Tank birthday, 55+ years

[smitten with ocean life]

ahh im so sorry. hopefully its just a freak thing and stops!

 

[Freenow54]

No aggression going on?

 

[Paul B]

My are not allowed to have agression. Those 2 fish have been in there for 6 years. It's weird but interesting. The corals all look great but it must be some sort of odd water problem. I will have to figure it out. :cool:

I looked into their gills and nice and healthy looking, no irritation

 

[Thalasstronaut]

My are not allowed to have agression. Those 2 fish have been in there for 6 years. It's weird but interesting. The corals all look great but it must be some sort of odd water problem. I will have to figure it out. :cool:

I looked into their gills and nice and healthy looking, no irritation

Isn’t that about the lifespan of most anthias anyway? I thought they were a “life fast, die young” type of fish, I’ll have to double check my sources though.

 

[Paul B]

I don't know their lifespan and they were adults when I got them, but I doubt two fish would both die almost exactly together from old age. Like minutes apart.

Unless it is some affliction only anthias get.
Thats also not how fish look when they are dying from old age.

I wrote an article about that someplace.

 

[Paul B]

I got a new ALK test kit. My old one I think was very off. It read 4 and the pH was very low.
But even if the alk was that low, that means the water would be very acidic and the corals would have croaked. But they all look great.

Now I tested and my alk is to high because I stupidly tried to raise it according to my old kit. But again, that should only affect corals.

I will be busy for a few days and won't have time to do anything on my tank or even see it so I hope it was just a fluke. And I never added any flukes to my tank.



When I have time, probably in 2 weeks I will drive out east on the end of Long Island and collect 50 gallons of NSW in the Atlantic. I have been using this fake water for the last 3 or 4 water changes and I don't like it.

Two other weird things happened recently. While I was on the phone, it looked like something either spawned or exploded in my rock. On one tiny hole in a rock this thick white plume emerged.

I have seen many things spawn but this was different. Much thicker liquid. I immediately sucked it out as much as I could with a baster thing.



I can't see the creature that exuded this stuff but it must have a little size to it. There are many odd things growing in this tank for the last half a century and it never fails to amaze me.

I have been having some problems ever since I eliminated that invasive sponge that took over my tank and I am still dealing with the toxins it spewed all over my tank.

This gobi is resting on the evil stuff.

 

[Paul B]

If I don't figure this out, this tank will be full of tree frogs, turtles, newts or Venus Fly Trap plants. I have been very busy with my wife and can't get a day off to even look at my tank. Whatever is wrong with it, will have to wait. :(

 

[Rybren]

Good luck Paul. I hope that you get it sorted out before you lose all of your fish.

 

[Paul B]

I just looked at them now and they look perfect, all smiling and singing One of Linda Ronstadt's vintage songs. :D

I'll see how they look in a few days.

 

[Paul B]

We just got back from an overnight out east on Long Island. Everything looks great. :beaming-face-with-smiling-eyes:
How to tell if a marine creature is dying of old age.

We as aquarists try very hard to keep our animals living as long as possable for a few reasons. Yes, we are caring people and don't want to see them hurt. And, yes, they cost us a lot of money, how much money depends a little on us. If we buy a purple tang for $100.00 and it lives for ten days, then that fish cost us $10.00 a day to enjoy so I would say that is an expensive fish. But if that same fish lives ten years, then that fish only cost us maybe 3 cents a day (I didn't do the math, but you get my point) So then, it is a very cheap fish.

We should all try to keep our fish long enough so that they die from nothing except old age. If our fish keep getting sick, we are doing something wrong as our fish should "never" get sick except for the occasional headache or upset stomach.

Most medium sized ornamental aquarium fish live for about 12-15 years as that is their natural lifespan. That is a general statement because some fish such as clowns live well into their 20s. Smaller fish such as clown gobies, small bleenies, pipefish and seahorses may live for 5 or 6 years and some tangs will live into their 20s and groupers may reach 50. These are generalizations as different fish have different lifespans and many of them do not reach their life span in captivity. I do feel that most fish in a tank can live longer than their wild counterparts just due to the fact that they don't have enemies in our tanks and no one is trying to catch them with huge nets where they will be sold for food.

A fish is an animal that can only look forward to a peaceful death if it is in a very good aquarist tank. Virtually all wild fish die by being eaten alive or suffocating on the deck of a ship.

How do we know if a fish is dying of old age? Actually it is relatively easy. First of all the fish should be full grown. That is easy. Next we should have an idea how long that type of fish would normally live. I gave some examples above. A fish that has lived to the full extent of it's lifetime displays symptoms that are easy to spot. I had many fish die of old age and they all do it about the same. About the last couple of weeks of it's life, it will start to slow down but not exhibit any signs of disease. They will not be the first one to feed any more and may not even try very hard to eat. In a few days, they will stop eating and may rest in a corner. Eventually other fish will pester them and take nips at them. At first, they will try to get away or bite back. Right near the end, they will stop fighting back and their fins will become torn, They may get some spots as their immune system is no longer functioning, they will then get very lethargic and we will find them dead in the morning.

There is nothing we could have done for such a fish except pat ourselves on the back for allowing such a beautiful creature to exist for as long as possable.

We don't have to worry about that for corals as they are imortal. Yes, corals live forever, sort of like politicians. The actual coral polyp is not imortal, but the colony is. Each coral colony is composed of numerous polyps and as new polyps are born, they settle on top of older polyps and in that way, make the colony larger. Entire coral colonys do die because if they didn't, the world would be full of corals.

This watchman is dying of old age at about 12 years old. I got her as a baby.

 

[Paul B]

We just came back from an overnight out east at the end of the North Fork of Long Island. It's about 25 miles east of where I live and I assume the water is cleaner as it is right on the Atlantic.

I took my wife there for her birthday but this time of the year it is pretty dead there. We stayed at a really nice Spa Hotel (whatever that is) and this morning when we checked out, it was snowing. This was a cafe in the small hotel.

On our way out there we passed a few beaches so I figured I would collect some sea water. It was about 25 degrees and windy.
I backed up as far as I could to the sea and put on my rubber boots. Took a 5 gallon bucket out of my Jeep and walked into the surf. Immediately the wave crashed over my boot freezing my foot.

I grabbed some water from very shallow water so I got almost as much sand as water. I dumped it into one of the 10 gallon pails in the back or my Jeep.

I took another bucket, then another, then I stopped. I only collected 15 gallons but had capacity for 30 gallons. It will have to do because the water temp was probably 35 degrees and my fingers were about to fall off.

Now I am filtering out some of the sand and the water is kind of green and muddy because of the surf.

This is the beach. Most of the beach was inaccessible because in the winter they bulldoze piles of sand near the high tide mark to keep the sand from washing away in the rough winter but they left this cut in the sand so I could get through.

A cop stopped near me, saw me collecting and just shook his head while driving away.

 

[MagicPenny]

New to the thread but I was intrigued by the idea of seeing a 47 year old reef. 508 pages later I see you on the North Fork. I don't live there now but my husband is from Southold and we have friends in Greenport and Cutchogue. :) Small world!

 

[Paul B]

We were in Greenport yesterday and this morning. It's about a half an hour from us.
My tank is now 54 years old. :beaming-face-with-smiling-eyes:

Nice to meet you.

 

[Freenow54]

We just got back from an overnight out east on Long Island. Everything looks great. :beaming-face-with-smiling-eyes:
How to tell if a marine creature is dying of old age.

We as aquarists try very hard to keep our animals living as long as possable for a few reasons. Yes, we are caring people and don't want to see them hurt. And, yes, they cost us a lot of money, how much money depends a little on us. If we buy a purple tang for $100.00 and it lives for ten days, then that fish cost us $10.00 a day to enjoy so I would say that is an expensive fish. But if that same fish lives ten years, then that fish only cost us maybe 3 cents a day (I didn't do the math, but you get my point) So then, it is a very cheap fish.

We should all try to keep our fish long enough so that they die from nothing except old age. If our fish keep getting sick, we are doing something wrong as our fish should "never" get sick except for the occasional headache or upset stomach.

Most medium sized ornamental aquarium fish live for about 12-15 years as that is their natural lifespan. That is a general statement because some fish such as clowns live well into their 20s. Smaller fish such as clown gobies, small bleenies, pipefish and seahorses may live for 5 or 6 years and some tangs will live into their 20s and groupers may reach 50. These are generalizations as different fish have different lifespans and many of them do not reach their life span in captivity. I do feel that most fish in a tank can live longer than their wild counterparts just due to the fact that they don't have enemies in our tanks and no one is trying to catch them with huge nets where they will be sold for food.

A fish is an animal that can only look forward to a peaceful death if it is in a very good aquarist tank. Virtually all wild fish die by being eaten alive or suffocating on the deck of a ship.

How do we know if a fish is dying of old age? Actually it is relatively easy. First of all the fish should be full grown. That is easy. Next we should have an idea how long that type of fish would normally live. I gave some examples above. A fish that has lived to the full extent of it's lifetime displays symptoms that are easy to spot. I had many fish die of old age and they all do it about the same. About the last couple of weeks of it's life, it will start to slow down but not exhibit any signs of disease. They will not be the first one to feed any more and may not even try very hard to eat. In a few days, they will stop eating and may rest in a corner. Eventually other fish will pester them and take nips at them. At first, they will try to get away or bite back. Right near the end, they will stop fighting back and their fins will become torn, They may get some spots as their immune system is no longer functioning, they will then get very lethargic and we will find them dead in the morning.

There is nothing we could have done for such a fish except pat ourselves on the back for allowing such a beautiful creature to exist for as long as possable.

We don't have to worry about that for corals as they are imortal. Yes, corals live forever, sort of like politicians. The actual coral polyp is not imortal, but the colony is. Each coral colony is composed of numerous polyps and as new polyps are born, they settle on top of older polyps and in that way, make the colony larger. Entire coral colonys do die because if they didn't, the world would be full of corals.

This watchman is dying of old age at about 12 years old. I got her as a baby.

I am glad you did not lose them all. I lost my yellow tang I think because I got my hands in the tank too far and made it rush. 30 seconds later it was floating with a big bruise on its side. I think it collided with a rock. I will never know.


Another note is I was looking after my 2 Grandchildren today school closed because of ice storm. I thought it was a good time to read your book. I just finished it. I cant even start to talk to you about it all except one thing. You mentioned some of the new recruits died of spinal meningitis. I had it young. Don't know if it was because I swallowed crapy water at a water reservoir or a tick that my mother found imbedded in the back of my head from the ravine behind my house which back then no one knew anything so she just pulled it off. That is why I am talking about it. You DO NOT do that. The head will remain inside and you can get a host of very bad things. You have to use special tweezers to remove them. Spinal menagitis is a treat. I thought I had the flu with an EXTREME HEADACHE. After a few days ( do not remember ) We lived in what was called a wartime house built for returning GIs of WWII . My Father and Grandfather converted the third floor into bedrooms making it two story plus a basement. I ran from my bed down to the basement lowered my head which felt like it was going to explode into the studded wall. Now taken to the hospital in isolation. Again a few days later a few medical people came int the room at night which I figured later they could get my dead body out if things went south quietly. They put a bowl in front of my mouth injected something into me through my back. I vomited green bile into the bowl, and felt a relief I will never forget.

 

[Freenow54]

I am glad you did not lose them all. I lost my yellow tang I think because I got my hands in the tank too far and made it rush. 30 seconds later it was floating with a big bruise on its side. I think it collided with a rock. I will never know.


Another note is I was looking after my 2 Grandchildren today school closed because of ice storm. I thought it was a good time to read your book. I just finished it. I cant even start to talk to you about it all except one thing. You mentioned some of the new recruits died of spinal meningitis. I had it young. Don't know if it was because I swallowed crapy water at a water reservoir or a tick that my mother found imbedded in the back of my head from the ravine behind my house which back then no one knew anything so she just pulled it off. That is why I am talking about it. You DO NOT do that. The head will remain inside and you can get a host of very bad things. You have to use special tweezers to remove them. Spinal menagitis is a treat. I thought I had the flu with an EXTREME HEADACHE. After a few days ( do not remember ) We lived in what was called a wartime house built for returning GIs of WWII . My Father and Grandfather converted the third floor into bedrooms making it two story plus a basement. I ran from my bed down to the basement lowered my head which felt like it was going to explode into the studded wall. Now taken to the hospital in isolation. Again a few days later a few medical people came int the room at night which I figured later they could get my dead body out if things went south quietly. They put a bowl in front of my mouth injected something into me through my back. I vomited green bile into the bowl, and felt a relief I will never forget.

Just wanted to educate people. Not to make that mistake with ticks

 

[Paul B]

Freenow, good to know. I took a tick course because we are inundated with them here and I also have those tweezers.

Those guys who died of Spinal Meningitis died quickly. They just didn't get out of bed. They may have been sick for a while but in basic army in those days there was no complaining or you would just get beat up so maybe if someone was really sick, they may have died.

A couple of guys died in the "Dune Platoon" also, I think that is also in my book.

Did you like the book and do you think it was interesting or kept your interest? Any boring parts?

Please leave a review of it on Amazon. Thank You.
All the profits go to "Wounded Warriors Project."

I just got a check for my fish book and I will send that to MS Research and I will post the receipt here. It usually takes a month or so for me to get it.

 

[Freenow54]

Freenow, good to know. I took a tick course because we are inundated with them here and I also have those tweezers.

Those guys who died of Spinal Meningitis died quickly. They just didn't get out of bed. They may have been sick for a while but in basic army in those days there was no complaining or you would just get beat up so maybe if someone was really sick, they may have died.

A couple of guys died in the "Dune Platoon" also, I think that is also in my book.

Did you like the book and do you think it was interesting or kept your interest? Any boring parts?

Please leave a review of it on Amazon. Thank You.
All the profits go to "Wounded Warriors Project."

I just got a check for my fish book and I will send that to MS Research and I will post the receipt here. It usually takes a month or so for me to get it.

Well I could not put it down. I almost joined myself but was near the dirty end by then. Glad I did not. Hard to salute a flag after that. At least you landed at night and did not get spit on by ( I don't want to say ) people. The battle was unbelievable. How you kept it together as well riveting to me, and no idea what I would have done I had no idea of the living conditions and no one trying to do something. The moral must have been 0 survival only mode, Don't know how any of you could sleep. Like me now you start to rethink things bad to dwell. Don't worry about receipt only get 15% off taxes here. Will try to leave review not sure how

 

[Freenow54]

Freenow, good to know. I took a tick course because we are inundated with them here and I also have those tweezers.

Those guys who died of Spinal Meningitis died quickly. They just didn't get out of bed. They may have been sick for a while but in basic army in those days there was no complaining or you would just get beat up so maybe if someone was really sick, they may have died.

A couple of guys died in the "Dune Platoon" also, I think that is also in my book.

Did you like the book and do you think it was interesting or kept your interest? Any boring parts?

Please leave a review of it on Amazon. Thank You.
All the profits go to "Wounded Warriors Project."

I just got a check for my fish book and I will send that to MS Research and I will post the receipt here. It usually takes a month or so for me to get it.

Fish Book? That was months ago.

 

[Paul B]

Don't worry about receipt only get 15% off taxes here. Will try to leave review not sure how

I don't need the receipt for my taxes, it comes to nothing. I like to post the receipts when I donate the money so I can prove that the money from my books all goes to charity, and I don't spend it on wild women and Copper band Butterflies or wild Copperband buterflies and coppertoned women. :cool:

 

[Paul B]

The battle was unbelievable. How you kept it together as well riveting to me,

They actually didn't give us a lot of choices and there was no where to run. :rolleyes: