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Category Archives: Opinion
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Arrested by the Tang Police: I Refuse to Confess!
The Poster Child of the Tang Police: Paracanthurus hepatus is actually very site-specific and not range as widely over the reef as do other tang species.
Most marine aquarists who frequent online message boards have heard the term “Tang Police” (abbreviated here as TP). Some are even members of this group themselves, while a few other unlucky souls have been “arrested” by them. Conversely, there are also a few people willing to challenge their assertions regarding the swimming space requirements of Acanthurids (surgeonfishes and tangs). For those who haven’t heard the term, it will help to define the phrase “Tang Police.” The best way to identify an officer in this force is by hearing him LOUDLY express his opinions regarding the amount of swimming space required by tangs (or other species). MORE: Arrested by the Tang Police: I Refuse to Confess!… More:
Posted in Corals, Fish, Opinion, Science, Tanks, Uncategorized
Tagged author, corals, dry, hippo tang, officer, paracanthurus hepatus, physics, police, policy, science, tanks
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Kessil Teases New Top Secret Panel Light Fixture
When it comes to aquarium illumination, the guys at Kessil seem to have the Midas touch. Since starting their foray into the aquarium realm back in 1Q 2011, at least in the eye of the public, each of their entries onto the market have been extremely well received. Their first product, the A150 and its variations, debuted with a huge splash, and that’s probably an understatement. Since then, the A350 and A360 have racking up even more fans to the brand, impressing us greatly along the way. To date, each of the Kessil products designed for aquarium use have come in the form of LED pendants, and it would appear that the lighting specialists are toying with the idea of branching out, at least where form factors are concerned. They recently teased all of us aquarium nerds with a couple of digital renderings of a potential Kessil LED panel light fixture over on their Facebook page. And from the looks of it, they’re on the right track. Pendant style lighting is sleek and stylish, but not everyone is a fan, choosing to stick with long fixtures instead. Each style has its pros and cons, and if you polled forum users, we know you would get a thousand different opinions. Regardless, there is a real market out there for light fixtures, so it’s no surprise that companies like Kessil are thinking about adding them to their offering. So, what sort of gear is Kessil looking at? Well, their latest digitally conceptualized fixture, which is just being called a “secret” Kessil panel light, is around two feet long and draws approximately 100w. The renderings show off a sleek, low profile light that can obviously be suspended over an aquarium. The hanging brackets that are attached to the fixture look remarkably like on-tank mounting legs, but again this is all a digital drawing board at this point. A handful of buttons grace the front of the fixture, a large top mounted fan provides activine cooling, and there might be some sort of antenna located on the right hand side of the light, though it’s hard to tell. We’re sure that the fixture, if it ever comes to fruition, will play nice with the Neptune Systems Aquacontroller, and going off Kessil’s track record, we know we won’t be disappointed. We honestly like the look of this fixture, and it’s a huge step up from the first concepts that were being rolled out (see below).… More:
Posted in Opinion, Uncategorized
Tagged aquarium equipment, aquarium lighting, Kessil, led lighting, Opinion
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The Inside Scoop on Fish Tank Kings Season 2 on Nat Geo
Last year, episodes of the series Fish Tank Kings aired on Nat Geo WILD providing viewers with insights into what it takes to build amazing aquariums. We got glimpses of some very unique places, including collecting deep water fish on a submarine in the Caribbean and a behind the scenes look of what it takes to transport a large shark.
For the new season of Fish Tank Kings, we have taken the best elements from the first season, like the cool trips to exotic locations, underwater expeditions and remarkable feats of aquarium construction, and amplified them on a grand scale while reducing the less popular elements. Even non-aquarium enthusiasts will find it hard not to be impressed by some of the extreme builds, like turning a Volkswagen Minibus into a functional aquarium, creating a zoo exhibit for the near-extinct Panamanian Golden Frog or a display to help rehabilitate injured Sea Turtles.… More:
Posted in Industry, Opinion, Tanks
Tagged fish tank, live corals, remarkable feats, volkswagen minibus, water fish
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New Diablo DCS In-sump Protein Skimmers Coming from Reef Octopus
Have we mentioned how much of a commitment Reef Octopus is making to the direct current controllable water pumps? Well, if you haven’t been following along, we will sump it up with saying that Reef Octopus is become well entrenched in the world of DC pumps and they are only digging in deeper by the day. Their latest DC pump powered products are a pair of cone shaped protein skimmers in the Diablo lineup. The Diablo DCS-150int and DCS-170int will be hitting stores soon and they have plenty of nice features that will make them solid performers for any reef setting. The 150 and 170 internal skimmer models are rates for 125 and 200 gallons respectively, which are somewhat conservative numbers in our opinion. They differ only in come diameter and height, witht the 170 being an inch larger in both height and come diameter. Both skimmers have all of the standard features of any cone skimmer, with a Diablo DCS 3500 pinwheel pump powering both. Diablo DCS 150 In-Sump Protein Skimmer Rated for Aquariums up to 125 Gallons Footprint: 13″ x 8.27″ Body Diameter: 6″ Height: 22.45″ Powered by: Diablo DCS 3500 Pinwheel Pump Max Air: 900 L/H (31.5 SCFH)* Power Consumption: 25watts Diablo DCS 170 In-Sump Protein Skimmer Rated for Aquariums up to 200 Gallons Footprint: 13″ x 9″ Body Diameter: 7″ Height: 23.45″ Powered by: Diablo DCS 3500 Pinwheel Pump Max Air: 900 L/H (31.5 SCFH)* Power Consumption: 25watts Common Features: Solid Constructed Hybrid (half cone) Skimmer Body for Greater Foamate Stabilization Over Sized 6″ Collection Cup with Drain Bubble Dispersant Plate Precision Control Output Valve 6 Controllable Speed Settings Detachable Controller with Integrated Memory High Air Intake Efficient & Quiet Slow Startup MORE: New Diablo DCS In-sump Protein Skimmers Coming from Reef Octopus… More:
Can unusual suspects reform the aquarium livestock trade?
Opinion By Ret Talbot Excerpt from CORAL, May/June 2013 I was having a conversation last night with a person who knows his way around the marine aquarium livestock trade and hobby. We were discussing the future of both trade and hobby in light of the increasing number of potential restrictions to keeping fishes and other marine animals. Any of these—the current NOAA proposal to list 66 species of coral under the Endangered Species Act or the Invasive Fish and Wildlife Prevention Act, recently reintroduced in the U.S. Congress, for example—could end the aquarium trade as we know it. So could recent, well-funded efforts by, amongst others, the Environmental Defense Fund and the Defenders of Wildlife. I suppose the stunned outrage and anger with which some aquarists have responded to these threats—real and perceived—on social media and in online forums is understandable, but should we really be stunned or outraged? MORE: Can unusual suspects reform the aquarium livestock trade?… More:
Posted in Conservation, Fish, Industry, Opinion, Uncategorized
Tagged advanced aquarist, banggai, coral excerpt, image, marine, project, public aquariums, world
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Goldfish Prosthetics
Fish are often times considered part of the family, like a dog or cat. So in the case of Einstein the Fantail Goldfish the same sentiment was payed towards his inability to remain buoyant or swim. A crippling disease causes some fish to loose their buoyancy as it affects their swim bladder, and most fall victim to the crippling effects of not being able feed themselves or aerate their lungs through swimming. But in the case of Einstein the Goldfish his owner (Leighton Naylor) used some recycled aquarium parts, and a bit of ingenuity, to produce a lifejacket-like device that allows the fish to remain buoyant. The genius lies in the amount of captured gas within the airline pieces; it is enough to keep the goldfish buoyant without sending him racing to surface: Read more about the story and hear some of Leighton’s comments here!… More:
Posted in Equipment, Fish, Funny, Opinion, Science, Tanks, Too Cute, Uncategorized
Tagged Aquarium, goldfish, leighton, naylor, swim bladder
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Orphek Atlantik Shines Bright at SWFMAS 6th Annual Reef Conference
There is no doubt that LED lighting is one of 2013’s hottest topics. That shined true this past weekend for Orphek’s latest release, the Atlantik LED aquarium lighting fixture. With its sleek European design, unsurpassed clean, crisp lines and enough power for any reef aquarium, the Atlantik’s turned quite a few heads this last weekend at the South West Florida Marine Aquarium’s 6th annual reef conference.
Frag Junky displayed Orphek’s flagship lights over their frag tanks at the reefing event and had this to say about the lights: “The power and color that these lights produce along with the easy controllability of these lights are incredible. We are so excited to … More:
Posted in Corals, Events, Eye Candy, Fish, Industry, Invertebrates, Opinion, Tanks, Uncategorized
Tagged custom leds, florida marine, lighting fixture, marine-aquarium, Zoas
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Comments on Endangered Species Act and Corals
16 Apr, 2013 Re: Listing of 66 Reef-Building Coral Species; Reclassification of Elkhorn Acropora palmata and Staghorn Acropora cervicornis I had been following the proposed listing for several years. It was not until the proposed rule was published that I had time to fully read the Biological Review Team’s (BRT) Status Review Report (SRR). I must admit I made the assumption that NMFS would do a fine job reviewing the topic at hand. It become apparent in my review of the BRT’s assessment that they had little to no knowledge of one of the key areas upon which the SRR is based, namely the trade in corals (including those for home aquariums, as well as dried curio items). I am writing to; 1) provide additional background and information on the trade in corals, noting some dramatic changes particularly regarding live specimens, that has been omitted from this review, 2) to question and express my concern over listing of species as endangered with almost a complete lack of any data or information. While it cannot be understated, this process is an enormous task for any agency to undertake. Reviewing the status of 82 species with ranges cover two vast regions of the World’s oceans presents challenges the authors of the ESA likely never envisioned. Corals are often not discrete populations and thus some of the petitioned “species” are of questionable status. Our current understanding of the topic is lacking and this lack of understanding makes it nearly impossible for anyone to determine with a level of certainty what a population, species or hybrid is. Our knowledge of Pacific corals is so limited that the MORE: Comments on Endangered Species Act and Corals… More:
Posted in Conservation, Corals, Fish, Industry, Invertebrates, Opinion, Science, Uncategorized
Tagged corals, curio, impa, key areas, reclassification
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Product Review: Doser One Evolution Automatic Dosing Pumps
Keeping short polyped stony corals (SPS) requires dedication and knowledge to maintain the fine balance those invertebrates demand to flourish. Besides excellent water clarity, optimal temperature range and pH values, hard corals secrete skeletons of calcium carbonate in order to grow and therefore need to be supplemented on regular basis. There are several methods of dosing Calcium, Carbonate, Magnesium and optional trace elements with two being most popular in recent years- the so called 2-part dosing regime and an original Balling method (or it’s variation called “Balling light”, that came from Europe and is named after a man who developed and published it, a great German reefer, Hans-Werner Balling). Whichever you choose (and they are quite similar to each other) to keep your SPS corals happy and growing in your aquarium, they both require dosing liquid solutions of Calcium, Alkalinity (Carbonate) and Magnesium on a daily basis. In order to maintain ionic balance in a reef tank, the key with dosing liquid solution is to add small amounts throughout the day rather than 1-2 large doses daily. Unfortunately, most of us cannot babysit our reefs all day long and need a little bit of automation in the dosing department. Here’s where dosing pumps come to play…… More:
Preliminary Review of Miguel Tolosa’s Practical Coral Farming 2nd Ed.
Recently, our mailbox greeted us with a pleasant surprise in the form of a new book, the 2nd edition of Practical Coral Farming by Miguel Tolosa. Admittedly, we haven’t read the book from cover to cover since we’ve only had it a couple of days, hence the reason why this is just a preliminary review, but in our limited hands on time, we’ve enjoyed both the flow of the text and the information it contains. As expected, the 141-page soft cover book is loaded down with info about corals and fragging techniques, but to our surprise it also has plenty of insider information that sort of lays out how many of the gears move within the industry. As with just about any coral centric book, Practical Coral Farming was full of images, most of which were taken by the author, which isn’t always the case in books these days. There were images from others in the aquarium trade, including several from Marc Levenson that focused on coral pests. But what we were blown away by was the quality of those images. There were plenty of times where we just stopped to look at the pictures, often bypassing much of the text as we excitedly flipped the pages. MORE: Preliminary Review of Miguel Tolosa’s Practical Coral Farming 2nd Ed.… More:
Posted in Corals, Equipment, Industry, Opinion, Science, Uncategorized
Tagged aquarium trade, blown away, Fragging, lays, pests
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Julian Sprung’s NOAA / ESA Commentary
11:59 PM EST April 5th, 2013 has passed and Regulations.gov appears to still be accepting public commentary, so you have another 11 hours or so to say your piece online. [Update, comment period has now closed, you can Two Little Fishies, and a member of the CORAL Sr. Advisory Board, shares his opinions on why failing to speak up isn’t an option. MORE: Julian Sprung’s NOAA/ESA Commentary… More:
Posted in Conservation, Corals, Fish, Industry, Opinion, Science, Uncategorized
Tagged endangered corals, julian, king, NOAA, Opinion, policy, science, sprung
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Reef Threads Podcast #126
Read the article:
Reef Threads Podcast #126… More:
Posted in Corals, Fish, Opinion, Photography, Podcast, Tanks, Uncategorized
Tagged article 3a, reef, threads
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