Weeds

[vlangel]

Ahhh, thank you for straightening me out. I am not typically a detail person so I am not shocked at myself for missing that you have kept both Turtle grass in v1 and now turtle weed in v2. Now that I know you were speaking of turtle weed in the post above I completely understand.

Thank you for the comments on all the grasses as well. That gives me more ideas how I will set up my 56 gallon macro reef when the time comes. The shoal grass probably would be the best choice for the back right of the 56 gallon display. It should nicely de-emphasize the DIY weir style overflow I plan to make. The gyre nearby on the reverse flow mode should create a nice undulating motion that hopefully will be hypnotic, (at least in my mind).

I can keep turtle grass in the 30 gallon XH (current Seahorse display) where I will try to imitate what you did with garden soil and different size sand to create a deep substrate. That tank will be relocated to the basement right next to the 20 gallon sump so it can gravity overflow into the sump since it is a tall tank and much higher than my sump tank. I may even add a little live rock and have a tiny patch reef like your tank.

Given what you have said about the manatee grass I think I will avoid it completely. So as you can see your threads have given me a lot of inspiration for the direction my aquarium system is going to go. Sometimes I get so excited to get started but in the same breath I am not ready to say good-bye to the ponies yet. I plan to enjoy my ponies for as long as possible and then I will have this new venture to keep me from being too sad about not keeping seahorses anymore.

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Ok good, your welcome! I should have been more clear.

I'm happy to hear of your interest in seagrasses, and flattered you're inspired. I think both of your ideas sound great, and it's certainly smart to plan ahead. I agree it'll be a good new venture, when the time comes. For now, enjoy those ponies!

 

[vlangel]

Ok good, your welcome! I should have been more clear.

I'm happy to hear of your interest in seagrasses, and flattered you're inspired. I think both of your ideas sound great, and it's certainly smart to plan ahead. I agree it'll be a good new venture, when the time comes. For now, enjoy those ponies!

It was not that you were not clear. It was me seeing 'turtle' and not going any further that made me assume that both items were the same thing, ha ha! I take full responsibility.

 

[Michael Hoaster]

I had another moose encounter on my cross country skis! This time I came up behind a large specimen that was walking down the trail. I know that it's not good to surprise them and I was heading right into that scenario. So I stopped about forty yards short of him, and carefully, quietly turned around and got the heck out of there! I checked over my shoulder a couple of times as I skied away, and was relieved to see he wasn't chasing me. I was struck by how much more dangerous this encounter felt, compared to the last one, where it just ran across the trail in front of me.

Nature is dangerous and thrilling and beautiful!

 

[vlangel]

Ha ha, my husband, Dave and I have been wanting to see a real moose in the wild forever. We are avid motorcyclist and had thought when we have gone through NH, ME or through Yellowstone park we surely should have crossed paths at some point. We have motorcycled in all the lower 48 and have never seen one. Its not fair that you have seen 2 while skiing! JK
This summer our plan is to go to Alaska via alcan hwy and through British Colombia and Vancouver. If we do not see a moose on this trip we are going to proclaim that moose are a myth! Again JK but we have seen a lot of cool animals but not any moose.

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Good luck on seeing moose in Alaska! That sounds like a fun trip. Seeing large animals in the wild is thrilling. I look forward to hearing about your adventure!

 

[Michael Hoaster]

I skipped my usual weekend tidy-up last weekend and it's looking a little shaggy. Hopefully I'll get to it this weekend. I had to replace my metal halide bulb and ballast recently. The plants look a bit bleached. I presume they will adjust.

The Allen's Damsels' digging has caused most of the live rock to settle deeper and deeper into the sand. I may have to remedy that, which could turn into a major operation. To fix the problem, I'd need to bury rocks beneath them to provide a stable foundation. This would be a big disturbance in the tank, that I'm not anxious to do. Had I known this was going to happen, I would have buried foundation rocks to begin with. I guess the easier fix would be to buy another ten pounds of live rock and just throw it on top. It's a thought!

It also gives me thoughts of going in a different direction, fish-wise. As much as I love these little beauties, I don't love the look of holes and piles around the tank, and some plants have been negatively impacted. Another thing to ponder…

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

Mother nature always wins, we just have to adapt.

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Thanks Vinny. I'm not sure what you are referring to. Can you explain?

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

I was referring to the fish behavior, digging in the sand.

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Ah, thank you. I wanted to be sure I understood you. It brings up a great point of discussion.

I certainly am in a situation of adapting to Nature. But there is another choice, when it comes to fish, or other any other tank residents who don't play well with others, or are destructive to the ecosystem.

With this tank, I am attempting to work WITH Nature, bringing in a huge cast of characters, to do their (natural) thing, as well as counting on natural processes, in hopes of assembling a functioning ecosystem, with very little technology. So I don't see Mother Nature as a force to win or lose to. I see Nature as my accomplice.

Sometimes a fish or invert, or whatever turns out to be detrimental to the ecosystem. The bottom line (for this particular aquarium) is that no single member is more important than the ecosystem as a whole. So, I remove the offending member. That is the other choice. Though it's easy to get sentimentally attached, I don't want a fish to dictate a change to what I'm trying to do. I've seen many an aquarist keep a 'bad' fish for sentimental reasons, only to end up with a tank they never intended. I have a pretty clear vision for this tank, and I'd like to stick to the plan.

So now I have to decide whether to adapt or remove. Is their behavior too destructive, or can I adapt my vision for the tank, to accommodate them?

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

Hey -- Whatever floats your boat.
We all have to do what suits our goals & I for 1 will not dissuade you.

 

[lapin]

Lookin good Michael
Nothing like running up a trail and coming face to face with a lot of horns. Becomes a stand off with us backing down. We dont have horns or claws any more.

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Thanks lapin! I literally snuck away on skis. Surprising a big moose is not a good idea. Nature thrill!

 

[vlangel]

Good luck on seeing moose in Alaska! That sounds like a fun trip. Seeing large animals in the wild is thrilling. I look forward to hearing about your adventure!

Yes, it should be a fun adventure. And seeing large animals in the wild is both exhilarating and intimidating. We saw a young bull bison in Yellowstone while we were on the bikes. Unfortunately a car in front of us would not let him cross the road and he was getting testy. He started to turn back toward us prancing and snorting and it was scary. We just stayed perfectly still and he crossed in front of us. A motorcycle is no contest with an angry bison!

 

[Michael Hoaster]

I did a big export/tidy up today. I'm amazed how much it grows. I still need to clean the glass. I'll do it tomorrow. Then I can get some pics!

 

[Michael Hoaster]

I took a few picks this morning, after tidying up over the weekend.

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

Lookin Good!

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Thanks Vinny!

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Whew, that was a lot of work. Everybody got a good haircut: the back wall, the patch reef, and the sand bed. I even pulled back some grasses that were growing against the front glass. So I had more manatee grass to transplant. I'm kind of excited to see if my transplanting pays off. Hope so. Some of the taller ones have yellowed. I think they got cooked by the new light.

Since deciding I liked the petticoat algae best on the sand bed, I've been removing everything else. There's also a couple more green plants I'd like between the grasses: codium and tufted joint algae. Both really unique plants.

I transplanted another turtle weed plug high on the back wall. I've got a good feeling about this one.

When I got up early this morning to take pics, I noticed the male barnacle blenny doing his mating dance outside his hole. Then I realized the female was in it. She hung out for less than a minute, and was back to her own hole again. Ah, love…It's good to know those two have each other.

In general, the tank is maturing and filling in with plants. Cruising.