Pix & ID: Critters that come in your rocks: the good and the bad.

[gobymasters]

And my tiger pistol, recommended as a companion for a yellow watchman goby, killed its roommate and 3 other fish before I got him out. He was several years old, large, and for some reason started wanting territory all his own.

well i just love my pistols and they are just so fun

 

[Sk8r]

They really are amazing and fun, gobymasters, and I'm very fond of gobies, too. But do watch them as they get larger. There may be a tipping-point after which they become a problem. The fish I lost include the goby and some firefish, which tend to go into rocks at night. Mandarins and scooters and some wrasses and dottybacks with that behaviour could also be at risk. If you start seeing fish turn up with a red spot about head or side, which is from being punched by the high-velocity pistols, it's time to get some younger pistols.

My original post was in no way designed to keep people from having pistol shrimp: they're fascinating creatures, and in a tank focused on them and having an owner who loves the type, they're as I said, fun. But do be aware they have the potential for problems, and know if you start seeing dings, the one to look for is probably the largest, who's grown too big to share. The other possibility is that the tiger pistol is one that can start misbehaving.

 

[gobymasters]

They really are amazing and fun, gobymasters, and I'm very fond of gobies, too. But do watch them as they get larger. There may be a tipping-point after which they become a problem. The fish I lost include the goby and some firefish, which tend to go into rocks at night. Mandarins and scooters and some wrasses and dottybacks with that behaviour could also be at risk. If you start seeing fish turn up with a red spot about head or side, which is from being punched by the high-velocity pistols, it's time to get some younger pistols.

My original post was in no way designed to keep people from having pistol shrimp: they're fascinating creatures, and in a tank focused on them and having an owner who loves the type, they're as I said, fun. But do be aware they have the potential for problems, and know if you start seeing dings, the one to look for is probably the largest, who's grown too big to share. The other possibility is that the tiger pistol is one that can start misbehaving.

sorry for the other stuff its just that i think you shouldn't put them in the bad guys section:wave:

 

[Toxic Slurpee]

Here are a couple of semi-blurry pictures (sorry best I could get of it). I have quite a few of these guys in my tank. They're all quite long and wide. Is this a harmless bristle worm, or is this the sub-species fireworm that sting & eat corals?

 

[Sk8r]

Regular bristleworms. This kind can get about a foot long, but you regularly see just about this much of them, because they have a 'home rock' and feed in and around it. They're great cleaners.

 

[Mr. Demeanor]

Finally got a semi decent pic of what I think is an anemone. This looks evil but kind of cool at the same time. While I was taking a pic, I think it ate a copepod. About the size of a dime.

 

[jenhunter]

Can ball anemones also be white? I just see reference to the orange ones. I have what I think is a ball anemone growing under a giant clove polyp coral. Do I need to remove it if it doesn't seem to bother anyone,

 

[SushiGirl]

Mr. Demeanor, that almost looks more like a baby LPS coral to me.

jen, I have white ones that have a tiny bit of green around the mouth that you can usually only see under the blue lights. If it's not bothering anything you can leave it. Most of mine like to bug my zoas for some reason LOL.

 

[Mr. Demeanor]

Mr. Demeanor, that almost looks more like a baby LPS coral to me.
.

Could be but he just acts anemomeish !

I have a red sponge ( at least I think its a sponge and so does my LFS) that is growing like plate coral. I noticed tonight that it has little bright red spots that almost look metallic.
I have three variaties of sponge and two are doing quite well. One was a red tree sponge rescued from the beach after a storm. The "brain" looking sponge (its orange but my lights are off) in the bottom left of the magnifying glass is slowly receding unfortunately.

Heres the red:

 

[Sk8r]

I'm agreeing with Sushigirl---
The way to handle it IF it is, is to bring your water to the standard in my sig line, and put that little fellow in a very gently curved glass, not too deep, so that it won't blow under the rocks. Keep the calcium up, and the salinity steady at 1.025, in the lighted part of the sand. If you're cycling---don't panic: many corals survive it handily, as long as it isn't too nasty.
I had some frog and hammer pop some heads (bail) during a tanksitter event, and my rockwork was able to keep them from blowing away. They all grew stony bases, and the frog now has eight heads and is more than softball sized. People think corals are so delicate...they're actually tougher than many fish.

 

[ReeferHead84]

<a href="http://s1118.photobucket.com/albums/k620/reeferhead84/?action=view&current=RSCN0715.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1118.photobucket.com/albums/k620/reeferhead84/th_RSCN0715.jpg" border="0" alt="What is it?, It moves, contracts." ></a>

I couldnt get any help in another forum, so I would give this one a shot. Any clue to what this is would be great. Hydroid?

 

[Sugar Magnolia]

It's a digitate hydroid.

 

[SushiGirl]

Mr. Demeanor, that looks more like algae to me, possibly a plating type coralline, which sometimes the deep red like that looks orange to start.

 

[Mr. Demeanor]

Mr. Demeanor, that looks more like algae to me, possibly a plating type coralline, which sometimes the deep red like that looks orange to start.

Its soft like a leather. I thought it was a leather. I took a small piece to my LFS and they are pretty sure its a sponge. Ill try and get a better pic when the lights are up.
Lots of unique growth on that one rock.

 

[bdr]

What is this red thing? About a half in the way it is folded and about as thick as a hair with white things on each end that are super fine. that is the biggest one i could find. there were a couple tiny ones. thanks!

 

[ReeferHead84]

It's a digitate hydroid.

Thank you very much.

 

[Persius]

Clam? My Imagination?

Clam? My Imagination?

Just spotted this well hidden fella with what looks like an open shell/mouth. Its about the size of a thumbnail on a piece of Fiji LR that I've scanned at least 100 times. Maybe its just a piece of cracked coralline but those serrations look too regular. If it's alive, its one damn well camouflaged critter.

Ideas?

 

[SushiGirl]

Some kind of clam/mussel, Persius.
Bdr, have no idea what that red thing is, does it move? Could be a worm, could be algae, dunno.

 

[Persius]

Thanks Sushi....maybe I'm not hallucinating after all. (at the moment anyway). The rest of the red stuff on the rock is just foraminiferans and coralline I believe. Nothing moving - except apparently that little biter.

 

[Kingerfish76]

i have 2 pics which i am wondering what these hitch hikers are im only about 3 to 4 weeks into my first time thanks in advance for your help.


kingerfish