jlanger's 120gal Arts and Crafts Inspired Reef Build (1 Viewer)

[jlanger]

Why Are My Clownfish Sucking on My Goniopora?

I had thought I posted this topic in my thread, but I must not have.
I must have just talked to a few members at house meetings or other visits. Anyways...

A while back I noticed that both my male and female clownfish will suck individual polyps from my Red Goniopora into their mouths. The fish will just sort of "gum" the polyps for only a second and spit the polyp back out and move on to another. There is no damage to the coral at all. The polyps don't even seem to be bothered by this; they don't even close up after they are spit out.
This behavior still continues between the clowns and the coral, and I have no idea why.

While trying to get some nicer pics of the new additions, I was actually able to catch the male clownfish on film.

Has anyone else ever seen this behavior?
The clowns use the goniopora as their main host, so it may have something to due with that symbiotic relationship. But what benefit would sucking on the polyps have for the clownfish?
The male has recently decided to spend a lot of time in the aveleopora coral, so I watch to see if he does this same thing in there.

The new fish are settling in nicely.
The Midas Blenny acts as if it has been in the tank since day one. It will swim right up to you and watch what you're doing. Definitely not camera shy. But trying to get a crisp photo of such an active fish has been difficult.
The Blue Dot Jawfish must still be peeved about me uprooting it from it's home. He has now chosen a spot inside of the large cavern under the montipora colonies, so he's in the dark for now. Hopefully it will make its way out into the light and become more visible.

Just some eye candy from tonight's photo session.

Symphyllia agarcia.
I have had this for one year and it's doing great!
Usually I see a decline in my brain corals after some time, but not this one.

 

[jlanger]

I thought I would post this photo of my new Midas Blenny in its favorite perch.

Nothing better than a splash of gold in a field of purple!

 

[Neu2Reef]

That is one incredible looking stand and canopy as well as the tank , I cant wait to attend the meeting and see this beauty in person

 

[jlanger]

That is one incredible looking stand and canopy as well as the tank , I cant wait to attend the meeting and see this beauty in person

Thanks.
If you cannot wait, send me a PM to schedule a visit.

 

[jlanger]

Well...
It took some work on my part, but my Blue Dot Jawfish is now happy with me.

I spent the better part of these past two weeks trying to get the jawfish to build a burrow underneath some coral and rock work, but it would have none of it.
Every night it would dig a trench right up against the front glass and lay in it.
Apparently the jawfish was more interested in keeping his eyes on the other fish and not looking at me.
It was time for me to do something about it.

I have a lot of dry rubble rock available, so I decided to create a cave for the jawfish.
I took about seven small pieces of rock and glued them together into a cave about 5"W by 7"L by 2"H.
The interior space was about the size for two jawfish and the cave mouth was just big enough for getting in and out.
I filled in any holes with glue and sand so that any sand would not fall into the cave.
I was too excited to see if it would work that I forgot to take photos of the finished cave.

I decided to place the cave in the spot that the jawfish kept digging the trench. I buried the cave just enough so that the entrance is visible.
The cave is positioned to allow me to see the jawfish in profile when it pops in and out. And the entrance points into the main current so that food will come towards the jawfish.
It only took about 20 seconds for the jawfish to go inside the cave and begin cleaning out the interior.
But the local corals are not happy about the extra sand being dumped on them.

Now after being in the cave for two days, the jawfish actually comes out and swims with the other fish during feeding time.
I must be forgiven. I hope.

The behavior of these fish is very enjoyable.
They are alert and wary of every motion in the tank and surrounding area, so it is fun to watch them watch you.
There's just something charming about a fish that can turn his head around to look at you with those big eyes.

 

[eschulist]

Very cool. Your little rock cave looks very natural and blends in nicely.

 

[David Grigor]

Well done on the jawfish cave. Great way to get it to take up shop where you can enjoy it.

Yes, when I would have rbtas my clowns would suck on the tentacles as well. I don't have any clowns with my goniopora to see that behavior specifically with goiniopora though.

 

[jlanger]

Just a couple of new updates to add.

I finally got the EcoTech Reeflink hooked up to my system.
Finally... meaning that I had to upgrade my iOS on my Mac to Lion for the Reeflink to work on my computer.
And I'm trying to find a way to jailbreak my iPad G1, so I can use the iPad to play with the lighting controls.
It's frustrating that companies will stop allowing software updates for older hardware. Just because I've taken great care of their product so that it has lasted this long, why is it that they can stop allowing software updates to make me to buy new hardware. :angryfire:
At least I have a couple of iPod Touches around so I can use those to play with the lights for now.

Anyhow... I'm really liking the new Radion Pros over my tank.
Adding the Wide Angle TIR Lenses has really helped with the light coverage in the middle of the tank.
I think they helped with the colors blending more on the sand bed also. The Radions had more of a "disco ball" effect than the Vertex fixture. It wasn't terrible without the new lenses, but now it's now closer to what I'm used to.

Here's a couple of photos of the jawfish cave.
Thanks guys for the compliments.
I ended up moving the cave to a slightly different location due to the jawfish's burrowing behavior.
All of the sand that it would expel from the cave ended up on top of some corals and it caused some die-off of some Idaho Grape Montipora.
Not really a big deal, but moving the cave allowed for these pics.

From the side.


From underneath.


The jawfish was aggravated for a little while but after a couple of minutes of coaxing, it made it back inside.
Now we're both happy with the new location.
As the jawfish has gotten more comfortable, it has come out more during feedings.
Although now it stays close to the burrow again thinking I may be moving it again.

Over the next two weeks, I will be doing a lot of maintenance and cleaning up to get ready for the House Meeting.
There are still a few new corals that need to get glued onto the rock work. The Halloween Urchin seems to find the new pieces and must knock them over or carry them away.
And I should start making cookies this week to have them done in a couple of weeks.

 

[ChristopherKriens]

Congrats on the ReefLink! Because updates to iOS always include more 'fluff', they can run pretty slow on older hardware. Apple has received some pretty poor feedback in the past on the iPhone side for allowing updates to be installed that pushed the performance envelope on older devices, so they've started drawing some safer lines in recent years.

Have you tried logging in to EcoSmart Live on your iPad? I use the app on my phone but I actually prefer the ESL website on iPad.

 

[jlanger]

Have you tried logging in to EcoSmart Live on your iPad? I use the app on my phone but I actually prefer the ESL website on iPad.

Great suggestion. Thanks.
Although the website does load, the Daily Schedule window doesn't want to cooperate.
The Live Demo and Group Settings window show up just fine, but the Daily Schedule Window shows up at about a 2% opacity. I can barely see the text and sliders, but the graphs are completely invisible.
Refreshing the page does nothing to help. The fish are all wondering what is going on as I switch between the Daily Schedule and Live Demo Modes and the lights change settings.
I would think this just is something minor to fix, I'll inquire about it. I hope it's not another first Gen iPad issue.

Edit...
Disregard all of the issues above.
The iPad kicked out of Safari and when it reloaded, the graphs are showing up now.
I know that Alex said that Windows IE had issues with EcoSmart Live so I needed to use Google Chrome, maybe Safari has a glitch every now and then also.

 

[jlanger]

Just in time for the House Meeting!

This afternoon I received a package from Dustin at ORA in appreciation of the cookies I did for their website.
All told, there was 14 different SPS frags, a squamosa clam and two different cleaner gobies.
A very, very nice collection of shapes and colors.

It's a good thing I had a frag rack on hand. It's full now!
So if you've ever wondered what the different ORA frags look like, stop over.
And, "No. These are not for sale."

 

[Neu2Reef]

HMMMMM not for sale JK, those are nice!! Excited to see them tomorrow !!

 

[Pumbooris]

Not a bad trade at all! Nice cookies too.

 

[LowersMyBP]

Nice score.

Sorry I can't make the meeting. Yours is a tank I am putting on my list of tanks to try to see, some how, some way. I will eventually pester you to let me make the drive to see it. Reminds me, I still have to find a way to get time to go see Adam g's....

Enjoy your meeting.

 

[eschulist]

Those cookies were awesome, but dang 14 corals plus a clam and some gobies. Thats probably $4-500 retail. Nice score! I'm bringing the wife along to her first meeting, don't disappoint or she may never attend another one again (maybe thats a good thing, lol)

 

[Jonty]

I won't be able to make the meeting either I was really looking forward to seeing your tank.

 

[jlanger]

Good time for an update as any...

Since my last update, I've encountered a couple of new challenges.

I lost the Blue Dot Jawfish. :frown:
I believe this was due to that my system was too active for this fish. Even though it was never really picked on, the fish acted very nervous and wary of all the other fish in the tank. Those that attended my meeting may find this hard to believe as it spent the entire afternoon out in the open. The very next day it was back to normal hanging out in the burrow. When it came time for feedings, it kept near the burrow and would dart back inside at the slightest sign of another fish close by. Over time, I'm sure that the fish's health declined until it succumbed. I really enjoyed this fish, so maybe in a calmer environment (species tank) I may try another.

I have added a new fish; thanks to the TCMAS Spring Expo.
My son won (not me as he was holding the ticket) the male Ruby Red Dragonet from PetCo.
For the first couple of days, it remained behind the aquascaping on the sand bed. After a couple of days, it started to venture up into the rocks and explore the many nooks and crannies. And coming up on the first week in the tank, it has gained the confidence to roam wherever it likes. The only fish that has a issue with the new addition is my Randall Shrimp Goby; for obvious reasons. But the aggression is mostly for show; as it is to protect the burrows for the goby and shrimp.
Since the dragonet appears to be doing well, it looks like I will try to find him a date. A 120gal is such a big space for one lonely guy.

The two ORA Cleaner Gobies have also settled in very nicely. They like to hang out together on the back glass or montipora corals. Once they identified me as a source for food, they become excited and follow me as I check on the tank and do maintenance.
No pictures, yet, as they are quite active little fish.

The other challenge I am currently facing is water chemistry.
Since I removed the circulation pump from my ATO with kalkwasser, my alkalinity has taken quite a hit. I'm not blaming the pump removal, as this may have been an issue that was gradually building up.
Unfortunately, I noticed something was wrong when many of the new ORA frags started to RTN. My alkalinity had dropped below 6dKH. I stopped using kalkwasser and started to manually dose two-part to get my water chemistry back in line. For the past couple of weeks my parameters have gotten back to "normal" levels but I am still dosing everyday and testing (new Hanna Checker = quicker/easier testing habits) to track my systems consumption of calcium and alkalinity. It turns out I have to dose 2oz. of BRS Soda Ash solution per day just to keep my alkalinity levels consistent.
With all of this dosing, I am debating on if I buy a dosing pump set up or if I need to invest in a calcium reactor. Thoughts?

Reagrdless... here's a couple of updated pictures from tonight.
This is still my favorite view of the reef; top down.

As you can see, the corals continue to grow.
The Rose Bubble Tip Anemone is getting big and annoying; it has been stinging the Miyagi Tirt and Purple M. Digitata. The corals have lost polyps and tissue where the stinging is taking place. Both corals seem to be growing just fine, but I really wish the anemone would have chosen another location to take up residence. All of the corals in this location are doing great. The M. Setosa is growing and just adds a bold orange/red color. The polyp extension from the ORA Chip's Acro and the Fuzzy Neon Green Acro is incredible. And the Neon Green Birds Nest grows like a weed.

And the frag of Hawkin's Echinata continues to do very well. The color and growth are simply amazing.
Compare the growth in just three months to the last photo I uploaded in February.
And the nearby Green Slimer has started to branch out in multiple places.

I removed and sold the large red M. hodgsoni colony; along with a large plate of the Idaho Grape montipora. Even with those corals now gone, there is still not enough room for the new frags or new growth.
So.... I am debating on selling the LARGE montipora combo colony that takes up the right side of my tank. The colony measures a good 24 inches by 16-18 inches and about 9-10 inches tall. (That's the same Hawkin's Echinata from the above photo in this photo.)
If anyone is seriously looking for a statement piece, send me a PM.

Have a safe and great Memorial Day weekend!

 

[jlanger]

Since this is in the build thread section...

This is what I've been working on the past couple of weekends.



A couple out in San Francisco has commissioned me to build them a stand and canopy very similar to mine.
Their stand is a little bit taller with a different style and color of laminate top.
The canopy will be larger than mine; enough to cover their entire tank. And finding a solution to mount it to the wall has been an adventure; to say the least. (They have box-beamed ceilings and cannot do the mounting plate and rails.)

I just applied a couple coats of stain to the stand and doors today.
The corbel trim details have been moulded and need to be cut, stained and finished.
I have to build the false top. And the laminate top is already in the shop.
One more full day of work should finish this stand.

Makes me want to build another one for myself; just larger!
Or smaller for that blenny/goby habitat system I keep talking about.

 

[David Grigor]

I do know the convertion rate though it is 80ml of 2 part ( meaning 80ml ca and 80ml alk ) is the same as 1 gallon of kalkwasser ( assuming your doing it right and at full saturation many people are less than full saturation and don't know it ). So if your doing 2 ounces ( =60ml ) so your less than 1 gallon away from Kalkwasser being able to keep up. Adding vineager and 1 more teaspoon per gallon of Kalkwasser may get you back to where you want to be without 2 part.

CA reactor vs. 2 part. Thats really something only you can answer. With 2 part long term the only issue could be chloride buildup. As long as your doing at least 30% water changes per month this becomes a non-issue. If you do less then 30% water change per month, long term chloride levels can creap up if gone years like that too high % of your salinity could be chloride ( although since it's one of the top 2 elements it will take a couple years to become a problem ). Reactor isn't necessarily hard to setup but your first time it can be tricky. If space is a concern, Reactor w/ Co2 bottle is going to take up more space. While it is a low risk I personally never felt comfortable with pressurized tank in the house ( I ran a CA reactor for close to 8 years ). The last thing is initial cost, assuming you already have a controller, the cost of 2 dosing pump is maybe a couple hundred. CA reactor setup more like $600. Maintenance cost is about the same, per year you will spend as much on CA media + CO2 as you would 2 part ( assuming you buy in bulk ) so annual cost is about a wash.

6dkh isn't really that bad, many zeovit tanks run at 6dkh. Although I personally would not want to run that low long term. So while it could be a contributing factor, I'm not so sure it's the only reason. RTN is such a big unknown as to just exactly what is the cause and could be a combination of several things in a perfect storm. Something we all go through at one time or another and most cases goes unexplained.

I've got a pair of regular scooter blennies recently for the 75g softy tank and are fun fish. However, I really wish I would of held out and gotten the red ones like you do vs. the normal more brown ones. Overall though I still like them.

Sorry to hear about the jawfish, I really liked your cave solution.

Back when I had the 375g inwall tank going I had a large scrolling monti cap that was basically brown just the ends were purple. Nothing fancy/flashy. I gave it away and unknowingly one of my two Regal tangs was tucked under the scrolls and went unnoticed and ended up in the other guys tank. Unfortunately he killed it via ich before I could get it back. So moral of the story when if you decide to get rid of it, check it good for fish hiding before you let it out the door.

 

[Gary]

Just curious...what are your settings for the two dosing pumps? I have that large Idaho Grape colony and it looks mostly brown in my tank. I've been trying different things with the Apex to dose my calcium and alk at different times. Just wondering what you are doing. I set my minimum PH to 8.35 and max to 8.45 yesterday. Is that high enough?