Achilles Tang

Its a new product yet to be formally introduced to Singapore! More info posted here! AT

Our shipment is on the way from Germany! Hopefully before end of next week or the Monday/Tuesday after it. Will post up some info on Silicarbon FYI. AT

Diatoms? Its possible, if your silicates were very high to begin with. Maybe you can try Silicarbon, a special activated carbon that precisely & effectively absorbs Silicate.

Tail end should look familiar to many folks here!

I should do this for my reef tank everytime reefers come visiting!

A 4m long Oarfish washed ashore at Anna Marie Island, South of Tampa Bay, Florida, March 2002. The fish had been cut, presumably by a boat's propeller. The damage can be seen towards the tail of the fish. But here's an eyewitness account: Mark, Just a comment regarding the oarfish postings from Anna Marie island, Florida. I was there. The fish was intact and swimming. It was not cut in two by a boat propeller. It swam along the coast for a mile or so. I followed it. It seemed a goner, but then it seemed like it was ok. Another bystander tried to pick it up while it was still swimming and the fish broke in two pieces. It was incredible that the bony structure could not support it's weight. Then as the fish started to expire, it expelled what I thought were thousands of eggs. L. Pfaender 9 July 2002 .

And the answer is..... An Oarfish!!! The Oarfish is reported to be the longest of all fishes. It has a ribbon-like body that has been reliably documented to grow to 8m in length, however specimens up to 17m in length have been reported. It is metallic silver with blotches and wavy markings on the body, and pink or red fins. This species has a concave head profile and a highly protrusible mouth (a characteristic of the order Lampridiformes). It has a dorsal fin that runs the entire length of the body, but lacks an ###### fin. There are tiny spines projecting laterally off each caudal and pelvic fin ray. The derivation of the common name is uncertain. It may refer to the oar-shaped body, or the long oar-like pelvic fins, or possibly to reports that as the fish swims the pelvic fins scull the water like oars. The pelvic fins are clearly visible in the upper images. People most often see Oarfish washed up on beaches. Encounters with live Oarfish are rare. They are sometimes seen on the surface, and this may contribute to tales of sea serpents. The Oarfish is found worldwide in all tropical and temperate marine waters. It is thought to live at depths between 20-200m, where it feeds largely on invertebrates and fishes. Although several species of oarfishes have been described, there is now believed to be only one species.

They look the same, except for the bright light pinkish one that I only realized that it is no longer as brightly coloured as it has constantly been in the shade under my monti caps all this time... and I didn't realize the change!! I'm going to be moving out to a brigher spot and wait for the colours to return. I may have to let go of my gold deresa clam to make way for it.... any takers?

I had a feedback that he hated the quiz because he could never guess the creature!!

Your coral chips will probably release a lot of phosphates into the water which is why all good calcium media is only made of higher quality calcium carbonate that is proven and tested to not have a lot of heavy metals or phosphates binded into them. Bad idea.

Woah... cool down... cool down... its just a fish. At that price, that fish won't be sold so easily.... I am sure you can get to speak to Jon or Gilbert and he'll settle the misunderstanding. Give the old lady a break... you know how old people are sometimes... live and let live, dude! You'll get your fish at the juvenile price! I have SMSed Jon and told him your predicament... stand by! AT

Reefkeeping acronyms Search results on "CFD"!!

I think if he got a nudge by a cyclist, his car will fall apart rightaway.

Heheheh.... the queue for any frags is so long and I have only limited pieces for sale, that is, if there are any! Like I said before... I am not a fragger by nature... I only prune when necessary and there's nothing like a natural reef structure where corals grow into each other... some of my sps colonies are joined together even though they are of different species! Of course, a branch or two may be sacrificed but they contribute to stability of the upper reef structure. Look for CFD sufferers... they like to break apart their colonies all the time!

There are areas designated as Marine Parks... where no form of collection is allowed. It's the law.

Just a casual feedback session... do you guys like the SRC Reef ID Quiz series or should I discontinue this feature? If yes, why? If not... also why not?

Looks like an Arrowhead Crab. Can you post a clear pix pls?

Solve your algae problem by cutting the fuel source ie. phosphates, nitrates, excessive nutrients etc.

Update: photos restored.

Eeks... the photos disappeared! Reef central stopped outside linking... probably to cut down on bandwidth leaching. I'll have to host the photos here in SRC. Standby!

No, I'll be raising my lights much higher and lower them over a few weeks. Or I'll use a couple of car windscreen shades over my tank and remove layer by layer over time.

If you want the highest PAR, you should switch to Iwasaki 6500k! At this stage, I want to cut back slightly on growth and provide spectral qualities that are known to make SPS corals nicer looking. I did investigate the Hamilton 14k before, too little info on its spectral properties and too much mixed reviews on it to convince me. Even the tests by Joe Burger didn't include the AC14k and the Guiseman Magnachrome, but mostly American brands. Anyway, the best 14k bulbs in the market, especially in Europe, are the AC14k and the Guiseman Magnachrome. Or I could stick with my 6500k and just add T5 actinics but that would mean extra wattage and $$$.

Strange... your photos do not appear.

Ahh.. now no longer a secret already ah? I like the way the tank was shot... reflected in your mirror...

Hmmm, I have my own brands of T5 pendants (AquaConnect or Aquaristics) that I can use, with computer-designed parabolic reflectors (which is probably the most important component of them all) and the rest doesn't (with the exception of ATI/Deltecs). Interesting colours? Maybe if its more pastel colours you want, then T5s will give you that. I'm used to my SPS looking more vibrant than pastel and I think that once I swop out the 6500k with the AC14k, I can expect better colours! I lack the 420nm spike in my current setup... the actinic effect... and the AC14k does have it and my Saki & Ushio Blue doesn't... so hopefully my tank will look crisper as reported by many reefers in RC. I'm also amazed at the AC14k's 450nm spike... which is almost twice as much as the Ushio/BLV 20k bulbs! The blue peaks are almost like the Radiums (440 to 460 nm) which I have used before in the past and got very good colours! (Too bad the bulb itself sucked in terms of intensity loss).