TBS 75 gallon

[TiJiL]

Hello!

I'm starting up a 75 gallon reef aquarium. Just today I received the first half of my Package from Richard.

Having seen this rock, I'm not sure I think anybody else should be able to call their rock 'live'. It is absolutely crawling with life. In just putting in the rock and sand, I saw a cucumber, a sea urchin (about 3 inches across) a serpent star, a red mithrax crab, 2 porcelain crabs, a hermit crab of some kind, a tinier crab I could not identify, and a little tiger goby that almost didn't make it into the tank. Not to mention the sponges all over every inch of rock.

It's too cloudy to watch much now but I can hear the mantis shrimp popping and see the many dozens of barnacles waving their little filters. I can't wait for it to clear up a little so I can do a little sightseeing.

I'll post pictures and more when I can, but long story short = awesome. Can't wait for part II.

 

[RCKY]

shrimp popping

shrimp popping

I am also doing a tank with rock from TBS, about six weeks in. Awesome experience.
Heads up on the popping: I thought I had Mantis shrimp but have found out I have quite a few Pistol Shrimp. They also "pop" but from the info I see in other threads they are less of a concern than Mantis shrimp.
I found one today with an orange claw and green body.

 

[dwculp]

I am also doing a tank with rock from TBS, about six weeks in. Awesome experience.
Heads up on the popping: I thought I had Mantis shrimp but have found out I have quite a few Pistol Shrimp. They also "pop" but from the info I see in other threads they are less of a concern than Mantis shrimp.
I found one today with an orange claw and green body.

Yes, the popping might not be mantis shrimp and may be pistol shrimp. I had a pistol shrimp in my old TBS tank for years. I could hear him pop from 20 feet away!

I have a newly setup TBS 40 gallon and I think I have at least one pistol shrimp as I can hear the popping but cant see of find any mantis shrimp. Mantis are usually out and in your face so, after 3 weeks I think I have pistols and not a mantis.

 

[RCKY]

pistol size

pistol size

How big did the pistol shrimp you had in your other tank get?
Did he/she ever start to hang out where they were visible or do they always hide?

 

[Jocko]

The pistol in my original TBS tank got to I'd say about 4" in length. At that point he had built an elaborate system of tunnels under the rock work and I was familiar with where he liked to hang out. He's usually come out to grab food near his cave entrance at feeding time. He was very cool, but his digging activities overwhelmed the poor little 20 gallon tank. He moved almost the entire sand bed.

 

[liverock]

mini-pistol

mini-pistol

I am also doing a tank with rock from TBS, about six weeks in. Awesome experience.
Heads up on the popping: I thought I had Mantis shrimp but have found out I have quite a few Pistol Shrimp. They also "pop" but from the info I see in other threads they are less of a concern than Mantis shrimp.
I found one today with an orange claw and green body.

That pistol is a mini-pistol lol seldom grow over 1/2 an inch....

they have a symbiotic relationship with sponges......usually you will never see them as they seldom venture out of their sponge hosts, but they pack a wallop of a snap, just like their three inch cousins...

Richard TBS
www.tbsaltwater.com

 

[RCKY]

pistols

pistols

Ever hear of them multiplying in someones tank?
I saw what appeared to be about 40 tiny shrimp last night in a corner of my tank. Pretty sure they were not copepods.
Thanks again Richard.
Wish I had done this a science project with my kids when they were little.
Maybe the grandkids.

 

[Jocko]

Oh cool I didn't realize there were multiple species of pistols that could come in on the rock. Mini pistol sounds less troublesome. Hehe.