Harlequinmania

Click through to see the images. Consumable products like aqua test kits and foods will be available as early as next week, with other Elos equipment (aquariums, protein skimmers, lighting, etc.) soon to follow. View the full article

In celebration of their 3 in a row champion in the marine tank competition, Aquamarin is offering 27% off all products during Aquarama . Go check them out when you are there ! Valid only for cash term payment.

Click through to see the images. In the journal Nature Climate Change, lead author Dr. Tom Bridge from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies based at James Cook University and colleagues point out that global conservation policies have so far failed to prevent the widespread destruction of coral reefs and their fish life, which now threatens the food security of millions of people. With more than 60 per cent of the world’s reefs under immediate threat from human activity, the researchers argue that efforts to identify and protect reefs lying 30-150 metres below the surface should be stepped up, so as to provide a secure refuge for fish and corals that can also live on deeper reefs. These deeper reefs are relatively insulated from global warming and other direct human pressures for the time being – but there are signs that overfishing, pollution and other forms of degradation are now starting to affect them too, making their protection urgent, they warn. “We recommend acting quickly, because pressure to over-exploit deep reefs will inevitably grow as shallow reefs become almost universally degraded due to growing human population pressures and climate change,” says co-author Dr. John Guinotte from the Marine Conservation Institute. “In China, coastal development and overfishing has destroyed 80% of coral cover in just the past 30 years. In Australia, coral cover on coastal reefs is also plummeting and the World Heritage Listing of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is now under review.” Many reef species which inhabit shallow waters are also to be found on reefs at depths of 30 metres or more, amid lower light conditions. This makes these deep reefs a potential refuge for both corals and other sea life when shallow reefs are degraded. However, worldwide there is only a patchy record of where these deeper reefs are located, making their protection problematic. “The area of these deep reefs may in fact be quite large. On the GBR recent surveys have revealed up to 20,000 square kilometres of deep reef – equal in size to the combined area of all the shallow reefs,” Dr. Bridge says. “While many species inhabit both shallow and deeper waters, the extent to which this occurs is as yet poorly understood. However they may form an important source of replenishment for shallow reefs and their fish stocks, given the destruction that is occurring on these reefs themselves and in the surrounding mangroves and sea-grass beds which are a nursery for juvenile fish.” At present very few of these deeper reef systems receive any form of protection around the world because reef management – where it exists – tends to focus on shallow reefs, the scientists say. Mid-level and deeper reefs are not generally included in Marine Protected Areas – an oversight that needs to be amended. “Adopting a broader ecosystem-scale approach that incorporates deep reefs around the world would have multiple and long-term social and economic benefits. The economic and conservation value of deeper reefs renders them worthy of protection in their own right, and safeguarding these habitats will also extend ongoing efforts in shallow water to protect reef species across their entire depth range.” Their article “The need to protect all coral reefs” by Tom C.L. Bridge, Terry P. Hughes, John M. Guinotte and Pim Bongaerts appears in the journal Nature Climate Change. [via ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies] View the full article

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Click through to see the images. How much more carbon dioxide (CO2) will the oceans be able to take up? To find out more about the efficiency of this service, scientists estimate the sinking velocities of organisms involved in the biological pump. Increasing numbers of gelatinous plankton might help in mitigating the CO2 problem. In field and laboratory experiments scientists from GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel have shown that dead jellyfish and pelagic tunicates sink much faster than phytoplankton and marine snow remains. Jellies are especially important because they rapidly consume plankton and particles and quickly export biomass and carbon to the ocean interior. The oceans absorb about 25 percent of the carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted by human activities. Since the industrial revolution, they have taken up about half of the man-made CO2. Billions of planktonic organisms, too tiny to be seen with the naked eye, make this valuable service possible: When carbon dioxide from the atmosphere dissolves in seawater, various species convert it to organic carbon and other organic components during photosynthesis. Jellyfish and pelagic tunicates live on smaller plankton and thus consume organic carbon. When they sink to the seafloor at the end of their life cycles, they take the carbon from the surface waters with them, provide it as food to organisms at the bottom or store it in deep water layers after decomposition. As a result, more CO2 can be dissolved in the oceans. Additionally, calcifying organisms incorporate the inorganic carbon in their calcium carbonate shells directly. They also contribute to the biological pump. To assess the efficiency of the biological carbon pump, data on sinking velocities of the different species are necessary. Together with colleagues from Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, Dr. Mario Lebrato, Biological Oceanographer in Prof. Andreas Oschlies’ group at GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, conducted field and laboratory experiments with gelatinous plankton remains. Their latest article in the international magazine “Limnology and Oceanography” describes for the first time the sinking speed of organic remains from jellyfish and pelagic tunicates. Together with a previous article in the same journal that calculated biomass export efficiency for these organisms for the first time, these new data allow robust estimates of global carbon export associated with gelatinous plankton. For their experiments, the scientists collected different species of scyphozoans (true jellyfish), ctenophores (comb jellies), and thaliaceans (salps) in the Baltic, the Mediterranean, the Atlantic and the Southern Ocean. The sinking process was observed and filmed in large transparent cylinders filled with seawater at OceanLab Bremen by Dr. Pedro de Jesus Mendes. Later the proportion of organic carbon and nitrogen of the dry biomass and biomass weight were measured. The work was supported by the European Project on Ocean Acidification (EPOCA), the Kiel Cluster of Excellence The Future Ocean, the German project on ocean acidification BIOACID (Biological Impacts of Ocean Acidification), and the US National Science Foundation Office for Polar Programs. “The sinking speed of jelly remains is much, much higher than what we expected, about 500 to 1600 meters per day”, Lebrato sums up. “And, what puzzles researchers working on the biological carbon pump: it is higher than that of non-calcifying phytoplankton and marine snow, the main sinking particles and organic carbon sources to the ocean interior”. Fast sinking means that the biomass and its constituents reach the deeper ocean layers without major degradation, where microbial decay releases CO2 that can be stored without direct contact with the atmosphere for millennia. Also, fast sinking provides high quality food resources for benthic organisms, which has already been observed actively feeding on jelly remains. On continental shelves and slope areas, biomass may reach the seabed within a day or less. Within the studied species, scyphozoans had on average the highest carbon content (26.97 percent), followed by thaliaceans (17.20 percent), and ctenophores (1.40 percent). The jelly carbon content is lower on average than that of phytoplankton or marine snow. But their large populations, occupying at times hundreds of square kilometers in the oceans, combined with a high sinking speed, can deliver large carbon quantities to the seabed. “Our dataset provides an initial overview and comparison for modelers and experimentalists to use in subsequent studies examining the role of jellies in carbon export and the efficiency of the biological pump”, Lebrato says. “We are continuously asked, how much organic carbon and CO2 do gelatinous plankton sink worldwide, whether their export capacities are similar to phytoplankton and marine snow. And if an increase of jellyfish in the future will enhance organic carbon export and CO2 sequestration. Until recently, few people believed that jelly organisms could play any major role in the carbon cycle, thus they have been excluded from large biogeochemical research programs. In consequence, the data available up to now are scarce and we are just starting to comprehend the fundamental properties that will allow us to better understand the role of jellyfish and pelagic tunicates in the global carbon cycle.” (Press Release GEOMAR) View the full article

Click through to see the images. If you're anything like us, you have an insatiable appetite for aquarium-related media to read, view, and listen. ThomasVisionReef is a relatively new youtube video channel hosted by Thomas Brown. We asked Brown to share a little bit about himself and the story behind ThomasVisionReef. I have a Bachelor's and Master's in Fine Arts with a focus in Film Directing, TV Production, Screen writing and journalism. After years of working in the corporate arena I decided to pursue my passion in film making. I was always taught to film what you love and I love the aquarium hobby so I thought why not put my passion for the aquarium hobby and film making together. The main focus of my youtube channel is to help give exposure to businesses/products in the aquarium hobby that hobbyist may not have found on their own (as advertising is expensive and a lot of LFS and aquarium business just don't have the budget big enough for big advertising campaigns). So I film them free of charge and upload the videos to my channel. However, I do not want my channel to only bring news; I also like to make videos relevant to the aquarium hobby that are just for pure entertainment. I believe all of these things set me apart from the other aquarium-related youtubers out there. Lastly, I am not nor do I try to be a self proclaimed expert in the hobby telling my viewers what and what not to do. I like to find experts in the hobby and interview them for their advice and expertise. Basically, I'm the youtube aquarium hobby reporter. We share ThomasVisionReef's three-part video series about Seth Miller's amazing 180 gallon reef aquarium. Introducing Seth and his beautiful 180 gallon reef tank " height="383" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="640"> "> "> Extended footage of Seth's reef (100% aquarium video) " height="383" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="640"> "> "> And finally Seth's reef tank equipment tour " height="383" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="640"> "> "> We know our readers would ask for details about Seth's reef tank. Thomas Brown was kind enough to supply us with the full system rundown. System: 180 US gallon SPS-dominant reef display with Starphire front. 100 US gallon sump (filled with 60g) 30 US gallon frag tank 30 US gallon Refugium Controller: Apex Controller Lighting: 3x 250w SE 20K Radiums, LumenMax Elite Reflectors 4x Ecoxotic Panorama LED Modules - Actinic Blue 2x 24w T5 - Actinic Blue 1 Kessil A150W 15K Circulation: 2 Vortech MP40s 1" SeaSwirl on center return 3/4" SeaSwirl on CL 1262 Eheim Dart return pump Filtration: 180lbs Live Rock in display, 30lbs in sump H&S A200-1260 Skimmer BRS Carbon & GFO filters 200 micron filter sock Calcuim/Alkalinity : Geo Calcium Reactor w/ 2nd Chamber Geo Kalk Reactor ATO: Tunze Osmolator, on a split connected to 2 soleniods (1 to RODI water, 1 to Kalk Reactor). Parameters: Temp: 78.0-79.5 Fahrenheit pH: 8.15-8.25 Ca: 430-445 ppm Alk: 8.5-9dKH Mag: ~1400 ppm NO3: 0.25 ppm PO4: 0.01-0.03 ppm View the full article

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Yap. 1) Aquamarin 2) Madpetz 3) The Fish Channel

Marien tank competition winner. Congrats to aquamarin, madpetz and fish channel. !!

Click through to see the images. A few weeks ago I was one of several guest speakers at the Capitol City Coral Corral in Austin, and there was a question and answer session near the end of the event. At some point we were all asked what our favorite invertebrate is, and my immediate answer was a mantis shrimp. Cephalopods are obviously very cool creatures too, but they don't live very long and aren't very tough (in my experience). So, I went with the mantises, and this month I hope to show you why. I've had a couple of them over the years, and they really are fantastic creatures. The mantis shrimp Neogonodactylus wennerae. To start, let's get one thing straight. Despite their common name, they aren't really shrimps, as they belong to a different taxonomic group with the Phylum Arthropoda. "Real" shrimps belong to the Order Decapoda, but mantises belong to the Order Stomatopoda, and are properly called stomatopods. While there are numerous features that set shrimps and stomatopods apart, the most obvious is possession of specialized prey-capturing/killing limbs known as raptorial appendages. Regardless, there are several hundred species of stomatopods, which range in adult size from less than an inch up to almost 16 inches(1)(2). Regardless, they also consistently have a shortened body and an elongated, very flexible tail, which allows them to turn around quickly and easily in tight spaces and in burrows. The tail and the specialized oar-like swimming appendages on its underside also allow stomatopods to scoot/swim surprisingly fast when on the hunt, or when they get spooked. A top and bottom view of Oratosquilla oratoria. The raptorial appendages are found where we would normally expect to see some sort of pincers/claws on a shrimp or lobster, and can be used for predation and self-defense, and often for modifying their environment when necessary, as well. These appendages also come in two significantly different forms, leading to a division of all stomatopods into two groups. Depending on which form of raptorial appendage they brandish, stomatopods will use them primarily to break things or to stab things. Thus, they're often called either "smashers" or "spearers", respectively. Here you can clearly see the raptorial appendages of Neogonodactylus wennerae, a typical smasher. A close look at one of the raptorial appendages reveals that it's comprised of three main segments, which can be folded up very tightly when not in use. It's the last segment that looks overly different depending on whether it belongs to a smasher or spearer. A smasher's raptorial appendage has a very sharp, single point at the end the last segment, which can be used like a knife to stab or slash at soft tissues. However, it's the base of the segment that has a thickened heel that is used for bashing things. When using this heel, the last segment is kept in the folded position (as shown), with the pointed tip tucked in. Thus, they can easily handle soft and hard targets. The raptorial appendage of Neogonodactylus wennerae, a typical smasher. Conversely, a spearer's raptorial appendage has numerous upward/outward projecting spines on the last segment, but no heel at it's base. The spines are used to impale victims, and are then flipped back towards the second segment to hold the prey in place for consumption. They work essentially the same way a preying mantis' weapons do, but in the opposite direction as they fold up instead of down. The raptorial appendage of Oratosquilla oratoria, a typical spearer. These are serious weapons, which can be used to do far more damage than you'd expect. This is due to their speed of employment. By using something of a lock-and-spring mechanism, stomatopods are able to strike out at velocities of 14 to 23 meters per second, which is one of the fastest movements made by any animal(3). To translate that into something easier to picture, this means they can strike out at about 50 miles per hour. So, a typical individual striking something two inches away can make contact with its target in approximately 1/500th of a second. Click here to see a good explanation of how this is possible. With this in mind, while the appendages aren't that big relative to the size of the bearer, this speed is why they end up being deadly in the same way that a small, but very high-velocity bullet can be. Thus, a smashing stomotopod's strike can hit a target with impact forces that are thousands of times its own body weight(5). And on top of that, the appendages move through the water so quickly that they create cavitation bubbles the way a high speed propeller can, which adds significant force to the blow as the bubbles collapse upon the target. How much? On average, the force created is about half the appendage's actual impact force, but at times it may generate almost three times as much force as the impact(4). In fact, the shock wave generated by the collapse of these bubbles can be strong enough to stun or kill a prey item, even when the appendage makes a near miss. This means a stomatopod can demolish crab shells and break open clam and snail shells, too. They can also break up rocks, and yes, they can break the panes of a glass aquarium(5)(6). In fact, a large stomatopod can strike a target with the force of a small bullet(7), which makes me cringe when I think about taking a shot right on the ankle bone. Ouch! Okay, enough about their weapons for now. How about their eyes? Stomatopods also have some serious vision equipment, having extraordinarily advanced eyes on short, but highly mobile stalks. This allows them see extremely well and look in different directions simultaneously, too. And, they provide exceptionally accurate depth perception (target acquisition), making their lightning-quick weapons that much more effective and deadly. In fact, their eyes contain 16 different types of photoreceptors, 12 of which are for color analysis, compared to 3 in human eyes. This allows them to distinguish up to 100,000 colors, compared to around 10,000 seen by humans beings(8)(9). Their eyes also posses various color filters and polarization receptors, allowing them to see polarized light and 4 colors of UV light(10)(11). Impressive to say the least, and considered to be the most complex eyes of any animal we know of(12). These are the fantastic-looking eyes of Oratosquilla oratoria. Also note that there are some general behavioral differences between the smashers and spearers. Smashers tend to live in holes in rocks, or rock rubble, but spend much of their time roaming about stalking prey. They tend to feed on crabs, snails, and other shelled victims, and will use their weapons to pound open their victims' shells, eating the contents afterwards. Conversely, spearers tend to build and wait in burrows on soft sediment bottoms, and feed on fishes and other soft-bodied prey using an ambush technique. They stay in place and wait for prey to inadvertently come into their range, quickly reaching out to grab them. One may eat the other's preferred food though, if the need and opportunity arise. Smashers tend to live in holes in rockwork and rubble, but spearers tend to make burrows and wait patiently to ambush any suitable prey that gets too close. Other than that, there are a couple more interesting things about them that I'd like to point out. First, they may be the only invertebrates that can identify individuals of the same species by sight and smell. In other words, they can see, smell, and remember well enough that they know exactly who is who in the neighborhood(13)(14). And, some species may change color with changes in lighting and their surroundings. For example, some specimens from deep waters may be dark blue or reddish, but can change to bright green in a well-lit aquarium that houses macroalgae like Caulerpa. And, some of them are fluorescent, possessing yellow-green fluorescent spots making them easier to see in dim lighting(15). This is thought to be used to signal or threaten one another, and may be the only case of fluorescence being used in this way(15). I could keep going, but that's enough about their biology. I've provided some sources for more information along with the references, and links to some good YouTube videos, too. Now, I'll tell you a story about the first experience with keeping one of these. My first mantis shrimp Even after being in the hobby for many years, and reading/seeing various things about mantis shrimps, I had never felt the urge to get one. I invariably heard that they hide a lot, can be very aggressive, cannot be trusted with other invertebrates or small fishes, and can even be dangerous. I didn't know of anyone personally that had one, either. However, as I was shopping in Tampa one day, looking for something interesting to put in a 20 gallon aquarium I'd recently set up, I happened to come across a tiny, bright green smasher called Neogonodactylus wennerae. The aquarium didn't have too much in it really, so with a rather spontaneous change of heart, I figured I'd go ahead and give one a try. It was only a few dollars and a small local species, so I figured if I didn't like it I'd just let it go. "Neogo" in my 20 gallon reef aquarium. My 20 gallon contained a few good pieces of aquacultured live rock/coral rock, a sand bed, and two fishes. There were also a few snails and hermit crabs too, but I removed the 3 small Astraea snails, leaving behind 3 much larger Turbo snails. I left the hermits in, as well. With the exception of a relatively large spotted hermit (Dardanus megistos), the rest were small ones that I collected myself, and I considered the small ones to be expendable and the big one to be tough enough to take care of itself. After all, Neogo as I called it, was only an inch and a half or so in length at the time. When introduced, it found a hole of some sort near the back side a large piece of live rock. Then, it started to jackhammer the inside of the rock and I could hear intermittent rapid popping sounds for a couple of days, or so. A hole later appeared on the front side of the rock, just above the level of the sand substrate. Upon inspection with a flashlight, I found that Neogo had enlarged the diameter of hole as well, making it big enough to turn around in. Afterwards, attention was turned to the opposite side of the tank and a burrow of sorts was excavated under a couple of other pieces of rock. Initially it stayed in one of the two locations about 99% of the time the lights were on, primarily in the rock. Within a week all of the little hermits were gone. I even saw the attack once, as I happened to catch a small object flying up from the bottom immediately after hearing a distinctive tick, tick, tick sound. Another smack or two and the hermit's shell was breached and the eating began. All of the barnacles on the aquacultured live rock were demolished and eaten, too. Nope, even barnacles aren't safe from a hunger smasher. I collected more hermits, but I also started adding dried shrimp pellets. Neogo liked them, and also began eating flake food and brine shrimp when able to catch some. Even after several weeks, as best as I could tell, the mantis had made no attempts to eat the turbos or the big hermit, though. In fact, Neogo actually ignored them, even when they were very close together. Likewise, it seemed to eventually realize that I wasn't a threat, and accordingly began to spend more and more time outside the hideouts, walking about. It began to give me the distinct impression that it was very curious, not just out looking for a meal, and enjoyed watching me as much as I liked watching it. Over the next several months I added more corals, more fish, and even a skunk cleaner shrimp, with no problems. The mantis seemed to be content with the fish foods and occasional little hermits. But, for reasons unknown, Neogo decided to have a showdown with the big hermit one night, and I happened to be there to see it. It had grown significantly by this time, to around two and a half inches in length, and possibly decided it was now large enough to handle the hermit. I watched as the mantis darted out of its burrow and smacked the hermit's shell a couple of times. It was a pretty heavy shell though and nothing happened. The hermit just jerked in and sat there. So, the mantis retreated to its lair and waited for the hermit to come back out, then tried the same again. Still no damage to the hermit. At this point I thought maybe the mantis was just harassing the hermit and might get tired of it and quit, but I was wrong. The third try was a charm, as the mantis caught the hermit before it could retreat, went for the head, and whacked off one of its stalked eyes. To save my hermit, I banged on the front pane of the tank, Neogo took off, and I yanked the hermit out just in time. My poor hermit was attacked and lost an eye in a split second, after living with Neogo for several months. I thought about what to do for a bit and decided to pull the mantis out and move it elsewhere. At the time I was also playing around with a 56 gallon non-coral aquarium with lots of rocks and sand, but only a few other fishes and inverts that I had collected, and figured I'd transfer it over. So, I made a trap. Neogo liked brine shrimp a lot, and would chase them around in the aquarium's currents, giving me a good idea of what to do. I put some brine in a glass and covered the top with some clear plastic-wrap, only leaving a small gap at one side open. I positioned it near the mantis' hole and about one inch from the side of the tank, then moved my magnetic cleaning magnet (that's about one inch thick) in place just above the gap I'd left in the plastic. Here you can see the simple trap I made, and how it was employed. Within a matter of seconds the mantis came out from its hole, located the gap in the plastic wrap, and went in for the food. I just as quickly came down with the magnet to block the opening. Still, I figured it would be a bad idea to leave it trapped in a glass container for more than a few seconds, and pulled a plastic breeder/holding box out of the closet before inserting the trap. So, I grabbed the glass, poured the mantis into the breeder box, added a piece of dead coral, and sank it in the aquarium. Success! Or so I thought. Here's Neogo, just before busting out of the plastic box. I carried the glass to the kitchen, but before i could even make it back to the tank I heard the mantis pounding the side of the box. Before I could even get my hand in to grab the box, Neogo shot out of the corner and into the rockwork. The little *&%$* had knocked a hole in the container just big enough to squeeze out. I was pretty irritated at this point, and guessed that the mantis was too, so I waited a while before repeating the same procedure. I was wary of using glass this time after seeing the hole in my box and used a clear plastic cup instead. I was actually kind of surprised that it worked just as well the second time, almost expecting it not to, and quickly pulled out the cup and poured the mantis directly into the other aquarium. Sorry, but no acclimation. The story doesn't end here though, as the two relatively large pistol shrimp living in the tank didn't like the new company at all. Pistol shrimp are another odd sort of crustacean that has funny appendages, too. However, their's are used to stun or kill other animals, as they're built to make an extraordinarily loud popping sound and shock wave when closed quickly. Loud enough to be heard throughout the house, and loud enough to ring the bell of anything that bugs them, which Neogo apparently did. Anyway, I had unintentionally added these two shrimp with some rock, and they really got on my nerves at night sometimes, so I figured the mantis might feed itself a good meal and do me a favor, too. Pistol shrimps are also unique crustaceans, which have an enlarged claw capable of popping so loudly that it can stun or even kill other creatures. Needless to say, the fireworks started that night. Pop, pop, pop... Pop, pop, pop... Pop, pop... It sounded like a gunfight. But, eventually the noise stopped and I figured they were done with each other. I assumed Neogo had been the victor, but the next morning the mantis was laid out, in the open, with legs up, and sitting perfectly still. Dead. I reached in to pull out the lifeless body, only to realize that it wasn't so lifeless. It popped a slit in my finger and the blood was running fast before I could get my hand out of the water. So, I learned where they get their nickname - the hard way. This is why stomatopods are often called "thumb splitters". Watch out! I got careless, and I paid the price. This is why stomatopods are often called "thumb splitters". I cleaned up the wound and bandaged it, and left the mantis where it was. It never moved from where it came to rest though, and after waiting several hours I removed it with some chopsticks. Yes, it was really dead this time. So, I took a few pictures of the pretty green corpse, and then pulled it apart for fish food, and even gave the big one-eyed hermit some. Aquarium care for a mantis shrimp Despite my story, if you decide that a mantis shrimp is something that you want to try, you have a few choices when it comes to making a home for them and taking care of them. Putting either type (smasher or spearer) in a reef can obviously be bad idea if you plan on having much of anything else that is made of meat and moves around the bottom. But, as far as I know, my little smasher never bothered the large turbos or the cleaner shrimp, which stayed at the top of the tank most of the time, or any of the 4 small fishes, either. It also never posed a threat to the corals. So, I'd think with some appropriate stocking choices, it is possible to keep a smaller species of stomatopod in a full-blown reef tank. And, of course, either could also be kept in a non-reef tank, as long as the fishes are big enough to fend for themselves. On the top is the peacock mantis, Odontodactylus scyllarus, which is the most popular species offered in the hobby. It's a smasher that reach 6 inches in length. On the bottom is a zebra mantis shrimp, a huge spearer that I believe is Lysiosquillina maculata. This one is the largest species, sometimes reaching almost 16 inches in length, and I've seen a half-dozen or so of these offered at stores. In any case, you'll need to do as much homework as possible (Do as I say, not as I do. Right?) and will most likely want to find a smaller species to try. All will appreciate a natural setting, including a deep sand bed and some live or base rock. Many will also take up residence in some appropriate diameter, well-placed PVC pipe, and/or a big snail shell. Otherwise, a smasher will likely end up building its own home in your rock. For spearers in particular, it's often advised to have a sand bed that's one and a half times as deep as the animal is long. And, it's a good idea to add some crushed shell, and/or bits of coral skeleton, which they'll typically use to stabilize the walls of their burrow. Adding crushed shell like this for a spearer will provide it with material to stabilize the walls of its burrow. As far as breaking out of things goes, fortunately the smaller species aren't likely to knock your tank apart, especially if they are spearers. As long as a mantis shrimp feels "happy" and doesn't feel threatened, it shouldn't have any reason to do so anyway. So, don't make one feel threatened. The tank busting stories are actually very few and very far between as best as I can tell. Regardless, somewhere along the line I did hear about putting a piece of plexiglass on the bottom of the tank, under the sand, to keep one from breaking out the bottom while burrowing. So, this may be worth a few dollars for a little peace of mind if nothing else. Of course, an all acrylic tank would probably hold up much better than a glass one, if you're that worried about it. Anyway, when it comes to feeding, I know everyone doesn't have access to free hermits. But, as best as I can tell, all mantis shrimps can adapt to aquarium life and will learn to take other foods. Pieces of meat are appreciated for sure, but as I pointed out, shrimp pellets, flake food, and brine shrimp worked fine for me, too. This is Oratosquilla oratoria, my other mantis shrimp. It's a spearer that I got from a local fisherman while living in Japan, and a popular food item there. Here you can see "Orato" dining on a small piece of left-over sashimi. So, there you have it. A good introduction to stomatopod biology and aquarium care. Again, these are my favorite invertebrates, and with a little planning and preparation can be fantastic acquisitions for any marine aquarist. In fact, after writing this, I feel a compulsion to go get another one... References 1. Gonser, J. 2003. Large shrimp thriving in Ala Wai Canal muck. Honolulu Advertiser, Feb. 14. 2. Fossa, S. & Nilsen, A. 2000. The Modern Coral Reef Aquarium, Volume 3. Birgit Schmettkamp Velag, Bornheim, Germany. 448pp. 3. Patek, S.N., Korff, W.L. & Caldwell, R.L. 2004. Deadly strike mechanism of a mantis shrimp. Nature, 428:819-820. 4. Patek, S.N. & Caldwell, R.L. 2005. Extreme impact and cavitation forces of a biological hammer: strike forces of the peacock mantis shrimp". Journal of Experimental Biology, 208 (19):3655-3664. 5. Holladay, A. 2006. Shrimp spring into shattering action. USA Today, September 1. 6. Yong, E. 2008. The mantis shrimp has the world's fastest punch. Discover Magazine Blogs, URL: blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2008/07/19/the-mantis-shrimp-has-the-worlds-fastest-punch/#.UZZaILU3t8E 7. Yong, E. 2012. How mantis shrimps deliver armour-shattering punches without breaking their fists. Discover Magazine Blogs, URL: blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2012/06/07/how-mantis-shrimps-deliver-armour-shattering-punches-without-breaking-their-fists/ 8. Cronin, T.W. & Marshall, N.J. 1989. A retina with at least ten spectral types of photoreceptors in a mantis shrimp. Nature, 339:137-139. 9. Cronin, T.W., Marshall, N.J. & Land, M.F. 1994. Vision in mantis shrimps. American Science, 82:356-365. 10. Marshall, N.J., Land, M.F., King, C.A. & Cronin, T.W. 1991. The compound eyes of mantis shrimps (Crustacea, Hoplocarida, Stomatopoda). I. Compound eye structure: the detection of polarized light. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, 334:33-56. 11. Marshall, N.J., Land, M.F., King, C.A. & Cronin, T.W. 1991. The compound eyes of mantis shrimps (Crustacea, Hoplocarida, Stomatopoda). II. Polychromatic vision by serial and lateral filtering. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, 334:57-84. 12. Kilday, P. 2005. Mantis shrimp boasts most advanced eyes. The Daily Californian, September 28. 13. Caldwell, R.L. 1985. A test of individual recognition in the stomatopod Gonodactylus festae. Animal Behavior, 33:101-106. 14. Caldwell, R.L. 1992. Recognition, signaling and reduced aggression between former mates in a stomatopod. Animal Behavior, 44:11-19. 15. Sanders, R. 2003. Mantis shrimp fluoresce to enhance signaling in the dim ocean depths. UC Berkeley News, November 14. URL: www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2003/11/14_shrimp.shtml Additional sources of information, and a few good videos Secret of the Stomatopod. URL: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/aquarius/index.html Stomatopods for the Aquarium: The identification and care of mantis shrimps. URL: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/arthropoda/crustacea/malacostraca/eumalacostraca/royslist/ The Lurker's Guide to Stomatopods. URL: www.blueboard.com/mantis/ Crazy attacking Mantis Shrimp takes a ride with a Porcupine Pufferfish. (Idiot) Holding a huge mantis shrimp. Mantis shrimp destroyed my filter. Mantis Shrimp Destroys Clam. Mantis shrimp vs octopus. Mantis Shrimp vs. Several Crustaceans. Peacock Mantis Shrimp kills Blue-ringed Octopus. World's Deadliest - Shrimp Packs a Punch. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpW9RIy7Gus Zebra Mantis Shrimp attack good quality w/ slow motion. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyWTk_cbaOc View the full article

Most likely the coral not opening up is due to water quality issues. You can try doing water change with nsw or salt mix and should be just fine.<br /><br />Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

For public seminar held on sat and Sunday , you can refer to this link ; http://aquarama.com.sg/special-events/public-seminar-program

The talk by Julian Spring is on Friday 3.00 - 3.30 pm however it is consider a trade seminar topic title; ( Small Wonders: A Review of Nano Aquarium Growth, Husbandry Needs, and Commercial Possibilities ) thus it is held on trade day open only to trade visitor. However for those who manage to sleek in, you can still attend the seminar .

Below is the event schedule for Aquarama 2013

This is one of my favorite fish as well, i tried once and although i managed to get it feeding after two day, the fish die due to ich outbreak in my QT. Since this fish is collected from deep water, common problem seem to be decompression, bloated stomach and diseases challenges faces on all other angel fish. However, a few reefer i know manage to keep it on a FOWLR tank and feeding it with plenty of sea weed and sponge on rock for a start. It can be consider an easy fish to keep if we manage to find one which was caught and shipped properly. Smallest size of bandit seem to be the easiest to start with but can easily cost twice or triple of the price.

Peppermint shrimp, flame angel, small flameback, kole tang, purple tang,earspot angel, neon goby , and some other goby from previous ORA shipment. Heard there will be a sri lanka shipment at LCK this week .

Click through to see the images. In this fish's case, swim bladder disease (sometimes referred to as "flipover"), caused a goldfish to no longer swim upright but instead swim upside down. His owner's heart went out to his little companion, affectionately named Einstein, and he decided to try to help him out somehow. What he came up with was an ingenious idea: invent a buoyancy vest for it. He spent a number of hours formulating a plan to use air-filled silicone tubing as a buoyancy vest to keep the goldfish upright and his hard work came up with a working solution. "I wanted to build something that would allow Einstein to move his fins a little bit and be comfortable at the same time. ... He wriggled a bit a first and he wasn’t too keen on the idea. He kept catching on to plants and getting stuck but since I’ve rearranged the tank to make it disability friendly he’s been absolutely fine." The little guy can now swim upright and his owner has even taught it to swim through a hoop! View the full article

Click through to see the images. In this fish's case, swim bladder disease (sometimes referred to as "flipover"), caused a goldfish to no longer swim upright but instead swim upside down. His owner's heart went out to his little companion, affectionately named Einstein, and he set out to help him. What he came up with was an ingenious idea: Invent a buoyancy vest for it. He spent a number of hours formulating a plan to use air-filled silicone tubing as a buoyancy vest to keep the goldfish upright and his hard work came up with a working solution. "I wanted to build something that would allow Einstein to move his fins a little bit and be comfortable at the same time. ... He wriggled a bit a first and he wasn’t too keen on the idea. He kept catching on to plants and getting stuck but since I’ve rearranged the tank to make it disability friendly he’s been absolutely fine." The little guy can now swim upright and his owner has even taught it to swim through a hoop! View the full article

Click through to see the images. Fish embryos, like frog embryos, are generally much larger than human embryos (or corals embryos for that matter). Their larger size creates a challenge for cryo-freezing because traditional cryogenic techniques damages large embryos, rendering them nonviable. Up until this year, scientists did not know how to cyro-preserve frog embryos. A team of scientists from the University of Newcastle has now discovered a method to slow-freeze larger embryos for the first time ever. The team hopes to expand this research to fish in order to conserve their genome. Scientists are already creating a gene bank for corals by freezing their gametes. Soon, they may be able to do same for fish as a "last line" insurance against extinction. View the full article

Gisement MH is one of the best and proven in the market. I think you can get a unit in pasa malam for a faction of it's old price now due to the popularity of leds.<br /><br />Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

Click through to see the images. One of the most fascinating and spectacular sights in the coral reef of Eilat is the perpetual motion of the tentacles of a coral called Heteroxenia (Heteroxenia fuscescens). Heteroxenia is a soft coral from the family Xeniidae, which looks like a small bunch of flowers, settled in the reef walls and on rocky areas on the bottom of the reef. Each "flower" is actually a living polyp, the basic unit which comprises a coral colony. Apparently, the motion of these polyps, resembling flowers that are elegantly spreading out and closing up their petals, is unique in the animal kingdom. Except for the familiar swimming motion of jellyfish, no other bottom-attached aquatic animal is known to perform such motions. Pulsation is energetically costly, and hence there must be a reasonable benefit to justify this motion. The perpetual motions of jellyfish serve them for swimming, predation and feeding. The natural explanation would be that that the Heteroxenia's spectacular motions are used for predation and feeding, however several studies indicate that these corals do not predate on other animals at all. If predation is not the reason for pulsating, there must be another explanation to justify the substantial energetic expense by the Heteroxenia. Maya Kremien found the answers to these questions, while working on her master's research at the Interuniversity institute for Marine Sciences in Eilat under the supervision of Prof. Amatzia Genin from the Hebrew University and Prof. Uri Shavit from the Technion in a joint research funded by the National Science Foundation. After watching several coral colonies with an underwater infrared-sensitive camera night and day, the researchers found their first surprising discovery: Heteroxenia corals cease to pulsate and take a half-hour break every single day in the afternoon hours. At this stage, the afternoon "siestas" remained unexplained. The labs of Prof. Genin and Prof. Shavit conduct work on the interaction between biological processes of aquatic creatures and the water motions which surround them. Apparently aquatic animals affect the flow and at the same time are absolutely dependent on that flow. In order to solve the mystery of the Heteroxenia coral, the research team developed (as part of Ph.D. work by Tali Mass) an underwater measuring device called PIV (particle imaging velocimetry), which allows measurement of the flow field just around the coral very accurately. The system consists of two powerful lasers, an image capturing system and computation ability. A special set of lenses releases a sheet of light in short, powerful pulses so that the imaging system can capture pairs of snapshots of natural particles moving with the flow. The computational system then performs a mathematical analysis of the pairs of photos, producing a huge database of flow field maps, from which the flow speed, characteristics of solutes transport, and turbulent mixing intensity are calculated. The measurements were performed at night with the support of divers who volunteered to assist the research team. It was found that if a diver lightly touched the coral, the polyps "close" and remain motionless for a few minutes, after which the coral returns to its normal pulsation activity. The researchers used this behavior in order to repeatedly measure the flow field around the Heteroxenia during pulsation and rest. These measurements led to the research group's next discovery. Analysis of the direction of water flow indicated that the motion of the polyps effectively sweeps water up and away from the coral tissues into the ambient water. Corals need carbon-dioxide during daytime and oxygen during nighttime, as well as nutrients (such as phosphate and nitrogen) during day and night. One of the challenges for coral colonies is to render their surrounding waters rich in essential commodities by efficiently mixing the water around them. By using the sophisticated measuring system, the researchers calculated the mixing intensity of the water as a result of the coral's pulsation. The unexpected discovery was that even though the polyps' motions are uncoordinated (i.e. each polyp starts its period of motion at a different time), the accumulated effect of the polyps’ activity is a significant enhancement of the flow around the colony, particularly in the upward direction which sweeps water away from the coral, hence reducing the probability of re-filtration of the same water. However, these findings still did not yet answer the question of why a coral would invest so much energy to move its tentacles. After receiving a permit from the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, the research team collected a few Heteroxenia colonies from the sea in order to run a series of laboratory experiments. All corals were returned back to their original location after the experiment terminated. The Hypothesis was that the pulsation motions enhance the coral's photosynthesis rate. Corals are among the most ancient creatures surviving on our planet. One of the "secrets" of their amazing survival abilities is that they "host" photosynthetic algae in their tissues. The symbiotic algae provides the coral with essential nutrients and lives off the waste of the coral. In a previous study of the same research team (which the results of were also published in PNAS) it was found that the motion of water around corals is essential in order to enhance the efflux of oxygen from the coral tissues. Without water motion, the oxygen concentration in the coral tissues would rise and the photosynthesis rate would drop. The answer to the question as to why the Heteroxenia pulsates was finally revealed through the lab experiments. First, the photosynthesis rate of a pulsating Heteroxenia was measured, and it was found to be on an order of magnitude higher than that of a non-pulsating colony. Next, in order to prove that the mechanism of pulsation is intended to sweep away oxygen, the researchers artificially increased the oxygen concentration in the measurement chamber so that even when the coral managed to mix water via pulsation, it was replacing oxygen-rich water with new water, which, unfortunately for the coral , was also rich in oxygen. And indeed it was found that the photosynthesis rate was low in this case, and even when the coral was constantly pulsating, the oxygen concentration remained high and photosynthesis remained low, as if the coral was at rest (i.e. not pulsating). The elegant motion of Heteroxenia has been fascinating the scientific society and capturing the attention of researchers for nearly 200 years (Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, 1744-1829), yet it has not been explained. Now, in the study of Kremien, Genin and Shavit, it was found that the pulsation motions augment a significant enhancement in the binding of carbon dioxide to the photosynthetic enzyme RuBisCo, also leading to a decrease in photorespiration. This explanation justifies the investment of energy in pulsation -- the benefit overcomes the cost. In fact, thanks to pulsation, the ratio between photosynthesis to respiration in Heteroxenia is the highest ever measured in stony and non-pulsating soft corals. The findings of this study indicate that pulsation motions are a highly efficient means for sweeping away water from the pulsating body, and for an increased mixing of dissolved matter between the body and the surrounding medium. These two processes (expulsion of medium and mixing of solutes) may lead to future applications in engineering and medicine. Currently the research group is focusing on attempts to broaden the results of this study and on developing mathematical models which could serve various applicative purposes. Thanks to Jeremy for bringing this article to our attention. (Press Release: ScienceDaily) View the full article

Click through to see the images. The corals themselves play a role in their susceptibility to deadly coral bleaching due to the light-scattering properties of their skeletons. No one else has shown this before. Using optical technology designed for early cancer detection, the researchers discovered that reef-building corals scatter light in different ways to the symbiotic algae that feed the corals. Corals that are less efficient at light scattering retain algae better under stressful conditions and are more likely to survive. Corals whose skeletons scatter light most efficiently have an advantage under normal conditions, but they suffer the most damage when stressed. The findings could help predict the response of coral reefs to the stress of increasing seawater temperatures and acidity, helping conservation scientists preserve coral reef health and high biodiversity. The study of nearly a hundred different species of reef-building corals, including many from the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago, was published this week in PLOS ONE. The open-access, online journal is published by The Public Library of Science. "We have solved a little piece of the puzzle of why coral reefs are bleaching and dying," said Luisa A. Marcelino, who led the study. "Our research is the first to show light-scattering properties of the corals are a risk factor." Marcelino is a molecular biologist and research assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at Northwestern. The unusual research involved marine biology, the physics of light transport, the biophysics of how corals handle light and unique technology originally developed for medical applications. The team included Vadim Backman, a physicist and professor of biomedical engineering at Northwestern, and Mark W. Westneat, a coral reef fish biologist and curator of zoology at the Field Museum. "Coral reefs are like the rain forests of the oceans -- the consequences will be catastrophic if coral reefs are lost in great numbers," said Backman, who invented the optical technique used by the team. "Corals are also optical machines. By identifying how much light the skeletons of individual coral species reflect, we have learned which species are more resilient under stress." Algae provide nutrients to the corals and receive shelter and light for photosynthesis in return. When stressed, the corals can lose their algae. The corals often die of starvation shortly afterward, exposing their white skeletons. The team used LEBS to measure light transport and light amplification inside the skeletons of 96 different coral species. How fast the light amplification increases with the loss of algae depends on the light transport at the microscale. This was impossible to measure until Backman's low-coherence enhanced backscattering (LEBS) technique became available, which is one of the reasons why this phenomenon has never been studied before. The specimens were from long-held collections of corals from the Field Museum, including dozens retained from the original Chicago Columbian Exposition and World's Fair of 1893, and the Smithsonian Institution. The researchers created a family tree of corals that showed bleaching is associated with the physics of light scattering across the entire evolutionary history of corals. Living reef corals are thought to have originated about 220 million years ago, and corals living today are descendants of various branches of these older lineages. "We found that bleaching and light scattering are associated across the history of reef corals," Westneat said. "This important mechanism occurs repeatedly in all major coral groups, regardless of relationship or evolutionary age." Corals have evolved to scatter light efficiently. Corals whose skeletons scatter light the most efficiently have an advantage under normal conditions. They also tend to grow faster as this leads to a skeletal structure that is more conducive to scattering. However, when some of the algae are lost due to stress, the limestone skeletons amplify the light so much that remaining algae have to deal with even more light, thus being at an even greater risk of damage. This creates a vicious cycle forcing more and more algae to leave the coral. Less scattering-efficient corals, on the other hand, do not create the vicious cycle. The paper is titled "Modulation of Light-Enhancement to Symbiotic Algae by Light-Scattering in Corals and Evolutionary Trends in Bleaching." This PLOS ONE paper is available at http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0061492. Editor's note: In 2011, another research paper published in PLOS ONE discovered coral skeletons serve as both internal reflectors and UV protection. Coral physiology is truly amazing! [via Northwestern University via Eureka Alert] View the full article

<br /><br />Since you are running a fish only tank why not use bio pallet or carbon dosing to control the nutrient? There will also be chances of the need.to fish medicine in a fish only tank which will also cause all the chaeto to die. Just a suggestion. .<br /><br />Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

You might want to rearrange the rock so that it is not so near to the glass for easy cleaning. Just a suggestion.