Gatortailale

I sent membership Dir. a message about it. last time I tried to edit the database I made more work for Nikki. :(

Meeting this Saturday. Hope to see many of you there.

I'm told registration numbers are strong, and there still are some tickets available. A post on Facebook by one of the organizers said last day to sign up is May 20th. Learn more www.reefretreat.org/ What to expect: A welcoming event for reef aquarium lovers, including hobbyists, scholars, and experts. Attendees can enjoy cozy accommodations, meals, and all programs at a fair, all-inclusive price. The Two-day conference starts early Saturday morning, and ends Sunday at 6 pm. Attendees should arrive Friday afternoon or evening for registration and a social event. After the conference, an additional Sunday night stay with dinner is available for purchase. https://www.reefretreat.org

Reef Nutrition is sending some TDO ChromaBOOST packs & Tigger-pod bottles. We will put some in free door prize drawing, and raffle a few off. Thank you Reef Nutrition for your support!

Today we wanted to spotlight Champion Lighting & Supply and thank them for their support of the club. Champion is located in PA and usually 1-day UPS ground shipping zone to the DC/Mid-Atlantic area. Champion Lighting features their line of Blueline products. We know there are a lot of choices out there for equipment vendors to support your hobby needs. We hope you will consider Champion, or one of our other fantastic sponsors when you are in the market for equipment.

A little reminder to support our longtime sponsor Blue Ribbon Koi and Marine. Whether you are in the market for quality saltwater fish and corals for your aquarium, equipment, or looking for koi for your pond, BRK has it all. Make plans to visit their showroom soon and feed the koi in the holding ponds outside - great fun for the entire family. Indeed, spring is a great time to head on over to the store and see all the new koi they have in the sales ponds outside the shop, and you can bring the kids with you to feed them. Likewise, BRK was a big sponsor of the club's Holiday Party and donated over 80 coral frags to the event. Thank you BRK for your support!

FYI - Jason Fox Signature Corals will be on site selling their coral frags to attendees. We also expect the following vendors at the meeting Sponsors On Site, Selling Coral Candy Aquaculture: @Coral Candy Aquaculture Vendors On Site, Selling Jason Fox Signature Corals The Mushroom Man Blue Ribbon Koi Members On Site, Selling @gws3 @jhOU If you are interested in setting up a table at the meeting message me or one of the officers, or email to officers@wamas.org

WAMAS Platinum Sponsor Reef Nutrition is donating three gift cards to our February 1 Meeting: $100 Gift Certificate for Reef Nutrition products (with $40 bump-up for shipping) 50 Gift Certificate for Reef Nutrition products (with $40 bump-up for shipping). (2 chances to win!) Thanks Reef Nutrition for your continued support of the WAMAS Club.

Coral show tomorrow - be sure to stop by the WAMAS table and say hello. While you are in the area be sure to drop by our local fish store sponsors to make your trip to the area extra special.

Save the date, We are bringing in Keri as our speaker for the fall meeting. Keri has been and currently is doing a lot of amazing work with corals and hobby related things. WHEN: November 8, 2025 Time: 1:00 - 4:30 pm WHERE: Green Acres Center, 4401 Sideburn Rd., Fairfax, VA Speaker: Keri O'Neil - Director & Senior Scientist, Coral Conservation Program Special thanks to theses sponsors. Please support them & say thanks next time you shop with them. WAMAS Platinum Sponsors - Air, Water & Ice - Avast Marine - Blue Ribbon Koi - Capital Exotic Fish - Champion Lighting & Supply - ChemiPure (Boyd Enterprises) - Coral Candy Aquaculture - Exotic Reef Creations - Frank's Tanks - Puddle Aquatics - Reed Mariculture (Reef Nutrition) - Reef eScape - Supreme Reefs WAMAS Banner-Only Sponsors - Bulk Reef Supply - Cobalt Aquatics - Coral Magazine - Jellyfish Art - Maxspect - Two Little Fishies

Here's the vendor list, some local & many from far away.

Time: 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM (Speaker starts at 3:15 PM) Where: Green Acres Center, 4401 Sideburn Rd., Fairfax, VA WAMAS members get in free. Guests are $10 each (paid at the door). Join WAMAS at this link. Refreshments provided by WAMAS. Agenda: 2:00 Sign-in / socialize / frag sales 3:00 Club business 3:15 Speaker - Todd Gardner 4:15 Break 4:30 Raffle! Directions to the Green Acres Center: Green Acres Center is next to George Mason University in Fairfax, VA. Here's a map from Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/neGSWGJ2G8APuh5k8 Todd Gardner is a professor of Aquaculture at Carteret Community College in Morehead City, NC, and manages Biota’s NC facility where he raises Gramma dejongi and other aquatic specimens. His life and career have both been shaped by his passion for marine life and he has written numerous scientific and popular articles about his research and experiences collecting, keeping, and culturing marine organisms. Todd’s professional background includes work on a National Geographic documentary, commercial aquaculture at C-quest Hatchery in Puerto Rico, and an 11-year term at the Long Island Aquarium where he spent much of his time developing techniques for rearing marine fish larvae. To date, he has raised more than 50 species. In 2013 Todd received the prestigious Aquarist of the Year Award from the Marine Aquarium Society of North America (MASNA). In his spare time, Todd dives with his son Finn, photographs marine life, runs marathons, and plays in a blues band. Sponsors On Site, Selling Coral Candy Aquaculture:@Coral Candy Aquaculture Blue Ribbon Koi Vendors On Site, Selling Jason Fox Signature Corals The Mushroom Man Capital Exotic Fish Combat Corals Members On Site, Selling @gws3 @jhOU @wildcrazyjoker81 Raffle Prizes: HYDROS Minnow Controller ($249 value). 1 chance to win! $50 Gift Certificate for Reef Nutrition products (with $40 bump-up for shipping). (2 chances to win!) $100 Gift Certificate for Reef Nutrition products (with $40 bump-up for shipping) Sicce XStream SDC pump. $249 value. 1 chance to win! Supreme Reefs - $70 Mystery Coral Pack. Pickup at store. $100 Gift Certificate (off dry goods) by Exotic Reef Creations. 2 chances to win! $50 Gift Certificate for Champion Lighting & Supply. 1 chances to win! DI color-changing resin media by Air, Water, & Ice. 1 chance to win! Chemi-blue nano (15-pack) by Boyd Enterprises. 2 chances to win! various coral frags Special thanks to theses sponsors. Please support them & say thanks next time you shop with them. WAMAS Platinum Sponsors - Air, Water & Ice - Avast Marine - Blue Ribbon Koi - Champion Lighting & Supply - ChemiPure (Boyd Enterprises) - Coral Candy Aquaculture - Exotic Reef Creations - Frank's Tanks - Reed Mariculture (Reef Nutrition) - Reef eScape - Supreme Reefs WAMAS Banner-Only Sponsors - Bulk Reef Supply - Cobalt Aquatics - Coral Magazine - Jellyfish Art - Maxspect - Two Little Fishies

FYI - we are planning to bring in Salem to speak to the club. Time: 1:30 PM - 5:00 PM (Speaker starts at 3:00 PM) Where: North Bethesda Middle School, 8935 Bradmoor Drive, Bethesda, MD 20817 WAMAS members get in free. Guests are $10 each (paid at the door). Join WAMAS at this link. Agenda: 1:30 Sign-in / socialize / frag sales 2:00 Workshop - TBD 2:50 Club business 3:00 Speaker - Salem Clemens 4:00 Break 4:15 Raffle! Directions to North Bethesda Middle School: - NOTE: The school is just inside the north edge of the beltway near Old Georgetown Road. Here's a map from Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/bKz79Y9HmQF2 Salem Clemens is an aquarist that's been obsessed with all aspects of the hobby fresh and salt for a decade. He worked for around five years in the retail side of the industry and recently graduated with a degree in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology and a minor in Chemistry. During his time in college he studied coral pathology working closely with his universities Biology and Chemistry programs where he gained experience in microbiology, biochemistry and analytical techniques such as GC-MS. Salem has a passion for rare and oddball corals, fish and inverts, experimenting with new methods and attempting to solve problems in the trade. He hopes to utilize an objective lens to help elute the best information and practices in the industry. Salem Shows Off His Reef Tanks! Reef Recap w/Salem Clemens Special thanks to theses sponsors. Please support them & say thanks next time you shop with them. WAMAS Platinum Sponsors - Air, Water & Ice - Avast Marine - Blue Ribbon Koi - Capital Exotic Fish - Champion Lighting & Supply - ChemiPure (Boyd Enterprises) - Coral Candy Aquaculture - Exotic Reef Creations - Frank's Tanks - Puddle Aquatics - Reed Mariculture (Reef Nutrition) - Reef eScape - Supreme Reefs WAMAS Banner-Only Sponsors - Bulk Reef Supply - Cobalt Aquatics - Coral Magazine - Jellyfish Art - Maxspect - Two Little Fishies

I've been informed I can pass this on to club members today: Hello, Thank you for filling out our contact form for Reef Retreat 2025! I'm excited to let you know that the ticket link for the event is now open for you via the link below. Please note that it will be available to the public in a few days, and we have a limited number of tickets available. I encourage you to register as soon as possible to secure your spot. You’ll need to create a general public account before purchasing your package. In addition to event tickets, additional nights, T-shirts and mugs are also available for purchase, as well as a Sunset Sailing Cruise for Sunday evening. Purchase Tickets Here If you have any questions, please reply to this email or contact us at info@reefretreat.org. Hope to see you in June!!

Hey all, Our Friend and fellow reefer Sanjay Joshi sent this to me. I'm posting to share the event date and the date for the information webinar. https://www.reefretreat.org/ - Interested - visit the official website and click on the Orange Webinar Link. Join the Reef Retreat Team on Feb 8, 7pm Central for the informational Webinar! Below is the date for the planned Reef Retreat Conference Reef Retreat 2025 June 6-8 Roger Williams University 1 Old Ferry Road Bristol, RI 02809 A welcoming event for reef aquarium lovers, including hobbyists, scholars, and experts. Attendees can enjoy cozy accommodations, meals, and all programs at a fair, all-inclusive price. The Two-day conference starts early Saturday morning, and ends Sunday at 6 pm. Attendees should arrive Friday afternoon or evening for registration and a social event. After the conference, an additional Sunday night stay with dinner is available for purchase.

Update on talk topic: Talk: “𝐃𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲: 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐍𝐢𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 & 𝐏𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧” If you’ve ever struggled with high nitrates and phosphates in your saltwater tank, this talk is for you! I’ll be diving into practical, science-backed methods to reduce excess nutrients while maintaining coral health, focusing on three key approaches: 𝐁𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐅𝐢𝐥𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: How Refugiums and Algae Turf Scrubbers naturally export excess nutrients. 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥: The role of GFO, carbon dosing, and resins in managing nutrient levels. 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝𝐬: Utilizing both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria to process and remove waste effectively. Water chemistry doesn’t have to be a mystery! I’ll be breaking it all down into actionable strategies that reef keepers can implement at home.

Meeting Sponsor Bulk Reef Supply has donated a 75 GPD 4 stage Value Plus RODI System to the raffle. $249 value. 1 chance to win! Learn more about this item here: https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/4-stage-75gpd-plus-ro-di-system-bulk-reef-supply.html

Hello members, our Sponsor Capital Exotic Fish is hosting a frag-night at their store in DC. When: February 22, 2025 Time: 6:00 - 9:00 pm Where: Capital Exotic Fish 3404 Idaho Ave., NW Washington, DC 20016 Attendees can bring corals in to frag up (cut up), socialize with fellow members, and a great chance to even trade some frags with other hobbyists. Please plan to visit their showroom for this special event. Member discounts; special event sales on livestock. A great way to meet fellow hobbyists and support one of our sponsoring local fish stores. https://www.capitalexoticfish.com/ Learn more / ask questions with the Capital Exotic Fish staff on their forum post here:

WAMAS Platinum Sponsor Avast Marine Works is donating a Plank Automatic Feeder to the Winter meeting raffle. Thank you Avast Marine Works for the many years of supporting the WAMAS Club - It's great to have a local manufacturer of quality reefing equipment in our area.

Reefing USA is returning to the DC area this spring for a coral show with several out-of-state coral vendors including Jason Fox. Date: March 23, 2025 (Sunday) Time: 11:00 - 3:00 pm Where: Tysons Corner Marriott 8028 Leesburg Pike Tysons, VA 22182 $5 Admission Door prize drawing @ 1:00 pm (free prizes)

FYI - meeting location and time updated. WAMAS Platinum Sponsor Reef Nutrition is donating three gift cards to our February 1 Meeting: $100 Gift Certificate for Reef Nutrition products (with $40 bump-up for shipping) 50 Gift Certificate for Reef Nutrition products (with $40 bump-up for shipping). (2 chances to win!) Thanks Reef Nutrition for your continued support of the WAMAS Club.

Thanks again to our great local vendor sponsors that helped make the party awesome! Few more video posts from Facebook: BRK: https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1BE7PpkVKo/ Coral Candy: https://www.facebook.com/share/r/14JLb35bKo/ BRK: https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1DBTKpJWTu/

Thanks to all the members and their family who came out to the Anniversary/Holiday party. Over 125 vendor provided coral frags, and another 100 or more member provided frags were gifted out to attendees. Everyone went home with several nice coral frags. In addition the potluck food everyone brought was fantastic. Thank you to all who brought a dish to share. Finally, thank you members, and a special thanks to the vendors, who helped make event awesome by providing coral frags: Blue Ribbon Koi & Marine Coral Candy Aquaculture Reef eScape and Top Shelf Aquatics & WAMAS members Few pics of attendees, food spread, vendor & member frags, & door prizes.

Thanks to these sponsors for supplying coral frags or gift cards for the event: - First 50 guests get a $10 Reef eScape livestock gift card (upgradable to $20 by signing up for their newsletter) - Blue Ribbon Koi - Coral Candy Aquaculture - Reef eScape - Top Shelf Aquatics

Event: WAMAS Winter Meeting (annual) Saturday February 1, 2025 Time: 1:30 PM - 5:00 PM (Speaker starts at 3:00 PM) Where: North Bethesda Middle School, 8935 Bradmoor Drive, Bethesda, MD 20817 WAMAS members get in free. Guests are $5 each (paid at the door). Join WAMAS at this link. Agenda: 1:30 Sign-in / socialize / frag sales 2:45 Club business 3:00 Speaker - Tamara Marshall 4:00 Break 4:15 Raffle! Directions to North Bethesda Middle School: - NOTE: The school is just inside the north edge of the beltway near Old Georgetown Road. Here's a map from Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/bKz79Y9HmQF2 Talk: “𝐃𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲: 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐍𝐢𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 & 𝐏𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧” If you’ve ever struggled with high nitrates and phosphates in your saltwater tank, this talk is for you! I’ll be diving into practical, science-backed methods to reduce excess nutrients while maintaining coral health, focusing on three key approaches: 𝐁𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐅𝐢𝐥𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: How Refugiums and Algae Turf Scrubbers naturally export excess nutrients. 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥: The role of GFO, carbon dosing, and resins in managing nutrient levels. 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝𝐬: Utilizing both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria to process and remove waste effectively. Water chemistry doesn’t have to be a mystery! I’ll be breaking it all down into actionable strategies that reef keepers can implement at home. Tamara Marshall Bio: Tamara is a marine scientist and saltwater enthusiast with 24 years of experience in the hobby. She has worked at prestigious institutions like the Hubbs SeaWorld Research Institute and The Dallas World Aquarium and has been a featured speaker at major events such as MBI and MACNA. Tamara holds a degree in Fish Health and Aquaculture from the University of Florida, as well as an MBA and MS in Innovation and Entrepreneurship from the University of Texas at Dallas. Her journey in the saltwater industry includes owning both a wholesale coral business and a retail saltwater fish store. As the founder of Manta Systems, Tamara combines her deep knowledge and passion to educate and inspire the saltwater community. Sponsors On Site, Selling Coral Candy Aquaculture: @Coral Candy Aquaculture Vendors On Site, Selling Pacific East Aquaculture Members On Site, Selling @gws3 kris wade Raffle Prizes: $50 Gift Certificate for Reef Nutrition products (with $40 bump-up for shipping). (2 chances to win!) $100 Gift Certificate for Reef Nutrition products (with $40 bump-up for shipping) The Plank Autofeeder from Avast Marine + Avast food pack. $239 value. 1 chance to win! Bulk Reef Supply - 75 GPD 4 stage Value Plus RODI System. $249 value. 1 chance to win! . 1 chance to win! Supreme Reefs - $150 Mystery Coral Pack. 2 chances to win! Pickup at store. Two Little Fishies Kalk & Carbon. 1 chance to win! 1 chance to win! Two Little Fishies - feeder ring & misc. products. Chemi-Pure Vita Chem 1 chance to win! WAMAS Platinum Sponsors - Air, Water & Ice - Avast Marine - Blue Ribbon Koi - Capital Exotic Fish - Champion Lighting & Supply - ChemiPure (Boyd Enterprises) - Coral Candy Aquaculture - Exotic Reef Creations - Frank's Tanks - Puddle Aquatics - Reed Mariculture (Reef Nutrition) - Reef eScape - Supreme Reefs WAMAS Banner-Only Sponsors - Bulk Reef Supply - Cobalt Aquatics - Coral Magazine - Jellyfish Art - Maxspect - Two Little Fishies