Myka's 69 SPS Tank 2015
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Myka
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Hey thanks for checking in! I added a Multibar Angelfish to the tank sometime around my last update. I put him through a quick quarantine with copper and PraziPro since he wasn't eating any fish foods including live blackworms. I should have found a different home for him when he didn't eat any fish food because I knew the chances of him eating polyps would be pretty high. He was good for the first three weeks in the reef, but he still wasn't eating any fish food. Then he discovered Acros, and he went to town. In less than 1 week he nearly annihilated the Acro population. He's now happily subsiding in a 8' FOWLR tank where he also happily eats fish food.
;Bored
I'll take some photos soon of the recovery. It's been a long, hard road out of hell. 5 points to anyone who gets the quote!
This is maybe half the damage:
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Myka
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Hey thanks for checking in! I think you're the only one following... ha!
My last post was early November, and the Acros were starting to look pretty good again. I started seeing signs of suspected dinoflagellates around mid-November which were identified as Ostreopsis under microscope. I ignored this problem for many weeks because I was very busy. The infection was mild, so it wasn't requiring immediate attention. Just after Christmas the dino problem flared up, so it was time to do something about it. I started dosing NO3 and PO4, and hooked up a 36 watt UV sterilizer. This knocked the dinos back within 48 hours. Within a couple weeks (mid-January) there were no visual signs of dinos anymore. I still need to take a sand sample from the tank and look under the microscope again. Anyway, the Acros didn't appreciate the dinos covering them, so many of them paled out yet again. Now, the Acros are back to 8 out of 10 I'd say. I'm keeping up with NO3 and PO4 dosing. The tank sits at about 5 ppm NO3 now, and even though I dose 0.1 ppm PO4 once a day, just before adding it I get a "0" test from Hanna ULR Phosphorus checker. The tank uses up a ton of PO4.
Sometime back, maybe 2 or 3 months ago the large male Emerald Crab died. I added a new one, and shortly after I lost a few small fish. Possibly coincidence, possibly not. I had a breeding pair of Hi Fin Gobies. They used to make their way to the sump almost weekly, but they had become well-behaved and managed to keep themselves in the display for 4 weeks straight. Then 10 days after the new Emerald Crab moved in the gobies are nowhere to be found (one a few days before the other). I can't blame the Emerald Crab for sure, because there is a big bad sump crab that could easily have caught the gobies if they made their way down there again. Who knows what happened to them.
Then about 2 weeks ago the male from the breeding pair of Helfrich's Firefish disappeared. He would often hide when he was tending eggs, but he'd always come out and eat when I fed. Well this time he didn't come out for 3 days. Then he came out and he was all beat up. I tried to catch him, but he dove back down to his hidey hole, and I never saw him again. Did the Emerald Crab do it? Not sure. I know Firefish sometimes turn on each other, so maybe the female beat him up. I will try to re-pair.
So the Emerald Crab will have to go. I'm not sure if it's him or not, but it's not worth the risk.
Lastnight I added (4) Bartlett's Anthias. They are all females, but they are BIG. They bickered a bit on the QT and one got a couple bites on the fins, but they sorted it out and got along well. VERY enthusiastic feeders! So today in the display they are back to bickering, and I see three of them has some bites on the fins. There is much more aggression in the display than there was in the QT. Hopefully they settle down in the tank today. The tank looks much busier now, lots of movement. The "old" fish are acting pretty docile and in shock all these big fish just arrived! Haha. The Purple Tang is doing some Anthias chasing too, but nothing too serious.
Current stock:
(2) Onyx Clownfish, breeding
(1) Johnson's Fairy Wrasse
(1) Magma Fairy Wrasse
(1) Helfrich's Firefish, female
(4) Bartlett's Anthias, females
The camera battery is toast, I have to go buy a new one. I'll post some pics then.
Not true just because people do not post their can be allot of people following. I follow allot of threads but do not always post. I am following this one.
Second Shot
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Did you keep the uv running or discontinue its use after the ostreos were knocked back?
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Myka
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It's it still running now. I keep experimenting with adding some aminos to the tank (dinos LOVE aminos), and haven't been seeing and dinos spring up. So I'll leave it running probably another month or so. I will definitely be doing an examination under the scope before turning the UV off.
Good to hear! Thanks for posting.
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Myka
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Ok, looks like about a dozen people following. Maybe a few too shy to "Like" the above post.
I received the camera batteries yesterday. I charged them up last night, and they're ready to go now. I'll be working all the hours the lights are on today though, so Saturday will be a tank photoshoot.
I received the camera batteries yesterday. I charged them up last night, and they're ready to go now. I'll be working all the hours the lights are on today though, so Saturday will be a tank photoshoot.
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Myka
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So the photoshoot is kind of anti-climactic...I couldn't get the white balance right and I don't have a photo editing program, so the photos are poo poo. Hopefully you guys can use your imagination a bit! The photos are very white/yellow, and really lack the pop you see in person.
CM Blue Polyp Nasuta (polyps are cobalt/royal blue in person, striking). VERY slow grower for me. Angelfish didn't touch it.
Brand new Aquacultured piece. I'm interested to see if it goes more green or more burgundy. I have it under about 380 PAR.
Here's a fine example of the recovering damage from the Angelfish. This is a wild Aussie Spath that barely survived the Angelfish assault.
RR Pink Cadillac. Angelfish didn't touch it. Just starting to take off.
Another example of recovering Angelfish damage. This is SSC. It also barely survived. It was poo brown after the assault, and certainly isn't done healing or coloring.
DV Glowstick Sarmentosa. Angelfish didn't touch it.
No name fuzzy tabler.
Another example of recovering Angelfish damage. Echinata, barely survived the Angelfish, and just starting to take off now.
ORA Chips Acro. Angelfish didn't touch it. Fastest grower in my tank. Tips are a lot bluer in person.
CM Humilis. Angelfish didn't touch it. Horrendously slow grower, but the brightest coral in my tank. Color never fades either. It's bulletproof.
Tyree Pink Lemonade. Only had it a couple weeks. It's in about 380 PAR I think, I have to check.
Hitchhiker. It was a tiny piece, like 1/8" encrusted onto a frag plug. I chipped it off, and it's starting to grow. Looks happy.
CM Blue Polyp Nasuta (polyps are cobalt/royal blue in person, striking). VERY slow grower for me. Angelfish didn't touch it.
Brand new Aquacultured piece. I'm interested to see if it goes more green or more burgundy. I have it under about 380 PAR.
Here's a fine example of the recovering damage from the Angelfish. This is a wild Aussie Spath that barely survived the Angelfish assault.
RR Pink Cadillac. Angelfish didn't touch it. Just starting to take off.
Another example of recovering Angelfish damage. This is SSC. It also barely survived. It was poo brown after the assault, and certainly isn't done healing or coloring.
DV Glowstick Sarmentosa. Angelfish didn't touch it.
No name fuzzy tabler.
Another example of recovering Angelfish damage. Echinata, barely survived the Angelfish, and just starting to take off now.
ORA Chips Acro. Angelfish didn't touch it. Fastest grower in my tank. Tips are a lot bluer in person.
CM Humilis. Angelfish didn't touch it. Horrendously slow grower, but the brightest coral in my tank. Color never fades either. It's bulletproof.
Tyree Pink Lemonade. Only had it a couple weeks. It's in about 380 PAR I think, I have to check.
Hitchhiker. It was a tiny piece, like 1/8" encrusted onto a frag plug. I chipped it off, and it's starting to grow. Looks happy.
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I agree
biom
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Wow, very nice corals and very good pictures. Humilis is not an easy coral, they need a lot of light, from what I see yours is quite close to the bottom. I have two humilis blue and green (same as yours) and they are on the top of the rocks, and the light is still not sufficient, especially for the green one.
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Myka
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Thanks guys, it's just that there is still a lot of damage on the corals. It has taken a long time for them to grow back over the dead parts. The Angelfish was removed in August. Also, it seems like the only things to survive are green. So much green right now.
Hi Stoyan. Maybe I am too critical. I am usually using a much better camera at work for photographing corals, and the white balance is dialed right in perfect. Yes, the humilis is right near the sand. It has encrusted an area about 4 x 3 inches, and has just started to show some vertical growth in the last year (yes that is a year of growth on the little nub). When I revamped the aquascape and removed all the dead corals I ended up shading most of the encrusted part of the humilis. I thought those parts would die, but they haven't even lost any color. I have an Aussie green tabling Acro that I may remove from the tank that's right at the top (it's kinda blah), and if that happens I'll put the humilis up there.
larangcon
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Hi Mika, I just finished the entire thread, you have been through the up and down of reefing, the experience is what makes this hobby so much fun, to achieve our goal of keeping our tank healthy and vibrant.
Like you, I also buy maricultured acros just to see what colors it will bring out and hopefully a Rainbow of colors will come out and don't forget that awesome feeling when it start taking off and branching and sprouting everywhere, now that to me is priceless.
I will also be following, oh I almost forgot to mention; your pictures are fantastic love the micro shots. Please keep up the update, you have more follower than you think Mika.
Like you, I also buy maricultured acros just to see what colors it will bring out and hopefully a Rainbow of colors will come out and don't forget that awesome feeling when it start taking off and branching and sprouting everywhere, now that to me is priceless.
I will also be following, oh I almost forgot to mention; your pictures are fantastic love the micro shots. Please keep up the update, you have more follower than you think Mika.
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