the sandbed or on a rock you will be able to contain it.
Second, palytoxin is not something anyone really worries about, its almost impossible for the toxin to be released. The zoas would have to go through hell. Has anyone on this forum ever had any palytoxin problems? I havent heard of many.

 

[Dark_Knightt]

Do you have any ideas where I could put an island in my tank ?

Place it in the sandbed, away from other rocks so it cannot reach out to the main aquascape, where it can then takeover.

 

[Emma_fish]

Place it in the sandbed, away from other rocks so it cannot reach out to the main aquascape, where it can then takeover.

What about an island where the black dot is for xenias would that work ?

 

[Dark_Knightt]

What about an island where the black dot is for xenias would that work ?

Yes, that is a great spot. but keep it away from the glass as well, you wouldnt want it tank over there lol. Actually a xenia back wall would look really nice. But it would then take over the rest of your tank from there.

 

[Emma_fish]

Yes, that is a great spot. but keep it away from the glass as well, you wouldnt want it tank over there lol. Actually a xenia back wall would look really nice. But it would then take over the rest of your tank from there.

Right I’m on it my first coral addition will be Xenia’s I’m pretty sure my Lfs has some early nice ones in at the minute as well

 

[Dark_Knightt]

Right I’m on it my first coral addition will be Xenia’s I’m pretty sure my Lfs has some early nice ones in at the minute as well

Try some zoas too! Trust me you wont regret it! Some are expensive, some arent, but they are all colorful! *I spent months looking for "rasta" zoas, ended up finding some for sale yesterday, and got some other ones as well. GSP would also be nice.

Your LFS must have some frag deals, like 3 for $60 or something like that.

 

[Sosuke]

I had a 32 gallon biocube for a little over a year and shut it down a month ago due to high school starting. I wouldn't worry about the zoanthids the way to get palytoxin poisoning is due to mishandling them ie boil, improper fragging, etc. I honestly would recommend a zoanthid garden somewhere in your tank because of how many varieties and colors there are. Xenia can work on the island but will most likely spread on their own anyways so I wouldn't worry about it much. Heres my tank prior to shutdown. In your tank I would add more height and structures for coral placement and fish hiding spots. Something I didn't do when I started out and kinda regretted.

 

[Tcook]

That fromia star won't last long in a tank that small and young. Would be better to rehome it in a 100+ gallon tank that has been set up for a few years.

 

[Emma_fish]

That fromia star won't last long in a tank that small and young. Would be better to rehome it in a 100+ gallon tank that has been set up for a few years.

I don’t have a fromia star ?

 

[Dark_Knightt]

I don’t have a fromia star ?

I think the one in your photo edit. Go with a banded serpent star, very fun, surprisingly quick, and when I handled it to put it in the tank it was very fun. I would obviously like to handle my creatures more but it probably isnt good for them.

 

[Emma_fish]

I think the one in your photo edit. Go with a banded serpent star, very fun, surprisingly quick, and when I handled it to put it in the tank it was very fun. I would obviously like to handle my creatures more but it probably isnt good for them.

Oh right aha I don’t really like the serpent / brittle stars are there any other options ? If there aren’t I will get one but I prefer the other kinds of stars

 

[Sosuke]

For a 20 gallon not much variety to choose from. Most starfish graze on microfauna and sponges which many nano tanks don't have enough of. I agree with Dark_Knightt, a serpent star is a fun addition and is much more hardy.

 

[Dark_Knightt]

Oh right aha I don’t really like the serpent / brittle stars are there any other options ? If there aren’t I will get one but I prefer the other kinds of stars

I believe brittle/serpents are the most beginner friendly, simple species. I would do more research to find out exactly what you want and how to care for it. I would recommend the sand sifting starfish, but those get quite large.

 

[Dark_Knightt]

For a 20 gallon not much variety to choose from. Most starfish graze on microfauna and sponges which many nano tanks don't have enough of. I agree with Dark_Knightt, a serpent star is a fun addition and is much more hardy.

YOu can always "spot feed", put some seaweed on a rock in front of them.

 

[Emma_fish]

For a 20 gallon not much variety to choose from. Most starfish graze on microfauna and sponges which many nano tanks don't have enough of. I agree with Dark_Knightt, a serpent star is a fun addition and is much more hardy.

Well I’ll do some more research on the serpent and some other species aswell and I will decide I might wait a bit longer to as my tank is only 3 months old

 

[Dark_Knightt]

Well I’ll do some more research on the serpent and some other species aswell and I will decide I might wait a bit longer to as my tank is only 3 months old

Yes I would wait a few more months for starfish, but a few corals you are good to go

 

[Aqua Man]

Regarding Zoas and other coral, ALWAYS wash your hands after having them in your tank. Even a simple hammer coral can give some people a reaction from the tentacles touching skin.

I'm more afraid of reaching in to move a rock or something and grabbing a bristled worm!!

looking forward to seeing that Xenia!

 

[ylreefer]

Your tank is coming along nicely. . Its funny how the common clown is always a pleasure to see even after centuries and all the new varieties that have appeared over the recent years.

I agree that a zoa garden would look very coolin a nano. As others have mentioned, the palytoxin issue is very rare, and most of the zoas that carry it are few and far between what normally see for sale., but if it would make your enjoy your tank less then I'd suggest leaving them out . Although I would always recommend keeping your hands out the tank as much as possible.

That pic got me for a second, I was, like dang that's a nice gobie, someone had been busy lol.

As for the GSP/Xenia yes they will spread, and fairly quickly. But if you can keep them contained they will add a nice bit of movement to the tank. I have both, the xenia has about 8x its size from 2" since Feb last year. (I'll add a pic) Plus the are bits popping up in 3 other places thanx to my urchin taking it for a walk .

My nano has since been converted back to a qt tank since it was just to much commitment managing 2 tanks. So this xenia is in the 180gtank thankfully.

 

[Aqua Man]

The little brittle stars will eventually find there way into your tank if not already!


Do you see any little arms poking out of the holes in your rock? Harmless and beneficial hitchhiker.

Some serpent stars are known to hunt and eat fish.
Lol, I thought that crab and starfish looked pasted in!! Clown goby too? Neat fish!