Holly

I might try that. 'Maybe just cut back a half-hour in the am and in the pm and see how it goes. An hr doesn't seem like a big difference....

So...7 hours prob isn't enough. 'Guess I'll stay with 9-6. thnx

I'm running my MHs 9-6 (actinics 8-8). Do you think it'd be OK to just run them 10-5? My chiller's working overtime, I'm having a titch of an algae issue (not bad but annoying), and I'm not sure if my SPS require that many hrs. I'm running three 250W 10Ks, and I have the SPS in the top 12" of the tank (acro, mille, seriato, monti). What're you guys with some SPS doing, as far as hours-per-day? Thanks

I got a small Niger for my tank a while back. It wasn't long before I realized that no matter what anyone says, they aren't good for mixed reef tanks. Too aggressive. Whatever it couldn't eat, it harrassed. Even my full-sized yellow tang was chased around, and he was bigger than the little trigger. Had to adopt it out. Sorry to hear about your babies(sad) Good luck with that last baby!

That's amazing! Great write-up and phenomenol pictures. Your tank looks unbelievable. CONGRATS on TOTM!

That's THE coolest thing EVER!

Congrats! This being the fourth, you should have the whole process down-pat! 'Can't wait to see pics

CAUTION!! There's no 12-step program for reefers yet.(scary) Just keep that in mind.(whistle) PS And please post new pics when you can...

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=16&cat=1927&articleid=2954 Here's a good article that covers all that! Whenever I spot a coral I like, if I don't know what it is, I just ask about light, current, aggression, and feeding. I didn't ask once about feeding and ended up with a nonphotosynthetic coral that I had to feed several times a week (something I wasn't really up to).DOH! If you ask the LFS salesperson, they'll write the scientific name of the coral on the bag for you so when you get home you can google more specific information.

Thanks! Good to know!

Yeah, I don't think 1.028 is a big deal. http://www.icegecko.ca/aqua/rhf.pdf

I love both my hawkfish. They seem to have personalities, like gobies. The arc-eye darts around the top 1/2 of the tank and the red bar seems to prefer the bottom 1/2. Works out well. My arc-eye "yawns" a lot when he's perched in his fav SPS. Is that an aggression/territorial thing? Pledo- what kind of seahorses do/did you have? How difficult are they to keep? I've been reading up, as I'd like to set up a seahorse tank eventually, but it seems that some can be very finicky eaters and hard to keep. Do/did you raise your own live food?

I'm going to tell myself that it was either a molt or a baby mantis shrimp!!

That's the best part--I haven't put anything in there small enough to be eaten by that hawkfish (2.5"). I have NO CLUE what it could've been. (scratch) The smallest thing with an antennae that I've ever had in there was a 3/4" camelback shrimp which has been missing since the day I put it in 3wks ago. I don't think it's possible for my hawkfish to get a 3/4" shrimp in its mouth. My skunk cleaners have been carrying and dumping eggs pretty consistently for a while now, so maybe it's possible that a larvae made it to that size? I also have emeralds that I've caught doing the deed a few times on the bottom of the tank at night. Maybe they had eggs/larvae..? I didn't think that it was possible for any larvae to survive a busy reef tank tho... Any ideas?

when your fish has some else's antennae hanging out of its mouth :eek:

The kids suck but the parents are just as much to blame IMHO. Since the boys are underage, ALL the parents should be charged with child endangerment. Child endangerment isn't just about abuse; it also includes negligence and not doing what's necessary for the child's well-being. I'd say none of these parents are doing what's necessary to raise a productive and responsible member of society, and all the rest of us will end up paying for it in the future. Where did they think their 16-yr-olds were all this time that they were out trashing this house? Did they ask? Do they even care? (scratch) I don't know why society doesn't always hold parents criminally responsible for the actions of mal-adjusted children. If they're truly to be charged as "juveniles" and not "adults" then you're saying they're not really responsible for their behavior because of their youth. If they aren't responsible, then their parent or guardian must be. The buck stops somewhere. That victim should sue all the parents in civil court. I certainly would. If society won't hold them criminally responsible, then maybe civil lawsuits will serve as a deterent to poor parenting. Make them feel the pinch of consequence. If you don't parent, you pay the price(enforcer) Kudos to any of you that can coach or teach and give any of these kids any kind of guidance or adult example.(icon) I have no idea how you do it, based on the wild animals that run crazy all over the neighborhoods around us. We have 3 and 4 -yr-olds meandering the streets day and night with no one watching them. It's unbelievable. Oh, and that dog thing..(flame) Everytime I hear a bad animal story nowadays, I think of Mike Vick (wife) (<-Right here I need an animated smiley of me beating a dog-fighter thug icon.)(whistle)

I feed them fish twice a week and the last feeding wasn't the night before it shriveled up, but I guess that could be it. I give them each a whole headless silverside when I feed. This one's moved location a little since it's recovered, so maybe something bothered it where it was before. No idea what in my tank might bother a big Sebae tho. The tentacles are pretty bloated today. Maybe I shouldn't feed it this week...?

Why do anemones seem to periodically shrivel up like they're on a death knell, then go back to normal? Does anyone else have this happen? (scratch) My biggest Sebae did it this past week and I thought for sure it was a goner, but today it's basically back to normal (just a little bloated). I've had it for a long time, and it's never done this before, but my BTAs have both done this in the past. ?

The suns look great, btw!

We went at the end of their first week, and we had to part in the grassy field a mile away and make the trek dragging both the kids. It was like "Field of Dreams"--If you build it, they will come--with hundreds of zombie-like people (us included) marching en masse towards a central beacon of light. Weird. I'd never been, but my husband had told me it was all cheaply made, that I'd be disappointed. We had to wait more than half an hour to get the kids in the play center, and then we were lead through a very exact pathway (they direct you to follow the floor arrows) with people elbowing and pushing like bovines at market, diving in front of you to grab a pillow or open a cabinet. What's all the fuss?(nutty) IMO it's cutesy affordable stuff for kids up to 20, but everything we examined close up was built like crap. Nothing was sturdy or solid. It's all facades and colors. And they're doing this marketing thing where they take regular brand appliances and put their special placard on it, like "Amana by IKEA" or "Whirlpool by IKEA" on ranges and frigs ..Who falls for that? Why not just buy the same appliance from Sears and not pay the mark-up to have "IKEA" put on it? Soooo my first experience didn't do much for me, obviously. It's OK stuff to buy for a kid going off the college, but it's not real furniture IMO. (Oh- but the meatballs were good!(drooler))

I knew there was a reason everyone leaves Las Vegas (whistle) BTW, was anything interesting afoot there today for the 30-yr-anniversary of the death of The King? *doing best Elvis hip shake* (laugh)

I'm in N Vancouver, but I can always be a second line of defense... I'll PM you.

'Good to know, about how to move them. I'll keep that in mind.

OOPS I just saw this thread... I need to start checking all the threads more often You're welcome! It was very nice to meet you guys and your two little black-and-white children! Pls keep us posted with tank pics!

I believe metal halides are definitely preferred. Croceas require more intense lighting than any other clam. They're a shallow-water species, so they'll thrive with lower/warmer Kelvin lighting (ie, 6K-10K) and with placement nearer to the surface. Lots of people with cooler lighting (12, 14, 20K) have success with them, though, so I'm not sure how important color temp is... I read once that they can tolerate more current than most clams because they're close-to-shore in nature, but I don't know about that. Mine's in a med/low-flow area. I placed mine on a shelf of rock 12"deep (in a 24"deep tank) right under one of my MH bulbs (250W 10Ks), and it's thriving. I think it was prob about 3" when I got it before Xmas 06, and now it's about 5" (they only reach about 6" in captivity). They bore themselves onto rocks or coral in nature, so if you put it in the substrate, I'd advise you to put a rock underneath it. Otherwise, it'll dig in and take hold of the bottom of your tank...then good luck trying to ever move it! I tried to move mine once, and that thing had a death-grip on the rock surface.DOH! I never could get it to release, so it's still sitting in its original locale. If you try to force it to let go, you can tear the tissue and seriously damage it. Please post pics when you get one--I'd love to see!