Harlequinmania

Click through to see the images. The information below is provided by Aquatic Connection: The new Electronic Control Wave Surfer is designed to simulate real marine currents. It is easy to program with the perfect balance of features for trouble free operation without complicated computers or power controllers. When used with aquarium pumps, the Wave Surfer permits the creation of multiple currents from different directions inside the tank. Its controls make it simple to regulate the timing of the pumps connected to it. Customization is possible by setting switching intervals, FEEDING MODE and NIGHT MODE depending on needs of the ecosystem being created. How long pumps stay turned off during the feeding of aquarium inhabitants and how much water movement is reduced during night cycles are controlled by these settings. The Wave Surfer is the perfect compliment to Sicce Voyager and Syncra pumps, but it can be used with any recirculation and stream pump up to 100 watts total for each of the two outlets. Dual outlet pump controller Max 100 watts per outlet Safe - with waterproof cable connection Easy to program and precise Universal - suitable for applications with Voyager, Syncra or “ fast timer safe” pumps up to 100W Automatic night mode - 8hr program to simulate slower water motion typical of night currents Feeding mode - temporary suspension of 4 minutes of the wave program to feed fish Alternate or synchronous flow mode UL/CE/ETL Listed Here is an instructional video for the Sicce Wave Surfer, demonstrating this controller's ability to generate waves using two "fast timer safe" pumps. View the full article

Click through to see the images. Over the weekend, a local Washington, D.C. news reporter aired his report about "sea foam" blanketing the Ocean City (Maryland) shoreline ... while being completely covered in the brown froth! At one point, he says: "It's in my face as well. As you can imagine, it doesn't taste great." There's a good reason for that, Mr. Reporter. Big thanks to Matt Wandell for the link. View the full article

Click through to see the images. Over the weekend, a local Washington, D.C. news reporter aired his report about "sea foam" blanketing the Ocean City (Maryland) shoreline ... while being completely covered in the brown foam! At one point, he says: "It's in my face as well. As you can imagine, it doesn't taste great." There's a good reason for that, Mr. Reporter. Big thanks to Matt Wandell for the link. Reporter Gives Update Covered In Sea Foam: MyFoxNY.com View the full article

Scientists have engineered a new strain of yeast that converts seaweed into biofuel in half the time it took just months ago. View the full article

Preserving just 4 percent of the ocean could protect crucial habitat for the vast majority of marine mammal species, from sea otters to blue whales, according to researchers at Stanford University and the National Autonomous University of Mexico. View the full article

Researchers have decoded the behavior of Norway lobsters and cod and used the results to develop a selective trawl. This so-called SELTRA-trawl ensures that fewer cod end up as by-catch in the Norway lobster fishery off the coast of Denmark. View the full article

Researchers have decoded the behavior of Norway lobsters and cod and used the results to develop a selective trawl. This so-called SELTRA-trawl ensures that fewer cod end up as by-catch in the Norway lobster fishery off the coast of Denmark. View the full article

Click through to see the images. Cleaner wrasses service fish by picking off ectoparasites from their client's skin. Every once in a while, a cleaner wrasse will get overzealous with its cleaning service and take a nutritional bite out of their client's mucus layer (a behavior called "cheating"). To the client fish, this feels something like a sharp pin prick, so the client will often jolt/twitch if not swim away entirely. A study published in Current Biology discovered that fish will observe other fish being serviced by a cleaner wrasse in order to decide if they will employ the wrasse's service. Furthermore, the study concluded that cleaner wrasses understand their client's decision-making process and thus are on their best behavior when they have an audience. Scientists first removed the ectoparasites from five of ten Striped Bristletooth Tangs (Ctenochaetus striatus), then paired ten cleaner wrasses (Labroides dimidiatus) with the ten tangs, each pair housed in separate tanks. The pairs with ectoparasite-free tangs were all placed in tanks on one side, while the pairs with untreated tangs were placed on the other side. In a central tank between the two rows of pairs, the scientists placed Bridled Monocle Breams (Scolopsis bilineatus) behind one-way mirrors to serve as spectating bystanders. The study found that Breams consistently hovered in the direction of the untreated pair. Scientists conclude the bystanders favored the services of cleaner wrasses with untreated tangs because cleaner wrasses were less likely to 'cheat' with fish that had bountiful ectoparasites to feast on. Consequently, the clients being serviced were less likely to exhibit jolting responses. Simply put, the bystanders gravitated towards the cleaner wrasses whose clients jolted less. In another series of experiments, the scientists measured the rate of jolts of client fish depending on whether or not the cleaner wrasses had bystanders in visual sight. Untreated tangs were paired with cleaner wrasses, with half the pairs housed in tanks with Breams in plain sight. Client fish exhibited fewer jolts when they had a onlooker, telling researchers that cleaner wrasses knew to be on their best behavior when they had potential clients watching on. Cleaner wrasses understand the art of self-promotion! View the full article

Click through to see the images. Cleaner wrasses service fish by picking off ectoparasites from their client's skin. Every once in a while, a cleaner wrasse will get overzealous with its cleaning service and take a nutritional bite out of their client's mucus layer (a behavior called "cheating"). To the client fish, this feels something like a sharp pin prick, so the client will often jolt/twitch if not swim away entirely. Cheating often occurs when there are few ectoparasites on the client for the cleaner wrasse to feed on. A study published in Current Biology discovered that fish will observe other fish being serviced by a cleaner wrasse in order to decide if they will employ the wrasse's service. Furthermore, the study concluded that cleaner wrasses understand their client's decision-making process and thus are on their best behavior when they have an audience. Scientists first removed the ectoparasites from five of ten Striped Bristletooth Tang (Ctenochaetus striatus), then paired ten cleaner wrasses (Labroides dimidiatus) with the ten tangs, each pair housed in separate tanks. The pairs with ectoparasite-free tangs were all placed in tanks on one side, while the pairs with untreated tangs were placed on the other side. In a central tank between the two rows of pairs, the scientists placed Bridled Monocle Breams (Scolopsis bilineatus) behind one-way mirrors to serve as spectating bystanders. The study found that Breams consistently hovered in the direction of the untreated pair. Scientists conclude the bystanders favored the services of cleaner wrasses with untreated tangs because cleaner wrasses were less likely to 'cheat' with fish that had bountiful ectoparasites to feast on. Consequently, the clients being serviced were less likely to exhibit jolting responses. Simply put, the bystanders gravitated towards the cleaner wrasses whose clients jolted less. In another series of experiments, the scientists measured the rate of jolts of client fish depending on whether or not the cleaner wrasses had bystanders in visual sight. Untreated tangs were paired with cleaner wrasses, with half the pairs housed in tanks with Breams in plain sight. Client fish exhibited fewer jolts when they had a onlooker, telling researchers that cleaner wrasses knew to be on their best behavior when they had potential clients watching on. Cleaner wrasses understand the art of self-promotion! View the full article

A new skin test can determine the age of wild animals while they are still alive, providing information needed to control population explosions among nuisance animals, according to a new report. View the full article

Click through to see the images. View the full article

Click through to see the images. View the full article

Florida's corals dropped in numbers due to unseasonably cold weather conditions in 2010. The chilly January temperatures caused the most catastrophic loss of corals within the Florida Reef Tract, which spans 160 miles (260 kilometers) from Miami to the Dry Tortugas and is the only living barrier reef in the continental U.S. View the full article

For many years, fewer Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) have been caught by sport fishers in northern Spanish rivers. The reason is that fishing effort and global warming effects are increasingly reducing the number of salmon, scientists believe. View the full article

The phytoplankton bloom pictured in a new Envisat image stretches across the Barents Sea off the coast of mainland Europe’s most northern point, Cape Nordkinn. View the full article

The phytoplankton bloom pictured in a new Envisat image stretches across the Barents Sea off the coast of mainland Europe?s most northern point, Cape Nordkinn. View the full article

In the waters off the North Carolina coast, historically-significant World War II submarines and shipwrecks rest on the seafloor, a testament to a relatively unknown chapter in US history. According to a new report, the shipwrecks are not only important for their cultural value, but also as habitat for a wide diversity of fishes, invertebrates and algal species. Additionally, due to their unique location within an important area for biological productivity, the shipwrecks are potential sites for examining community change. View the full article

In the waters off the North Carolina coast, historically-significant World War II submarines and shipwrecks rest on the seafloor, a testament to a relatively unknown chapter in US history. According to a new report, the shipwrecks are not only important for their cultural value, but also as habitat for a wide diversity of fishes, invertebrates and algal species. Additionally, due to their unique location within an important area for biological productivity, the shipwrecks are potential sites for examining community change. View the full article

Click through to see the images. We recently had the opportunity to catch up with long-time hobbyist Tony Vargas about his new book entitled The Coral Reef Aquarium. There's been countless publications released about different aspects of the hobby, so we wanted to find out what made this new book special. We knew that it was focused around reef aquariums, but what else? To find out, we asked Tony himself. AA: Tony, we know that a lot of folks are excited about this book and it's been a long time in the making. What first inspired you to write a book? TV: I've been a hobbyist for many years, and though there were various books written about different aspects of the hobby, none of them focused directly on the fundamentals of setting up a reef aquarium from start to finish. I also realized that there were a lot of aquarists who could use some solid advice about everything involved in the process. AA: What exactly is the main focus of your book, The Coral Reef Aquarium, and what details does it provide? TV: The main idea of the book is to be a complete guide on how to plan, setup, execute and maintain a successful reef aquarium. To do this, I've documented a start-to-finish guide with five particular aquariums, the smallest being a 25 gallon nano and the largest being the 20,000 gallon public aquarium of Atlantis Marine World. I want our readers to know the fundamentals in keeping these tanks, and what to do in order to help the chances of success. AA: Your book discusses aquariums from various parts of the world; what can we expect to read about them? TV: Part of the book is entirely dedicated to some of the most successful aquariums from around the world. What I wanted to do was document them, explain them in great detail, and display pictures showing how amazing they all are. AA: In viewing/documenting so many aquariums from around the world, are there any that specifically stand out in your mind? TV: That's the beauty of this chapter. These aquariums have similarities, of course, but what's amazing is that they are all unique in one form or another. We originally intended on including 12 tanks, but the more we saw these aquariums, the more we had to include. It was actually very hard because we had so many submissions and had to eventually cap the list. They are all amazing and I'm very excited to share the details of each and every system with my readers. AA: How many chapters are included with the book, and what do they entail: TV: There are twelve chapters in total, and they include the following: Introduction Chapter 1: Factors & Considerations (Essential pre-planning and consideration prior to the setup) Chapter 2: The Decision Process (What kind and types of equipment to use, and why) Chapter 3: The Fundamentals (basic and easy-to-understand fundamentals about what makes a reef aquarium work) Chapter 4: Maintenance (regular maintenance; be it daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, and beyond) Chapter 5: Acclimation and Quarantine (practices and preventative measures used when obtaining new livestock) Chapter 6: 25 Gallon Nano (Documenting Tony's 25 gallon nano from start to finish) Chapter 7: 90 Gallon Reef (Documenting Tony's 90 gallon reef aquarium from start to finish) Chapter 8: 180 Gallon Reef (Documenting Mark Poletti's 180 gallon reef aquarium from start to finish) Chapter 9: 500 Gallon Reef (Documenting Sanjay Joshi's 500 gallon reef aquarium from start to finish) Chapter 10: 20,000 Gallon Reef (Documenting the public aquarium at Atlantis Marine World, managed by Joseph Yaiullo) Chapter 11: Reef Tanks from Around the World (documenting 45 of the most successful reef aquariums from around the world) AA: Wow, it sounds very detailed. What else can you say about these aquariums? TV: I can tell you that they all require a lot of time, energy, dedication and passion. These aquarists have gone through a lot of trials and tribulations, all of which I wanted to share with our readers, so that it will give them a chance to learn from the experience of others, especially those with aquariums as wonderful as these. AA: Being that you've been an aquarist for several decades, what similaries and differences to you see now that may have been different in the past twenty five years? TV: One major change that I've witnessed throughout the years is the type of equipment, especially lighting, being used over our aquariums. Additionally, the appearence of the livestock coloration has changed, making corals appear more vibrant. On the other hand, many of the major factors in keeping a coral reef aquarium have remained the same. Some of the most successful aquarists of 2011 have been practicing the same techniques that others were performing ten, even twenty years ago. AA: What do you hope to see for the future of our hobby? What aspects of it do you think are important in terms of the future? TV: I see the hobby becoming more and more popular in the years to come. I think it's also very important for us as Americans to be careful what we do in terms of limitations on the importation of live corals from other countries. It's essential for the economy of these places, and especially in some less-fourtunate areas, they depend on it. I also think that sustainablity is important; harvesting coral isn't necessarily a bad thing, but we need to be sure that we're doing such in moderation and at the same time making efforts to aquaculture the live corals. AA: Is there anything specific that you'd like to share with our readers about your book? TV: I wrote this book so that aquarium store associates and owners could literally hand it to a new hobbyist and tell them to read it entirely before making any decisions or purchases. I designed this book so that hobbyists could have an idea on what it takes to create a successful aquarium, and how to go about doing so. AA: Thank you, Tony! The Coral Reef Aquarium can now be purchased to reserve your copy in either of two versions: Special Edition: Includes a cover jacket, hand-signed by Tony Vargas in Gold Ink ($54.95) Limited Pre-Publication Edition: Hand-signed by Tony in a Silver Ink ($44.95) These copies are very limited and will no longer be avaliable once sold out. The book will become widely available in the next few months. Tony Vargas will be presenting at MACNA 2011 in Des Moines, Iowa in a few weeks about the world's most successful reef aquariums. We at Advanced Aquarist look forward to hearing his discussion, as well as reading the book. To find out more information and to purchase a limited edition copy of the book, please visit www.thecoralreefaquariumbook.com. View the full article

Click through to see the images. We recently had the opportunity to catch up with long-time hobbyist Tony Vargas about his new book entitled The Coral Reef Aquarium. There's been countless publications released about different aspects of the hobby, so we wanted to find out what made this new book special. We knew that it was focused around reef aquariums, but what else? To find out, we asked Tony himself. AA: Tony, we know that a lot of folks are excited about this book and it's been a long time in the making. What first inspired you to write a book? TV: I've been a hobbyist for many years, and though there were various books written about different aspects of the hobby, none of them focused directly on the fundamentals of setting up a reef aquarium from start to finish. I also realized that there were a lot of aquarists who could use some solid advice about everything involved in the process. AA: What exactly is the main focus of your book, The Coral Reef Aquarium, and what details does it provide? TV: The main idea of the book is to be a complete guide on how to plan, setup, execute and maintain a successful reef aquarium. To do this, I've documented a start-to-finish guide with five particular aquariums, the smallest being a 25 gallon nano and the largest being the 20,000 gallon public aquarium of Atlantis Marine World. I want our readers to know the fundamentals in keeping these tanks, and what to do in order to help the chances of success. AA: Your book discusses aquariums from various parts of the world; what can we expect to read about them? TV: Part of the book is entirely dedicated to some of the most successful aquariums from around the world. What I wanted to do was document them, explain them in great detail, and display pictures showing how amazing they all are. AA: In viewing/documenting so many aquariums from around the world, are there any that specifically stand out in your mind? TV: That's the beauty of this chapter. These aquariums have similarities, of course, but what's amazing is that they are all unique in one form or another. We originally intended on including 12 tanks, but the more we saw these aquariums, the more we had to include. It was actually very hard because we had so many submissions and had to eventually cap the list. They are all amazing and I'm very excited to share the details of each and every system with my readers. AA: How many chapters are included with the book, and what do they entail: TV: There are twelve chapters in total, and they include the following: Chapter 1: Factors & Considerations (Essential pre-planning and consideration prior to the setup) Chapter 2: The Decision Process (What kind and types of equipment to use, and why) Chapter 3: The Fundamentals (basic and easy-to-understand fundamentals about what makes a reef aquarium work) Chapter 4: Maintenance (regular maintenance; be it daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, and beyond) Chapter 5: Acclimation and Quarantine (practices and preventative measures used when obtaining new livestock) Chapter 6: 25 Gallon Nano (Documenting Tony's 25 gallon nano from start to finish) Chapter 7: 90 Gallon Reef (Documenting Tony's 90 gallon reef aquarium from start to finish) Chapter 8: 180 Gallon Reef (Documenting Mark Poletti's 180 gallon reef aquarium from start to finish) Chapter 9: 500 Gallon Reef (Documenting Sanjay Joshi's 500 gallon reef aquarium from start to finish) Chapter 10: 20,000 Gallon Reef (Documenting the public aquarium at Atlantis Marine World, managed by Joseph Yaiullo) Chapter 11: Reef Tanks from Around the World (documenting 45 of the most successful reef aquariums from around the world) AA: Wow, it sounds very detailed. What else can you say about these aquariums? TV: I can tell you that they all require a lot of time, energy, dedication and passion. These aquarists have gone through a lot of trials and tribulations, all of which I wanted to share with our readers, so that it will give them a chance to learn from the experience of others, especially those with aquariums as wonderful as these. AA: Being that you've been an aquarist for several decades, what similaries and differences to you see now that may have been different in the past twenty five years? TV: One major change that I've witnessed throughout the years is the type of equipment, especially lighting, being used over our aquariums. Additionally, the appearence of the livestock coloration has changed, making corals appear more vibrant. On the other hand, many of the major factors in keeping a coral reef aquarium have remained the same. Some of the most successful aquarists of 2011 have been practicing the same techniques that others were performing ten, even twenty years ago. AA: What do you hope to see for the future of our hobby? What aspects of it do you think are important in terms of the future? TV: I see the hobby becoming more and more popular in the years to come. I think it's also very important for us as Americans to be careful what we do in terms of limitations on the importation of live corals from other countries. It's essential for the economy of these places, and especially in some less-fourtunate areas, they depend on it. I also think that sustainablity is important; harvesting coral isn't necessarily a bad thing, but we need to be sure that we're doing such in moderation and at the same time making efforts to aquaculture the live corals. AA: Is there anything specific that you'd like to share with our readers about your book? TV: I wrote this book so that aquarium store associates and owners could literally hand it to a new hobbyist and tell them to read it entirely before making any decisions or purchases. I designed this book so that hobbyists could have an idea on what it takes to create a successful aquarium, and how to go about doing so. AA: Thank you, Tony! The Coral Reef Aquarium is now avaliable in a special pre-release edition of two versions: Special Edition: Includes a cover jacket, hand-signed by Tony Vargas in Gold Ink ($54.95) Limited Pre-Publication Edition: Hand-signed by Tony in a Silver Ink ($44.95) These copies are very limited and will no longer be avaliable once sold out. The book will become widely available in the next few months. Tony Vargas will be presenting at MACNA 2011 in Des Moines, Iowa in a few weeks about the world's most successful reef aquariums. We at Advanced Aquarist look forward to hearing his discussion, as well as reading the book. To find out more information and to purchase a limited edition copy of the book, please visit www.thecoralreefaquariumbook.com. View the full article

Click through to see the images. Richard Ross is no stranger to Advanced Aquarist readers. As our resident cephalopod expert, he's blogged many times for Advanced Aquarist as well as written articles for our magazine. His talk, given at Nerd Nite San Francisco (7/20/11), is educational, entertaining, and packed with incredible footage. You'll laugh. You'll cry. You'll be wooed by Rich's charm. And don't blame me if you learn something along the way. View the full article

Click through to see the images. According to MarineDepot.com Our staff receives a lot of questions about biopellets, zeovit, prodibio, etc. so we started a new section in our forum to cover these topics: Probiotics and Labile Organic Carbon Dosing. It is moderated by Murray Camp (About Murray). We are doing a giveway to bring awareness to the new forum. The winner of the giveaway will receive a Two Little Fishes NPX Bioplastics Reactor 150 with 200ml of NPX media. There is no purchase necessary to enter. U.S. residents 18 and over merely need to post something into the official giveaway thread to be eligible. On September 19, a potential winner will be chosen randomly and contacted with a private message (PM) on the forum. They potential winner will have 14 days to reply to claim your prize. Entires are limited to one per person. Coincidentally, Advanced Aquarist will be publishing an article by Murray Camp about Probiotics and Carbon Dosing in September's issue of our magazine. View the full article

U.S. Geological Survey Alaska Science Center researchers, in cooperation with the Native Village of Point Lay, will attempt to attach 35 satellite radio-tags to walruses on the northwestern Alaska coast in August as part of their ongoing study of how the Pacific walrus are responding to reduced sea ice conditions in late summer and fall. View the full article

Ah beng have various Juv Blue line angel as of today but condition not that perfect ..