Oyster Reef Ecosystem Tank
- Thread starter Chasmodes
- Start date
Chasmodes
Well-known member
Yes Patrick, very true. I went collecting on Saturday. We had a great time and really caught some cool stuff. I've detailed below what we kept and brought below. More on that trip later in this post...it was a very cool trip and quite the learning experience.
I have some new additions to the oyster reef system in my holding tank shown in the video below. On Saturday, I brought home two small four spined sticklebacks, Apeltes quadracus, two species of Ulva macroalgae, a few more sea squirts and a cluster of mussels, and two beautiful large ghost anemones. When I say large, I mean about as big as they get, about 1.75" wide at the tentacles, and about the same length for the base. These are also not pure white like the others in my display tank. Rather, they have a pinkish hue to them. Here's the video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZo3tRP58NQ
The sticklebacks are feeding on small copepods and amphipods, but ignore my offerings. I guess I'll have to start raising some baby brine shrimp or buy copepods until these fish are big enough to eat the frozen foods. My plan is to keep them in this tank for a while, but move them into quarantine and treat them with copper. At that point, the holding tank (my 20g high), will be for invertebrates and macroalgae, and will remain fallow. After 6 weeks, then I'll move stuff to the display tank. If I go collecting and bring more stuff home, then that clock resets. The point is that I don't want to introduce ich to my display tank.
Eventually, this summer, I hope, I'll have my big tank set up and all of the fish and invertebrates will move to that tank, except for the sticklebacks. I will keep the 20g long as a stickleback tank, with macroalgae as the dominant aquascape, with perhaps an oyster cultch or two (to be made later).
After this weekend, all of my fish that are in quarantine will move to the display tank. I had a tragic death on Friday night, however. One of the female blennies went carpet surfing. I have no idea how she got out. My guess is that she jumped through the egg crate top that I had, because there weren't any other openings large enough for her to fit though. Now I'm down to 5 males and one female blennies in the tank.
I posted this in the NANFA forum, but I'm not sure if I'm allowed to link it here. But, I'll just repeat the post here...this was my collecting trip on Saturday, 5/12/2018:
I took a friend (the aquarist at the Glen Echo Park Aquarium) out dipnetting to some sites on the Chesapeake Bay on Saturday. I wasn't expecting much because it seemed early to me. Last year, I didn't start collecting until mid-June, and although I caught my first blenny, it was a juvenile, and we only caught one. We didn't find any adults until about a month later. But what we found changed my opinion about the timing of collecting this ecosystem.
At our first spot, the SG was only 1.011 and the water temperature was 68F degrees. We caught the usual assortment of crabs, shrimp, a few mummichogs and three young four spined sticklebacks. I kept along with two species of Ulva, a few shrimp and some amphipods. We brought a ton of grass shrimp back to the public aquarium, as they make for great food for many of their larger fish. We collected a few naked gobies, but not many benthic fish at all at this spot.
All of my other spots in this region (considered "middle Bay") usually are within point of the specific gravity, but the second spot was actually 1.014, and our last spot was the same. We wound up catching quite a variety of species at these spots, including mummichogs, Atlantic silversides, rainwater killies, naked gobies, juvenile Atlantic croakers, one skilletfish, and two beautifully colored striped blennies. We also collected some invertebrates, including amphipods, shrimp, several anemones, a clump of mussels, some sea squirts, a couple jellyfish, and two species of mud crabs. But the cool thing was that we collected three species of benthic fish (two striped blennies, one skilletfish, and one naked goby) that were in oyster shells guarding eggs! We brought these male fish back to the public aquarium along with their eggs. When we returned to GEPA, the blennies were inside their oyster shells with the eggs. I thought that was amazing.
But, what I learned was the my preconception about it being too early to find blennies was all wrong. We found them in about 4' of water in discarded oyster shells with eggs, in May. I had much doubt that we'd find them this early, much less in spawning mode. It was quite a trip. Here are a couple pics:
Juvenile Atlantic croaker (these were released because they are well under the legal limit being a gamefish, and we didn't have our scientific collecting permit yet for this year- application in the works). These guys would have been great in their oyster reef exhibit. Hopefully, we will find them after we get our permit.
Male adult striped blenny, Chasmodes bosquianus, sporting his spawning coloration. We collected two of these guys, but no females collected this time. These colors were much prettier than this photo shows, especially the bright blue spot on the front of the dorsal fin that is really muted in the picture. We were so excited to catch these guys and that they were also both guarding eggs!
I have some new additions to the oyster reef system in my holding tank shown in the video below. On Saturday, I brought home two small four spined sticklebacks, Apeltes quadracus, two species of Ulva macroalgae, a few more sea squirts and a cluster of mussels, and two beautiful large ghost anemones. When I say large, I mean about as big as they get, about 1.75" wide at the tentacles, and about the same length for the base. These are also not pure white like the others in my display tank. Rather, they have a pinkish hue to them. Here's the video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZo3tRP58NQ
The sticklebacks are feeding on small copepods and amphipods, but ignore my offerings. I guess I'll have to start raising some baby brine shrimp or buy copepods until these fish are big enough to eat the frozen foods. My plan is to keep them in this tank for a while, but move them into quarantine and treat them with copper. At that point, the holding tank (my 20g high), will be for invertebrates and macroalgae, and will remain fallow. After 6 weeks, then I'll move stuff to the display tank. If I go collecting and bring more stuff home, then that clock resets. The point is that I don't want to introduce ich to my display tank.
Eventually, this summer, I hope, I'll have my big tank set up and all of the fish and invertebrates will move to that tank, except for the sticklebacks. I will keep the 20g long as a stickleback tank, with macroalgae as the dominant aquascape, with perhaps an oyster cultch or two (to be made later).
After this weekend, all of my fish that are in quarantine will move to the display tank. I had a tragic death on Friday night, however. One of the female blennies went carpet surfing. I have no idea how she got out. My guess is that she jumped through the egg crate top that I had, because there weren't any other openings large enough for her to fit though. Now I'm down to 5 males and one female blennies in the tank.
I posted this in the NANFA forum, but I'm not sure if I'm allowed to link it here. But, I'll just repeat the post here...this was my collecting trip on Saturday, 5/12/2018:
I took a friend (the aquarist at the Glen Echo Park Aquarium) out dipnetting to some sites on the Chesapeake Bay on Saturday. I wasn't expecting much because it seemed early to me. Last year, I didn't start collecting until mid-June, and although I caught my first blenny, it was a juvenile, and we only caught one. We didn't find any adults until about a month later. But what we found changed my opinion about the timing of collecting this ecosystem.
At our first spot, the SG was only 1.011 and the water temperature was 68F degrees. We caught the usual assortment of crabs, shrimp, a few mummichogs and three young four spined sticklebacks. I kept along with two species of Ulva, a few shrimp and some amphipods. We brought a ton of grass shrimp back to the public aquarium, as they make for great food for many of their larger fish. We collected a few naked gobies, but not many benthic fish at all at this spot.
All of my other spots in this region (considered "middle Bay") usually are within point of the specific gravity, but the second spot was actually 1.014, and our last spot was the same. We wound up catching quite a variety of species at these spots, including mummichogs, Atlantic silversides, rainwater killies, naked gobies, juvenile Atlantic croakers, one skilletfish, and two beautifully colored striped blennies. We also collected some invertebrates, including amphipods, shrimp, several anemones, a clump of mussels, some sea squirts, a couple jellyfish, and two species of mud crabs. But the cool thing was that we collected three species of benthic fish (two striped blennies, one skilletfish, and one naked goby) that were in oyster shells guarding eggs! We brought these male fish back to the public aquarium along with their eggs. When we returned to GEPA, the blennies were inside their oyster shells with the eggs. I thought that was amazing.
But, what I learned was the my preconception about it being too early to find blennies was all wrong. We found them in about 4' of water in discarded oyster shells with eggs, in May. I had much doubt that we'd find them this early, much less in spawning mode. It was quite a trip. Here are a couple pics:
Juvenile Atlantic croaker (these were released because they are well under the legal limit being a gamefish, and we didn't have our scientific collecting permit yet for this year- application in the works). These guys would have been great in their oyster reef exhibit. Hopefully, we will find them after we get our permit.
Male adult striped blenny, Chasmodes bosquianus, sporting his spawning coloration. We collected two of these guys, but no females collected this time. These colors were much prettier than this photo shows, especially the bright blue spot on the front of the dorsal fin that is really muted in the picture. We were so excited to catch these guys and that they were also both guarding eggs!
Fascinating read! It's a pleasure following your progress. It's also very informative. Keep 'em coming!
Chasmodes
Well-known member
Thank you!
I'm not a scientist, but I'm helping with the local public aquarium, so they'll be listing my name on the permit to help them obtain specimens for their displays. For the vast majority of specimens, I can use my regular fishing license as long as I abide by the local game laws. The collection permit allows us to collect the species named on the permit and allow collection techniques that a fishing license doesn't allow (e.g. to collect undersized game specimens). I am pretty sure that I can't do this alone, that one of the aquarium officials has to be with me. At least, that is my understanding.
I'm not a scientist, but I'm helping with the local public aquarium, so they'll be listing my name on the permit to help them obtain specimens for their displays. For the vast majority of specimens, I can use my regular fishing license as long as I abide by the local game laws. The collection permit allows us to collect the species named on the permit and allow collection techniques that a fishing license doesn't allow (e.g. to collect undersized game specimens). I am pretty sure that I can't do this alone, that one of the aquarium officials has to be with me. At least, that is my understanding.
Chasmodes
Well-known member
The fallow period is over and my fish are not out of QT and back into the display tank. While in QT, they were pretty much doing the same territorial chases that they've always done, defending their favorite piece of PVC pipe. But, after a few days in the display tank, the males established homes in their favorite oyster shells and really colored up into their spawning colors, pretty much like the one that I caught last week. Not only that, they're defending their 6" of space, all the while chasing, flashing, and harassing the female, I guess, to breed. It's weird though, like a love-hate relationship. They get all fired up and flash when they see here, then they both display side by side and shake (mostly the male), then he chases her away. Only, all of the males are after her like this. Her tail has been pecked a lot, and at one point was almost down to the caudal peduncle, but has since grown back some.
The male spawning coloration includes a bright blue spot on the dorsal fin as well as a dark stripe and a yellowish/orange stripe along the front half of the fin. Also, they darken up their entire bodies almost to the point that their stripes fade away, their fins become tinted with orange, their pelvic and anal fins darken up and are trimmed with a white and black border, and their cheeks become and orange or peach color. You can really see this in the video that I'm posting below. That bright blue spot is quite pretty. The males are about 3.5 to 4 inches long now. In the six weeks that they were in QT, they grew quite a bit. It's hard to believe that it was less than a year ago that all of the fish were less than an inch and a half long.
The female remains in the juvenile coloration, mottled with vertical bars and faint horizontal variable stripes. She is the smallest fish in the tank at 2.75 inches, but she is tough as nails.
In this video, there are two scenes of a pair of males sparring over territory, presumably over a potential place to spawn and guard eggs. The first battle begins at the 3:30 mark, and the second one at the 5:02 mark. The video finishes showing the object of their affection, a female striped blenny.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mac-arIZaXU
The male spawning coloration includes a bright blue spot on the dorsal fin as well as a dark stripe and a yellowish/orange stripe along the front half of the fin. Also, they darken up their entire bodies almost to the point that their stripes fade away, their fins become tinted with orange, their pelvic and anal fins darken up and are trimmed with a white and black border, and their cheeks become and orange or peach color. You can really see this in the video that I'm posting below. That bright blue spot is quite pretty. The males are about 3.5 to 4 inches long now. In the six weeks that they were in QT, they grew quite a bit. It's hard to believe that it was less than a year ago that all of the fish were less than an inch and a half long.
The female remains in the juvenile coloration, mottled with vertical bars and faint horizontal variable stripes. She is the smallest fish in the tank at 2.75 inches, but she is tough as nails.
In this video, there are two scenes of a pair of males sparring over territory, presumably over a potential place to spawn and guard eggs. The first battle begins at the 3:30 mark, and the second one at the 5:02 mark. The video finishes showing the object of their affection, a female striped blenny.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mac-arIZaXU
Outstanding video of alpha male aggression between your collected blennies. The Ghost Shrimp population is large. They swim boldly in front of those blennies. Do they get eaten down fast? I have collected them in salt water marshes in Louisiana & Texas. When they come in with egg masses, it is neat to see the light thru the eggs.
Sounds like your collecting trip was spectacular. I always enjoyed collecting for my marine tanks. When the sport fishing was poor, I just as soon get out my dip net and catch things including pods and plants. If I would go to the jetties, I could get Peppermint Shrimp and Curly Que Anemone, that would be much better than fishing.
Sounds like your collecting trip was spectacular. I always enjoyed collecting for my marine tanks. When the sport fishing was poor, I just as soon get out my dip net and catch things including pods and plants. If I would go to the jetties, I could get Peppermint Shrimp and Curly Que Anemone, that would be much better than fishing.
Congrats on finishing fallow/QT time. Another fun vid too. I was surprised by your shrimps' boldness around the blennies. Quite the cast of characters!
I didn't see any of your new plants. How has your luck with plants been thus far? As I recall, you were planning to incorporate plants in your ecosystem, but I haven't seen many. Not that your scape isn't cool already!
If there is anything I can do to help on the plant front, please let me know. I'd be happy to help if I can.
I didn't see any of your new plants. How has your luck with plants been thus far? As I recall, you were planning to incorporate plants in your ecosystem, but I haven't seen many. Not that your scape isn't cool already!
If there is anything I can do to help on the plant front, please let me know. I'd be happy to help if I can.
Chasmodes
Well-known member
Thank you Patrick and Michael! When the fish were in QT, the shrimp swam much more openly around the tank. Now they are much less mobile, crawling on substrate more than swimming. The fish will chase them around now and then but lose interest fast. They have been known to kill and eat a few of them since the beginning, but these shrimp have all been in the tank since September. I think that as long as I keep the fish well fed, they'll pretty much leave them alone.
Our last collecting trip was much better than expected, with water temps just above 60F. They should be in the low to mid 70's by now, so collecting should be much better. As temps increase and the O2 saturation stratifies in the Bay, more fish will move shallow and thus improve collecting even more. I'm looking forward to adding more species.
The tank in the video has some of the black Gracilaria alive, but all of the Ulva died off while the fish were in QT. One reason was that I was trying to use less light to cause a die or or reduced level of cyano. Although it helped, it didn't get rid of it, so I will try the Chemi-clean. The lack of light pretty much killed the Ulva off.
In my 20g high, I added 2 species of Ulva, and already, the Ulva intestinalis (stringier Ulva) is dying off. The Ulva lactuca is still doing OK though. I don't know if the U. intestinalis prefers less salty water or not, or if something else is missing. I'm not too concerned yet since this is just a holding tank and my main big display isn't ready yet.
Since this tank has a couple fish in it, and it's my holding tank for inverts and macros, I won't be transferring anything into the display until this tank is fallow for 8 weeks. I have to transfer the sticklebacks to QT and then that process begins. For non-aquarium related issues, I had to break down the QT (I had planned to keep it up). I hope to remedy that situation.
Once the main display is set up, it will be my oyster reef tank. The 20g long will be the stickleback tank (maybe pipefish or seahorses), the 20g high will be the macro/invert fallow holding tank, and the other 20g long will be my fish QT tank. All those tanks plus my 75g FW river tank will provide me with much humidity in my house
As far as progress goes on my large tank build, I had a water line installed to where I want my water changing/mixing station and my sump. Next is a dedicated electrical line. I also haven't finished the stand...feeling guilty about that...
Our last collecting trip was much better than expected, with water temps just above 60F. They should be in the low to mid 70's by now, so collecting should be much better. As temps increase and the O2 saturation stratifies in the Bay, more fish will move shallow and thus improve collecting even more. I'm looking forward to adding more species.
The tank in the video has some of the black Gracilaria alive, but all of the Ulva died off while the fish were in QT. One reason was that I was trying to use less light to cause a die or or reduced level of cyano. Although it helped, it didn't get rid of it, so I will try the Chemi-clean. The lack of light pretty much killed the Ulva off.
In my 20g high, I added 2 species of Ulva, and already, the Ulva intestinalis (stringier Ulva) is dying off. The Ulva lactuca is still doing OK though. I don't know if the U. intestinalis prefers less salty water or not, or if something else is missing. I'm not too concerned yet since this is just a holding tank and my main big display isn't ready yet.
Since this tank has a couple fish in it, and it's my holding tank for inverts and macros, I won't be transferring anything into the display until this tank is fallow for 8 weeks. I have to transfer the sticklebacks to QT and then that process begins. For non-aquarium related issues, I had to break down the QT (I had planned to keep it up). I hope to remedy that situation.
Once the main display is set up, it will be my oyster reef tank. The 20g long will be the stickleback tank (maybe pipefish or seahorses), the 20g high will be the macro/invert fallow holding tank, and the other 20g long will be my fish QT tank. All those tanks plus my 75g FW river tank will provide me with much humidity in my house
As far as progress goes on my large tank build, I had a water line installed to where I want my water changing/mixing station and my sump. Next is a dedicated electrical line. I also haven't finished the stand...feeling guilty about that...
Chasmodes
Well-known member
Tank update: I noticed that the fish in the 20g long were breathing heavily, mostly due to constantly defending their territories, but after a couple water changes to clean up detritus, I decided to also add an airstone. I also cleaned the HOB filter and powerhead and now there is much more flow. As a result, the fish are out much more and much more photogenic. While cleaning the filter, I discovered several tunicates in there, and also some inside some of the oyster shells. My original ones all died, so I assume that these are progeny. The three small anemones disappeared since I added the fish. I don't know if the fish killed and ate them, or if they simply moved or are hiding. In fact, all of the invertebrates except for the shrimp rarely come out (crabs, worms, etc.). Their vacation is over! Time for some pics...
Full Tank Shot
Male striped blennies battle over oysters and the lone female. The blenny that I dubbed "King" is on the left. He pretty much rules the roost but the one on the right holds his own and sometimes wins these battles
The next couple pictures show King sporting his spawning colors: the bright blue dorsal fin spot, the dark anal fins trimmed in black and white, the yellow/orange dorsal fin stripe, peach colored gills and mouth, and orange trimmed pectoral and tail fins. Notice how dark King gets in the above picture during the standoff.
The object of their affection, the lone female in the tank. Notice the drab coloration. She is quite a bit smaller too. The males chase her constantly, nipping at her, and sometimes shaking their bodies. I suggested to them that they take a nicer approach to courting, but it's hard for them to break bad habits.
King peeking out of his oyster shell that he defends constantly.
I have a couple more cool videos and will post them as soon as I can.
Full Tank Shot
Male striped blennies battle over oysters and the lone female. The blenny that I dubbed "King" is on the left. He pretty much rules the roost but the one on the right holds his own and sometimes wins these battles
The next couple pictures show King sporting his spawning colors: the bright blue dorsal fin spot, the dark anal fins trimmed in black and white, the yellow/orange dorsal fin stripe, peach colored gills and mouth, and orange trimmed pectoral and tail fins. Notice how dark King gets in the above picture during the standoff.
The object of their affection, the lone female in the tank. Notice the drab coloration. She is quite a bit smaller too. The males chase her constantly, nipping at her, and sometimes shaking their bodies. I suggested to them that they take a nicer approach to courting, but it's hard for them to break bad habits.
King peeking out of his oyster shell that he defends constantly.
I have a couple more cool videos and will post them as soon as I can.
Great pics Kevin! The third one is my favorite. It sounds like everything is humming along nicely!
fabulousfavia
Member
Wow cool fish! What temp do u run this tank at?
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Chasmodes
Well-known member
Thanks everyone! Michael, it's so tough to get a good picture as they never seem to stay still out in the open. I think that I might try getting a small mirror for them to show themselves off, that usually works.
Fabulousfavia, during the summer, this tank is about 68F degrees, and about 62F in the winter. Basically, room temperature in the downstairs of my house. In the wild, they live in shallow water in the summer where temperatures can reach 90F, and during the winter they head for deeper water where temps are as low as 40F during a cold winter.
McPuff, you are so right, and I was thinking the same thing. I regularly maintain my filter, but it's been a while with the powerhead. Not only did the circulation improve, the the pump runs a lot quieter... After cleaning them, I slapped myself on the head and thought..."Duh"...
Fabulousfavia, during the summer, this tank is about 68F degrees, and about 62F in the winter. Basically, room temperature in the downstairs of my house. In the wild, they live in shallow water in the summer where temperatures can reach 90F, and during the winter they head for deeper water where temps are as low as 40F during a cold winter.
McPuff, you are so right, and I was thinking the same thing. I regularly maintain my filter, but it's been a while with the powerhead. Not only did the circulation improve, the the pump runs a lot quieter... After cleaning them, I slapped myself on the head and thought..."Duh"...
fabulousfavia
Member
Nice
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Chasmodes
Well-known member
My blennies spawned, probably on Friday. I didn't see the spawning activity, but was wondering why I wasn't seeing one of the largest males. The reason he wasn't out and about was because he was guarding eggs. He does make quick trips to come out to eat during feeding time, but goes back and forth between the oyster shell and the food.
Here's a pic of him guarding the eggs. You can see the eggs and also the female to the right hanging out. He is tolerant of her, but still chases her off if she hangs out too long.
Here is a pic of the shell and eggs that he left to chase off another fish:
Here is a cool video of him guarding the eggs. There is another male that challenges him, not for his eggs, but rather to defend another oyster shell that he is claiming as territory. This is interesting, because he is somewhat smaller and not even a week ago the two larger males were picking on him pretty bad. Now he fights back and stands up for himself. My guess is that he's claiming his own spawning location:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Qh8_B3pq4U&t=12s
Here's a pic of him guarding the eggs. You can see the eggs and also the female to the right hanging out. He is tolerant of her, but still chases her off if she hangs out too long.
Here is a pic of the shell and eggs that he left to chase off another fish:
Here is a cool video of him guarding the eggs. There is another male that challenges him, not for his eggs, but rather to defend another oyster shell that he is claiming as territory. This is interesting, because he is somewhat smaller and not even a week ago the two larger males were picking on him pretty bad. Now he fights back and stands up for himself. My guess is that he's claiming his own spawning location:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Qh8_B3pq4U&t=12s
Last edited:
Congrats Kevin! You know you're doing something right when your fish spawn.
Chasmodes
Well-known member
Thanks Michael. Either that or these fish are so hardy that they can even withstand my husbandry!
In other news, after I reintroduced the fish from quarantine to the display, all of those cool invertebrates that were there that became more and more visible disappeared. I think that they are there, somewhere, but hide from the fish. I no longer have a cyanobacteria problem, so that is cool. The reef is looking more and more natural all of the time. The Gracilaria has died off some, but the pieces that remain are showing new growth.
Also, in my 20g high tank, I lost one stickleback. I have no idea what happened to it...gone. Maybe an anemone or crab ate it, or maybe it jumped out and I can't find it. The other stickleback is a pod eating machine and ingnores all of the food that I put into the tank. But, it's getting fatter, so my pod population must be sustainable for it. I think that once it ages, the diet will change. Right now, it's about an inch and a quarter long. The three anemones in that tank are doing very well, and all of the invertebrates in that tank are very active and out all of the time. Most of the macroalgae in this tank died off, but a big chunk of Ulva lactica is hanging in there. Most of the Gracilaria died off, but there are some small pieces that are coming back.
In other news, after I reintroduced the fish from quarantine to the display, all of those cool invertebrates that were there that became more and more visible disappeared. I think that they are there, somewhere, but hide from the fish. I no longer have a cyanobacteria problem, so that is cool. The reef is looking more and more natural all of the time. The Gracilaria has died off some, but the pieces that remain are showing new growth.
Also, in my 20g high tank, I lost one stickleback. I have no idea what happened to it...gone. Maybe an anemone or crab ate it, or maybe it jumped out and I can't find it. The other stickleback is a pod eating machine and ingnores all of the food that I put into the tank. But, it's getting fatter, so my pod population must be sustainable for it. I think that once it ages, the diet will change. Right now, it's about an inch and a quarter long. The three anemones in that tank are doing very well, and all of the invertebrates in that tank are very active and out all of the time. Most of the macroalgae in this tank died off, but a big chunk of Ulva lactica is hanging in there. Most of the Gracilaria died off, but there are some small pieces that are coming back.
Chasmodes
Well-known member
So the female striped blenny is very brave, despite being smaller than all of the males. She struts about the tank and gets chased and harassed by all of the males. But, she keeps doing her thing. However, sometimes the chasing is more like corralling. Normally, a male will chase and bite her to scare her away, as he does rival males. However, when he wants to breed, he chase, nip, or sometimes push her to get her into his oyster shell, while at the same time positioning his body between her and the escape routes away from his shell, while shaking (flashing), with fins erect and displaying his colors to her. This is an attempt to push her into his oyster shell. I saw this happen a couple nights ago, and ran upstairs to get my phone. But, by the time I had it set on my tripod, another male blenny chased her off. He actually kept her from going near the other male, although probably not on purpose, rather, just to chase her away.
Meanwhile, another male on the other side of the tank had a different approach. He would just come out of his oyster shell and position himself higher on the reef above her, and kept doing that until she got close to his shell and eventually she would enter. He would follow her in and then she'd shoot out and swim away until this started all over again. He was so close! It was so fun to watch that I was down there from 10 PM until well after 1 AM watching this, trying to get a good video and/or pics. They never seem to behave the way you want when the camera is pointed at them.
Also, the territorial battles between the males and their shells is fun to watch in itself. Most of the time, the skirmishes are just all show. Sometimes, albeit rarely, they trade bites and even take chunks out of each other's fins!
However, last night, I was able to capture some of this drama on film. Instead of one male doing this, three of them were competing for her! One of the males actually pushed her half way across the tank toward his shell, but she got away. I'm not sure if I got that on film or not. It's not in this video, but maybe I caught it in another one. I have to go through those videos to see if I can find if I caught it or not. Anyway, this is the best video of the action so far, especially the first third of the video. I can watch them for hours!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4voYgaBffes&t=1s
Meanwhile, another male on the other side of the tank had a different approach. He would just come out of his oyster shell and position himself higher on the reef above her, and kept doing that until she got close to his shell and eventually she would enter. He would follow her in and then she'd shoot out and swim away until this started all over again. He was so close! It was so fun to watch that I was down there from 10 PM until well after 1 AM watching this, trying to get a good video and/or pics. They never seem to behave the way you want when the camera is pointed at them.
Also, the territorial battles between the males and their shells is fun to watch in itself. Most of the time, the skirmishes are just all show. Sometimes, albeit rarely, they trade bites and even take chunks out of each other's fins!
However, last night, I was able to capture some of this drama on film. Instead of one male doing this, three of them were competing for her! One of the males actually pushed her half way across the tank toward his shell, but she got away. I'm not sure if I got that on film or not. It's not in this video, but maybe I caught it in another one. I have to go through those videos to see if I can find if I caught it or not. Anyway, this is the best video of the action so far, especially the first third of the video. I can watch them for hours!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4voYgaBffes&t=1s
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