That Fish Blog – Aquarium Advice and Information

Hi, Dave here, It has been a while since I have posted a blog entry, I have busy working on some renovations and remodeling of our fish room here in our store.  The bulk of the work is now complete, and wow what a change we have made, the fish room seems HUGE now.  Anyone who has not visited the store in the last couple months is in for a surprise when they visit the fish room.   Walls are missing, systems have moved, systems have expanded, and we are not done yet!

One of the objectives of the remodel was to create a bigger, better open space in what was our “pond room” for hosting events and having a flexible area for whatever we want to use it for.  The first event to take advantage of this new space will be the TFP/NCPARS winter frag swap extravaganza on January 31st, 2009.

I wanted to add some more details about the event, which we had announced a while back, and had a previous blog entry for.

The Frag Swap is being run by NCPARS (the North Central Pennsylvania Reef aquarium Society) and all proceeds from the event will go to benefit the club.  Information about the club can be found on their website http://www.ncpars.org/.  Entrance to the event is $5 for members and $10 for non members.  Attendees and sellers can pre-register on http://www.fragswapper.com/

The event has morphed into much more  than just a frag swap, and will be of interest to any marine aquarium hobbyist, from beginner to expert.  Through TFP’s assosiation with industry leading manufacturer’s and experts, we have put together a show that will include some great seminars, as well as on-hand manufacturers representatives to answer questions about their products.

Seminars for the event include:

Anthony Calfo: Anthony is a well known reef aquarium expert, Authored  “The Book of Coral Propagation” and is the publisher of “C the Journal“.  Anthony has spent years traveling the world and working in many phases of the industry, his seminar for this event is “Interesting facilities of the world” a showcase of places he has visited through the years in all areas of the hobby.

Steven Pro: Steven has worked in the industry for many years in many capacaties, including retail, wholesale, maintenance, and now manufacturing.  Steven’s presentation “You Touched it, Now What? Poisonous, Venomous, and Contagious things in your aquarium” puts together many things that he has seen and learned about dangerous things in your reef aquarium, and how to deal with them.

Randy Reed: Founder of Reed Mariculture, a manufacturer of specialty reef foods, that includes Phytoplankton and Zooplankton diets.  Randy will do a presentation about the “Fundamentals of Feeding Your Reef”

Dave Troop and Mike Elliot:  Dave and Mike are the founders of a new company in the hobby, Aquatic Life.  Dave and Mike have been integral members of a number of industry leading companies through the years, and have now joined forces to start a new company, that strives to bring truly innovative lighting and products to the hobby.  As a former TFP employee, Dave is returning home, to provide a presentation about ” Understanding light Output”

Ike Eigenbrode: Ike is a long time hobbyist, and is now the vice president of sales and marketing of Current USA, an industry leader in aquarium lighting and chiller manufacturing. Ike is going to do a presentation on “Aquariums and Energy Efficiency”

Along with these Seminars, manufacturer Representatives from Brightwell Aquatics, Kent Marine, Seachem, EcoTech Marine, Ice Cap, Coralife, Red Sea, and others will be present throughout the show to answer questions and showcase some of their products.

Last but not least THE DEALS!  TFP will give every paid attendee a 20% off one item coupon, good for use after the sale (restrictions apply).  In cooperation with our manufacturers, both attending and non attending, we will have a selection of over 300 additional products on sale the day of the event ranging from 10% – 25% off our already low prices.  These sale items will only be available to frag swap attendees.

Also benefiting NCPARS, the show will end with a raffle of some really great items that have been donated by our manufacturers.  A sample of some of the items in the raffle include:

Complete Solana and Cardiff aquarium setups from Current USA, these are beautiful high end nano aquarium, valued at over $700 dollars each!  These aquariums will be set up as displays during the show, so you can see them in all their beauty!

EcoTech Marine Vortec WMP 20 wave pump

Sunlight Supply  400watt Blue Wave Metal Halide ballast

Red Sea C-Skim 1200 Protein Skimmer

Aquatic Life pH Controller

Two Little Fishes Phosban Reactor

And Many more items………

Come Join us January 31st from 11-5 for our first frag swap, there is alot of buzz about the show, and we are looking forward to seeing everyone there.

Schedule of Events:

Hope to see you there,

Dave

One of our most frequently asked questions is answered below.  There tends to be a spike (pun intended) in cloudy aquarium questions after the holiday season has passed and all of the new gift aquariums get set up.  This might help if you’re a newbie!

Tom wrote:

I have a 90 gallon fresh water tank with a Fluval 405 canister filter. The tank is about 4-weeks old. I have been using Cycle to speed things along, but my water for the most part of 4-weeks has a white cloudiness to it. When I do water changes, the water clears up and then a day or 2 later it’s cloudy again. I have well water with a built in water softener and sediment filter.  My main question is, do you recommend the use of resins in conjunction with carbon to battle this problem?

From Marinebio@thatpetplace:

If the cloudiness is caused from particulates in the water, then yes a resin will help. If the cloud is from a bacterial bloom, which is highly likely, then resins will not solve your problem. Have you tested your water? Any ammonia or nitrite present? If either of those are showing levels above 0ppm, small weekly water changes of around 5% will help keep the toxic levels of ammonia and nitrite diluted, while still allowing you to cycle the tank. The trick is to keep the levels low enough to not lose fish, yet high enough to not to disrupt your nitrogen cycle and the beneficial bacteria that are trying to colonize. Large water changes can lengthen the amount of time it takes to finish your cycle, thus lengthening the time your tank stays cloudy. So if you can test the ammonia and nitrite levels, we can see where you are in your cycle.

For additional info on beginner aquarium basics and the nitrogen cycle view the following articles:

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/displayArticle.web?Filename=../Article_archive/Fish/Aquarium_Setup-Beginners_Guide.html

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/displayArticle.web?Filename=../Article_archive/Fish/The_Simplified_Nitrogen_Cycle.htm

Eileen here. The blind and visually impaired  have greater access than ever before to activities that have been off-limited in the past, but until very recently they have not been able to enjoy the beauty and activity of a colorful aquarium like the rest of us. A group of scientists is working to change this. The Georgia Tech Center for Music Technology is designing what they have dubbed “The Accessible Aquarium.”

The Accessible Aquarium is fitted with cameras and sensors that track the movement of the different colored fish and sends the data back to a computer system. The data is then translated into different pitches, instruments and sounds that change with the speed and movement of the fish. The center is also hoping to be able to apply this technology to venues like zoos and museums as well as aquariums. According to a recent Yahoo! Tech news article, the researchers “wanted to help people with disabilities do something that’s more fun and than functional.”

Georgia Tech Center for Music Technology: http://gtcmt.coa.gatech.edu/

Yahoo! Tech article: http://tech.yahoo.com/news/ap/20081217/ap_on_hi_te/tec_techbit_audio_aquarium

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here. Please see Part I of this article for further information.

Feeding

The fan shrimp’s unique mode of feeding is very interesting to observe.  The first 2 appendages are lined with plume-like bristles which are waved about when food is detected.  Tiny organisms, organic detritus and algae are trapped in these and transferred to the mouth.  Fan shrimp will also pick food particles from the substrate, in more “typical shrimp” fashion, and I have several times observed them feeding on dead fish (at night).

If you keep fan shrimp with fish, it is important to introduce food at night, just before you turn out the lights…the shrimp will rarely get enough to eat otherwise.  I keep a few yo-yo loaches, Kuhli loaches and armored cats with mine, but beware of adding too many nocturnally-feeding fish.

Unlike many shrimps with specialized feeding adaptations, these accept nearly any pelleted or freeze dried food.  One of the few published reports on their feeding habits in the wild (please see below) established that fan shrimp are omnivorous, with algae forming a major part of the diet.  I therefore provide my shrimp with both plant and animal foods.  I use algae  and shrimp tablets as a basis of the diet, alternated with flake and freeze dried foods.  Liquid invertebrate food  may also be squirted into their hiding places.

African fan shrimp begin waving their feeding appendages about as soon as food is sensed.  I usually drop algae tabs or other foods right near them, after which they will move over it and begin waving away.  If you look closely, you’ll be able to see fine particles of food lodge in the brushes as the tablet dissolves.

My fan shrimp do not gravitate towards the filter outflow in order to trap food, as do the Singapore wood shrimp (Atyopsis moluccensis) which share their tank.  They will, however, filter fine food particles from whatever water currents pass by their lairs.  Some suggest keeping these shrimp in well-established tanks that house high populations of diatoms and other micro-organisms.  Certainly this is a good idea, but as we know little of their actual food intake needs, I would suggest that shrimp in these situations be fed as described above as well.

Social Grouping/Compatible Species

African fan shrimp do exceedingly well in same-species groups; I have also kept them with Singapore wood shrimp, Atyopsis moluccensis, Japanese marsh shrimp, Caridina japonica and cherry shrimp, Neocardina denticulate.  Small, peaceful community fish such as guppies, zebra danios, cherry barbs and so on are also fine, but please see the feeding cautions above.

Alternatively, you can house fan shrimp with fish that do not compete for food, i.e. live food specialists such as elephant-nosed morymids and butterfly fish (both of which are also native to West Africa, although not to the same habitat-types).

Small and large cichlids, carnivorous catfish and crayfish will attack fan shrimp.

Captive Longevity

Unpublished reports set captive longevity at just over 5 years.

Breeding

Anecdotal reports claim breeding success in heavily-planted outdoor ponds.  The young are said to be planktonic for a period of 2-3 weeks after hatching, which would certainly complicate matters in an aquarium.  I plan to look into this further and report back.

Miscellaneous

Fan shrimp are, as mentioned, very much oriented to a specific home cave, being more like crayfish than shrimp in this regard.  I imagine (but this has not been established) that such holds true in the wild as well.  I have observed them to become quite stressed if routed from their retreats.  In most cases, they wander about, often for days, before returning to the cave.

Be extremely careful when working around them, and avoid moving or re-arranging their caves.  I usually forego cleaning the glass directly in front of their caves, unless I happen to catch the shrimp “away from home” on rare foraging forays.  In those cases I’m always careful to return the rocks to their original position – a slight change in their shelter’s height or depth has seemingly caused my shrimp to seek “new accommodations”.

We have a great deal to learn about this and other freshwater invertebrates… please write in with your questions and comments. Thanks, Frank Indiviglio.

Very little has been published about this species in its natural habitat.  An interesting article concerning field research with fan shrimp in Nigeria is posted at:

http://www.wajae.org/papers/paper_vol13/Food_and_Feeding_Habits_of_Atya_gabonensis_from_Lower_River_Benue_in_Northern_Nigeria_full.pdf

Brandon here. One of my favorite types of fish is one that is often overlooked because it lacks the cute appearance that so many other saltwater fish brandish.  In fact, many people believe them to be one of the ugliest saltwater fish we import here at That Fish Place.  The orange toadfish and freshwater lionfish are just two of many different species that belong to an order of very odd looking fish.

All toadfish belong to the order Batrachoidiformes.  This order is home to around 80 different species of toadfish, most of which are saltwater and brackish species.  Toadfish are characterized by their scaleless bodies, extremely large mouths, powerful jaws, and drab color (with the exception of a few reef species).  They get their name from the croaking sound they produce from their swim bladder to communicate with one another and attract mates.  Caution should be taken when handling toadfish.  Many species have spines that can inflict painful wounds, and in certain species the spines are connected to venom glands.  Most species have very powerful jaws that, in a large individual, are even capable of breaking fingers!

In the aquarium, most toadfish are extremely hardy, although they are shy and tend to hide.  You can usually spot their faces poking out from under the rock work in your tank.  They can persist for extended periods of time without eating, but will gorge themselves when food is available.  Toadfish do well on a varied diet of frozen meats including shrimp, krill, squid, and fish.  Their food should be enriched with a vitamin supplement such as Vitachem to ensure that they are receiving proper nutrition.  Tank mates should be chosen carefully as toadfish will not hesitate to eat anything small enough to fit into their mouth, including each other.

Several classmates and I have been successful at breeding the Oyster Toadfish (Opsanus tau) in captivity.  In fact, they have been extremely easy to breed.  We placed seven individuals into a very large tank, fed them well, and the fish did the rest of the work.  A pair of toadfish would lay several dozen eggs on the roof and sides of a rock cave.  One of the parents would remain and stand guard.  The eggs were yellowish in color and about the size of a pea.  After about a week the eggs would hatch and the fry would stay bonded to the rock.  After a few more days the fry became free swimming and would go off in search of food.  They will not take frozen food, so live brine and ghost shrimp would be a better offering.

 While breeding the oyster toadfishes’ tropical cousins may not be as easy, they are still an interesting fish to keep in the home aquarium.  If you’re looking for a predator that is a little out of the ordinary, why not try a toadfish?