Oyster Reef Ecosystem Tank

[Michael Hoaster]

Cool. Good music choice too. It went well with the subject!

That phrase does get tossed around, I think because it is so appropriate! We put Nature in a box and it goes right to work. I'm astounded how well it adapts to whatever we throw at it.

"Now you will remember to wash your hands before you eat anything."

 

[Chasmodes]

"Now you will remember to wash your hands before you eat anything."

Ha! That is so appropriate too, especially after we feed our fish or work on our tanks!

Edit: I meant to also say that quote also cracked me up in the context of that movie!

 

[Chasmodes]

This morning, I went down with my flashlight and magnifying glass to see what was active before the lights were on, looking for that first anemone. I found it, plus the three in the video...but...there are actually four in the video! And, I found another one on the other side of the tank, making it 6 anemones! Man oh man, have they ever reproduced!

 

[Chasmodes]

Everyone's probably sick of my tank by now with all of my updates, but, I can't help it. I love it and want to share it LOL.

The skilletfish that disappeared and then reappeared died. I found the half eaten carcass floating at the surface. The blennies and other skilletfish looked pretty fat! They still ate like pigs when I fed them. When it was alive, it had no signs of disease. I just stopped eating.

Here's a video update. The fish were a bit skittish this time, not sure why.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atLsEOccI8I

 

[Michael Hoaster]

I liked the full tank view you started with. It gives you a sense of the scale. Then it was fun watching them play 'musical chairs' with the shells.

Sorry to hear you lost one. It may be Nature's way of getting you to the best number of fish for your tank.

This is something I'm mulling over with my plan of multiple damsels. They are pretty cool when they are juveniles, but get meaner and more territorial as they age. So it's difficult to know how many fish is ideal, because that number goes down as they age.

 

[Chasmodes]

Thank you Michael. You might be right, nature has a way of balancing the carrying capacity.

 

[Chasmodes]

The male striped blennies are very bold. When I search the tank with my magnifying glass, the blenny that defends the left side of the tank often charges me, trying to scare me away from his territory. I've always wanted to catch it on film. Until last night, he was the only one that did it.

Last night, I was trying to zoom in and film the anemones in the sand at the front, center, of the tank near the glass. The male blenny that guards the back/middle of the oyster reef charged out and tried to attack me and the camera! I caught it on film, however, he was way out of focus and it looked like a big blur. So, I focused the camera on him, and tried to coax him to do it again. Only, this time, although he didn't charge all the way to the glass, it still turned out pretty cool. This video captures that event. This might be my favorite of the blenny videos that I made :bounce2:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiZptMeBXnw

 

[Michael Hoaster]

That was pretty cool! And those eyes!

 

[Chasmodes]

Last night, I was able to catch some really cool spawning activity on the video. One of male blennies was able to successfully herd the female blenny into a shell to spawn. He worked hard to get her there, but, he did it. The only problem was, it wasn't his favorite shell that he was hoping to herd her into. Still, it was really cool watching how he did it, and, I captured it on film. Also, to make this video even more interesting, another male blenny attacked the camera again, this time, an all out attack! Yesterday's vid was my favorite, but this one blows it away. I hope y'all like it!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pye10R65qT4&t=5s

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Game of Shells! You really did a great job building your oyster cultches. The fish move through them so naturally. Cool that you got that attack on film! That would seem to confirm increased territoriality.

 

[Chasmodes]

Thank you Michael!

Each blenny has their range, and when they're within their range, if there is a scuffle, they usually win the battle, regardless if the other blenny is bigger. They challenge each other, now and then, but, for the most part, when they leave their range, they lose that aggressiveness, almost. But around their oyster shell, they become super aggressive, even against me!

 

[Chasmodes]

I've got three videos to share for this update:

This first one is only 16 seconds long, and shows three of the anemones that I've found recently in the tank. Not long ago, I thought that all of the anemones died off. When I first discovered that they survived and reproduced a few weeks ago, I counted six. I counted a dozen last night. They're small, so I had to zoom all the way in with my iPhone, which made the video a bit shaky.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmeknDgkurM

This next video is about a minute long, and showcases the male skilletfish (Gobiesox strumosus). This is the same male that was guarding eggs at the back of the tank in the previous video. He's since moved to the front of the tank and has established this clam shell as his new territory.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uM_S5tEXA-w

This last video showcases both naked gobies (Gobiosoma bosc) and skilletfish. I wanted to show more of them since most of my recent videos focused on the blennies so much. A blenny makes a cameo appearance at the end of the video. The video pans back and forth between the two species, and starts out following a couple male naked gobies posturing for territorial dominance. Later in the video, I captured the male skilletfish trying to coax the female skilletfish into his shell. This takes place after feeding time, so the tank substrate is still a bit messy. This vid is a little longer at 5 minutes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6mdXPeKhjI

I hope that y'all enjoy them.

 

[Chasmodes]

I wasn't going to shoot a video last night, but, I couldn't help it. I saw this male striped blenny (Chasmodes bosquianus) corral a female blenny into his shell. I quickly grabbed my camera to see what happened next. His attempts to keep her in there until he could squeeze in with her were fascinating. After that, they attempted to lay eggs. When it was all over, I'm not sure if they laid any or not, because there may have been eggs in there already. It was a cool attempt though! This is the first time that I've witnessed this stage of blennies spawning. I've seen them corral a female into a shell, and I've seen them afterwards together in a shell, but, not this activity in between. It's a longer video, but, for blenny addicts, it's interesting. I hope you like it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNDCiRCe8N4

 

[Chasmodes]

It's not a very good pic because of the angle that I had to shoot from, but, you can see the eggs that were laid during the filming of that last video. Those eggs were laid in just 11 minutes (the length of the video). I find that amazing. There weren't any eggs on that shell prior to the video.

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Fun vids!

It's good to see your nems coming back. Is there any concern of them going all 'aiptasia' on you? The skillet fish looks very content in his clam shell - a happy camper! I loved the back and forth battle of detritus sweeping in the third one. In the last vid, I was struck by what lengths us males go to, to keep a woman! It's universal!

The last pic reminds me that you've got a lot of eggs going in your tank! That can only mean you've got some very happy and healthy fish. It's very impressive!

 

[Chasmodes]

Thank you Michael.

Yeah, the anemone comeback is quite surprising. The male skilletfish coloration perfectly matches the clam, while the female one that stopped by to visit tends to resemble more of the oyster reef coloration. Pretty cool!

Detritus wars LOL.

After watching the last video, I almost had this urge to smoke a cigarette. :smokin:

 

[Chasmodes]

Here's a quick peek at a male striped blenny (Chasmodes bosquianus) that comes out to attack the camera. You can see some of the spawning coloration, such as the blue spot and yellow/orange streak on the dorsal fin, orange tail, orange trimmed over yellow pectoral fins, orange lips and the orange/peach patch on the operculum.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKkbl2d3PPA

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Wow, he really colors up!

 

[Chasmodes]

They don't have the brightest coloration compared to reef fish, but do have some coloration and have a subtle beauty about them. The problem is getting them to pose for a pic and display their fins fully. When they're out, they're constantly moving too quick for me to get a good picture or video. Most of the time, they poke their heads out of oyster shells and watch the world around them. They leave the shells constantly, but, most of the time, it's for quick trips to eat, chase off rivals, or to attract females. The best time to film them is when they're flashing the females. This guy decided to stay out long enough for me to get a decent shot of him. Thankfully, he charged the camera, otherwise, I may only had his head poking out of his shell.

Time for a video tank update, shot the other day after my "monthly" water change. Monthly is in quotes, because that is what I've decided on for a schedule. In practice, it's more like every third month, LOL. The fish were all curious and poking their heads out. I thought that the tank looked nice and bright, so, I took a video. Hope y'all like it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnOwRY1i7r4

As far as news of the tank goes. I saw blenny larvae the last few nights, so it's good to see the eggs hatching again. Remember I found 3 or 4 anemones last week, then 20 a few days later? Last night, I found 30 of them. They are all in the sand bed, none stuck to the glass or oysters. There are good many jellyfish polyps in the tank too. The lone barnacle is still hanging in there. And, I was worried about my large male skilletfish that wasn't eating. Three of the last four feedings, he ate some. He used to eat like a pig. Now, he's picky. I don't get it. But, at least he's eating.

 

[Michael Hoaster]

And those eyes! True, subtle beauty. Your frustration with getting pics reminded me of my Atlantic Blue Tang, Mr. Zippy. He wouldn't sit still either. I took hundreds of pics to get one decent one. Even then, if you got one in focus, the background would be very blurry. Nature of the beast, I guess.

Mesmerizing video! I like the shot at 1:53, when you got the blenny in tight focus. Great moment! Good to hear everything's going so well. For me, the only thing missing is plants. I can imagine lots of them behind and around the oyster cultches. I do look forward to the big tank!