Fish of The Week

Foxface AKA Rabbit Fish:

This is one of my favorite fish and was one of the first fish that I added to my reef tank. Now one thing to think about is that they aren't 100% reef safe so take caution if you want to add this fish to your reef tank. So far for me I have had no issues with him in my reef but i also make sure to keep him well feed with seaweed and other meaty foods as well. This fish is a completely peaceful fish that can be housed in both in peaceful tanks and aggressive tanks because he has poisonous spikes on his back and stomach that keeps fish away from him. One of the cool things about this fish is that when it feels threaten or scared it will change its color to a camo color and place himself next to a rock or coral and stick its spikes out.  They should be housed in a 75 gallon tank minimum and only keep one unless housed in a bigger tank so they can establish their own territories.

What are LPS corals

So to start off LPS corals stand for Large Polyp Stony. They are similar to the SPS corals in the fact that they also have polyps only difference is that as the name says they are a lot larger then the SPS corals. Their polyps look a lot like tentacles called sweeper tentacles that wave around bringing in a lot of life to your tank. They also use these tentacles to sting other corals that might be harmful to them, they use them to catch food that passes by, and they also use them to keep things a safe distance from them. These corals range from a lot of different shapes and colors and its really fascinating how much variety there is in the ocean that most people never get a chance to see. I guess that is one of the main reasons that I love my reef tank so much, I get to see everyday the beauty that most people don't ever get to see for themselves.

 Torch Coral

  Like SPS corals they absorb calcium to build and maintain there skeleton they house in. A cool thing you see with these is when they feel threatened or when the lights go out they hide themselves in their skeletons. A must do with these corals is target feeding, I will be making a post about how to target feed corals later on but the main point is to feed that coral specifically so that they don't starve to death. For lighting they need medium to high lighting.
  Here are some pictures of my LPS corals and if anyone has any questions feel free to ask. Happy reefing.

Duncan Coral

Frog Spawn

Trumpet Coral

Bubble Wall Coral

Goniopora Coral

Fish of The Week

Green Mandarin Goby:

Since this fish is my newest addition to my tank he gets to be fish of the week.  I guess you can say I'm being a little bias.  I truly love everything about this fish from the way that he eats to the way that he swims. The most noticeable aspect of this fish is its stunning colors and design it has quite the artistic feel to it. The colors just pop at you with the electric blue, turquoise green, and bright orange.  They can really captivate the true beauty right in nature. You can always tell the differences between the male and female mandarins because the male will always have bigger dorsal fin with the spike right at the front compared to the female. Now the way that they swim through the water can be captivating, it has a set of fins that it uses to walk on the rock and the sand and has two separate wing like fins that it uses to hover its self  around moving in almost insect wing type motion.

Things to Know: So these little guys are not for the beginner reef aquarist just for the fact that they can be a little hard to take care of in a starter tank. They usually thrive best in a more established tank because of there eating habits. They like to eat whats called copepods, they are little insect type plankton that house in marine tanks and wonder through out the tank.  They naturally start growing in your tank after a year, but thanks to your LFS (local fish store) you can buy these guys in a bag to jump start the copepod's growing rate recommended to add the bag about two weeks before mandarin so they have time to multiply.

Coral of The Week

Jedi Mind Trick:

One of my absolute favorite corals with its vivid colors and sweet name. The Jedi Mind Trick is an encrusting montipora SPS coral with vibrant orange and red polyps, green center, and blue growth edges. This coral is also known to be one of the rarest of the montipora so the it is a little pricey to buy, but in my opinion well worth it though. This coral should be housed with good lighting and about half down the tank and since it is a filter feeder it needs a good flow so it can receive all the beneficial nutrients. I hope you enjoyed this coral and if you decide to get one may the force be with you.

Happy Reefing,

Mr. Reef Tank

What are SPS corals

  SPS corals stand for Small Polyp Stony coral. You might be asking what is a polyp? A polyp is what makes up the coral, it is what gives that coral color, and every coral has a polyp. All corals are alive, they all need a source of food and movement to keep happy and alive. Now that you know a little about corals and polyps we can get back tot the SPS corals. These corals are beautiful and come in extravagant colors and in unique shapes. They do however need very good lighting to thrive in a aquarium.  Metal Halides or proper LED lights are the most ideal. They also need great water parameters such as calcium and alkaline levels being right on point, with absolutely no fluctuations for some specific species. There are many different types of SPS corals and here are some of the more well known ones: Branching Acropora, Montipora Capricornis, and Encrusting SPS.

Branching Acropora:
Also known a the 'Acro.'  As you can tell by it's full name it is a branching SPS coral and they grow in colonies. These are also denser then all the other SPS, because the skeleton is thicker from all the calcium it absorbs. Because of the dense skeleton they are hard to frag into smaller pieces. They also have to be target feed oyster eggs (Oyster Feast) with a turkey baster.

Montipora Capricornis:
These corals form multiple tiers or cup like layers over time as they mature in the tank. This is one of traits I love about the Monti besides its vibrant color. They are a lot weaker and thinner bone structure than the Acro corals to they can be pretty easy to break so take caution when you bump into them, or move around them closely.

(you can see here how they tier)

(Center is Orange Capricornis)

Encrusting SPS:
These are my favorite SPS corals just for the fact that they come in so many cool colors. As the name states these corals encrust onto the rock so they will spread over your structures over time with its colorful beauty. Plus the names of some of these corals are awesome such as Purple Haze, Superman, Supernatural, Ziggy Stardust, Jedi Mind Trick, and those are just to name a few.

 (Superman)

(Ziggy Stardust Center)

(Confucius) 

Mr. Reef Tank's Fish of The Week

The Blue Spotted Jawfish

Facts about: The Blue Spotted Jawfish is one of my favorite fish. They are burrowing fish, meaning he likes to make himself a nice cave within the sand to live in. They are active diggers that will move around your tank making new holes when ever the first one gets old for them. Since they are diggers having at least 4" of sand in your tank is ideal. They are peaceful fish to have in your fish community and very reef safe, but will be aggressive to other jawfish that are introduced to a small tank. They require at least a 30 gallon tank minimum to be happy. They grow to be about 3 1/2" average and originate from the reefs in Mexico. They are really enjoyable to watch dig and if they notice you watching they will stop digging and stare back (I have always found this funny). They should be fed meaty foods a few times a day.

Words of Caution: These little guys are known to be jumpers when they feel threatened, so a top would be recommended. Also since they like to dig next to rocks make sure all your rocks are secured so that your rock work doesn't come tumbling down.

My personal experience with this fish: I have one and his name is Alfred, he is a very loving fish and it took him a few day to finally feel comfortable with his tank mates before he started digging (now I can't get him to stop haha). I call him my little creeper just for the fact that he will stop whatever he is doing just to stare back at me, kind of reminds me of the dramatic gopher video (http://youtu.be/y8Kyi0WNg40). I would recommend him to anyone who needs an awkward fish in his or hers life.

Bridge SPS Rocks Aquascape

Hello,

So today I decided that I had a bunch of random small rocks in my tank giving the tank a really full looking. Plus I'm getting my new Aqua Illumination Sol this Wednesday to start doing SPS corals and clams. I really needed a place to set up my Acropora. With all this being said, I took small Tonga branches and used Zip ties to connect them together to create a bigger bridge perfect to place my Acropora on to.

 This is the right on my tank before the change. As you can see it looked all crowded and taking up a lot of swim room for my fishes.

 Here are the small Tonga branch rocks that I had in my tank just laying in random places.

 Im using 75lb zip ties for this just to make sure that they will hold the rocks. If you want to do this with other types of rocks you can drill holes into them and either zip tie, glue, or use acrylic rods to hold the rock.

 Here is how the rocks look after all the zip tying is complete, as you can see it makes a pretty nice long bridge.

 An important thing here is that when you cut the zip ties make sure not to have any sharp edges where your fish might cut themselves.

Now here is the end product as you can see there is a lot more open space and makes a pretty cool more natural feel for the tank, apart from the visible zip ties. Not to worry though in a few days it should be covered up with algae and SPS Corals. I hope you enjoyed this bit and if you have any comments feel free to leave them bellow. Happy reefing.

Thank you,

Mr. Reef Tank