Reef Hobbyist Magazine Q3 2010

THIRD QUARTER 2010 | Volume 4

FISH FOOD for THOUGHT upside-down swimmers:

THE ASSESSORS

Understanding

Lighting and Photosynthesis in Marine Invertebrates RHM sponsored MACNA 2010 is September 3-5 in Orlando!

RHM sponsored Reef-A-Palooza is October 23-24 in Southern California!

NEW PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

features

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chalice haven Peggy Nelson, owner of All-Reef in Minnesota, teaches reef-keeping classes and writes care requirement articles for various coral species.

Peggy shares her 30 gallon Chalice Haven, a living testament that simplicity yields success.

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Understanding Lighting and Photosynthesis in Marine Invertebrates Mike Maddox has nearly twenty years of experience in the hobby and owns Captive Aquatics, an aquarium design and service company. If you think PAR is just an even score in golf, do NOT buy another light bulb/system before reading this article!

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Assessors: An Outstanding Species for the Reef Aquarium Adam Mullins, coowner of the Mystic Reef, is a professional reef aquarist and blogger. Adam shows off his shoal of upside-down swimming Yellow Assessors and talks about why they make great additions to a mixed reef aquarium.

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turning good images into great images with photoshop Eric Do has been a marine hobbyist for over a decade and began digital photography in 2004, capturing over 25,000 images in his first year. With years of experience under his belt combining aquariums and photography, Eric teaches us how to turn good images into amazing images using Adobe Photoshop.

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Next Generation Aquarists Dean Myslivecek, a teacher at Gates Chili High School, talks about their new atrium which features six different aquaria, all maintained by the students at Gates Chili High.

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Product Review: EcoTech Marine’s VorTech MP10 ES Jim Adelberg is a professional coral farmer from Northern California and has been keeping reef tanks since the early ‘80’s.

Get some insight into EcoTech Marine’s new MP-10 ES in Jim’s product review.

on the cover

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fish Food for Thought

Jason Oneppo has 22 years’ experience in the aquatic pet industry and is the head of product development for San Francisco Bay Brand, Inc. Do you know the difference between the various types of foods available for your fish? Jason goes over the basics in foods and ingredients in this article.

Cover image by Sabine Penisson.

third QUARTER 2010 | Volume 4 Copyright© 2010 Reef Hobbyist Magazine. All rights reserved.

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RHM Staff

SPECIAL THANKS

President Harry Tung Executive Editor Jim Adelberg Art Director Tamara Sue Graphics David Tran Advertising The A-Team

Sabine Penisson (sab-images.fr)

Monica/London

comments or suggestions? comments@rhmag.com

coral

chalice haven: simplicity is better Article & Images by Peggy Nelson

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n the counter to the right of our check-out area, when you walk in the door of our store, is a very special little tank. It’s a 30-gallon mini-reef (yes, I admit I called it a mini-reef and not a nano—dating myself for sure) that gets as much attention from our customers and visitors as does any tank in the store - including our 125-gallon show tank displaying giant corals and our Oceanic 76-gallon cherry half-circle that’s loaded with collector pieces and some of the most outstanding live rock you’ll ever see. This simple little 30-gallon does not even have a sump.

Its equipment includes two Maxijet 900 powerheads, one positioned at each end and directed off center to the front of the tank, a heater, a hangon Prizm Pro protein skimmer with a surface extractor and that’s it. The reef lighting consists of a 36" Nova Extreme T5 HO fixture with a 3:1 ratio of blue to white light (2 UVLC 50/50’s and 2 UVLC SuperActinics).

I can almost see some of you cringing when you hear the mechanical complexity or lack thereof of this system, but we’ve observed in 20+ years of reefing that success is not always found in excess and oftentimes proliferates itself in simplicity.

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Don’t miss RHM sponsored Reef-A-Palooza October 23-24 in Costa Mesa, California! (www.reefapalooza.org)

Originally set up to house some easy maintenance corals and a few small, reef-safe fish, this 30-gallon has since developed into one of the most intricate and diverse reefs in our store! And, for you Chalice lovers, this is what we refer to as our “Chalice Haven”. Although this reef is diverse, the most noted residents are Echinophyllia aspera, commonly referred to as the “Chalice” coral.

These Chalice corals were introduced at approximately 2" in size and have, over the course of only a few months, developed into large (6-8”) incredible corals! The “whorling” and “rimming” of these corals is nothing short of amazing.

Recently, we added some smaller (2-3”) Cherry Chalices to observe their growth rate and patterns in this very coral friendly system. These new Chalices are gaining size faster than they ever did in their former tanks. The Mummy Eye Chalice in the photo came in at approximately 3/4 of an inch, as did its neighbor, the Miami Hurricane. Both of these corals, in a few months’ time, have completely overgrown their culturing disks. The colors are nothing short of amazing, and we are excited at the possibility of even more intense coloration when we soon transition to LED lighting over this tank. It surely will be gradual as with any lighting change, and we trust we will see colors under the 460 blues that we were not aware even existed in these Chalices!

coral

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Regarding the growth rate of the Chalices and the overall success of this small reef environment, we attribute part of its success to the nutrient load. In addition to housing a Banggaii Cardinal, a Royal Gramma, a Tailspot Blenny, a small Canary Wrasse (Halichoeres chrysus), and a Blue-Lined Pipefish (miniscule), we feed meaty foods heavily twice per day. We don’t target feed this system but rather tank feed, including a wide variety of foods from different brands of Mysis to Cyclop-Eeze, along with a wide variety of other frozen foods. 10-gallon water changes using Coralife salt mix are done once every two weeks, and no additives are used on this system with the exception of Kent Marine Superbuffer dKH after each water change to assist in maintaining pH and alkalinity. The 36" 4-lamp T5 HO fixture seems to keep all the corals happy, especially the Chalices, which prefer lower light levels. We even had a piece of Montipora capricornis that started at about 4” across grow up to a whopping 14” before it finally started blocking its own light at its base and eventually had to be fragged out. There are still small remnants of this Monti here and there in this tank that continue to thrive!

The other thing we especially like about this simple system is the ease with which it was torn down for our move last fall. Even though we dreaded it because it was a full-blown and very diverse reef, it was an easy tear down because of its minimal mechanics and lack of sump. We were surprised by how quickly it returned to its original state. The zoas growing up the back right wall of the tank even sat out of water for about 4 hours during the move and never skipped a beat. The minute the lights were turned back on, they were fully expanded and no one would’ve guessed they had just gone through a tear down, move, and exposure to air.

Clearly, these zoanthids are capable of retaining good amounts of moisture when out of water, but we believe this was also a testament to their health in this simple reef system.

A lot of different reef life has appeared in this simple little system in the two plus years of its existence, and we’re always looking for surprises because it continues to provide them. We’re running out of space in this “Chalice Haven” for adding new Chalices,

which likely means we’ll duplicate this amazing and simple little reef for incoming Echinophyllia and similar corals.

We highly recommend giving the simple and “less is more” method of reefing a try and see if you can generate your own “Chalice Haven”. It will likely also become a haven for a multitude of other reef life and give you many years of enjoyment with its low tech mechanics and simple maintenance!

AquaStikQtrPage.QXD:PhosBan Qtr Page.QXD 3/1/10 3:30 PM

Stick with Sprung

Julian Sprung introduced AquaStik™ coralline red epoxy putty to the aquarium hobby more than 15 years ago. Since then aquarists all over the world have bonded with us. Now you can use our stone grey or coralline red epoxies, in 2 or 4 oz sizes.

Create amazing aquascapes with AquaStik and our CorAffix™ viscous cyanoacrylate, or attach frags to plugs with our CorAffix gel.

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Miami Gardens, FL 33169 USA www.twolittlefishies.com

coral

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lighting

understanding lighting and photosynthesis

in marine invertebrates Article by Mike Maddox Images by Pacific Garden Supply

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ost of the processes used in the marine aquarium hobby are not very scientific, or not implemented in a way that has been demonstrated scientifically to be effective. One example of this is reef tank lighting. Using a “scientific method” to light a reef aquarium is not currently easy to do, if even possible. However, as caretakers of photosynthetic invertebrates, aquarists should have a basic knowledge of the science behind illumination and photosynthesis.

WHat is light?

There is an incredible amount to know about visible light, and this article will just scratch the surface by listing some very basic information about light and the measurement of light. This review should be helpful to marine hobbyists wishing to maintain photosynthetic invertebrates, or freshwater aquarists wishing to understand more about light and the photosynthetic process.

LED, fluorescent and metal halide bulbs.

High intensity incandescent lamps come in many shapes and sizes.

Visible light is simply a small frequency range (frequency means how often a full wave propagates) in a very large range of energy frequencies. Most of the visible light spectrum, which is energy with a wavelength between 400 and 700 nanometers (one billionth of a meter, abbreviated nm), will stimulate chloroplasts, resulting in photosynthesis.

Wavelengths shorter than 400nm carry too much energy and can damage or destroy living tissues, while wavelengths longer than 700nm do not carry enough energy for photosynthesis to occur.

any other form of light measurement. For the aquarist’s purpose, PAR is the number of photons per meter squared per second of light that falls between ~400nm and ~700nm in wavelength. Although longer wavelengths (the short end of the infrared spectrum) are useful photosynthetically, the PAR definition doesn’t account for these wavelengths. However, infrared energy is virtually useless to the home aquarist, as it doesn’t penetrate the water column to a significant degree.

There are many ways to produce visible light, but all visible light, no matter what method used to produce it, is just that: visible light. Because of this, the typical lighting sources used by an aquarist (VHO, T-5 HO, Metal Halide, LED, natural sunlight) are all equally sufficient options for lighting a reef aquarium when considering spectral production and PAR at the aquarium depths common amongst hobbyists’ tanks.

When aquarists refer to light “intensity” in an aquarium, PAR is what they are actually referring to, as PAR is literally the amount of light energy usable by chloroplasts per given area.

There are many ways to measure light energy and “brightness”, and a few of these methods that the hobbyist is likely to encounter are defined below.

Contrary to the popular belief that “actinic” and/or blue lighting is not useful for photosynthesis, photosynthetic efficiency peaks at around 430 nanometers, which is approximately the major spectral output of a standard “actinic” bulb, and 680 nanometers, or approximately the major spectral output of a “daylight” bulb. Both bulb types and wavelengths are useful in providing PAR to photosynthetic invertebrates.

Photosynthetically Active Radiation PAR is the only useful way to measure light energy and quantity for the home aquarist, and is much simpler to define and measure than

Intensity Intensity is defined as “the measure of the time-averaged energy flux”, meaning the energy transferred from one medium to another

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Don’t miss RHM sponsored MACNA 2010 September 3-5 in Orlando, Florida! (www.macna2010.com)

These are 2 types of fluorescent tubes: VHO (very high output) above and T-5 high output below.

These are 2 types of metal halide lamps: single-ended or ‘mogul’ above and HQI double-ended below.

(traditionally a waveform, such as light, to another object) per amount of time (in seconds). The human eye cannot accurately distinguish intensity, and there is no easy way to compute the intensity of a light source at a given depth and spectrum in an aquarium. Intensity as a measurement is essentially useless for the home aquarist.

Lumen The lumen measures luminous flux, the perceived power, or brightness of light, by the human eye. For example, it is possible for two light sources to have the same intensity but emit a different number of lumens. The source that emits a higher number of lumens will appear brighter to the human eye, but the intensity will be the same. This can also be somewhat useful for the aquarist, because higher lumen count can equate to a higher PAR count, depending upon the spectrum.

While lumens are a useful measurement for household light bulb comparison, this measurement usually only serves the energy conscious hobbyist by giving a lumen per watt count on the bulbs used (assuming that information is available from the manufacturer). Keep in mind that a bulb emitting 2,000 lumens at a color temperature of 20,000 Kelvin (K) won’t emit as much PAR as a bulb emitting 2,000 lumens at a color temperature of 6,500K (explained on the next page).

lighting

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LUX LUX is a unit of measurement of lumens per square meter, sometimes (and incorrectly) used synonymously with light intensity. Instead, LUX is the measurement of apparent intensity, as viewed by the human eye, per square meter. Because the human eye weighs certain parts of the spectrum (certain wavelengths) as brighter than others, two light sources can have the same intensity but a different LUX. LUX was somewhat useful to the aquarist before PAR meters became relatively affordable, and can still be useful if a PAR meter is unavailable.

Kelvin Temperature Kelvin temperature (K) is the scientific unit for temperature, and is often used to measure the color temperature of light, or more accurately, the measurement of the temperature of an object emitting black body radiation (also known as thermal radiation, or radiant heat) as visible light (to be useful to aquarists). All objects at a temperature greater than absolute zero emit some form of thermal radiation, although at room temperature, the wavelength of this radiation is too long for the human eye to perceive. There is a great deal to know about Kelvin temperature and thermal radiation (most of it mathematical) that exceeds the scope of this article, but Kelvin temperature is a very useful way to measure the color spectrum of a bulb.

Kelvin temperature, in the hobby, is used virtually interchangeably with spectrum.

Spectral analysis is more useful for determining PAR, but Kelvin temperature has become the common color rating index among bulbs produced for the hobby.

Kelvin temperature is often associated with PAR: a light source with a color temperature of 6,500K has more PAR than light emitted from a source of the same intensity but having a color temperature of 14,000K. A light source with a color temperature of 6,500k places more of the energy between the 400-700nm wavelengths.

Spectrum The color spectrum of visible light is well known by most – Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet. These color spectrums (also known as wavelength, measured in nanometers) are usually not a concern to the modern hobbyist, as broad spectrum bulbs are readily available. Photosynthetic animals require this broad spectrum lighting to fully utilize the energy from light. The spectral range useful for photosynthesis is cited as PAR. To be the most useful for photosynthesis, aquarists should use bulbs that peak at ~430nm and ~680nm spectrum/wavelengths.

This foot-candle meter is an indirect way of measuring LUX and is used mostly in horticulture.

A 10,000K (Kelvin) bulb will appear quite yellow and green.

14,000K bulbs are very popular and render some blues and purples nicely.

Photosynthesis Photosynthesis is the “synthesizing by organisms of organic chemical compounds, mainly carbohydrates, from carbon dioxide using energy obtained by light rather than the oxidation of chemical compounds” (Oxford Dictionary of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology [1997]). More simply, this means that plant cells can use energy gathered from light to produce cellular chemical energy (ATP) and carbon products (carbohydrates) when combined with carbon dioxide.

In order for the photosynthetic process to take place, the chloroplast (the organelle of the cell where the light energy to chemical energy conversion occurs) must receive sufficient PAR. If the saturation or compensation point of the chloroplast isn’t met, the organelle will not produce the optimum amount of carbon bi-products (carbohydrates), and this excess energy will not be transferred to the host invertebrate. Obviously, the compensation point is something every aquarist will want to meet at all depths in their aquarium. In attempting to meet this compensation point, however, the aquarist must avoid photoinhibition. To the layman, photoinhibition is the result of an excess of light causing a cessation of photosynthesis altogether. Photosynthetic invertebrates have a host of light inhibiting pigments to protect themselves from tissue damage and their symbiotic Zooxanthellae sp. from photoinhibition, as photoinhibition occurs much more frequently than the alternative; the compensation point not being met.

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20,000K bulbs are considered ‘too blue’ by some.

Energy efficient LED emitters of many types are being explored for reef lighting.

Don’t miss RHM sponsored Reef-A-Palooza October 23-24 in Costa Mesa, California! (www.reefapalooza.org)

Some aquarists believe that some corals “only need light” to survive, but this is absolutely untrue. No known animal can survive solely on light energy, as there must always be a phosphate and nitrogen source for a living cell to create the compounds needed to function.

Photosynthesis is the process used to gain the necessary energy to convert these phosphate and nitrogen sources into ATP from light, which can be used directly by the cell. Photosynthesis does not turn energy into matter!

While the information in this article may be somewhat optional for the casual home aquarist, it is essential knowledge for anyone attempting to propagate or otherwise make a profit growing and/or displaying photosynthetic marine invertebrates.

Lighting Methods Hobbyists often debate and discuss what method of lighting is “superior”, but these discussions are misplaced. To even attempt to compare different lighting sources in the way aquarists intend, one must choose a specific basis for comparison. The only easily measurable units for comparison would be PAR at a given depth, LUX at a given depth, or lumens per watt (efficiency). Any other type of comparison is unlikely to yield any useable or accurate result(s). There is no “best lighting method”, excepting the sun, making this debate completely useless for all practical applications. Instead, the aquarist should be more concerned with achieving the proper PAR at a given depth for the animals he or she has chosen to keep, with a preference for the method utilizing the least electrical consumption and highest lamp life.

Cecie Starr (2005). Biology: Concepts and Applications. Thomson Brooks/Cole. ISBN 053446226X.

Conclusion The superiority of the sun cannot be replicated in captivity, although photosynthetic invertebrates are adaptable to a wide range of lighting conditions. Basic knowledge regarding lighting and the photosynthetic process is necessary to understand what is actually occurring in a reef aquarium every day, and is very helpful in maintaining an animal’s longterm health.

References: Mendenhall, T. C. (1893). “Fundamental Standards of Length and Mass”. Reprinted in Barbrow, Louis E. and Judson, Lewis V. (1976). Weights and measures standards of the United States: A brief history (NBS Special Publication 447). Washington D.C.: Superintendent of Documents.

“Concepts in Photobiology: Photosynthesis and Photomorphogenesis”, Edited by GS Singhal, G Renger, SK Sopory, K-D Irrgang and Govindjee, Narosa Publishers/New Delhi; and Kluwer Academic/Dordrecht, pp. 11-51. Unpublished data.

Smith, A. L. (1997). Oxford dictionary of biochemistry and molecular biology. Oxford [Oxfordshire]: Oxford University Press. pp. 508. ISBN 0-19-854768-4. “Photosynthesis - the synthesis by organisms of organic chemical compounds, esp. carbohydrates, from carbon dioxide using energy obtained from light rather than the oxidation of chemical compounds.”

D.A. Bryant & N.-U. Frigaard (November 2006). “Prokaryotic photosynthesis and phototrophy illuminated”. Trends Microbial 14 (11): 488. doi:10.1016/j.tim.2006.09.001 Raszewski G, Diner BA, Schlodder E and Renger T (2008) Spectroscopic properties of reaction center pigments in photosystem II core complexes: Revision of the multimer model. Biophys.

J. 95:105-119 Rappaport F, Guergova-Kuras M, Nixon PJ, Diner BA and Lavergne J (2002): Kinetics and pathways of charge recombination in photosystem II. Biochemistry 41, 8518-8527 R. Bowling Barnes (24 May 1963). “Thermography of the Human Body Infrared-radiant energy provides new concepts and instrumentation for medical diagnosis”. Science 140 (3569): 870 877. doi:10.1126/science.140.3569.

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fish

assessors an outstanding species for the reef aquarium Article & Images by Adam Mullins except as noted

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escribed as an “outstanding species for the reef aquarium” by the man who wrote ‘the book(s)’ on marine aquarium fishes, Scott W. Michael himself, Assessors are unique fish that fit well in many reef tank communities. You may never have considered these fish for your tank before, but maybe that will change.

Assessors, both blue and yellow, are perhaps some of the most generally suitable fish for the reef aquarium. Their lack of aggression, disinterest in ornamental invertebrates, and interesting behavior make a small shoal of Assessors a fascinating addition to most reef tanks. Additionally, they are widely regarded as very hardy fish and do not exceed three to four inches in length.

A Blue Assessor under a dark overhang. Image by Sabine Penisson.

This group of Yellow Assessors is exhibiting natural upside-down swimming behavior.

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Assessors belong to the family Plesiopidae, commonly known as the Longfins, which includes the Marine Betta or Comet. There are two distinct species: Blue and Yellow. This is reflected in their common names: the Blue Assessor (Assessor macneilli) and the Yellow Assessor (Assessor flavissimus). The Yellow Assessor is also known as the Golden MiniGrouper or Yellow Devilfish, although its demeanor is anything but devilish.

These fish are very peaceful as tank mates and small groups are easily kept in larger aquaria of 50 gallons or more. Though there are no distinguishing marks between the sexes, selecting a group of various size individuals should prove sufficient. Once established, groups will exhibit more natural behavior, and spawning attempts are not uncommon. It’s long been thought that the Assessors were all mouth brooders, which holds true for the Blue species, but not the Yellow. Both originate on the Great Barrier Reef though the Blue species has a slightly larger range that extends to New Caledonia.

Like all other Australian livestock, Assessors were fairly hard to come by up until a few years ago when the import of Australian livestock began to increase, fueled by the surge in demand for ever more colorful Acanthastrea corals. Once the dust settled on the Acan craze, people seemed to rediscover the wide variety of other Aussie livestock. As more Australian livestock has begun hitchin’ rides alongside corals, the industry has seen

Don’t miss RHM sponsored MACNA 2010 September 3-5 in Orlando, Florida! (www.macna2010.com)

a welcome influx of fresh fish, including many exotic wrasses, clownfish, angels, butterflies, and even some gobies. Other species are also available from time to time, some new to the trade and others that come few and far between. With so many amazing fish, why highlight one that’s been around for a while, but never in any great numbers? Simple - Assessors deserve a little more attention.

Maybe it’s because they weren’t featured in any animated films, or maybe their relative scarcity has kept them fairly unknown, but that’s all about to change. Well, maybe not the film part, but their scarcity should soon start to subside. The supply of Yellow Assessors has recently been bolstered, thanks to advancements and refinements in aquaculture, making tank raised Yellow Assessors quite readily available. Blues have been reared in captivity, though on a much less consistent level, and are still not commercially available.

As new livestock filters its way to the LFS level, more exotic fish will certainly find their way into our hobby (especially if you request them). Oftentimes, store owners are reluctant to bring in a new fish species because of the fear it won’t sell to their customers, or unfamiliarity with the specifics of its care. Assessors are one of those fish that won’t show its “true colors”, or behaviors for that matter, in most of the sterile display cubes from which they’re often sold. Like blennies and many other fish, Assessors’ colors darken under stress, or when not given a suitable, comfortable environment.

This often results in hobbyists missing how bright the Yellow Assessor can be, with their blue eyes and orange rimmed fins, instead thinking it’s just another dull-colored basslet.

In a bare tank, most hobbyists will also miss out on some of the Assessors’ more appealing behavior. This is just one more reason to have dedicated displays of various sizes and environments. It is important to show hobbyists how different fish act in an appropriate tank environment and allow them to view behaviors that are only displayed by fish when they are comfortable in their environment. Many fish have unique swimming patterns and behaviors that can be accented by providing them with the proper environment.

Assessors live in and around caves or overhangs in small groups in nature and have adopted their unique swimming orientation to suit their lifestyle of hanging around in the current catching small pieces of food that drift by.

They certainly can and often will swim in a normal orientation when in bare tanks or open water, though it is rare to see them in the open in the wild during the day.

This Blue Assessor displays a rich blue coloration.

Image by Sabine Penisson.

A stressed, dull colored Blue Assessor after transport.

Image by Sea U Marine.

I had this behavior in mind when setting up another display tank in my store, along with some shelf rock and some ideas in my head. Wanting to encourage natural behavior from semi-cryptic fish, I created a multi-tiered aquascape with large open overhangs to maximize flow and allow for easy viewing (and photographing) of the residents. The tank is still fairly juvenile, but has been progressing well. My group of Assessors has their favorite spot, under the central shelf. When other fish get too close, they just bump them out of the way, but for the most part, they are pretty tolerant of visitors passing through.

Given their unique and interesting charm, amiable community behavior, great colors, and tank bred availability, are you still wondering why these fish haven’t gotten the attention they deserve? Many of us in the business

My multi-tiered aquascape with large open overhangs.

fish

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• Auto-dim function for LEDs

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question the same thing. Surely their price has put a limit on their popularity in the past, when just one equaled the price of four to five other fish, let alone the cost of trying to establish a group. However, that should hopefully change as tank bred Yellow Assessors are now available, sometimes even less expensive than their wild counterparts, which is a huge advancement for this fish in our hobby. This was not always the case, as it took several years to perfect the breeding of these fish. When they first became available, they were the equivalent price to “Picasso Clowns”.

One of the reasons fish like Assessors are more cost intensive to breed than fish such as clownfish is the fact that they only produce 50-75 eggs per spawn, compared with the hundreds that clowns can produce. Devoting the time and space to rear these less prolific fish creates a higher individual cost per fish. One way to increase yield is by establishing multiple spawning pairs. This allows for the simultaneous grow out of larger numbers of juveniles, provided the fish spawn at the same time. This seems to be one of the major factors that caused the price to drop so much on the aquacultured side.

common is the bottom line. Basically, it must be profitable from a business perspective. This is why when you’re running a “fish farm” as a business, dumping resources into experimental breeding of new species can be costly; in money, time, and growing space.

However, once production is streamlined, prices usually drop, and the result is that certain captive bred species are actually cheaper than their wild counterparts.

Care for either of the Assessor species is fairly straightforward, as they usually acclimate well and prove to be very resilient. This is especially true for the tank raised Yellows. They will eat a wide variety of food, from frozen mysis and brine shrimp, to pellets, to foods like Arcti-Pods and Cyclop-eeze. A wide and varied diet will ensure good color and health.

I would like to thank all those who have been persistent in working hard to propagate this species as it seems to be coming to fruition. Hopefully, more reefers will catch on to these awesome aquarium additions.

Captive propagation on a commercial scale is still a fledgling industry, but there are signs of good things to come and future advancements as more companies emerge with different aquaculture strategies.

But the one thing every commercial breeding operation has in

fish

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Image by Sabine Penisson.

foods

FISH food for thought

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Article & Images

by Jason Oneppo & SFBB except as noted

ince the modern aquarium hobby emerged in the 1920’s, we have gained an understanding of what is necessary to keep fish healthy and full of vigor.

One of the most critical factors is the advancement in our understanding of fish nutrition. Gone are the days when flakes, nutritionally deficient dried ants, and flies purchased in a tin were your only choices. In the 1960’s, the discovery of live brine shrimp as a source of food for tropical fish took the industry by storm and led to the introduction of frozen brine shrimp in the 1970’s. Since then, many types of fish food have been introduced to the market, but flake food still remains the staple used by many hobbyists. Salt water hobbyists tend to offer their fish and invertebrates more variety in an attempt to replicate their natural diet as closely as possible. Fortunately, there are many varieties of fish food available to make this possible, so much so that it sometimes leaves hobbyists scratching their heads as to which foods are best for their fish and invertebrates.

Here, we will discuss and explain the different types of foods and the best methods for feeding them.

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Live brine shrimp.

TYPES OF FOOD

LIVE FOODS Live plants and animals are the most natural foods you can offer your fish, invertebrates and corals. Not only their appearance and smell, but their movement is key to attracting those hard to feed fish. The first thing that pops into someone’s head when you mention live food is brine shrimp. Brine shrimp was a staple food available in all pet shops and the “old stand-by” for getting difficult marine fish to feed until around 2001-2002. Today it is rarely offered for sale in retail stores. This is due mainly to the demand for frozen brine shrimp and the fact that frozen is easier to handle and deliver than live brine shrimp. So now, companies that used to harvest and sell live brine shrimp are now harvesting and freezing it. Live brine shrimp is still available, but it is more expensive because it is farm raised. Live mysis shrimp are occasionally offered by specialized stores and make an excellent treat or starter food for all marine fish.

With the ever increasing popularity of reef tanks, we have seen the emergence of new varieties of live food being offered on the market. The most common of these are phytoplankton and copepods. These are produced in a lab or controlled environment, sold in bottles and jars, require refrigeration and have a limited shelf life. It is important to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for handling and storage of such products. The advantage of using these products is that they make reefs come alive and most people see an improvement in their reef environment after just a few feedings. Depending on the variety and brand being used, you will have to add a certain amount every couple of days so that the food items are readily available in the reef environment.

Don’t miss RHM sponsored Reef-A-Palooza October 23-24 in Costa Mesa, California! (www.reefapalooza.org)

Frozen krill.

Frozen mysis cubes.

FROZEN FOODS Frozen fish food was introduced in the 1970’s, with the first being brine shrimp, offered by only one company. In the 1980’s, frozen formula foods were introduced, which offered a much more balanced diet for aquariums containing a variety of marine fish. What started as one brand with one frozen item to offer has evolved into a fish food category with over 20 companies offering frozen foods.

Frozen fish foods are the next best thing to live because they are all natural and often contain no preservatives. Many of the single ingredient items are harvested, cleaned and frozen while still alive.

Frozen fish food types handled in this manner include brine shrimp, mysis shrimp, bloodworms, Cyclops, rotifers and others. Those that aren’t packaged while alive are acquired fresh and immediately cleaned and processed.

There are many varieties of frozen foods, but they can be broken down into two simple categories: single ingredient and formulated diets. Single ingredient foods are items such as brine shrimp, mysis shrimp, calanus plankton, krill, squid, etc.

Formulated diets have a specific target in mind, such as marine carnivores or marine herbivores.

Some are even more specific, such as formulas for angels and butterflies that contain sponge or formulas for triggers that contain sea urchin.

Do you want a Veggie Clip that doesn’t Suck?

TM

Two Little Fishies VeggieMag doesn’t need a suction cup because it’s held in place by powerful neodymium magnets.

Position it at any level in the aquarium and retrieve it without getting your hands wet. What’s more, it floats, so it won’t get lost in the aquarium.

Frozen single ingredient (plankton) cube.

Patent-pending design by Julian Sprung for:

Two Little Fishies Inc. www.twolittlefishies.com

Frozen formulated diet cube.

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A popular misconception is that the binders and carrying agents (gums or gelatin) used in frozen foods contain nitrates and phosphates, but this is simply not true. To begin with, most manufacturers use filtered or R.O. water to remove any unwanted organics from the water. In fact, it is the animal or vegetable matter that naturally contains the nitrates or phosphates when they are present in a frozen food. See the chart below for naturally occurring levels of nitrate and phosphate in popular fish food items.

ITEM

NO3 (mg/kg)

PO4 (mg/100g)

Baby Brine Shrimp

43.7

<3

Brine Shrimp

15.7

<3

Lettuce

13.1

<3

Rotifers

27.1

<3

Cyclops

15.7

6.3

Squid

19.6

5.5

Bloodworms

18.5

21.7

Frozen fish food cubes are meant to be fed while still frozen.

Simply pop a cube out of the package and into the tank. The cube will start to break apart and sink slowly, allowing fish to feed naturally. Rinsing or washing the cubes is a waste of time as well as nutrients.

I know most of us have reached for the coffee pot in the morning only to notice a package of frozen fish food on the counter that was left out over night. What is the best thing to do in this situation? Here are a few simple rules that will help determine whether or not it is safe to refreeze the food. You may safely refreeze some foods that Freeze dried bloodworms. still contain ice crystals and are cold to the touch. Do not refreeze thawed fish food. These foods are perishable. If the food temperature is above 45° F, THROW IT OUT! If the freezer temperature has exceeded 45° F for 2 hours or longer, THROW IT OUT! Spoilage may begin before bad odors develop and may be toxic. If you question the condition, THROW IT Freeze dried mysis.

OUT! Use common sense. If any foods have an offensive or questionable odor, DO NOT feed them to your fish.

FREEZE DRIED FOODS Freeze drying is a dehydration process that naturally preserves food, making it easy to transport and store for long periods of

20

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time. Freeze drying is used most commonly in human foods for camping, army rations, emergency survival rations and astronaut ice cream. To freeze dry an item, it must first be frozen. The frozen product is placed in a freeze drying chamber where the surrounding pressure is reduced and a controlled amount of heat is added to cause the liquid in the frozen material to go from a solid to a gas.

Although some nutrients are lost during the freeze drying process, freeze drying is the least damaging of the dehydration processes.

This method of preservation makes freeze dried foods an all natural product. Freeze dried foods are highly nutritious, promote growth and vivid color, don’t require freezing, hold their natural form and are highly attractive to fish. Freeze dried food is easy to use, good for soaking in supplements/vitamins for administration to fish and some varieties can be used in automatic fish feeders.

DRIED SEAWEED A seaweed Seaweed is one of nature’s most basic clip from your LFS foods and one of the most complete, makes all natural foods for herbivorous and feeding easy. omnivorous fish and invertebrates.

Seaweed contains high levels of amino acids, vitamins, minerals, carotenoids and twice as much vitamin C as oranges. Most of the seaweed on the market today is pressed into sheets and dried, although several types of whole seaweed and seaweed flakes are available. Some companies are now incorporating garlic extract into the seaweed itself, saving Green the hobbyist the time of having to add seaweed these extra supplements. Dry seaweed sheet. is a superior food for tangs, angels and other grazers. I have seen tangs with pale color and lateral line disease look like a whole new fish in just a few weeks after being fed seaweed.

If you keep tangs, seaweed is a must have food. To feed, tear off a piece approximately 2" to 3" (for Red seaweed sheet. the average 55 gallon community tank) and place in the aquarium using a seaweed clip or attached to a rock using a rubber band. Grazing fish feed throughout the day, so seaweed should be fed often, in small quantities.

LIQUIDS Liquids have become popular in recent years due to advances in reef keeping. The most common are different types of phytoplankton, copepods and oyster spat. These items have limited shelf life once opened and must be kept refrigerated. It is important to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for handling and storage of such products. People often report that their reefs have come alive after they started feeding these liquids for just a short period of time. Liquids should be offered to reefs every to every other day.

When feeding liquids or gels, turn off your protein skimmer, as some aquarists have reported that their skimmers act up when feeding liquids. This is primarily due to the substance used to keep the plankton in suspension.

LIQUID GELS In the past couple of years, several manufacturers of aquarium food and supplies have introduced liquid gel diets. The idea and concept are great, but these seem to have failed to catch on in popularity.

When compared to other foods, liquid gels are more expensive, so maybe the down economy is having an effect on people’s willingness to try something new at a higher cost. Personally, I have only used these foods a few times with varying results and if the fish don’t eat it, then it just settles to the bottom and winds up in the substrate. When reviewing the ingredients, they seem to be the same as a flake or pellet and contain dyes and preservatives.

FLAKE FOOD Flake food is the old standard for aquarium hobbyists. It has been around almost as long as the hobby, so there are many varieties available. There are flakes for vegetarian fish, community fish and ones that promote color and growth. There are even some containing medications.

Flakes usually make up some part of a fish’s diet, whether it is the staple or part of a varied diet. Flake foods start as a slurry of ingredients such as fish meal, shrimp meal, wheat, soy, corn, dyes, preservatives, etc. This is poured and Spirulina flake food. baked dry to help preserve the product, though all flakes contain added preservatives. In recent years, several companies have migrated away from the use of so many meals and have started using whole shrimp, whole fish and alternative binders.

Mixed Some popular flakes used in marine flake food. aquariums are spirulina, brine shrimp and garlic enriched marine flakes. With flake, you get what you pay for. Inexpensive flakes usually foul the water and leach color and are sometimes not so eagerly accepted by fish, while high quality flakes are readily devoured and don’t degrade water quality.

Formula Flakes are easy and convenient flake food. and can be fed to fish several times a day. When feeding flakes, use caution not to dip back into the jar with wet hands. If the flake in the container gets wet, it can cake and spoil.

PELLET FOODS Pelletized foods have been around for a while and they come in many varieties, shapes and sizes to meet the needs of different types of fish. There are several different methods for producing pellets. Each boasts to be the best due to production methods, but they all start off similar to flakes: as a liquid slurry. Some contain garlic and color

foods

21

enhancers, some float, some sink, some are hard and some are soft and moist. There are varying qualities of pellets. Some are not much more than cereals with vitamins while Micro pellets for others are of higher quality, made using whole smaller fish. fish such as salmon. Although pellets are often thought of as food for larger fish, many companies now make micro pellets for marine and freshwater fish.

These micro pellets are the perfect dry food for fish such as clowns, damsels, gobies, cardinals, etc. Like flake, pellets can be fed several times a day and care should be taken not to dip wet hands back into the jar. If you are concerned about floating food getting caught in the filter or skimmer, use one of the many feeding Shrimp wafers. rings/stations available at most aquarium stores. Pellets are good to keep on hand and also work well with automatic feeders, so if you are someone who travels a lot and doesn’t trust others feeding your fish, maybe pellets are for you.

WAFERS Algae wafers.

Wafers were originally introduced to the market as a food for freshwater plecos and catfish, but they work equally well for bottom feeding and grazing marine fish. They are produced using similar methods to pellets, but instead of being extruded, they are pressed into a wafer form. Wafers are designed to sink to the bottom of the aquarium. Most wafers are of Mixed ingredient wafers. high quality and hold form for many hours, allowing fish to nibble on them without the wafer turning to powder. Algae wafers usually contain kelp, spirulina, alfalfa, chlorophyll or other plant materials.

They are excellent for tangs that feed on benthic algae. Bottom feeder wafers often contain ingredients similar to that of a pellet for carnivorous fish and are excellent for invertebrates and bottom feeding carnivorous/omnivorous fish.

POWDERS Powders are most commonly used for rearing baby fish and feeding reef aquariums.

Powders start off as a manufactured pellet or crumble and then are milled down to desired sizes (usually between 30 and 150 microns) and screened to eliminate larger particles.

These seem to be one of the least popular foods for feeding reef aquariums. Most people are afraid of the uneaten powder becoming trapped under rocks and corals and polluting the tank. This is definitely something to be concerned about and several companies have responded to these concerns by being innovative and adding probiotics that digest the food if it is not eaten in a certain amount of time. If your fish or inverts don’t eat it, it eats itself. When feeding powders, it is best to turn off filtration and allow the powder to slowly disperse in the water. This will lessen the chances of it becoming trapped and rotting in the tank. Powders can be fed from a couple times a week to several times a day, as recommended by the manufacturer.

FEEDING YOUR FISH

How fish are fed is as important as what fish are fed. Feeding your fish properly will help maintain vivid color, promote growth and increase a fish’s resistance to stress. Fish can be fed 2-5 times per day in an amount they can consume in approximately 3-5 minutes.

As no two aquariums are alike, the specifics of feeding will depend on the aquarium’s size, its inhabitants and your maintenance schedule.

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Don’t miss RHM sponsored Reef-A-Palooza October 23-24 in Costa Mesa, California! (www.reefapalooza.org)

Tropical fish inhabit warm waters and need food frequently.

Water temperature has an effect on a fish’s appetite. Tropical fish kept at temperatures below 72°F usually display indifferent feeding behavior, while fish kept between 72°F and 76°F show good feeding behavior and fish kept between 77°F and 80°F are ravenous feeders. Above 80°F, the feeding response in most fish does not significantly increase.

FEEDING NEW FISH

Newly acquired fish may take several days to start feeding. Make sure you offer the proper foods. Research the fish, find out what it eats in the wild and try to mimic that as closely as possible. Offer a variety of foods. In the wild, many fish feed on a variety of foods.

In some cases, what they eat changes with the seasons and in captivity, fish sometimes get ‘bored’ with the same food.

Sometimes, other tank mates become aggressive. This can cause stress, and bullied fish often stop eating. If this happens, separate the fish or rearrange the tank’s aquascape to cause confusion.

Sometimes when aggressive behavior is being displayed in what should otherwise be a peaceful aquarium, it can be curbed by increased feeding.

I hope this article has made it easier for you to make the right choice as to when, what and how to feed your fish. If your fish look hungry, they probably are. So what are you waiting for? Get up and feed your fish!

Regularly monitor the temperature and water chemistry. Make sure you are maintaining the proper pH and that all other parameters, such as nitrate and ammonia, are within acceptable levels. Do water changes on a regular basis. Smaller and more frequent water changes make for happier, healthier fish with better appetites.

STRESSED FISH

Stress can cause a fish to stop eating. Many of the fish being kept in marine aquariums are from the wild. In the wild, all fish have predators and some only come out to feed when they feel completely safe. Some fish require additional hiding spots or a floating plant so they feel comfortable and safe when feeding.

Ensuring that all your fish are fed enough may decrease the chances of tank mate aggression. Image by Sabine Penisson.

PHOTOgraphy TURNING GOOD IMAGES INTO AMAZING IMAGES with ADOBE PHOTOSHOP Article & Images by Eric Do

I’ve been asked by many people on multiple occasions to explain how I process certain fish and coral shots. Before jumping into the discussion of image processing, it’s worth mentioning that good final images start with good basic camera technique. (See Ian Iwane’s article ”Top-Down Photography” in RHM’s Vol. 4, Q1 issue.) I will not cover how to shoot, but rather, how to process pictures using Adobe Photoshop CS5 ™. I will provide a step– by-step walkthrough of some of the key elements that I regularly use in processing reef aquarium pictures.

Photoshop processing interface.

The interface for processing a RAW (literally meaning direct from the camera) image in Adobe Photoshop CS5 is fairly intuitive and hasn’t changed much from previous versions of Photoshop. Opening an image in the Adobe Camera Raw window brings up a screen like the one to the left, which happens to be a Nikon RAW image (NEF). Working in the RAW format allows you to alter the image without any loss in resolution and opens up a variety of key processing elements all at once.

Let’s look at some of the tools we have available. These are found in the toolbar section to the right of the image preview. Any changes made using these tools will be reflected on the image to the left so we can see the results as we go along. There are some tools and information that I use all the time so let’s look at these in greater detail.

Curves/Histogram This display is an invaluable asset which shows the overall exposure, as well as the color distribution. This graph lets you see whether you have overexposed the entire image or just a certain spectral color channel.

The left side of the curve, also known as the histogram, represents the level of shadows or blacks in the picture. The right side of the curve represents the highlights or whites in the picture. Depending on how you frame your shot, it can be skewed heavily to one side or another.

In the example image, since there is an abundance of darker colors, the curve is skewed heavily towards the left hand side. Also, you will notice that there are two arrows in the curves section. The left arrow represents shadow clipping ( black areas in this case, represented in blue) and the right arrow represents highlight clippings (overexposed red spectrum channel, represented in red).

24

Don’t miss RHM sponsored MACNA 2010 September 3-5 in Orlando, Florida! (www.macna2010.com)

For this particular picture, I’m not concerned with either channel (shadows or highlights) being out of the recommended range because that’s really what I’m seeing with these actual fish under this specific lighting. The dark shadows really do appear as black and the orange on the fish is extremely saturated in real life. This is one of the fundamental goals of my image processing - to end up with an accurate picture of what my eye actually saw. If the picture overall is underexposed, you can use the exposure slider to increase the exposure. If the picture’s overall exposure is correct, but the shadow areas are too dark, then use the fill light slider to minimize the background contrast. On the other side of the displayed graph are the highlights. If the highlights are overexposed, you can try to tone them down by using the recovery slider. In this shot, I increased exposure by approximately half a stop and left the rest of the settings alone.

Level Adjustments - Exposure and White Balance

the image (which does not have to be a gray color). Why not use the black or white points or all three points? If you shot an image with a reference card (e.g. White Balance card), then by all means use all three points. If you didn’t, then the black and white points are less forgiving than the gray point.

The Levels menu is also a great way to see if you have oversaturated any color channels. You can tell from the histogram that this image has a large spike in the highlights. By using the channel pull-down, you can bring up a display of each of the three color channels (red, green and blue) and see exactly which channel is causing the spike.

Blue channel - overall good curve, with no signs of clipping, other than on the left side. There’s no need to worry about this since overall, the image has an abundance of blacks and other dark colors as stated earlier.

Adjusting exposure and white balance levels is another great way to correct overall exposure issues. This histogram is used in a similar fashion, but with three arrows. The additional arrow in the middle is for the gray point (the mid-tone value of the image).

Green channel - similar to the blue channel, no noticeable clipping other than on the left side. The curve does not extend all the way to the right, and we can correct for this by sliding the bottom right arrow to the edge of the curve. In this case, the slider ended up at 237 instead of 255. This actually removed the cyan cast that was present on the anthias in the front of the image.

The Levels menu can be brought up by using the following steps under the main menu options: Image -> Adjustments -> Levels, or you can use the shortcut: Control + “L”.

If your original image was taken in lower light levels, you might see more ‘noise’ than you would like in the image. For those unfamiliar with noise, it is the graininess that you will see when you either boost ISO or use high ASA film (for those accustomed to shooting with film). Noise Ninja is a plug-in that you can purchase which allows you to download different noise profiles specific to your camera. I shoot with three different Nikons and a couple of different Canon DSLR’s so this program comes in handy.

It’s always best to nail the white balance in the original shot instead of having to correct for it later with the software. While most people say that you can shoot at almost any white balance and then correct for it later, I’ve found that’s not always the case.

If you did have an issue with white balance in the original image and did not correct for it in Adobe Camera Raw, then I would suggest using the gray point selection tool, and selecting a neutral color in

Red channel - this happens to be the color channel where there’s a jump in the reds in the highlights. Since the bar doesn’t jump above the chart, it’s not technically oversaturated and we can leave it as is.

Noise – The Noise Ninja

If you do not want to purchase additional software, there are other ways to remove noise from an image in Photoshop. The process is more tedious and entails using a mask, the Dust & Scratch filter, and then repainting the details back in.

photography

25

There is another method, if the noise in the picture isn’t too extreme, or is confined to certain areas in the picture. By using the Blur tool, you can remove a fair bit of noise if you spend some time with it. The end result isn’t as obvious as using either of the filters I mentioned above so in some cases, the result is worth the effort.

UNTREATED

MASK, DUST & SCRATCH FILTER, REPAINT

Certain menus in Photoshop are stacked on top of each other. To get a full list within each, right click for the full listings as seen here.

BLUR TOOL

Marine snow This refers to extraneous particles in the water column and includes everything from fish waste, to food, to bubbles. While they can be natural looking, it sometimes takes away from the aesthetic of the picture.

Similar to noise, you can employ the Dust & Scratch filter. If it’s just a small detail here or there, then using the spot healing brush may be more efficient.

BEFORE

To sharpen an image, we employ the Sharpen filter, and in this case the Unsharpen Mask.

The primary field we’re interested in here is the ‘Amount’ value.

The radius and threshold can be kept at their default values.

The standard value is 50%, which you can increase to your preferred value by raising the slider (max value is 500%).

Care must be taken at this point since an image can be over sharpened, which in certain instances creates a halo effect.

The final step is to add your signature to the image if you choose to. You can use the text brush to do this or you can use a custom designed signature that you have created and stored in a different file.

This concludes the step-by-step guide on how I process my pictures. There are other ways to do it, but I have found that the above works best for me. In fact, a few of the steps above have been converted to actions which can be run at the press of a button (macros), thereby streamlining the process. Hopefully you have KWreactQtrPage.QXD:PhosBan Page.QXD 6/3/10 12:20 PM found this information helpful and Qtr you can now go on to get the most out of your images.

A Sprung reactor ?

AFTER

Finishing touches - Resize, Sharpen, and Watermark For most website posting, images can be resized to 600 to 800 pixels long (in the longest dimension). For printing, I prefer to keep the original image at full size and re-crop as necessary.

Sharpening is the next necessary step since the picture was shot in RAW, which means that no processing was done in-camera (with the exception of white balance as stated earlier). If the image is shot in JPEG format, then the camera would have already applied its own processing, which usually includes sharpening of the picture. I prefer not to sharpen the picture until the very end.

Sharpening early in the process (in Adobe Camera Raw) will also sharpen noise or extraneous particles that you will be removing later in the processing anyway.

Patent-pending design by Julian Sprung

The KW Reactor™300 from Two Little Fishies automatically makes saturated kalkwasser by mixing freshwater with calcium hydroxide in a reaction chamber.

Use with any 200 gph standard powerhead with 1/2 inch ID hose, and a timer or a level switch to deliver top-off water from a reservoir. Includes check valve and flexible fittings, all for a price that won’t make your head spin.

For optimal results, operate your KW Reactor with Two Little Fishies Kalkwasser mix, the highest purity, highest efficacy calcium hydroxide. Available in 1lb, 4lb, and 25lb sizes.

Two Little Fishies Inc. 1007 Park Centre Blvd.

Miami Gardens, FL 33169 USA www.twolittlefishies.com

young aquarists

Next Gen Aquarists

at Gates Chili High School Article & Images by Dean Myslivecek

I

n 2008, Gates Chili High School, a middle income suburban school just west of Rochester, N.Y., received a grant that provided the high school with a state of the art science wing.

Within the new science wing is the schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;atriumâ&#x20AC;? containing 6 large aquaria in a dedicated lab space and 4 planters that stretch the length of the hallway.

The aquaria and planters were installed to help bridge the gap in science education and give the science teachers an innovative approach to informal education.

Each tank is equipped with its own biological and/or mechanical filtration as well as appropriate lighting. Our tanks are monitored and controlled by a Neptune System controller but are completely serviced and maintained by the students in the Aquarium Club.

The 6 aquaria are: 1. 240 gallon reef tank with a 50 gallon refugium 2. 340 gallon pelagic tank 3. Tropical freshwater tank 4. Trout breeding tank 5. New York State native and non-native tank 6. Turtle tank

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

young aquarists

27

We have a contract with a local company for assistance, consultation, food, livestock, and equipment as needed, but the students are in complete control. There are approximately 60 students in the Aquarium Club, governed by elected officials.

Students in the Aquarium Club are taught all of the specific needs for the maintenance of our animals. They feed, clean and service the tanks and create educational opportunities for the other students in our district. From sun coral to frogspawn, and mandarins to mollies, the students are responsible for all aspects of animal care. They learn about raising trout, crayfish, minnows, brine shrimp, sea anemones and even sea horses.

Students learn simple plumbing and electrical work, along with water quality and nutrient requirements. We recruit student leaders to assume the roles of Nutrition Curator, Facilities Curator, Education Curator, Service and Maintenance Curator, Water Quality Curator, and Husbandry Curator.

In 2009, we started propagating corals with wonderful success. We have two propagation tanks: a 60 gallon tank dedicated to SPS and a 30 gallon tank for soft corals and LPS (2nd and 3rd pictures). The students take care of these tanks too.

This year, we started breeding clown fish. We have two breeding clown pairs: Gold Stripe Maroons and False Perculas. So far, we have not been successful but I applaud the club’s efforts and look forward to their inevitable “parenthood”.

May 20, 2010 was our third annual 5th grade tour, a culminating activity that brings together the hard work of those students that work in the atrium. Every 5th grade class in our district comes to the high school to participate in a creative, hands-on, interactive tour of our science facilities.

There are 50 high school students that are a part of the Botany Club, Aquarium Club, Environmental Science and Unified Science classes who work together to develop and implement the tours. These students learn how to be professional docents as they provide information about our plants and animals.

We also provide science activities and games to help the 5th grade students learn in a fun and unique atmosphere. The high school students decorate the school, plan all the activities, and manage the tours from beginning to end.

Our science atrium is a thing of beauty. Students walking through the hallway can admire so many things to which they would not otherwise be exposed. The learning atmosphere is so conducive to science education that teachers can bring their students right into the atrium and teach hands-on in real time. Laboratory exercises are created to utilize the atrium as well as cross curricular activities such as LED lights from Technology studies and photography from Digital Photography instruction. The atrium provides students with traditional information in a non-traditional, informal manner, paving the way for our innovative approach to science education. We have created an opportunity to expose students to many environments which are foreign to them and teach them to recreate them and care for them.

Our school is better because of the atrium. School pride is at an all time high. Enrollment in science courses is also on the rise, and the faculty and staff will tell you that our work environment has improved. The atrium continues to be a talking point at meetings and many faculty and staff have shown added interest. I was able to create three staff development courses surrounding the atrium: two salt water marine ecosystem courses and one fresh water course. The result of that effort is an additional 24 more aquariums throughout the district managed by teachers and their students.

Teachers are now taking our “tool” back to their own buildings to help educate their own grade levels. The informal education taking place in the science atrium in the high school is catching on and being passed throughout our district. What a testament to our efforts and the educational value of our aquariums!

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Don’t miss RHM sponsored MACNA 2010 September 3-5 in Orlando, Florida! (www.macna2010.com)

Good Things Come

in Small Packages A Review of the MP10w ES from EcoTech Marine

Review & Images by Jim Adelberg

O

ur hobby has made great strides in the last few years, particularly in regards to simulating natural water circulation around the living coral in our reef tanks. For many good reasons, our hobby has abandoned the old saw of ‘random, turbulent flow’ in favor of surging and pulsing circulation which is much closer to what corals experience in the wild. This type of flow also reduces the occurrence of ‘dead spots’ in reef tanks where detritus can gather. Most of the earliest advances in controllable wave flow generation were on pumps sized for medium to large reef tanks so it’s great to see that manufacturers are now producing these devices for the smaller tank crowd.

Two issues of critical concern in nano and pico sized reefs are available real estate and heat management. The MP10w ES from EcoTech Marine addresses both of these concerns by mounting the electrical motor outside of the aquarium while only the low profile ‘wet side’ goes into the tank. This has the added benefit of removing the hazard of any underwater electrical connections. The MP10w ES is rated to produce between 200 and 1,575 gallons per hour of flow using only 6-18 watts of power.

EcoTech has also brought a new generation of controller to the table with 2 new preset mode functions. In addition to the short and long pulse (wave) modes and the reef crest and lagoonal random modes, there is now a ‘Tidal Swell’ mode and a ‘Nutrient Transport’ mode.

EcoTech describes the Tidal Swell Mode as follows: “Over the course of several hours, the flow pattern will go from very chaotic with an emphasis on left to right flow direction to an emphasis on right to left flow direction, all the while experiencing a calm period in between and followed by a great surge of flow at the very end of the cycle.”

And the Nutrient Transport Mode is described as “a two phase program consisting of wave motion to stir up detritus and surging motion to move the detritus into your overflow where it can be skimmed out.”

Another difference between this controller and some of the older VorTech controllers is that the EcoSmart has a real-time graphical display of the wave functions. This is provided by a series of LED’s that correlate to the speed of the wave cycle being produced by the pump. This makes tuning the pulse modes for optimal surge flow quite easy.

Overall, I think this product is well worth the investment where space and heat transfer issues must be considered and did I mention it’s really cute! Thank you to EcoTech Marine for providing the test unit for this review knowing I would feel free to say what I thought!

CORRECTION FOR HYDOR’S WAVEMAKER REVIEW: In last year’s review of the Hydor Wavemaker 4 controller, I complained about a lack of extension wires for the controllable Koralias. I should have done more research as Hydor does in fact offer these extensions and was kind enough to send me a set. Sorry and Thanks!

The surging water flow from the MP-10w helps keep particulates in suspension.

The low profile ‘wet side’ of the VorTech MP-10 is a big plus in small tanks where real estate is limited.

Tightly branched acropora colonies benefit from surging and oscillating MagFoxRHMqtrpg.QXD:PhosBan Qtr Page.QXD flow which helps move sediment off of the coral.

6/3/10

Have you got us in the palm of your hand yet ?

Two Little Fishies MagFox® is another patent-pending invention from aquarium expert Julian Sprung. It scrubs aquarium hoses, pipes, and siphon tubes to remove algal films, encrusting invertebrates, or other coatings. Simply insert the inner part in one end of the tube and just use your hand to move the circular outer piece to any position. Powerful neodymium magnets and an abrasive pad on the inner piece make it easy to scrub away anything that obstructs water flow, so you can maintain optimal perfomance of all your filters, and eliminate unsightly algal growths in the plumbing. Use it even when the filters are running!

Two Little Fishies Inc. 1007 Park Centre Blvd.

Miami Gardens, FL 33169 USA www.twolittlefishies.com

1:28 PM