Salty Rambler

Hilary Jaffe's latest YouTube video for SaltwaterAquarium.com has a few visual references to the WAMAS community Facebook page at 4:10 and 4:42. The topic of the video is money saving tips for saltwater aquariums, and I can definitely agree that the being a member of the WAMAS community has not only made this hobby more enjoyable, but also more financially feasible, thanks to our generous members and sponsors. Hilary Jaffe was the guest speaker at our Winter 2023 meeting. SaltwaterAquarium.com is a WAMAS Platinum Sponsor.

Interesting study on reef sounds encouraging coral to settle: news story on reef sounds study

These are fantastic!

What a surreal full circle moment!

From the one pic, it looks like it may be cyanobacteria. Does it blow away easily when disturbed? If it is cyano, manual removal, water changes, good flow, and making sure your water parameters are in range can help.

An interesting update on corals that were rescued during this year's high ocean temps in FL Keys... they are returning the corals to the ocean: News article

If you have a baby great white hiding in the back of your tank (I wouldn't be surprised) and it's drinking Sprite and Dr. Pepper, you might need to get that sorted before your surgery date. Catching a caffeinated shark is hard enough with two arms.

I'll be curious to see if it has any impact on the hobby as they move forward with implementation efforts.

Last night at the UN, countries agreed to the High Seas Treaty. The goal of the new treaty is to place 30% of the seas into protected areas by 2030, versus the current 1.2%. https://apnews.com/article/un-oceans-biodiversity-treaty-0b024fa07e8c1947236d8b8491ebf92c https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-64839763

Very cool. One step closer to more sustainable aquaculture.

I'm sure there are better out there, but I've yet to have an issue with my Kamoer ATO. ...and now I've jinxed it...

Very helpful, thank you. Best of luck with your amping up the doses.

As someone who hasn't sent in an ICP test before, did you send the test to help troubleshoot a specific problem, or just out of curiosity and/or to level up? Also, when you started dosing the elements that were low, did you notice any visible changes in your tank?

+1 for Alyssa as a good resource. She is MASNA's 2022 Aquarist of the Year for her work related to seahorses and is interested in sharing what she has learned over the years. https://masna.org/masna-programs/aquarist-of-the-year/

I recently visited Capital Aquarium to spend one of the $25 gift cards they donated to a recent WAMAS raffle that I won -- Capital Aquarium, thank you for continuing to sponsor WAMAS! They definitely had some fish I hadn't seen in an LFS in quite some time -- their wrasse selection in particular was very nice. I also appreciated that their customer interactions were focused on educating their customers on what to stock (or not) in order to have successful tanks rather than pushing sales. So next time you are in Manassas, stop in and take a look -- and if you are one of the few members that still has a gift card awaiting pickup, I'd be happy to take them off your hands....

Sorry to hear about your foxface and lyretail. High nitrates can be harmful, sometimes fatal, for fish, especially if it is a sudden spike. After the water change, are your nitrates still high? If so, you may want to focus on bringing them down to safe levels. Are the nitrates from heavy feeding, or is there a chance it is coming from your water source?

I know you aren't leaning towards glass, but I wanted to mention that I've had no complaints about the generic hinged glass tank lid I bought on Amazon. Not sure what options there would be for a cube, or if the hinge would cast an odd shadow with your lights, but the hinge and handle on mine makes it easy to access the tank, and the lid came with a 3 or 4 inch wide strip of hard, clear plastic in back that can be cut to allow ports for cords or auto feeders.

It can be frustrating to see algae impacting corals, but don't give up hope. There is some great advice above. I'd also be curious about the age of the tank, how many fish and clean up crew are present, the water source, and what type of algae it may be. New tanks (and old tanks that have been relocated) are notorious for going through an ugly stage. More fish mean more nutrients, and clean up crew can help keep algae under control. RODI water makes a difference-- when I finally bought an RODI, my algae issues vastly decreased. Lastly, it may be worth doing some research on what type of algae it is-- is it algae or something else? Posting a picture of it or showing a picture of it to Steve may provide some additional insight.

Has the pharmaceutical industry come calling yet to learn the secret of getting rid of the eye bags?

It was a very engaging and educational speech. Way to go Nikki!

I wonder if the fines are high enough to discourage this activity. If they confirmed at least 8 shipments (that they know of), but the max possible sentence would be 5 years probation and $1 million...

Tommy... little Tommy and Dougette.

Sorry to hear your tank move didn't go smoothly. If you haven't done so yet, increasing the aeration (maybe toss in a few airstones) should help balance out the oxygen being depleted by the bloom. If you kept the old substrate, vacuuming it may also help remove any extra organic waste that the heterotrophic bacteria are consuming.

Gah! My device didn't load the whole thread at first, so I missed your aquascape posts -- but I stand by the looking good comment.

Looking good! Have you planned out the aquascape yet?