A Splash of Color

[mhucasey]

Family is all good and doing well thanks Dan.



Your piece is a very cool looking color variant Perry, i will take great care of it for you buddy :thumbsup:



Hey Mike, that's the third piece of that particular colored nasuta that i've scored over the years so i already knew exactly what conditions it would likely thrive in, having experimented in previous tanks - inside knowledge if you like lol.
I hope you get your frag to color up sooner rather than later mate, the colors are well worth chasing



I hope your piece is a similar color variant Mindy, you'll love how dark the purple polyps get and contrast against the glowy green branch skin. My piece needs a bit more light to take off but i like it where it is and it's slowly growing so i'm happy. The bonus of a tiny bit too little light is that the purple corallites and polyps appear almost black :smokin:
I'm glad you enjoy popping in to see what's going on



It's now after 10am and the weather in London is cloudy - WHAT A SURPRISE.............

The stag branch i removed from the colony at the back of the stag outcrop and had stuck to a small rock placed at the far left of the display for a week to recover was placed into the position i had selected it for when i cut it off.
You can see the stag in the last FTS and the video i posted recently, i removed one of the two thick teal stags from the front of the right island and turned the new stag 180 degrees to how it was sitting for a week and glued the rock it was on to the end of the island rock so it hangs out over the frog a bit...........
I thought it would bring better balance to the overall coral scape and placing it towards the front rather than at the back where most of us typically place stags is to break up the overly 'convenient' viewing layout of the right end of the tank - to me it looked contrived the way i had all the acros lined up in a fan towards the back with hardly anything blocking the acros behind etc. It was too good if you know what i mean :uhoh3:
As the stag grows it will block the view a bit more and make snooping at the acros further back more interesting. It will also add greatly to the right end depth of field - front to back.
I stuck the teal stag on the back of the left rock because i didn't know what else to do with it tbh, that's where i stick stuff i don't want to deal with lol.

So awesome! The layers of corals are very cool and you still have lots of room for both more acros and plenty of growth. You are a true Acro Whisperer:thumbsup:

 

[DiscusHeckel]

Hi Andrew,

I love this FTS. I cannot wait for all these frags to grow up to maturity. Please stop tinkering and let them grow.

What is your view on acro crabs and their movement between different corals?
One of my acro crabs that came with a wild-collected A. lokani frag in October 2013 jumped ship last night. I found it on my new A. desalwii frag. My initial thought was: "how on earth did I not see this acro crab despite inspecting the coral with a magnifying glass? If I cannot notice an acro crab with a magnifying glass, how on earth am I going to spot AEFW and their eggs?" I then realised that it was the same crab that lived in A. lokani. :doh:

Is this normal? Last time when this happened, shortly after an acro crab moved away from its host, the host coral died of tissue necrosis. I wonder acro crab movement is an early warning sign for impending trouble!

 

[biggles]

I love the layout, absolutely love the layout Andrew! The stag forest in the back left is too cool, but yes, it showcases all those killer acros!!! Your color breakup, and pattern variance is second to none

Thanks Perry, i'm not a big stag fan tbh and only have them for the vertical presence they add to the scape. All my stags are boring colors and nothing special at all so down the track i might do something about fixing that if i come across the right piece.

So awesome! The layers of corals are very cool and you still have lots of room for both more acros and plenty of growth. You are a true Acro Whisperer:thumbsup:

Thanks Matt, things are going well with the tank so i don't intend making any changes to what goes into the water each day except for amounts. I used up the small container of kalk which i can't be bothered replacing now but the actual alk required hit 200 ml a few days ago which is about 10 ml greater than it was just before the dramas a while back and a nice little milestone for the display.

Hi Andrew,

I love this FTS. I cannot wait for all these frags to grow up to maturity. Please stop tinkering and let them grow.

What is your view on acro crabs and their movement between different corals?
One of my acro crabs that came with a wild-collected A. lokani frag in October 2013 jumped ship last night. I found it on my new A. desalwii frag. My initial thought was: "how on earth did I not see this acro crab despite inspecting the coral with a magnifying glass? If I cannot notice an acro crab with a magnifying glass, how on earth am I going to spot AEFW and their eggs?" I then realised that it was the same crab that lived in A. lokani. :doh:

Is this normal? Last time when this happened, shortly after an acro crab moved away from its host, the host coral died of tissue necrosis. I wonder acro crab movement is an early warning sign for impending trouble!

Hey Bulent, you're too late mate - yesterday i swapped the SSC piece on frog rock with a bright pastel purple acro branch to break up the green out that was happening at the far right of the display. Simply swapped places and looks much better to me.
I also broke the rock extension off the front of the stag rock and moved it forward to create a 5" sand gap and yet another small island. Then i pried an acro out of the shadowed hole it was in under the blue tenuis and stuck it on the front of the stag rock where the new island used to be..........
After all that i have a 3" echi piece left over so that still needs sticking somewhere now :crazy1:

Crab ramble.........:reading:

At a guess i would have about 25-30 Tetralia sp. commensal coral crabs in the display, my avvy is one of my little guys. Most stay on the acro they arrive on but occasionally i see one take up residence in another acro a week or two after being placed in the display. It is not some cute myth that they are good for your acros. I watch them spend hours cleaning up the sand the green wrasse spits everywhere at times. They will remove any debris that lands on the acro tissue that is of a size too large for the acro to deal with by sliming.
They will stay with their colony even when it is STN'ing but eventually move to a healthier acro if things continue to deteriorate.
If you shine a torch on your acros at night you will have a much better chance of spotting commensal crabs than during lights on. The eyes of Tetralia and the common stylo/seri crabs - Trapezia sp. NEVER reflect back at you so if you see a pair of tiny white dots reflecting back at you it is either something really, really uncommon and cool or something bad that needs a needle stuck in it's head - i don't roll whales back into the sea and i sure as hell don't roll crabs that eat my acro tissue into the bloody sump.

The small blue eyed hairy crab is the most common acro crab pest you will encounter on ocean collected acros - wild/mari. Bastarditus sp. crabs are most active when the lights are off whereas the good guys are active 24/7. They spend daytime hiding deep in the acro out of sight usually and this is also the most common spot of tissue damage. If you get a small colony that has some dead or dying tissue in the center it is almost certain it has a hairy blue eyed crab in residence.

Tranquilized with 10 cc's of hate........ :thumbsup:

Btw, if i want to chase an acro crab out of an acro i have on the kitchen bench because i'm going to cut it up i mix 50/50 tank water to RO and turkey baste the crab whilst holding the acro over a towel and they usually come falling out. Otherwise i chase them out with a long sewing needle very carefully and place them into a container of tank water. If it's a bad crab then see above....... after i get the crab out i dunk the acro in the sump a few times to rinse all the low salinity water off and then do whatever.

I either put the crab back on a piece of the acro prior to placing it in the display or i hold them in a clenched fist and place them onto an acro colony without another crab in residence.

IMPORTANT

Don't drop the crab into the water as any fish like wrasse etc will rip it to pieces before it can swim to the bottom - i watched this happen a year ago and ever since i make sure the crabs never get attacked by any predatory fish.

The most likely reason your crab left the lokani is it found a better home. They always prefer the better hiding place growth form acros as they will be predated on by your fish otherwise. That's why they don't live on stags and other acros with bugger all places to hide from predators.

 

[DiscusHeckel]

Hey Bulent, you're too late mate - yesterday i swapped the SSC piece on frog rock with a bright pastel purple acro branch to break up the green out that was happening at the far right of the display. Simply swapped places and looks much better to me.
I also broke the rock extension off the front of the stag rock and moved it forward to create a 5" sand gap and yet another small island. Then i pried an acro out of the shadowed hole it was in under the blue tenuis and stuck it on the front of the stag rock where the new island used to be..........
After all that i have a 3" echi piece left over so that still needs sticking somewhere now :crazy1:

Crab ramble.........:reading:

At a guess i would have about 25-30 Tetralia sp. commensal coral crabs in the display, my avvy is one of my little guys. Most stay on the acro they arrive on but occasionally i see one take up residence in another acro a week or two after being placed in the display. It is not some cute myth that they are good for your acros. I watch them spend hours cleaning up the sand the green wrasse spits everywhere at times. They will remove any debris that lands on the acro tissue that is of a size too large for the acro to deal with by sliming.
They will stay with their colony even when it is STN'ing but eventually move to a healthier acro if things continue to deteriorate.
If you shine a torch on your acros at night you will have a much better chance of spotting commensal crabs than during lights on. The eyes of Tetralia and the common stylo/seri crabs - Trapezia sp. NEVER reflect back at you so if you see a pair of tiny white dots reflecting back at you it is either something really, really uncommon and cool or something bad that needs a needle stuck in it's head - i don't roll whales back into the sea and i sure as hell don't roll crabs that eat my acro tissue into the bloody sump.

The small blue eyed hairy crab is the most common acro crab pest you will encounter on ocean collected acros - wild/mari. Bastarditus sp. crabs are most active when the lights are off whereas the good guys are active 24/7. They spend daytime hiding deep in the acro out of sight usually and this is also the most common spot of tissue damage. If you get a small colony that has some dead or dying tissue in the center it is almost certain it has a hairy blue eyed crab in residence.

Tranquilized with 10 cc's of hate........ :thumbsup:

Btw, if i want to chase an acro crab out of an acro i have on the kitchen bench because i'm going to cut it up i mix 50/50 tank water to RO and turkey baste the crab whilst holding the acro over a towel and they usually come falling out. Otherwise i chase them out with a long sewing needle very carefully and place them into a container of tank water. If it's a bad crab then see above....... after i get the crab out i dunk the acro in the sump a few times to rinse all the low salinity water off and then do whatever.

I either put the crab back on a piece of the acro prior to placing it in the display or i hold them in a clenched fist and place them onto an acro colony without another crab in residence.

IMPORTANT

Don't drop the crab into the water as any fish like wrasse etc will rip it to pieces before it can swim to the bottom - i watched this happen a year ago and ever since i make sure the crabs never get attacked by any predatory fish.

The most likely reason your crab left the lokani is it found a better home. They always prefer the better hiding place growth form acros as they will be predated on by your fish otherwise. That's why they don't live on stags and other acros with bugger all places to hide from predators.

You are far too dynamic for me to cope with your speed with which you make changes Andrew. There are lessons to learn for me here. If you already changed the aquascape, then a new FTS is surely due now.

Thanks for the advice on crabs Andrew. I appreciate it.

I have only two of acro crabs and both of them are good guys. From your description, I assume that the crab swapped home because it must have fancied a change. It cannot be because it felt less safe. Its former home, A. lokani, is a mature colony with plenty of hiding places, whereas the new A.desalwii frag is pretty small and makes the crab look exposed to my silver belly wrasse. The crab must be a risk taker.

 

[markalot]

Nice crab writeup Andrew.

I have a crab that came with my valida colony, started out white but is now mostly orange, with bothers me a bit. Non shiny eyes, good guy, constantly cleaning, but I did not expect the color change. He's shown no interest in other corals.

 

[biggles]

You are far too dynamic for me to cope with your speed with which you make changes Andrew. There are lessons to learn for me here. If you already changed the aquascape, then a new FTS is surely due now.

Thanks for the advice on crabs Andrew. I appreciate it.

I have only two of acro crabs and both of them are good guys. From your description, I assume that the crab swapped home because it must have fancied a change. It cannot be because it felt less safe. Its former home, A. lokani, is a mature colony with plenty of hiding places, whereas the new A.desalwii frag is pretty small and makes the crab look exposed to my silver belly wrasse. The crab must be a risk taker.

I dynamically placed a frag right in the middle of the right island today whilst home for lunch Bulent........... this stuff just pops into my head and i have no control over it buddy. I am naming all my cool acros after my mates on RC so..... Bulent's Bliss

Two weeks ago

Today

It's going to love the penthouse spot i gave it.

War update.

An imperial scout acro should be touching down on Sahinooine any time now to monitor rebel acro movements.........

Nice crab writeup Andrew.

I have a crab that came with my valida colony, started out white but is now mostly orange, with bothers me a bit. Non shiny eyes, good guy, constantly cleaning, but I did not expect the color change. He's shown no interest in other corals.

Thanks Mark, just sharing my own experiences and observations from crab watching for years.

Are you sure that's the same crab, i've never seen any of the many white with black bandit mask crabs ever change from stark white. That sounds cool though if it's changing color mate :thumbsup: (not really, it's likely some kind of evil mutant crab but let's not bum Mark out...)

 

[scrapz]

That thing has turned around nicely. What species is that?

 

[biggles]

That thing has turned around nicely. What species is that?

Thanks mate, it looks a bit like A. anthocercis but i don't know tbh.

The small middle island under the spooky lagoon blue T5 bulbs..........

 

[tripdad]

Hello Biggles, that last Imperial scout acro is just too much. I really like acros with that pale base skin color, almost jewel like and you seem to have quite a few. There even better when the polyps are in contrast to the skin color. Very jealous of your collection, thanks for the photo's.

 

[plyle02]

When you have PE on deepwater's like that, your tank is bound to be colorful and healthy, great job Andrew, as always, a treat to log in and see what you are up to!!!

 

[mhucasey]

I dynamically placed a frag right in the middle of the right island today whilst home for lunch Bulent........... this stuff just pops into my head and i have no control over it buddy. I am naming all my cool acros after my mates on RC so..... Bulent's Bliss

Two weeks ago

Today

It's going to love the penthouse spot i gave it.

War update.

An imperial scout acro should be touching down on Sahinooine any time now to monitor rebel acro movements.........



Thanks Mark, just sharing my own experiences and observations from crab watching for years.

Are you sure that's the same crab, i've never seen any of the many white with black bandit mask crabs ever change from stark white. That sounds cool though if it's changing color mate :thumbsup: (not really, it's likely some kind of evil mutant crab but let's not bum Mark out...)

That pink is outstanding! It will be a nice contrast with the blues in your tank and especially the yellow princess!

 

[mhucasey]

Thanks mate, it looks a bit like A. anthocercis but i don't know tbh.

The small middle island under the spooky lagoon blue T5 bulbs..........

That PE shows the corals are happy happy. So much color! The Empire gets all the cool stuff!

 

[reefwiser]

Evil Empire that is.

 

[cFloor]

That pink acro is sure coloring up quick. I like the white polyps, great job Andrew!

 

[glaukos]

That bulent's bliss is a blessing andrew
Great pic and awesome coral buddy!

I'll name that middle spooky island for you my mate..."the reason mike killed andrew...and never looked back as his was leaving his house...having an ridiculously colorful small acro island in his hands"......it's a bit big but it's catchy
Urban legend says that's based on a true story

 

[biggles]

Hello Biggles, that last Imperial scout acro is just too much. I really like acros with that pale base skin color, almost jewel like and you seem to have quite a few. There even better when the polyps are in contrast to the skin color. Very jealous of your collection, thanks for the photo's.

Thanks mate, pale skin acro's are my favorites and i always jump on any pieces i see such as the one secreted on Sahinooine........

When you have PE on deepwater's like that, your tank is bound to be colorful and healthy, great job Andrew, as always, a treat to log in and see what you are up to!!!

Thanks Perry, it has great PE 24/7 and is very delicate and pretty even though it has none of the color pizazz that many of it's tank mates have. I'll get a good top down of it today under full lighting. Pretty certain it's one of Dom's favorites, A. caroliniana: )

That pink is outstanding! It will be a nice contrast with the blues in your tank and especially the yellow princess!

The yellow princess has betrayed me Matt............ she's started wearing green makeup..........
The SSC was replaced with a sulky favorite of mine that still looks good even when it has the poops. When it recovers from my recent dremmel attack and relocation it's red branched with purple highlights and bright orange polyps that sparkle under the halides - hard to show you but it's very bright and eye catching, unlike a certain deepwater i could mention..........

That PE shows the corals are happy happy. So much color! The Empire gets all the cool stuff!

I'm starting to think the princess is a rebel spy after the acro death star plans Matt...........

Evil Empire that is.

Evil weird pigments......... i think this needs more light but it's staying where i like it....... for now Bulent......... for now........:reading:

That pink acro is sure coloring up quick. I like the white polyps, great job Andrew!

Thanks Conor, it certainly surprised me with how fast it went from zero to hero mate

That bulent's bliss is a blessing andrew
Great pic and awesome coral buddy!

I'll name that middle spooky island for you my mate..."the reason mike killed andrew...and never looked back as his was leaving his house...having an ridiculously colorful small acro island in his hands"......it's a bit big but it's catchy
Urban legend says that's based on a true story

Thanks Mike........

'Mike paused as he was gently placing the stolen murder island into his display.......... was that the sound of claws on his wooden floors....... the last thing Mike saw as his head was forced under water to smash against the pointy stags was a blur of koala fur........


I was going to shoot some acro porn but the yellow tang won't 'get it on' so to speak and pose behind the pink acro for me. The pink acro is surrounded by pigment bullies............

 

[nemodan]

Andrew, I read your thread almost every day and I am always amazed with your acros. I belive that my actual tank is the one that is teaching me. I am learning with it. I expect the next one will be target to only be acros. The point is..... I will need to wait to my retirement. ...LOL.

Incredible. .....incredible !!!!!

Daniel

 

[MichaelW]

Corals are looking fantastic at the moment mate. Such deep saturation on that blue purple acro, I wouldn't move it anywhere. That purple red acro is the nuts!
Right now I'm looking mainly for some softer colored acros to soften a few places up and I think that pink beauty is just the one. What was it looking like in store when you got it so I know what to look out for? Was it still pink but just more washed out or was it browned and lightened up in your tank?

 

[biggles]

Andrew, I read your thread almost every day and I am always amazed with your acros. I belive that my actual tank is the one that is teaching me. I am learning with it. I expect the next one will be target to only be acros. The point is..... I will need to wait to my retirement. ...LOL.

Incredible. .....incredible !!!!!

Daniel

Hey Daniel, we're all constantly learning mate and watching your corals is the best way to get a feel for how to keep them happy imo.

Corals are looking fantastic at the moment mate. Such deep saturation on that blue purple acro, I wouldn't move it anywhere. That purple red acro is the nuts!
Right now I'm looking mainly for some softer colored acros to soften a few places up and I think that pink beauty is just the one. What was it looking like in store when you got it so I know what to look out for? Was it still pink but just more washed out or was it browned and lightened up in your tank?

Thanks Mike,

It looked like a drab light peachy pink color mate. I thought if i colored it up it would be more peach colored than pink as it only had hints of pink near a few tips and you had to hold it to the light to see them lol.
It's perfect for adding some bright pop to an area which is why i placed it where i did.


I might have processed this shot of acro frog slightly porny........... his echi helmet seems to be working a treat.

 

[biggles]

Three weeks ago a small twin acro convoy passed by the stupid rebels with little notice............

Darth crab now leads the Empire's massive commensal crab army.......... clueless, tree hugging rebel scum..........:strooper:

I meant to show you guys how soft the flow is now over much of my reef, a great deal less than i have ever run previously and the acros appear to like it, particularly the many delicate branched protected flow pieces (deepwaters) i have. A crab is fussing about in the blue acro, they hate lights on them lol.

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