JustFin's 10G Nano Journal

[JustFin]

Impulse buys
9-24-05
Its looking like these updates are going to be a once a month event. The tank is constantly changing but there in never enough time to type updates.

The biggest changes were the new additions. Back on 9-15 I picked up 3 new zoos and a purple yuma. I purchased them from Chad at gatewayaquatics.com through some of his ebay auctions. This is also where I purchased my Deep Forest zoos from. Out of these 5 purchases the only problem I have had is with the Raging Fury zoos below. Their were around 9+ polyps on the frag when I got them, but most of them melted/disappeared. The remaining 4 took almost a week to open. But not every frag is going to take transport well, so I'm pleased that my losses haven't been greater. Just this week I spotted what looks like a new polyp forming on the edge of the Deep Forest colony. So my corals are not just surviving, but growing! Maybe I'm doing something right.

From L to R: Golden Eyes, Green Envys, & Raging Fury zoos.

Purple Yuma

Another notable event- this past week we witnessed our first spawning event. I was watching the tank and noticed what
looked like smoke puffing out from a rock. On close inspection I could see it was coming from one of my stomatella snails. Then 2 other stomatellids raised up off their rocks, almost like they were standing up, and started spitting bubbles. Well then I put 2 & 2 together and realized the "smoke" must have been sperm and the "bubbles" were eggs.
So, as my wife so gracefully described it, we had just watched "snail porn". :rolleye1:

More LR was also added to the tank about 2 weeks ago. We finally aquascaped the 75G and had one piece of Tonga branch that didn't seem to look natural anywhere we could place it. I had room for it in my nano, so I placed it on the right side of the tank where it would fit without having to adjust everything else. Now my aquascape looks really unbalanced, but the 10G is getting moved to the bedroom in about a month & I will be reaquascaping then. It was already a mess from the Turbo knocking all the rubble around anyway.

Finally, I did a bad bad thing. I made an impulse purchase. And one thing I've learned through my research in all the reef books and message boards is don't buy anything without a plan. Ooops!
You see, Wednesday my wife had some errands to run and that took us by one of the local fish stores. So I decided to stop in "just for a look". Well, I spotted an absolutely beautiful bicolor angel. It was a small juvenile only a little over an inch long. It was alert, investigating all corners of the tank, picking at the decorations looking for food, had no signs of parasites or infections- every positive sign you'd like to see in a fish before you buy it. And it was only $14!

Now a bicolor angel is on my "must have" fish list, BUT for a future FOWLR tank I was planning for our living room. Buying one
now was NOT part of the plan. So guess what happened.....

"Desmond" the bicolor angel showing you his best side in a full tank shot.

The advantage to having him in the 10G for now is that it makes it much easier to observe him and make sure he is eating.
The big disadvantage is that he could find out he likes the taste of zoos or xenia and start munching. But the 75G I've been working on for my mom is now cycled, so in an emergency, either the fish or the corals can be moved to the 75 or the 75's refugium. So far he hasn't bothered any of the corals when we are observing. And they are all open and happy so I'm pretty sure he isn't "tasting" them when we aren't around. And, for anyone curious about where we got the name, he is named "Desmond" because we brought him home the same night as the Lost season premiere. If you are a fan of the show then you know where the name comes from.

I realize this was a no-no, but I weighed that against whether I would ever see such a healthy specimen of one of my must-have fish at such a reasonable price.
I'm a weak weak man.

 

[vanmo92]

fish and corals look great. you are doing an extrodinary job with that setup.

 

[nano_angel]

Nice Tank! I just got my first tank last night. My boyfriend got it for me for my birthday. It was a used tank, so it came set up with some liverock and a few corals but it's way cool so far... and I got two crabs and some snails and a flame scallop tonight. I am going to add slowly too... but sometimes those desmonds are just destiny huh?


Good Luck with your tank... hope that hermit stays happy with the shell he has!:eek1:

 

[K9]

Buying one now was NOT part of the plan. So guess what happened.....

We've all made mistakes (impulse purchases) in the beginning, but just be ready for flames from other users about that Bi-Color angelfish. Especially in a 10g tank. At least you're conscious that it was a mistake to buy it. Perhaps you should return it now that you're clearly aware that it was a wrong move.

IMO, it was unadviseable to buy it just because it was one of your "must-have" fish and it was only $14. Since you only have a 10g tank, you need to put some smaller, hardier species on your "must-have" list. A Bi-Color Angel doesn't belong on that list. I've said my peace. Best of luck with whatever you decide .

 

[JustFin]

IMO, it was unadviseable to buy it just because it was one of your "must-have" fish and it was only $14. Since you only have a 10g tank, you need to put some smaller, hardier species on your "must-have" list.

K9- I've read many of your posts and your advice is always conservative and sound. But you incorrectly stated that I only have a 10g tank. As I mentioned in my post above, I also have a 75g tank with 80+lbs. of cycled liverock and a 20g fuge w/ chaeto and no fish. Granted this tank is in my mother's home & not my own, but moving the bicolor to her tank would be much less stressful to the fish than taking it back to the LFS where it was also in a 10G with no LR and sharing it with other fish. A 75G tank is a perfectly adequate home for a 6" fully grown bicolor. As I'm sure you know, bicolors can be picky eaters, so having it in the 10G makes it much easier to offer it foods and observe what it will eat. If I had it in that big 75G all to itself, it might never try the offerings because it would have a hard time finding them. This is the same reason when your are trying to observe and feed newly born fry you don't put them in a very large tank because it makes it much to hard to keep an eye on them and for them to find their food source.

Yes, I was chastising myself for buying the fish at a time that was less than convenient and not when I planned, but if I didn't think I had the time, space, or ability to give this fish a good chance of thriving I would not have purchased it at all.

If you are curious about my actual stocking plans for the 10G, I plan on choosing among tank-raised neon gobies or a tank-raised dottyback since its aggression wouldn't be a problem in a home to itself. Both are small, hardy, & no impact to the environment because they are tank-raised specimens.

 

[JustFin]

fish and corals look great. you are doing an extrodinary job with that setup.

Thanks! I don't know about "extraordinary" but I'm doing my best. My tank doesn't have the eye appeal as other nanos in this forum with more corals, but some of the best looking tanks I've seen weren't packed with lots of frags, but instead had a few types of coral that were allowed to grow in over time. That is what I'm shooting for- but with my color variety coming from different color variations of the zoos.

I appreciate the encouragement!

 

[JustFin]

Nice Tank! I just got my first tank last night. My boyfriend got it for me for my birthday. It was a used tank, so it came set up with some liverock and a few corals but it's way cool so far... and I got two crabs and some snails and a flame scallop tonight. I am going to add slowly too... but sometimes those desmonds are just destiny huh?

Good Luck with your tank... hope that hermit stays happy with the shell he has!:eek1:

How big is your tank?

What are you doing to feed that flame scallop?
Here is a great link to learn a lot of information about them:
http://www.google.com/custom?q=flame+scallops&sitesearch=wetwebmedia.com

yes, sometimes those desmonds show up unexpectedly

my hermit seems to have room to grow in his current shell, but once that is used up I wouldn't want to be one of the larger astrea snails in the tank :worried:

good luck with your tank, too

 

[nano_angel]

My tank is a 12gal. JBJ dx 88w pc. I fed dts. The scallop is about the size of a quarter. When my bf and I first started dating over a year ago I surprised him with a scallop and it is now huge and looking beautiful a year later. We add dts to the tank twice a week... seems to keep him and the clams very happy and growing huge. We are going to rearrange my tank tonight or tomorrow eve... do you think the scallop would be happier in the big tank?

 

[K9]

...you incorrectly stated that I only have a 10g tank. As I mentioned in my post above, I also have a 75g tank with 80+lbs. of cycled liverock and a 20g fuge w/ chaeto and no fish. Granted this tank is in my mother's home & not my own, but moving the bicolor to her tank would be much less stressful to the fish than taking it back to the LFS where it was also in a 10G with no LR and sharing it with other fish.

Hey man, didn't mean any offense. So sorry. Guess I didn't read your post thoroughly enough. Glad to hear that you have a nice permanent home for that guy. I guess I only went overboard a bit because when I was in my rookie reefkeeping days, I put a Bi-Color angel in a 10g hex tank of all things! Then I wondered why it died a week later. I hope I didn't come across as too harsh. Best of luck with that beautiful guy and the rest of your setup! :thumbsup:

No hard feelings .

 

[JustFin]

No hard feelings .

Ditto. Just wanted to clarify for anyone else that might read my thread and make the same mistake and hopefully avoid any flames. You are always welcome to post any advice on my thread you would like. One of the underated aspects of this hobby is all of the opportunities it provides for learning.

 

[JustFin]

... do you think the scallop would be happier in the big tank?

I would say that if your bf has kept one that long and it is still doing well then he is the best person to guide you. Just keep a close eye on the little guy. One of the best things we can do for our fish and corals is to watch them closely for 15-30min at least everyday. That's easy to do when everything is new and exciting, but kind of gets tough when life gets hectic. You can avoid lots of problems by making sure to keep an eye on things daily.

I spotted your thread earlier and hope you will post some pictures when you get your final aquascape put together.
Good luck! :rollface:

 

[nano_angel]

Thanks actually i don't have a digital cam so as soon as I can get the cd from walmart i am anxious to see how they do but i gotta fill my camera up so soon.... ANYWAY... thanks .... hey what kind of fish are you considering... I am kinda wanting a coral banded shrimp what do you think?

 

[clown fanatic]

i was reminded of this thread when the other day, at my 10g tank at school i saw some hydroids. it was so cool today because we actually managed to spot a tiny jelly fish and i captured it, along with a hydroid with an eye dropper and looked at them under an magnifying glass. very cool stuff! if you have an magnifyinf glass laying around i you should try it out.

 

[JustFin]

.... hey what kind of fish are you considering... I am kinda wanting a coral banded shrimp what do you think?

I'm leaning toward a Rainfords goby, blue neon goby, or an orchid dottyback

Like you I've also thought about just having a shrimp as my "feature" animal. Only thing is every time I see shrimp in tank pictures they are always hiding in a back corner or cave.
Of course, maybe they just don't like having their picture taken.

 

[JustFin]

very cool stuff! if you have an magnifying glass laying around you should try it out.

Ours is always within arms reach of our tank! :thumbsup:
Some of the most interesting things to watch can only be seen with a magnifying glass- like the other night I watched a clear flatworm eating copepods as it slid along the tank glass. Does your classroom have access to a microscope? I'm sure the detail you could see with one would be even cooler.

After setting up a 75G I now appreciate the more intimate views I get with my little nano. In a big tank you can keep larger corals, fish, etc. but you miss a lot of the interesting little stuff going on.

 

[clown fanatic]

yes i meant to say microscope haha. we also looked at a tiny copepod under the microscope and it was pretty cool i must say.

 

[Ronald]

Hey great tank! I look forward to more pictures. I recomend a microscope if you can get a good binocular scope mounted horizontal with a stand and camera port that is ideal. Don't waste money on too much magnification though, depth of field gets really limiting with too much mag. Check out some of my micrographs from my old 72 g bow front atthis site Keep us up to date with pics !

Ron

 

[JustFin]

I recomend a microscope if you can get a good binocular scope mounted horizontal with a stand and camera port that is ideal. ....Check out some of my micrographs from my old 72 g bow front

Wow, nice pictures of an equally nice tank, Ron. If I have the funds someday I will definately look into one of those scopes. I'm sure it would open up a whole new world.

 

[JustFin]

Just a brief update- one week after getting Desmond and he is still looking good. Hasn't seemed interested in the frozen brine shrimp or broccoli I offered him. (Yes, broccoli. I read in another thread that some bicolors love it and it helps their mainly herbivorous diet.) But he eating a frozen food called "Emerald Entree" made by San Francisco Bay Brands. It is a big relief to see him eating some food. I will continue offering him different choices so that hopefully I can get him used to a variety.

 

[Ronald]

Thanks for the positive feed back on my old setup. Unfortunately I had to break it down for the move. (I sold all critters back to the store) I look forward to starting a 10g nano.

I look forward to seeing more pictures of your nano.

Go Desmond!

Ron