Rock On

[awesomefrog]

So i came accross some live rock that seems really nice. Being a newbie, i don't have anything to compare it to. But i like to imagine that i got something really nice. I got it through Rod's who just happened to be breaking down someone's tank on the day i called. It was only out of water for part of the day. So i'm just letting it cure in my tank. It doesn't smell bad as long as i keep a fan on. Though, now i know what people were talking about when they said the stuff that comes out of the skimmer smells bad. Yikes! There was some hair algae on the rock when i got it, and I'm getting pretty good growth of some brown colored algae on the sand and glass. But i suppose that's to be expected in a new setup. There are lots of little anemones and some mushrooms. I don't know if any of the anemones are bad or not. But it is fun to see all the life coming out after being in the water. There was also an urchin and a couple medium sized crabs. I put the crabs in my sump until i can find out whether or not they'll be safe. Anyway, here are some pictures:

 

[awesomefrog]

It's Alive

It's Alive

Here are a few of the things still living. I hope the good stuff survives. If anybody has any good tips, i'm glad to hear them.

Does anybody know what kind of anemone this is?

I don't know if these are good or bad. I've never seen aptasia or majano in real life. But from photos i've seen i think it would probably be smarter to try to get rid of bad stuff now before i add any other critters. What do y'all think? I hope the picture is somewhat clear:

 

[Overhanded]

Wow!!!!! Nice set-up you got there! Great aquascaping!

 

[awesomefrog]

i'll try to get some better pictures of things soon--including the 2 crabs in my sump, the urchin and a red legged hermit crab that were all hitchhikers. Probably none of this stuff is as exciting to most of you as it is to me. But since it's my first reef tank, it's just cool to see things alive.

 

[awesomefrog]

Thanks Overhanded. I tried to make things look nice with the rock.

 

[kawicivic]

yes the bottom pic is aiptasia... as soon as your ammonia and nitrites go down you should add some peppermints to see if they will eat it. I had a few aiptasia in my tank and the peppermints I have took care of it. The anemone looks bleached to me and probably wont do well with a cycle. I am not sure what the other stuff is... ricordea in rough shape maybe? The rock work looks good and as time passes you will notice a ton more things. I still find new stuff on my rocks! Welcome to the hobby and keep up the questions.

O and the crabs in your sump.... if they are hairy... its probably bad... if they have big pointy claws (especially black) then its probably bad... if they are green and have hairy legs and pointy claws then its probably an emerald/mithrax crab and they are usually ok. The hermit is fine... some people don't like them but I do. Never had an urchin... head they will eat corralline which could be good... or bad depending if you like the purple/pink/green/orange/red algaes. And the brown algae that is growing... does it look kind of smokey? if so that is diatoms and should take care of itself with proper care.

 

[auto_loader]

Looks really nice.
Ive also had good luck with peppermints. sometimes it takes a while before you see results especially if you put in the small ones but I have had good luck with them.. As far as the rockwork..... great job! You might want to grab a flashlight an hour or so after the lights are out if you really want to see what kind of critters you got in that rock...

 

[goat585]

Looking good

 

[awesomefrog]

I'll have to try out the flashlight idea and see what i find. A few of those aptasia are about 2 inches long. Do you think some little peppermint shrimp will still be able to handle that?

I think the crabs are 2 different species. They both seem to have smooth bodies. I'll get some pictures of them up soon so people can guess at what they are. It should be a fun game.

 

[auto_loader]

Id try some joes juice or kalk paste on the aptasia to nuke them. Peps are hit and miss. Either way its a good idea to get them out before they multiply.

 

[cp3823]

tank is coming along nicely.

 

[awesomefrog]

better pics

better pics

I've got some better pictures here. The anemone looks completely clear/white, but it stays inflated. are there any colorless anemones? Or if this guy is bleached is there any chance to save it? Maybe something to eat? A piece of shrimp?

and a close up

and here's a better focus on what look like aptasia

 

[awesomefrog]

more pics

more pics

here's some better shots of the rock work

right side

left side

the purple mushroom looking guy doesn't seem so healthy

and the green ones aren't as green as before

but i am noticing more things that look like the might be zoa polyps and i have no idea what these are:

 

[awesomefrog]

i have crabs

i have crabs

and finally the crabs...neither of them looks like a mythrax. The bigger one is a dark brown or black color and very smooth on the body with slightly hairy legs.

here is the bigger one

here's my finger for a size reference

and the smaller one looks grey with a smooth bumpy body and red eyes.

you can see him in scale in my fingers

 

[SHowald72]

Keep those crabs out of you tank, they are evil!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had frags disappearing a while back and it turned out to be crabs that looked just like them taking the frags into the rocks and eating them. How do I know it was them? Because I looked into my tank at night and saw one of them turning an acro into a pile of dust. Which also explained all of the plugs without frags. I ended finding several of them in my 58 before I had them all gone. So, be very afraid of those little monsters.

 

[auto_loader]

Shawns right. Those crabs gotta stay out. I had 2 percula clowns disappear within a few days after putting them in. The flashlight at night confirmed the crab. I used a champaign glass with a piece of shrimp leaned up against his hideout to catch it. He went in the glass for the shirmp and couldnt get out.
I still have a pic in my gallery from the night I caught it over 3 years ago.

Your grey one with red eyes looks exactly like the one I had. I would monitor the tank for more crabs. If you got 2 that easy you might have another one in there.

 

[awesomefrog]

Thanks guys,
I definitely won't put them back in the tank.
Maybe they'd do well with some butter and garlic.

 

[ahuxman58]

Re: Rock On

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11772415#post11772415 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by awesomefrog
I got it through Rod's who just happened to be breaking down someone's tank on the day i called. It was only out of water for part of the day. So i'm just letting it cure in my tank.

If it came from another tank wouldnt it already be cured?? Just an observation.

 

[awesomefrog]

Yeah, I suppose "curing" is somewhat of a relative term. The rock is definitely in much better shape than if it had travelled across the world in terms of dead stuff on it. But I've heard so many people say that even when you buy rock fresh out of a tank at an LFS, as long as it is out of the water for some time, it will have a short curing period. So since all the big chunks had been out of water and looked completely dry when I got them, and I didn't know how much die off to expect, curing just seemd like an appropriate term--though I have to say the rock seems far from sick.

 

[synofreak]

Petland sells Aiptasia control by Blue Life for $15. I recently got one on some LR, and it nuked it in about 30 seconds. The anemone could be Condy(Hatian), but appears to be fuller then most. Not really reef safe if it is that type.