Hipporider's micro-reef

[Sharan Guna]

Hi guys,

So i decided to start this thread to share a bad news as well as some good news. So first, the bad news. As some of you may know, i was keeping seahorses but the challenge was too great for me and my little ponies soon succumbed to a bacterial infection and withered away. How devastating. I am still pretty sad but i knowni did everything i could to keep them happy and healthy. And it wasn't. Anyway, long story short, they died and i decided to quit. But my friends encouraged me to start over to i decided to convert my tank into a reef tank.

So, this thread will now document thr progress of my little micro-reef and i have many interesting and unique things to share. I have already found many unique attributes about my reef.

My approach- i am trying to go with the natural approach here. No skimmer, no fancy equipment, just frequent water changes. I dont dose anything but may do so in the future.

Equipment-

1. Ios 1.5 feet cube

2.overhead filter

3. An old maxspect g2 that is half spoilt. I cant adjust anything. Just on, off. Ahahahah.

4....nothing. thats it!.

I will be posting many many pictures because im obsessed. So pls stay tuned. Lastly, i do welcome all constructive criticism and comments and of course, compliments so please feel free to add as you wish.

Cheers folks!

[Sharan Guna]

okay, so my first proper post.

Like i said,i discover many new things in my reef everyday. And i wish to share these things here. \

The first thing i wish to share is the Basket Seastar that i discovered in my liverock. Do note that i did not cure my liverock prior to the addition. I discovered many valuable life in these rocks and i decided it worth the risks. I also think that the sustainability of such life in my tank is evidence of my good decision to do away with a skimmer that would otherwise strip my system of food for these creatures.

Anyway, i will post a video of this seastar below. although the entire body of the seastar is not visible, you can see its feeding are grabbing particles which it then folds and directs to its mouth. Obviously, my seastar is very much smaller than the usually giant basket stars. I have posted a comparison video of a much bigger star from the internet. They exhibit similar arm movements.

So, this is the bigger one,

And this is mine,

the unfurling arm that extends towards the end has just delivered food to its mouth.

[Sharan Guna]

and this is a full tank shot of my micro reef!

as you can see there is nothing amazing inside. However, it s the lttle things inside that really intrigue me.

[Admiraltian]

Your Liverock pretty clean & purple. Will look nicer if u could stock up more nano fishes & corals.

[Sharan Guna]

Your Liverock pretty clean & purple. Will look nicer if u could stock up more nano fishes & corals.

Hi!!! Thank you for the compliments. Im in the midst of collecting nice frags for this tank. Slowly slowly hhahahaha

[Bunster]

Welcome to the club bro! Nice basket star you have there

[Sharan Guna]

Welcome to the club bro! Nice basket star you have there

Thanks for the warm welcome Bunster!

[Sharan Guna]

Hi guys,

so i decided to do a small update, nothing major. Just updating to track the progress of my tank. Anyway, i haven't really added anything since a few weeks ago. And i'm just watching everything grow slowly and spread slowly. Anyway, i wanted to show you guys this little piece of purple sponge that came with my liverock. Didn't grow much though.

On another note, i am pretty curious about this little thing i found in my tank. I really need an ID on this so if you have any idea please let me know

Here are some of the pictures of my sponge and the mystery thingy.

[Sharan Guna]

hi guys,

on a side note, i wish to share something that i have observed but cannot confirm as a fact. So, much of what im writing here is just my hypothesis. Once again, someone can help me confirm or correct my conception of this.

Anyway, the crux of the matter to be discussed is actually the ways in which the torch coral spawns or rather reproduces. I have seen videos on the internet on how the torch coral spawns with little spores being released from the tips of the torch coral. However, i have observed something very different yet spectacular with my torch which is the asexual reproduction of torch corals.

While i was shifting some corals in my friend's tank last year, i dropped one of his torches against the liverock. Later, i noticed that one of the tips had been torn of and was lodged nicely on the liverock. I decided not to remove it. I noticed in the following days that the florescent property of the tip had not left as i had expected. I had expected the tip to just dissolve away without a body. And what happened in the following months left me gaping in shock. That little tip grew grew onto the rock and slowly, a whole new torch emerged from that 1 tip! I didnt believe that this really happened.

Fastforward to 2015 and to my tank, i have found myself repeating this 'experiment' in my own tank. AND TO MY SURPRISE!!!! i am noticing history repeating itself. As i was setting up my new tank earlier, i once again managed to get a tip lodged on a rock. I left it there and BAM! it began to germinate. The green dot that you see on the second picture grew a white centre around the green dot. And a new tip that dropped on a rock today. The third pic is the new tip.I also am going to show u guys the mother colony. This will be interesting to track as well so im gonna keep you guys updated!

[Sharan Guna]

hi guys,

so i have since added many things to my tank but among these are a beautiful purple seafan with brilliant blue tips. It was abit injured in one of the tips but it recever so much in three days. i have posted a before and after picture. And i dont even feed it anything at all. My tank does not run a skimmer so i believe the dirt in the tank feeds it hahaha.

My pictures cant come out straight. i tried rotating it!!!

[Zhi Long Oh]

Huh bro, no skimmer corals can survive ah?

[Sharan Guna]

Yeap. They seem to be more than surviving. They are thriving. My sps is like abit here and there but everything else is amazing. Just look at that seafan.

[Zhi Long Oh]

U're the man bro. Lol share ur secret? Haha

[Sharan Guna]

no secret la bro. i just put carbon and use normal OH filter..... and the flow in my tank quite strong also so not much dead zone.

[ASHWIN]

Nice setup bro great vid

[Sharan Guna]

Nice setup bro great vid

thanks bro. Its quite a humble setup. Hopefully it will flourish in time to come

[Davian Pepper]

Im extremely jealous. Where is ur house i wanna go steal ur tank now.

[Sharan Guna]

Im extremely jealous. Where is ur house i wanna go steal ur tank now.

Bro anytime! I keep the door open for you! AHHAHAH joking. Thanks for the compliments bro. Very average la my tank. Our fellow reefer's tanks are much more awesome!

[Sharan Guna]

hi guys here is a picture of my octo and torch coral!

[Davian Pepper]

Bro anytime! I keep the door open for you! AHHAHAH joking. Thanks for the compliments bro. Very average la my tank. Our fellow reefer's tanks are much more awesome!

Put the coral laying on ur glass, wont scratch?

[Sharan Guna]

Put the coral laying on ur glass, wont scratch?

ummmm its very near but not touching bro. It looks like its touching inthe photo but i checked hahahahaha

[Davian Pepper]

ummmm its very near but not touching bro. It looks like its touching inthe photo but i checked hahahahaha

I always tried not to let rocks touch the tank but i always hand itchy like to rearrange tank time to time. Bad habit

[Sharan Guna]

I always tried not to let rocks touch the tank but i always hand itchy like to rearrange tank time to time. Bad habit

i also la. But according to my wise mother, its not good to keep touching because according to her, if people keep touching you you like it? no right? so dont touch the tank alot! ahahahahhahahah

i see some truth to what she say la. Like abit stressful if keep touching also la ahhaha

[ASHWIN]

i also la. But according to my wise mother, its not good to keep touching because according to her, if people keep touching you you like it? no right? so dont touch the tank alot! ahahahahhahahah

i see some truth to what she say la. Like abit stressful if keep touching also la ahhaha

lol

[Davian Pepper]

i also la. But according to my wise mother, its not good to keep touching because according to her, if people keep touching you you like it? no right? so dont touch the tank alot! ahahahahhahahah

i see some truth to what she say la. Like abit stressful if keep touching also la ahhaha

Bro side track abit.

I treat my tank like my gf. Like how ppl treat car like wife. Like this i like my gf touch me all over mah.

Haha

But hor sometimes really very bad habit cant help leh. Even dun touch the rock, sometimes i staring at the tank, find the equipment abit out of place by few mm, i will go adjust. See like small fonger print then i will wipe and wipe