Timfish

I agree, something that attacks the parasite while it's attached to the host feeding is a first and a HUGE deal!. I would still do a full 30 day QT but this would be an excellent food to use to increase the fish's odds of surviving the stresses imposed on it by shipping and handling. I'll PM.

Regarding testing I use Elose and Seachem as well as API. I've been happy with API and the times I've compared it to other test kits haven't had a difference in readings, I do not hang on to any of my kits for years generally replacing them every year - year 1/2. As far as frequency I also use the ol' eyeball test quite a bit but in an established tank corals can aclimate to conditions that a new coral might not be able to deal with so it's a good idea to test regularly.

There are two different reagents used to test for nitrates. The one that turns various shades of brown is multiplied by 4.4 to give the same reading as the one that turns various shades of red. There is a WIDE range of opinions as to how to setup and run a marine system. To add to the confusion they all will work if properly maintained. I really like Delbek and Sprungs explanations and descriptions of the different methodologies in Vol III of thier "The Reef Aquarium" books. They give an unbiased and thorough explanation of the reasoning behind the methodology. Delbeck and Sprung also make rather disparaging comments about "Gurus" who advocate only thier own personal approach.

+1, your chances of succcess are much better. As to your question: Unlike cycling a tank where all you have to do is monitor ammonia, nitrite and nitrate, there is no definition or test to determine when a tank is "mature". Even when I use live rock and live sand to bypass the cycling stage of establishing a reef system and even if I have stable water parameters there are still noticable boom and bust cycles with the various nuisance algaes and various copeopods and stuff. Each "cycle" lasting from as little as a week to a couple of months. Whenever I have looked closely there are multiple things going on at the smae time. I myself would not consider a tank mature for at least 8 to 12 months even if I've bypassed the initial "cycling" stage. As long as my pH, alk and calcium are stable I myself will add hardy inverts/corals I have grown in my tanks or am very familiar with. A species or variety I am not familiar with I will not put into a tank I do not consider "mature". Having corals/inverts die in a tank is unavoidable but it needs to be minimized as much as possible. Having corals die during the maturing process can lead to much worse algae problems. For an inexperience aquarist a measure of patience is worth a whole lot of frustration of seeing expensive animals die and dealing with algae problems that are feeding off the added nutrients.

Sounds kinda like Convolutriloba retrogemma, it can be brown, check out this link : http://www.wetwebmedia.com/fltwmid.htm The first and fourth pictures are C. retrogemma. It's an algae eating flatworm and can be unsightly but is not a preditor of corals/inverts per se. It can reach plague porportions covering everything. I've seen it a few times in my tank and have been able to control them fairly easily just by syphoning them off during weekly water changes. In my tanks they have always followed a boom and bust cycle and don't typically come back.

Like Sherita said some species are really bad. Some species are probably good or at least innocuous. If you are seeing them on your inverts or very closely associated it's probably a good idea to dip your animals. If I was finding them randomely in my tank and not closely associated with polyps or corals and not in plague porportions like the red flatworm Convolutriloba retrogemma often does I would not go out of my way to remove them. Something to keep in mind is the corals that brood larval planula the planula resemble flatworms.

+1 but don't handle it. The bristles will break off in your skin and are irritating.

I'm guessing they're computer controlled to give pretty much an infinite range of colors? What's the max wattage with all of them on full? It's interesting seeing the round spots on the wall from the long recangular fixtures or is that just form the camera angle?

Am I understanding this correctly, the mantis is actually closing himself in his holes? When it comes out is it moving the shell/rock to come out and putting it back while it's out and about or does it leave it open so it can get back in real quick?

Has the mantis taught you any new tricks yet?

Actually any of those weekends look good for me right now (all my family stuff is in May or late fall). The more the merrier but just ARC would still be fun.

George, my compliments on the level of detail you included in your post! I would agree with your identification. I've seem it a few times over the years but have never had a problem with it, seems to be easily outcompeted by other things. I guess concievably it could envelope some corals but based on my experience it won't give you problems.

In 24 years this is only the 2nd (Kevin B) and third time (you) I've known someone to get them. Are you pretty sure it showed up after the mushroom was added? The first person I know got them with an invertabtate colony also. I wouldn't stress out to much over the clown that died. People move fish all the time without problems but whenever a fish is moved a fish from one tank to another it might cause enough stress to allow the fish to get something. I have also had intances in the past where a group of fish didi fine in QT, went into different tanks then all died with in a week or so of each other so there are diseases that can take a long time to develop.

I've only messed with the Cree XP-G cool whites and XP-E blue/royal blue but comparing them to Pheonix 14000K MH to visually get about the same "look" I need to use a 1/1/1 ratio. If you want a heavier duty heat sink you can get 1/8" thick aluminum channel from metal supply business like Westbrook metals in differetn widths and with different length "legs". I've used 1/8" thick X 1 1/2" wide X 1" tall at pretty much the same price per foot as stuff from home improvement stores.

+1 I use them all the time. Lot easier just to throw it away than rinsing carbon or GFO out of a filter bag to reuse it.

Well, I'm not going to go and try for myself but if you didn't feel anything almost immediatly my guess is you didn't get any thing. Most toxins or venoms are going to give an immediate reaction like a bee sting or fire ant bite.

I'm guessing you have one of the Bubble Tip Anemonie varieties since they 're splitting already. It is common for BTA's to get up and go for a walkabout. This always concerns me as most of my corals tend not to do well when a BTA gets up close and personal. As long as they're not killing anything I would just be mildly annoyed myself unless they pick a spot where they show up better. Over the years I've had several times when one splits one of the new clones does really well and the other clone slowly declines and dissappears, just one more of the puzzles of reef keeping.

Is that your suppliers wholesale price? Retail would be at least double or maybe triple!?

If it's a large spot that is only apparent for a day or two then is gone that does not sound like an external parasite which should last for at least 4 - 5 days or more. If it was a fungus or bacterial I would expect it to last a long time, as in weeks. At this point if it was my fish I would finish up the copper treatment then use carbon to remove the copper then just observe the fish for a week. Clownfish produce a thicker mucous coating than many other fish and one "possible" (not neccessarily probable) explanation is you're seeing a reaction to the copper treatment.

That is a serious array of specialty fittings, I'm goint to have to come up with some new projects!

Good to hear your zoas are looking a little better. I like small weekly water changes, 5% - 10%. I have systems that have been getting that for as long as 17 years. Some people are good with biweekly or monthly so there's no absolute. And there's always somebody that goes without for years and has a nice tank but that's not something I'm willing to try.

Thank You! I know some people have had success with condylactis anemoies but I've never had one live more than a year or so. BTAs on the other hand reroduce for just about everybody and the red variety is probably one of the prettiest anemonies around.

I use mostly the API test kits (DFWMAS did a comparison study and API compared very good to more expensive kits). I would encourage you to read Randy Holmes-Farley's articles on Ph, Alk and Calcium. Kalkwasser will maintain pH and alkalinity in a tank but it does so by reacting with the CO2 in the tank, it is not adding buffering components. Randy Holmes-Farley also reports use of kalkwasser alone may drop magnesium over time and he talks about pickling lime to use to make kalkwasser. If you have a heavy clacium demand both kalkwasser or a calcium reactor will work better then aragamite. When I use aragamite I may add it to the make up water or to the water for water changes or directly to the tank. Here's a video of a tank that for the last 4 years gets about a 1/4 cup every other week with a 10% water change It occasionally also gets some superbuffer but no other supplements:

As far as feeding I don't bother feeding my BTAs and they split at least once a year. If you come across any blue coral (it's a brown octocoral with a blue skeleton) it's not affected by the BTAs sting, everything else I have is to some degree so follow Daves advise and let it get settled in first. Regarding how much livestock to add at one time, I wouldn't think 4 - 6 small frags at one time would not be a big deal but several large colonies may be. As you get to know your system better and it matures you'll get a good feel for what you can do, one thing you can do is test before and after each addition to see how water parameters are affected. I use CaribSeas AragaMight which is the powdered form of Purple Up and have been happy with it. What ever calcium supplement you use monitor the calcium to evaluate how well it's working, I've had to go to calcium reactors on a couple of tanks.

You could use a razoe blade to cut them in half. Is the mantis still sharing it's hole with on of the damsels?