Harlequinmania

Click through to see the images. EcoSmart Live Comprehensive Update (BETA) Announcement EcoSmart Live is a forward thinking, easy to use, and powerful command center to control and interface with your EcoTech Marine products. Reef aquarium technology has been accelerating at a blinding rate over the last few years. ESL ensures that your EcoTech Marine products, no matter when you purchased them, are capable of keeping up with the pack. The VorTech aquarium pump was introduced to the world as the most cutting-edge aquarium pump ever designed. With paradigm shifting magnetically coupled torque transfer technology, EcoTech Marine revolutionized the industry by literally thinking outside of the box. Whether you bought your VorTech the first year it came out, or just last week, we have always been committed to the premise of backward compatibility for all of our products. In line with this long term commitment to our customers, the latest update to ESL gives new life to the pump we all know and love. Welcome to the future of ESL in the form of this comprehensive update. Included in this release are new features that you will appreciate. Features that you will use. And features that will position your EcoTech Marine aquarium products with capabilities beyond anything else available. All new web design provides quick and convenient access to your Radions, VorTechs, and device settings. VorTech control! Import pumps, upgrade them, schedule modes, adjust settings, and demo your VorTech pumps to dial in and wow friends, family and house guests from the website. Creating gyres has never been easier by pairing master and slave pumps visually in ESL. Create, preview, and save waves for your VorTechs. Call various saved waves with the click of a button. Initiate VorTech Feed Mode with one click. Fine tuning control of VorTech feed mode, night mode, and battery backup mode speeds and durations. Manage your Radions and VorTechs in your various aquariums using the redesigned, simpler and more elegant Device Manager. Create aquariums and apply realistic positions for your VorTechs and Radions to define a representation of your actual reef tank. But there is even more. Import a Dropcam® streaming webcam (https://www.dropcam.com/) into your ESL profile and now you can view your aquarium from anywhere in the world at any time. Want to show your friends your Yellow Tang surfing the waves provided by your VorTech? Just take out your iPhone, open our ESL App, demo a VorTech wave and watch the fun from your seat at dinner. This major ESL update will be released today as a beta with limited slots available. If you don’t get in to the beta program initially, don’t worry. The slots available will be increasing regularly so keep checking and rest assured that once it is ready for prime time we will open it to everyone. To get started using the most comprehensive release of ESL to date, simply log into www.ecosmartlive.com and check the “Participate in Beta Releases” checkbox from Settings > Manage Account. That’s it! There’s never a bad time to start using EcoTech Marine products: as we’ve proven over the last ten years, our commitment to backward compatibility means that we reward our customers for their commitment to our brand. But this is all still just the beginning. In the future, EcoTech Marine will be introducing even more capacity and accessories for this absolutely limitless web-based aquarium platform. Welcome to the future of Reefkeeping. Welcome to ESL. View the full article

Click through to see the images. Visit Dmitry's Aquaticlog.com aquarium profile page to learn more or if you simply want to compliment him on his reef aquarium. " height="383" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="680"> "> "> View the full article

Click through to see the images. Vermetid snails form tubes that resemble those of tube worms, but they are actually stationary gastropods whose shells are cemented to hard substrates. Of greater significance for this article and for reefkeepers is vermetids' other most notable characteristic: They cast out mucus nets from the ends of their open tube shells. The mucus acts like a sticky trawling net trapping plankton and detritus that passes by. Researchers studied six coral reef sites with varying degrees of vermetid coverage ranging from 0% (gastropod-free) to 100% (completely covered in mucus net). They discovered herbivorous fishes were up to 450% less likely to graze algae in the presence of vermetid mucus nets. Furthermore, when they removed mucus nets from select sites, herbivorous foraging activity doubled, confirming the mucus nets were the grazing deterrent. As if it wasn't enough that vermetids hurt corals by impeding their skeletal growth and overall survival, they also aid corals' algal competitors. There are no proven predators for vermetid so reefkeepers should try to manually eradicate them when spotted. While vermetid snails don't always cause immediately observable harm to reef tanks (especially in small populations), it's not a good idea to ignore them because they can multiply like the plague and become a big problem. Reefkeepers report hit-and-miss success with biological control using mithrax crabs, hermit crabs, and coris, halichoeres, and six-line wrasses. Sure-fire methods to kill vermetid include covering the ends of their tube openings with superglue gel, reef-safe epoxy, and injecting caustic chemicals such as HCl (muriatic acid) and NaOH (lye), the latter being a better option around calcareous live rock. Journal Reference: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00338-014-1181-y View the full article

Aquamarine indo shipment just landed this morning, sps, LPS and fishes Sent from my 2013023 using Tapatalk

Or you can try the seaweed sheet found at Daiso.

Click through to see the images. Amblyopsis hoosieri (named after the Indiana Hoosiers) is the only other cave fish in its genus, and it really ratchets up the weirdness factor. While it lacks pigments and eyes like many cave fish, A.hoosieri retains its rhodopsin gene, the gene responsible for the perception of light. The presence of this "visual" gene in an eyeless fish living in pitch darkness would suggest that some of A.hoosieri's DNA has yet to catch up with the rest of its morphological evolution. What's more, this cave fish broods its eggs in its gills ... an extremely unusual breeding habit but also a behavior that makes practical sense when coping with the extreme cave environment where visual tending of eggs is impossible. To facilitate the transfer of eggs to its gills, this fish may have evolved its strangest feature yet: an anus located right behind its head far away from the usual spot next to the anal fin! We have all sorts of low-brow comments we'd love to make (but we'll restrain ourselves). Suffice it to say, Amblyopsis hoosieri is a certifiable oddball. Journal Reference: http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.412.7245 via Monga Bay News View the full article

Look for madpetz, they have all the ro/Di accessories available Sent from my 2013023 using Tapatalk

Lck still have few queen angel, King angel, flame hawk, yellow tang, kole tang, Percula clown, Picasso, black white and platinum clown fish. Sent from my 2013023 using Tapatalk

Click through to see the images. The survival of the Caribbean Elkhorn Coral, Acropora palmata, is threatened by increasing seawater temperatures, infectious disease outbreaks, and overfishing. Research by a team of Penn State scientists now shows that the spatial scale over which the coral host and its algal symbiont exchange genes is not well matched, raising questions about the ability of this symbiosis to adapt to a rapidly changing climate change. Image: Iliana B. Baums, Penn State University From Penn State University Scientists at Penn State study endangered coral species' relationship with algae Genetics reveal that threatened reef corals and their symbiotic algae live together but evolve independently By Krista Weidner New research reveals that Caribbean corals and the algae that inhabit them form a remarkably stable relationship -- new knowledge that can serve as an important tool in preserving and restoring vital reef-building corals. A scientific paper describing these new findings by a team of marine biologists at Penn State was published as a cover article in Molecular Ecology on June 10. Coral reefs are important for protecting shorelines, providing seafood, and generating millions of dollars in recreation revenue each year, but rising water temperatures due to climate change are stressing many corals to the point of extinction. The Penn State researchers -- Iliana Baums and Todd LaJeunesse, both associate professors of biology, and research technologist Meghann Durante -- conducted a large-scale genetic study of Caribbean elkhorn coral, Acropora palmata. Once the primary reef-building coral species throughout the Caribbean, A. palmata now is listed as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. The biologists worked on the sub-species level using high-resolution genetic markers that allowed them to examine individual coral colonies and their symbiotic partnerships with single-celled algae. "These big, orange, branching corals are very important for the ecosystem," Baums explained. "They act like trees, building the three-dimensional structure of the reef, and their survival depends on a symbiotic partnership with single-celled algae. The algae live within the corals' cells -- it's a very intimate relationship. We wanted to know more about that symbiosis at the sub-species level," she said. The ability of corals to thrive in nutrient-poor, tropical waters is due to their intimaterelationship with single-celled dinoflagellate algae in the genus Symbiodinium, shown inthis microscopic image. The Caribbean elkhorn coral, Acropora palmata, cannot survivewithout its dinoflagellate partner and new research at Penn State University shows thata particular coral colony forms a long-lasting partnership with just one clonal strain of Symbiodinium fitti. Image: Todd C. LaJeunesse, Penn State University "When we looked at individual coral colonies we found that usually one host colony harbors only one strain of algae consisting of genetically identical cells," Baums said. "This wasn't clear before -- we didn't know whether there might be just one or many strains of that algal species in one coral colony." This new insight into the coral-algae partnership has implications for studying how corals adapt to changes in water temperature. When water temperatures increase just a few degrees, this partnership breaks down and the coral can die. "It's getting hot," Baums said, "and because this relationship is symbiotic, each partner needs to respond to the changing temperature. They have to evolve together if they're going to survive." " height="383" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="680"> "> "> The video shows stands of the once-dominant but now-endangered Caribbean elkhorn coral, Acropora palmata, in Curacao. Researchers are sampling the corals to determine the relationship between the coral host and its algal partner using high-resolution genetic tools. This video contains no sound. To learn whether corals might adapt by switching to different symbiont partners over time, the researchers sampled coral colonies throughout the Caribbean over the course of several years. They found that, in most cases, the original partnership formed between a host coral and a symbiont strain remains intact. "It doesn't look as if this species of coral will respond to climate change by switching partners," Baums said. "They seem to be together for life. So the colonies acquiring a different strain of algae as a way of adapting to changing climate conditions doesn't seem likely." The researchers wanted to learn more about gene flow among different populations of A. palmata corals, which would shed light on how much opportunity corals might have to switch symbionts. They examined the genetic patterns for coral hosts and algal symbionts across their Caribbean range in more than 700 colonies and found that the patterns of genetic exchange are not well matched. Symbionts exchange genes over a much smaller area, "so if there would be a beneficial mutation in the symbiont it would stay in a much more local area compared to the coral host," Baums explained. "That means the evolutionary process between host and symbiont is more inefficient than we would hope for the sake of the corals' survival," she said. "Still, the good news is that some of those partnerships work very well as they are -- some corals may survive climate change better than others. We are just beginning to explore how species of corals and symbionts vary in their response to climate change, and also how individual combinations within species might perform differently," Baums said. Upon settlement, young elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) as shown in this image must acquire their algal partner (Symbiodinium fitti) from the environment. The algal partner is a single-celled dinoflagellate. The partnership between the coral host and just one clonal strain of S. fitti persists over the lifetime of the colony. The performance of both partners will dictate how this colony responds to future environmental stress. Image: Iliana B. Baums, Penn State University The large-scale study and its focus on the sub-species level is expected to reveal valuable information about elkhorn coral's ability to adapt to climate change. "Iliana had amassed the largest, most comprehensive sample collection of any species of reef coral, and that gives us the opportunity to examine the symbionts of this coral in extreme genetic detail across a single colony, among colonies from an entire stand, and from reef locations around the Greater Caribbean," said LaJeunesse, whose laboratory examines the ecology and biogeography of these algal symbionts found in reef coral communities throughout the world. "We didn't understand this level of diversity before because we did not have the genetic tools to assess these symbionts at the individual strain level. We can see that not only does this particular coral associate with a single species of symbiont throughout its distribution, but also that the symbiont population in each colony appears to be highly clonal and stable," said LaJeunesse. These data offer critical insight into the evolutionary and ecological dynamics between host and symbiont. This knowledge improves the researchers' overall understanding of reef coral biology and can help them to generate accurate predictions for how these organisms will respond to future climate change, LaJeunesse explained. These predictions are especially critical for the Caribbean, which lacks the diversity of coral species found in the Pacific Ocean and has suffered greater loss of coral colonies than the Pacific has. "We're at the point where we have very few really healthy reefs in the Caribbean," Baums said, "and reef restoration is a priority. Because A. palmata is an endangered species, we want to conserve as much as we can. We can take coral samples and try to preserve as many combinations of host and symbiont as possible. The more diversity we have, the more likely it is that one of the coral-algal partnerships harbors beneficial mutations that allow it to survive changes. This is one tool we can use to decide which corals to bring into nurseries, to grow, and to replant back on the reef to restore healthy coral populations." The research was funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, Division of Ocean Sciences (OCE 0928764). View the full article

Skimz and Deltec FR! Sent from my 2013023 using Tapatalk

Click through to see the images. I've never been on a cruise before and to be honest I had never really thought I ever would, not for some years yet anyway - massive floating hotels with an 'all you can eat' theme - not really me to be honest. Then the opportunity to travel half way round the world to Fiji arose and when I looked at the brochure I realized how wrong I was, there is a thing called a 'boutique cruise' you see and I had my eyes opened to a whole new way of experiencing some of the best landscapes, beeches, reefs, islands and coral reef conservation projects I'd ever seen. Superb snorkeling in the Marine Protected Area off Matamanoa Resort. I think it was the name that hooked me in: "Blue Lagoon Cruises, It's where they filmed Blue Lagoon and Castaway" said Ellen the company's rep who asked me to join the boat to take photos. "Really," I said, "The actual island where Tom Hanks went mad with a basketball called Wilson?" She nodded and showed me pictures of a twin-hulled motor yacht, smiling Fijians and a beach with the perfect amount of palm trees. We chatted about the marine life, my camera and what I could do for them and to cut to the chase, I was going on a cruise, me… who didn't like cruises! I'm so glad I did though, for someone fascinated by the oceans this was an absolute trip of a lifetime. Yep, it's gorgeous. After a long, but very comfortable flight with Air New Zealand from London and an equally long, but mercifully nighttime (though very comfortable) flight from LA, with Fiji Airways, I arrived at Nadi airport four hours and a whole day before I'd set off - I think (the International Date Line still confuses me). Nadi is a fascinating place and I'd suggest a walk round the market to soak up some local color: fresh fruit and vegetables, fish and the mildly narcotic kava root are piled high for all to see and if you ask permission the locals will pose for a photo, especially if you buy a papaya or two. Nadi (pronounced 'Nandi') market is a must see attraction. To get to the Yasawa and Mamanuca archipelago the best way is to head to the Marina at Denarau to the west of Nadi. This small harbor is well-served by the fleet of twin-hulled, fast boats that connect the far-flung islands. Denarau was once all mangrove swamp and I quickly had my camera out photographing one of my favorite environments, though I've often thought mangroves are best enjoyed when you have a really nice shower in your hotel room to return to after clambering around in the mud. Untouched forest near Denarau. It looks very wild and remote, but there's a Plant Rock half a mile away. The Yasawas are a now inactive volcanic chain of islands, forest-covered and considered some of the most remote by Fijian standards. Set to the east of the main barrier reef complex, they are surrounded by relatively shallow waters and are every bit the paradise islands they appear. My home for five days was a ship called Fiji Princess, twin-hulled and with a shallow draft she is small by cruise ship standards. She can maneuver her sixty guests into shallow anchorages and within a few scores of feet of some of the best beeches in the South Pacific. I was clearly going to love cruising, despite my original prejudices. Fiji Princess, our home for the week at the first mooring. That first evening after locating my cabin I swam in the warm waters. I checked out my camera housing and took it down with me for a quick dip (it's always good to know it has survived the baggage handlers). Much of the shallows was sea grass and I hunted in vain for seahorses before coming across a drop off and my first Fijian coral reef. Fiji Princess at anchor for a snorkeling trip. I've been obsessed by the ocean since I was a small boy. I was bitten by the 'salty' bug when I fell in love with rummaging around in rock pools off the coast of my native Yorkshire. I knew I was always going to learn to dive at some point, once I'd worked out how to do that oft unpleasant business of working for a living. For me, diving and the wild oceans have always been a source of inspiration and as such have informed, guided and sometimes constrained my interest in captive reefs and seeing fish, corals and inverts in the wild to me is a no-brainer. If you can: enjoy the real thing. So with this in mind I duck-dived to see what I could see. The first thing that struck me was the colors, some of the best blue Acropora I've ever seen. Whole colonies were delicate sky blue, others white with piercingly blue growth tips, all set amongst a huge amount of other, and mainly tabulate growths of Acro, with massive Porites colonies in and amongst. Pastel colors predominated and some sadly that had a look of bleaching. I checked my dive computer to see it read 32 degrees Celsius - this was quite warm. For me the shallows have always been fascinating, so I was quite happy bumbling around soaking it all in. Fish life was plentiful and at this depth was dominated by corallivorous butterfly fish and grazing tangs, such as orange shoulder and blue lined. I found a cleaning station and watched as a small group of Blue-lined, (fully sized by the look of them), came past for a quick fettle. They eyed me suspiciously and I got the impression I'd upset their routine, but I could be reading too much into it. On the surface I could see the crew setting up for a meal so I headed back. Seeing large tangs in single species shoals is one of the joys of seeing the 'real' reef. Convicts in beautiful blue acro. The sun was still hot as I sat on the beach with a rumbling stomach waiting for the meal that was cooked in the sand! Fish and chicken was wrapped in banana leaves and cooked from the heat of stones warmed in a fire. Whilst waiting, I got chatting to a chap called Brian from Brisbane "you're gonna love it mate," He told me with his fishing rod in hand. "I've been before and its sooo casual… oh look there's the Captain in water." He said as he pointed - a smiling grey-haired chap was splashing around with the rest of the crew - excellent, just my kind of laid back outfit! The next day would be a proper diving day that the Fiji Princess crew had organized for me. The Dive Center offered everything from beginner's 'Try Dives' (which is a great way to venture into the water for the uninitiated) - to diving with Bull Sharks! The Bull Sharks were excellent and I saw six in total but that's a different story. I'd set myself the goal of photographing the native clownfish Amphiprion barberi, I'd fitted a wide angle lens to my housing and was going to shoot the fish in their anemone hosts - easy I reckoned. We dropped in with our smiling guides and I'd explained I wanted to see the local clownfish. "Ah, Fiji Nemo," Niko the guide had said on the boat. I cringed a little and nodded, "Yes, Nemo." The water was very churned up, some of the worst tropical water visibility I'd seen since monsoon season in the Maldives. I was going to have trouble getting some great wide angle coral reef shots. Niko caught my eye and waved me over to a 'nem, the clowns were Clarkii ones, not the single striped, redder fish I was after. I still managed to convey with gestures that I wanted my buddy to pose with them, though the wide angle shot does make them look larger than they ought. Still time to get the barberi I thought as I snapped away. The reefs on this site were a little sparser, fewer large corals and not the usual amount of sand and rubble you associate with a reef compared to the reef I'd snorkeled earlier. I suspect the regular cyclones that every few years hit these islands will scour the shallow reefs somewhat. The lack of good visibility was annoying me, but I realized the upshot of lots of particulates in the water was plenty of food for 'filter feeders' so decided to focus on the gorgonians, sea whips and feather stars that were very plentiful, perhaps this area was always a little 'bitty'? Looking brown and almost black underwater my powerful flash guns illuminated the 'true' colors of the various gorgonians clustered on slightly raised areas. There's a beautiful blue Christmas tree worm at the center of this image. A Golden Damsel looks good against the red gorgonian. At least one creature was benefitting from the particulates in the water. I always love spotting fish species that I've seen in aquaria, and this trip was no exception with Moorish Idol being plentiful and very healthy (not something that can be guaranteed in captivity I'm sad to say). I was also really pleased to see Lemon Peel Angels in the wild for the first time. These beautiful fish have always been one of my favorites and look superb at depth with a very blue tinge to the light. I watched a pair for quite some time as they picked over growths of algae and a few coral polyps as they swam past. Interestingly, the specimens that I saw were more associated with rubble zones than areas that are rich with coral growth. I'm not sure if this is simply coincidental though. One of several Lemon Peels and a Bicolor below. That evening I spent time with Dan, a marine biologist from South Carolina who was working on a volunteer visa at a nearby island. He'd come on board to talk to the guests about the conservation work that he was leading in the Yasawa Islands and to tell the guests about the issues facing the coral reefs. He noted the benefit that tourism can bring in terms of resort islands closing their waters to fishing to encourage snorkeling and diving amongst the relatively rich tourists, but told us that the downsides of this that many local 'shell markets' still feature species like Triton's Trumpet and various Tridacnids. Both are covered by CITES and will be confiscated if found, but most tourists are unaware. Most are also unaware of the threat of Crown of Thorns Starfish and the fact that Triton's Trumpets are direct predators on these troublesome echinoderms. Dan and I chatted about this and he told me they were farming clams to keep the crown of thorns in check. A clam farm! I thought… I had to see this. Blue lagoon Cruises have clearly understood that seeing the underwater world is a key part of their offer to travelers, so there are regular dive trips available, along with the daily snorkeling sessions of course. I quickly booked for the next day and agreed with Dan that we could have a full dive on the reef like any other visitor, but then take in the clam farm as well. Dan's work is funded by a project called Vinaka Fiji ('Vinaka' means thank you), which receives its funding from the Yasawas Islands Trust, which was set up to say 'vinaka' to the locals and to invest some of the profits from Blue Lagoon Cruises' (and associated businesses) into the local villages, the local people and the environment and I was pleased to know that my presence in Fiji was benefitting the region and its people, who were all incredibly welcoming I might add. The next day we were picked up from Fiji Princess and a short ride on a bouncy wee boat took us to the dive center on Barefoot Island, where Dan was based. The visibility here looked much better and as we descended into the warm shallow water at a nearby reef - a series of coral canyons filled with white sand - I realized I could see so much more coral. Some was looking a little bleached, after the very warm summer, but much was in fine fettle, with superb pastel colors and lovely growth. It was clearly a while since a storm had ripped much of the tabulate corals to shreds. Superb colors. This Turbinarea was astoundingly massive, the entire coral was around ten meters across. In the UK we have houses smaller than this behemoth. The coral has given its name to the area and is now called 'Cabbage Reef'. For me though, it was all window dressing and I just wanted to see the 'farm', which appeared to be set in an old boat! At around ten meters, filled with rubble, was a wrecked old wooden boat and sat amongst the coral boulders were some of the biggest Tridacnids I'd ever seen. The clam boat. Keeping the octopus out. The clams are kept free of algae. Close by the boat was the cage where smaller specimens were kept. I asked Dan later why they were kept in a cage. It turned out that clams not 'grown' into the reef are much loved by the local 'naughty' octopus (his words not mine). Back on shore Dan told me they were keen to increase the number of clams as they were important in filtering out the free=swimming larval stage of the crown of thorns stars. I have to say I'd never heard this, but it sounds very plausible. The clams need to be cleaned every few days by volunteers with tooth brushes as their shells are not grazed by herbivorous fishes excluded by the cage and can be quickly overgrown by algae and other organisms. A recent project the tam have undertaken is a collection of coral frags that will form the basis of 'mother' colonies that will be used to create new reefs and increase the diversity of existing ones after crown of thorns out breaks. If I' was several decades younger I'd be volunteering to help on this project. A newly created group of potential 'mother colonies'. The next day I enjoyed the beach, watching the shore-based hermit crabs and looking along the drift line before taking yet another snorkel over an algae dominated shallow fringing reef - still no seahorses! Over the course of the four days I was aboard Fiji Princes I think I snorkeled twice a day and enjoyed five dives. The itinerary though isn't just about being underwater - though for me it was a big part of it. Guests can swim in a freshwater canyon lake inside a limestone island, visit several villages and eat with the villagers, as well as visit a local high school to meet some of the best behaved seniors I've ever met. On land you can visit the markets of Nadi, other villages and even an orchid garden that was once owned by Raymond Burr (yes, he of Perry Mason fame), yet I must bring this article back to the reef and the ocean. Fresh fish is caught daily. I adored being on the cruise, the food was stunning, very fresh (and frequently caught) and there was so much to do that it's hard to get it all down. My itinerary was for four nights, and I wish it could have been longer. My final days in Fiji were spent on land at the Matamanoa Island Resort. I could talk about the resort's stunning restaurant and idyllic setting, but I should come back to the ocean I guess. I'd add though that the resort shares the land with a very rare seabird (a type of shearwater), that live in burrows and make a slightly eerie, yet strangely calming call on a night. Wedge-Tail Shearwater or Puffinus Pacificus. Many native birds in Fiji are threatened by land use change and introduced species such as rats and mongoose. Land-living hermit crabs arte highly entertaining. Luxury villas at Matamanoa. More great snorkeling off the beach at Matamanoa. Like many resorts in the region, Matamanoa's waters have been declared as a marine protected areas by the local chief (only Fijians can own land in Fiji, so may resorts are rented from the local villages). I've often felt that if a healthy reef earns more tourist dollars (any dollars for that matter), than a damaged or overfished reef then a small victory has been won, and indeed the snorkeling here was superb, with large shoals of tangs, small haremic groups of bicolor angels, plenty of mixed butterfly fish and even a small black tip reef shark, but still no barberi clowns. One of my favorite butterflyfish. It was at this point that I decided to ditch the clowns and my desire to shoot them - because I'd seen plenty of orange spotted file fish in the shallow water - I'd pretend instead that they were my goal all along and I'd be happy once more. Now, I'm a little plumper (and consequently more buoyant), than I would ideally be and snorkeling with a large professional dive camera is not easy, especially in two meters of water over delicate Acropora. Instead of slowly drifting after my prey I tended to flounder around a lot, getting sun-burnt and very frustrated - however I finally managed to get a few decent shots - the first I've ever taken of this magnificent fish in the wild. It's hard to explain just how much I enjoyed this trip and just how much I recommend it to anyone with even a passing interest in the underwater world, though I'm trying I guess. Fact File Getting there I flew from London Heathrow to LA with Air New Zealand (www.airnewzealand.co.uk/) and then to Nadi with Fiji Airways (www.fijiairways.com/). Prices range from US$400 to US$2,500. Cruise Blue Lagoon Cruises (www.bluelagooncruises.com/). I did the four day Wanderer Cruise: www.bluelagooncruises.com/cruise-itineraries/wanderer-cruise/ other itineraries are available. 4 nights from 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2015 FJ$2,660(Hibiscus Deck) and FJ$3,400 (Orchid Decks) per person for a double/twin cabin. Transfers are also available from Mamanuca Island Resorts to Fiji Princess. (www.bluelagooncruises.com/cruise-itineraries/#departures) Hotels Matamanoa Island Resort (www.matamanoa.com/) Volunteering The Yasawa Trust Foundation was established in 2010 and created the 'Vinaka Fiji' Volunteer Programs in Fiji's remote Yasawa Islands. The aim of these programs is to improve the provision of basic needs and amenities missing from village life in the Yasawas. Vinaka Fiji invites you to share the magic of Fiji whilst helping the people of the remote villages of the Yasawa Islands. Their volunteer programs cover key areas of need, from helping children learn, to planting crops, installing water tanks or working in baby clam nurseries. Program length is flexible from 1 to 26 weeks, and the range of opportunities to help means there is something for everyone. If a holiday in Fiji, combined with the opportunity to become more involved in the island life of the Yasawas, to genuinely 'give back' and lend a helping hand, and to make a difference through your travel sounds like a good idea to you, then Vinaka Fiji Volunteering will be a highlight of your travel experiences. (www.vinakafiji.org.fj/) View the full article

Maybe wait till the new distributor bring in the stock locally.

Click through to see the images. Inspired by reddit/r/Aquariums Quick-Start Guide Make an acrylic tank. Turn it upside down. Attach to pond with bottom of the tank below the water line. Vacuum out the air. Water fills the box. Enjoy confusing, entertaining, and empowering your pond fish. " height="383" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="680"> "> "> " height="383" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="680"> "> "> View the full article

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Try checking with aquarium artists Sent from my 2013023 using Tapatalk

Click through to see the images. Left: 32 electrically charged "pagodas" with over 1,000 transplanted corals form the shape of a manta ray from aerial view. Right: The “Submerged Memorial" is a coral garden in the shape of the number 9 in Holiver’s memory, an ocean lover. Functional Living Works of Art On desolate tropical seafloors devoid of any hard structure, you first need to build a solid foundation on which to transplant corals onto. These artificial reef structures often look mundane; Plop some rocks or concrete on the seafloor and call it a day. Coral Guardian and Oceanscape show us that this needn't be the case. Oceanscape is an enterprise whose primary mission is to design, fabricate, and install artificial reef structures which not only serve as functional foundations for reef rehabilitation but also beautiful reefscapes in and of themselves. How cool is it that a company like this exists!? Advanced Aquarist recently published an article about Coral Guardian transplanting 1,000 corals for the Manta Reef Restoration Project at Gili Island that was made possible with funding from various governmental and private entities (including aquarium manufacturer and Advanced Aquarist sponsor Red Sea). The article highlighted the mission and build process of the project, but it failed to highlight the artistry of what Coral Guardian and Oceanscape are doing there. Using rock attached to a steel frame, the creative team was able to design artificial reefs unlike any we've seen. "[The] steel skeleton is [...] connected to a solar electrical source which will accelerate the calcium production by electrolyse, both protecting the steel from corrosion and a necessity to coral growth." Science plus art equals magnificent reef restoration! Here is a video of these impressive artificial reefs. If you think they look beautiful now, imagine what they'll look like in five years fully blanketed in reef life! " height="383" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="680"> "> "> View the full article

Look like the Lps are all very happy

Click through to see the images. The Madagascar Anemonefish/Clownfish (Amphiprion latifasciatus) is rarely seen in the aquarium trade. These fish are limited to specific regions in the Western Indian Ocean off the coast of Madagascar, and have one of the smallest distributions of all anemonefish. Along with other difficult to obtain anemonefish species, such as: Amphiprion omanesis, A. chrysogaster, A. chagonesis, A. fuscocaudatus and A. mccullochi, their small home range and collection restrictions make them scarce in the aquarium trade. In 2009 the first pairs collected for the hobby were sent to Japan. Since 2010 at least three pairs (if not more) have been collected and distributed in the USA. This unique fish is often mistaken with Amphiprion allardi (in part due to a similar distribution), but A. latifasciatus has a forked yellow tail and much wider middle bar. Captive Breeding So far, no captive bred specimens have been available. However, there is a concerted effort among breeders and collectors to change that. This pair was collected in late 2013 / early 2014 off the North Coast of Madagascar. They spawned on May 31, 2014 and is perhaps the first to spawn in the United States. Sadly, the male ate their first batch within a few days. This is a common behavior among new anemonefish parents. Hopefully egg survival will increase in subsequent spawns. Updates to come! View the full article

Click through to see the images. Feed your coral. Feed it! Remember the days when reefkeepers never thought about feeding photosynthetic corals? The research showed that Pocillopora fed the most brine shrimp yielded not only the best growth and survival rates but also the best return on investment (since brine shrimp is extremely cheap). Essentially, no matter how much the scientists fed the Pocillopora, the gluttonous coral craved even more food and grew at a non-linear, almost cubic rate (e.g. the second brine made the coral grow faster than the first, ad naseum). Sure, at some point the rate of return would have reversed, but this research shows the voracious of corals starting at their infancy. Read the full open-access PLOS ONE research paper. Abstract Size-dependant mortality influences the recolonization success of juvenile corals transplanted for reef restoration and assisting juvenile corals attain a refuge size would thus improve post-transplantation survivorship. To explore colony size augmentation strategies, recruits of the scleractinian coral Pocillopora damicornis were fed with live Artemia salina nauplii twice a week for 24 weeks in an ex situ coral nursery. Fed recruits grew significantly faster than unfed ones, with corals in the 3600, 1800, 600 and 0 (control) nauplii/L groups exhibiting volumetric growth rates of 10.65±1.46, 4.69±0.9, 3.64±0.55 and 1.18±0.37 mm3/week, respectively. Corals supplied with the highest density of nauplii increased their ecological volume by more than 74 times their initial size, achieving a mean final volume of 248.38±33.44 mm3. The benefits of feeding were apparent even after transplantation to the reef. The corals in the 3600, 1800, 600 and 0 nauplii/L groups grew to final sizes of 4875±260 mm3, 2036±627 mm3, 1066±70 mm3 and 512±116 mm3, respectively. The fed corals had significantly higher survival rates than the unfed ones after transplantation (63%, 59%, 56% and 38% for the 3600, 1800, 600 and 0 nauplii/L treatments respectively). Additionally, cost-effectiveness analysis revealed that the costs per unit volumetric growth were drastically reduced with increasing feed densities. Corals fed with the highest density of nauplii were the most cost-effective (US$0.02/mm3), and were more than 12 times cheaper than the controls. This study demonstrated that nutrition enhancement can augment coral growth and post-transplantation survival, and is a biologically and economically viable option that can be used to supplement existing coral mariculture procedures and enhance reef restoration outcomes. View the full article

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Click through to see the images. TGFB-Beta is a molecule in zooxanthellate corals that science believes may play a role in allowing the important symbiotic relationship between coral and algae to happen. In essence, it is believed this molecule tells the coral to "tolerate" the life-sustaining zooxanthellae instead of treating them like some foreign invader, which gets "attacked" by the host animals' immune system. When temperatures rise, some researchers theorize that the heat may confuse the corals who no longer recognize zooxanthellae as allies anymore. Bleaching ensues. However, not much is actually known about TGFB-Beta's actual role and mechanism within corals. And that's why Coral Guardian and Symbiotech want to research the subject. The primary goal is to better understand TGFB-Beta and the causes of coral bleaching. In the long run, the biotech firm Symbiotech hopes that helping to preserve coral reefs - which are a vast depository of untapped chemicals - can also help them develop drugs to combat cancer, HIV, Alzheimers, and other human diseases. Visit the project's KissKissBankBank crowd-source funding webpage to learn more or to make a contribution. To better understand some of what Coral Guardian does, here is an article we wrote about Coral Guardian's recent reef restoration efforts. View the full article

Click through to see the images. D-D's North American master distributor provided Advanced Aquarist with the following statement and Q&A in response to the recent Giesemann announcement of their new PowerChrome bulbs: D-D T5 tubes – A history of the product In 2002 D-D Aquarium Solutions were the very first in the world to develop a 5 point spectrum, blended phosphor T5 tube specifically for marine and reef aquariums. Before that time there were only white and blue tubes available to the hobbyist and colour blending relied on mixing these two distinct tubes together in various ratios. This first special spectra was called ‘Aquablue’ with a 60:40 white:blue blend of phosphors and a 5 point spectrum which made it a global revolution in T5 fluorescent lighting for the hobby. Most T5 tubes at that time only had a 3 point spectrum as they were not developed for use in the aquarium industry. In late 2005 an agreement was reached for D-D to supply our unique spectrum tubes to Giesemann Lighting in Germany who acknowledged that we had developed the best and widest range of T5 tubes available to them. An agreement was made to allow Giesemann to add their name with ours on the tubes and the D-D/Giesemann Powerchrome T5 tube was born. Over the years D-D have continually improved the tubes as technology advanced and additional new colours have been introduced to the range until today D-D have one of the widest choices of T5 tubes of any company in the hobby with seven distinct spectra producing the highest possible output and meeting the latest standards for protection of the environment. The success of the D-D network to distribute these joint branded T5 tubes globally has had the side effect of locking Giesemann out of being able to offer the tubes themselves in many major markets, including America. Giesemann have now made a decision to go their own way and have started over the last few months to develop their own brand range of tubes without access to the exclusive spectra that belong to D-D. In the short term D-D will continue supply our tubes in the existing joint branded packaging that people know and trust. There will no doubt be some confusion for the hobbyist whilst the spin-doctors do their work but be assured that the D-D tubes will continue to be available in all existing worldwide markets and will always be at the forefront of the latest technical developments. In conclusion, we can create hype by describing our tubes as being “exclusive, incorporating new advances in Tri and Penta-phosphor blending to improve high output performance which increases the life span of the bulbs, producing better coloration and greater spectral stability”, which by the way they are, and have been “specifically developed for use in all dimmable units” which was a standard that we set way back in 2002. Alternatively we could simply suggest that you ask one of the many thousands of aquarists who have used and continue to use our tubes on their aquariums and let them tell you. For full information on the history of our T5 tubes please follow this link: http://www.theaquariumsolution.com/d-d-t5-tubes-–-history-product D-D T5 tube announcement Q&A Q1 – I have read that there will be a new T5 tube introduced by Giesemann, I am confused, does this mean that the existing T5 tubes that I have successfully used on my tank for many years will be no longer available? A – No, the D-D tube that people know as the D-D / Giesemann Powerchrome will continue to be available for all existing and future markets through the same D-D distribution networks that they are currently supplied through. Q2 – Are these the same bulbs? A – The D-D joint branded T5 bulbs, which were first introduced in 2002 as the first blended phosphor, 5-point spectrum tubes in the hobby have spectra that are unique and exclusive to the D-D brand and by agreement cannot be duplicated. Q3 – Are the Giesemann own brand bulbs new and therefore better? A – The D-D tube has always been at the leading edge of T5 development. Our tubes incorporate the very latest in phosphor technology for output, lifespan and colour stability and also meet the latest in environmental standards. The tubes have been continually improved for over 12 years, but more importantly have a proven track record over that time on tens of thousands of aquariums. Q4 – If they are not the same bulbs then why does Giesemann plan to launch a new brand? A - Agreements set out when Giesemann added their name to our existing D-D tube range in 2005 have prevented them from distributing directly in certain countries, most notably the U.S. market. Giesemann has decided to generate revenue by changing this agreement through the introduction of a different product line. The success of this move will for them will depend on the quality and spectral output of the new bulbs and how the hobby, especially those who are unaware that it is in fact a different product, accepts them. Q5 – What is new in development for the future? A –Improvements and new spectra are continually being developed to enhance the comprehensive seven colour range such as the latest lagoon blue tube, a stunning turquoise blue that simulates the colour of shallow water over clean white sand. View the full article

Wow wow wow... Very " Good " profit , opps i mean price .

Click through to see the images. It’s not just aquarium hobbyists that find the behaviors of fish fascinating. The vast diversity of social systems and mating strategies within teleost fish has long inspired scientific research. Fish exhibit more variation in social systems and mating strategies than any other vertebrate group [1]; from polygyny (having many mates), to monogamy (having one mate), to sex changers with dominant males, and sex changers with dominant females, as well as an extensive array of parental care strategies. Many fishes have developed highly tuned social perceptions specific to each dynamic system. The social behaviors of fish have been studied as alternative model behavioral systems for decades. So why study fish? The highly complex social structures are easily manipulated. In several of these systems, social context gives precise signals that engender changes in physiology, reproduction, and behavior. The very tractable endpoints of these socially induced behaviors (i.e. sex change, behavioral shifts, and coloration changes) are easily measured and therefore provide excellent data. Fish are also excellent aquarium inhabitants, showing natural behaviors unrestricted by captivity; along with short generation times and high reproductive capacity, fish make excellent model systems in studying behavior. Science has also shown us that much of the underlying neuroendocrine mechanisms that facilitate fundamental behaviors such as aggression, mating, reproduction, and parental care, are highly conserved across vertebrates. In other words, the neurons, peptides, hormones, and signaling pathways which regulate many of these behaviors are homologous, having a shared ancestry across evolutionary time [2]. In Freshwater Fish Perhaps the most studied species is the freshwater cichlid, Astatotilapia burtoni, common in many aquariums, but also well known for its contribution to our understanding of how social circumstances shape the brain and behavior. The burtoni cichlid has a polygynous mating system, where dominant males have access to a territory and several females. Dominant males are brightly colored, highly aggressive, and have many physiological differences from subordinate males [3]. Subordinates males are drab in color and do not hold territories. They are almost indistinguishable from females and are lacking reprodu­ctive capabilities. Dominant male Astatotilapia burtoni showing characteristic bright coloration and black eye bar. Photos by Karen Maruska. Subordinate male Astatotilapia burtoni, note the lack of an eye bar and drab coloration. These males can switch back and forth between morphs depending on social circumstances. What is so fascinating about this system is the phenotypic plasticity among dominant and subordinate males. Dominant and subordinate males switch back and forth depending on the social circumstances. Within minutes of removing a dominant male from a territory, a subordinate male will rise in rank. Over a short time, changes in the brain occur, colors will change, gonads enlarge, hormone levels differ, and reproductive capabilities will develop [4]. However, there are costs to being dominant, due to their conspicuous coloration dominant males are under much higher predation risk. More time and energy is spent defending territories, while less effort is used feeding. Under stressful social circumstances, dominant individuals will be suppressed by rising subordinates, and move back down the hierarchy, losing their bright coloration, and undergoing a variety of hormonal and behavioral changes. These remarkable morphological transitions are based on the interpretation of complex social cues from conspecifics within the social system. In Marine Fish Unlike freshwater species, in many marine species, shifts in social status are often associated with sex change; one of the most dramatic physiological transitions in the animal kingdom. Like the dominant and subordinate changes that occur in A. burtoni, similar social complexities regulate changes of the social hierarchy in many saltwater fish, but accompanying these changes in social position are changes in sexual morphology. Among vertebrates, only mammals and birds display universal genetically controlled sex predetermined at the time of fertilization. After gonads have developed, they influence the morphology and physiology of the brain and body (i.e. masculinization and feminization). In many marine fish, the process is reversed. Social cues interpreted by the brain then signal to the gonads to differentiate as male or female during development [5]. This photo shows the incredible color change that occurs between Initial phase males (above), and terminal phase males (below) of the Bluehead wrasse. The most studied of the sex changing species within the scientific literature are the Bluehead wrasse and Blue-banded goby. The Bluehead wrasse is a protogynous hermaphrodite, meaning that they start out as females, and then, depending on social context can change sex into a male later on in life. The Bluehead wrasse, regardless of sex, displays either one of two color types: initial phase (IP), and terminal phase (TP). Females are always in the IP coloration, while males can either display IP, or TP coloration [6]. These phases are consistent with terminology that describes many wrasses in the aquarium hobby (you’ve probably noticed a higher price tag when you see ‘TP’ following a listing). Sex change in this species occurs quite rapidly, within minutes of TP male removal behavior patterns of rising subordinates shift, within a day coloration begins to change, and in under 10 days individuals previously spawning as females can produce sperm, and reproduce as males [7]. There is an allure of keeping many in individuals of one species in a tank, for example, having several anthias (another protogynous species) makes its much more likely to see natural behavioral interactions between males and females than having just one alone. In flasher wrasses, the ‘flash’ from terminal phase males occurs almost exclusively in the presence of conspecific females. Another interesting system is the Blue-banded goby, or Catalina goby as it is often referred in the hobby. This species is a polygynous bidirectional hermaphrodite; populations consist of pure females, pure males, and simultaneous hermaphrodites biased toward both sexes [8]. Here, males ‘rule’ a harem of females; when the dominant male is removed, a female will change sex to take its place. If another male subordinates a dominant male, the dominant individual is also able to revert its sex back to female. In this species both protogyny (sex change from female to male), and protandry (sex change from female to male) can be studied, and these transitions have been well detailed in the laboratory. Without color changes or obvious visual size differences, the length to width ratio of the genital papilla determines sexual phenotype, with males having a ratio > 1.6 and females around 1. In laboratory controlled all male groups, one dominant male will emerge. All other males will revert to female, and fertilized eggs can appear within 16 days. In all female groups, the opposite occurs, a dominant female will change sex into male, while all other subordinate individuals will remain female [9]. Although the end product of changes in behavior, coloration, gonads, and ultimately sex are understood, the underlying biology that facilitates this process is not. How social signals are processed in the brain, and how those neural networks then signal through the various physiological systems ultimately leading to complete sex change has been an intriguing subject of study. An interesting contrast to these polygynous groups with dominant individuals being male is perhaps the most popular of all aquarium fish: the monogamous clownfish. Clownfish are unique in their life histories as they are obligate symbionts with anemones. This peculiar relationship leaves them spatially restricted. As poor swimmers, and lacking any predatory defenses, leaving after establishing themselves on an anemone, or colony of anemones (depending on the anemone species), would be a poor survival decision. Unlike wrasses, where mates may be more available, clownfish have developed a monogamous mating system. One dominant female presides over a territory while paired with a subordinate male. In monogamous bonds the pair produces a greater number of gametes if the larger individual is female, and in most organisms, especially fish, larger individuals are dominant [10]. While other clownfish may also inhabit the anemone in the natural environment, these individuals, like subordinated male cichlids and wrasses, have reduced gonadal structures and are non-reproductive. Here, sex change is not as expeditious as in the wrasse, or Blue-banded goby, but has been recorded to occur within 45 days in the wild [11]. While no obvious color changes occur, drastic behavioral, endocrine, and size changes transpire. This species is also an interesting system due in part to that fact that gonads consisting of predominantly testicular tissue transition to ovarian tissue, and these gonadal transitions predict opposite changes in androgen levels, as dominant more aggressive individuals are female [12]. Stained ambisexual gonad of a juvenile clownfish (sp. A. ocellaris) These contrasting social systems: the male dominant sex changing Bluehead wrasse, the female dominant sex changing clownfish, the bidirectional Blue-banded goby, and the plastic male phenotypes of the burtoni cichlid are useful compliments to one another. Using these different systems researchers are able to dissociate physiological pathways that may be involved in maleness vs. dominance, as well as untangling the underpinning mechanisms in sex change from male to female vs. sex change from female to male. Fish have been an important group in understanding the neurobiology of social behaviors. Many of the basic behaviors that have inspired research in psychology, neuroscience, and animal behavior are displayed across fish. Along with these behavioral displays, the beautiful coloration and charismatic qualities of fish make them fun to keep and study alike. References: Frisch, A., Sex-change and gonadal steroids in sequentially-hermaphroditic teleost fish. Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries, 2004. 14(4): p. 481-499. O'Connell, L.A. and H.A. Hofmann, Evolution of a vertebrate social decision-making network. Science, 2012. 336(6085): p. 1154-1157. Neumeister, H., et al., Social and ecological regulation of a decision-making circuit. J Neurophysiol, 2010. 104(6): p. 3180-8. O'Connell, L.A., et al., Neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying sensory integration of social signals. J Neuroendocrinol, 2013. 25(7): p. 644-54. Elofsson, U., S. Winberg, and R.C. Francis, Number of preoptic GnRH-immunoreactive cells correlates with sexual phase in a protandrously hermaphroditic fish, the dusky anemonefish (Amphiprion melanopus). Journal of Comparative Physiology A, 1997. 181(5): p. 484-492. Marsh, K.E., et al., Aromatase immunoreactivity in the bluehead wrasse brain, Thalassoma bifasciatum: Immunolocalization and co-regionalization with arginine vasotocin and tyrosine hydroxylase. Brain Research, 2006. 1126(1): p. 91-101. Warner, R.R. and S.E. Swearer, Social control of sex change in the bluehead wrasse, Thalassoma bifasciatum (Pisces: Labridae). The Biological Bulletin, 1991. 181(2): p. 199-204. Mary, C.S., Sex allocation in a simultaneous hermaphrodite, the blue-banded goby (Lythrypnus dalli): the effects of body size and behavioral gender and the consequences for reproduction. Behavioral Ecology, 1994. 25(2): p. 301-314. Rodgers, E., R. Earley, and M. Grober, Social status determines sexual phenotype in the bi-directional sex changing bluebanded goby Lythrypnus dalli. Journal of Fish Biology, 2007. 70(6): p. 1660-1668. Avise, J. and J. Mank, Evolutionary perspectives on hermaphroditism in fishes. Sexual Development, 2009. 3(2-3): p. 152-163. Godwin, J.R. and P. Thomas, Sex Change and Steroid Profiles in the Protandrous Anemonefish Amphiprion melanopus (Pomacentridae, Teleostei). General and Comparative Endocrinology, 1993. 91(2): p. 144-157. Godwin, J., Behavioural aspects of protandrous sex change in the anemonefish, Amphiprion melanopus, and endocrine correlates. Animal Behaviour, 1994. 48(3): p. 551-567. View the full article