430gal., L-shaped display

["Umm fish?"]

Thanks, y'all! Murf--I'm actually currently constructing some netting for my display tank, but now I'm also thinking about this tank. So, let me see what I have leftover after the display and we'll talk.

In the meantime, nudibranch on the glass:

 

["Umm fish?"]

As you've seen, I've been spending some time playing with creature cultures lately. Unfortunately, really, because it's become a necessity. I should have enough soon to start seeding my display tank with them (they are all in culture at this point).

Two young adults doing, well, what young adults do:

And a little older Berghia:

 

["Umm fish?"]

Woohoo! http://www.coralmagazine-us.com/content/coral-subscriber-drawing-winner-announced

 

[jnarowe]

Dude, that is Awesome. Congrats!

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

No kidding, now that luck needs to shift over into getting some of those fry to the adult stage. Congrats Andy.

 

["Umm fish?"]

Thanks, y'all!

Sisterlimon--Well, I'm on my second generation of Berghia now (some of the first nudis to hatch in my care had eggs and those started hatching this week). They are easy to culture, but that's a start. Also, I think I've sold or given away about 400 of the Collumbellid snails now. Not bad for starting with 8-10 of them. But, yeah. I'm _really_ feeling the itch to start working with some fish again.

 

[jnarowe]

Yeah, you can't really take credit for the snails...they breed faster than rabbits.

 

[erics3000]

I haven't posted much on your site lately Andy, but awesome pics. At the start of you thread I would have never thought to see some of the stuff you post on a regular basis. J I remember you bread snails form project DIBS too. Just for fun if I wanted to add a little tank just to bread snails what would I need. I have quite a few in fuge but they really haven't bread like crazy in my system. I remember seeing babies a while back when my nitrates were lower. DO both of you guys have any like quick 1 2 on what you would need do start with something simple?

 

[jnarowe]

You don't need much to-be-honest. Most snails in the hobby cannot take high temps. though, so you want to make sure you can keep a tank below 79F. IME, getting higher than that, especially for 2 - 3 days or more will cause die-off. Most importantly, when a few die off, it can cause a chain reaction. Dead snails really foul water badly. Make sure to pull and dead snails immediately!

So essentially you want a basic tank, powerhead, even an HOB filter with carbon (we all have some of these laying around right?) regular small water changes and a food source. I even experimented with boosting algal growth in my grow-out tank. BUT before you do anything, make sure you know what you will do with the babies. Once a good equilibrium is reached, some snaila will breed prolifically, and you will need to do something with the babies or the tank will crash.

Don't forget that snails are NOT a magic bullet. They poo just like anything else, so keeping the tank bottom clean will go a long way to ensuring good water quality.

 

[erics3000]

Any prefered breeds?

 

[jnarowe]

I would check out the RSF pages. My favorite are the DIBS Turbo sp, Collumbelids sp, and nerite sp. I think the nerites have the coolest shells, but they all seem to prefer different areas of the tank, ie: glass, rock, etc. so all 3 do well in a decent sized system IMO.

 

["Umm fish?"]

I need some different snails, but these Collumbellids are out-competing _everything._ The poor Ceriths you sent me Jonathan are really on the decline. I can only find about 20 or so around the system (doesn't mean there aren't more that I can't see). The Collumbellids are good at films and epiphytic growth, but once some algae takes hold on the glass they can't seem to get it off. Any suggestions (of maybe something that might breed )?

And thanks, Eric! The big deal on snail choice if you want them to breed is to pick species that other aquarists have had luck with in the past. Then you try to figure out _why_ they've had luck. Sometimes you get lucky--like with the Collumbellids--and find a snail that doesn't have a pelagic period during its development.

 

["Umm fish?"]

BTW, Jonathan, you've only been on this site for six months longer than me but you have 10,000 more posts. We need to get you something to do.

 

[jnarowe]

:lol: I posted a LOT when I was learning, and had nothing else to do. I was nearly a shut in for a couple of years. DIBS Turbo sp. would be perfect I think. The ceriths wax & wane. And just be glad they are waning!

 

[erics3000]

Alright you guys have both been around a while. Do you remember one of HOPS old threads. I think it was a 600 he took down. He had a snail explosion in his tank, he cut back at the time on expenses and downgrade to focus on school. It was a crazy pic i wished I saved it.

Anyway. Andy how is your display doing? I would love to see some updated pics of your display? Are all your tanks tied together? Can we get some more updated pics of you equipment room too?

 

[jnarowe]

I saw it...but that paled in comparison to a couple of my "explosions". Imagine 5' x 8' x 35" completely dotted with snails...You really have to be careful about how many you keep!

 

["Umm fish?"]

I don't remember that thread. I literally took 100 snails off the top of _one_ rock the other day. In a couple of hours I couldn't see a difference.

I'm in the process of cleaning glass again. I got half the front pane done today (that new scraper from AquaMedic with the 5" steel blade rocks!) and should finish soon. I'll take some more FTS then. The truth is that nothing much has changed. I'm still doing lots of water changes--latest one today--to try to get as much aluminum oxide as I can out of the water. I've bought a few ricordias lately and they seem to be doing fine. I also have a purple clove polyp that's doing well. A buddy of mine gave me a browned-out montipora frag to test for hard corals. It's still hanging in there but has only been in about three weeks. So the FTS won't be very exciting.

The equipment room looks the same really. The only difference is the one larval culture station and a berghia culture. The tanks down there need some cleaning, too.

 

["Umm fish?"]

I think I read somewhere once that just-hatched Berghia juveniles are so small that "you'll never see them." I take statements like that personally, so here are pictures of just-hatched juvenile Berghia.

Top lighting:

Through lighting (the red thing to the left is either a flatworm or a large protist so, yes, they are really small):

 

[jnarowe]

You kill me dude. :lol:

 

["Umm fish?"]

Well, you know, life gets really boring if you don't take up these little challenges once in a while. :artist: