Samhain's 50 Gallon Long Reef

[beeguiles]

Here's my only sixline picture. Kinda old but the only one ive been able to catch.

 

[ZyberGoby]

Here's my only sixline picture. Kinda old but the only one ive been able to catch.

That's awesome love the flame scallop :D and great shot of your sixline

 

[beeguiles]

Thanks zyber. Sadly I no longer have the flame scallop. I'm never getting another one.

 

[Samhain]

And speaking of six lines, I came home today to find my Cyan dead from apparently picking on the wrong fish. He was fine this morning when I left, but when I came home he was dead on the bottom of the tank. When I scooped him out and did a brief postmortem, I noted a line of puncture wounds down his side, approximately consistent with what I estimate to be the spines on Rose and Floyd (more likely Rose, as she's a bit bigger). Cyan had a history of briefly picking on the new fish in the tank before letting them alone. I guess this time he picked the wrong fish!

I'm still testing all the levels, and so far everything is coming back absolutely normal. No white spots were noted on Cyan or any of the other fish at the time of the alleged finning. I hope Coral and Nemo decide to leave well enough alone! Onyx never picks on anyone, so I'm not worried about her.

 

[beeguiles]

Awww that sucks. I'm Sry.

 

[motorcyclereefer]

Oh no!!!!!

 

[Samhain]

Well, the tank's staying pretty. I added another powerhead to combat my cyano that's been a chronic problem for the last few weeks. I miss Saffron and Cyan, but Rose and Floyd seem to be doing well. Coral and Nemo are healthy and happy, as is Onyx. And while it may label me as a reef-geek, I am super-excited to announce that one of my zoas has sprouted a new head, and so has one of my Acans! These are the first signs of coral growth in my tank, so that lets me know that I'm doing something right. Unfortunately, neither coral sprouted a head where it's convenient to get a photo, but oh well. I'm just happy they're growing!

 

[little_fish]

Congrats momma!

 

[Samhain]

Thank you! I really do feel a little like a proud mama.

 

[Samhain]

I've been feeding all my larger corals with a piece of shrimp every 2-3 days. I know they're mostly photosynthetic, but I figured it couldn't hurt. I also know they aren't sentient, but now every time I turn off the powerheads and protein skimmer, the feeding tentacles come out!

 

[Samhain]

Corals today!

This is the acan with the new head.

This is the new Zoa baby.

And here's the rest of the coral crew.

 

[Samhain]

Floyd hanging out upside down.

Rose and Onyx in their hidey hole.

 

[Samhain]

A better shot of Rose.

 

[Samhain]

My latest addition. I proudly introduce Scarlet!

And a rearrangement of the rocks that will hopefully result in a temporary lessening of clownish aggression. I don't want them hurting Scarlet.

 

[little_fish]

Nice fish! I just love those flames!

 

[Samhain]

Me too! Hopefully she works out in the tank. I need the clowns to leave her alone, and for her to leave the coral alone. I'm so excited to finally have her!

 

[Samhain]

Stupid powerhead! I had one bust loose from its suction cup attachment last night sometime between 1 AM and 7 AM. It was pointed straight down at the sand bed when I woke up, so of course I have a sandstorm this morning! GRRRRRR!!!! I just hope I can correct the problem, the fish aren't unduly stressed, and everything goes back to normal. So now I'm down one large powerhead until I can get another one. And I have a sandstorm that I need to correct. I have all the powerheads off for now until the sand calms down.

 

[Samhain]

Roughly 18 hours out from disaster, and I've lost one frag under the sandbed (zoas, no clue where in the tank they are). I'm going to keep sifting for them, but I've sifted all through the sand near where the frag was located to no avail. The water is still cloudy, but at least I can see through to the back of the tank. I have two fish still unaccounted for (Rose and Onyx). Floyd was found half buried under a rock in his favorite hidey hole, unfortunately deceased. I'm feeling really down about the whole thing now. I'm trying my best to keep a happy, healthy tank, and tragedy keeps striking! Sarah, I think I'll join you in salt-tank misery. Care to share a beer and commiserate?

 

[Samhain]

Here are some post-storm tank shots.

FTS

Scarlet

Coral and Nemo

And a closer up of the right side of the tank

To give an idea of the scope of the sandstorm, look at the second pic of the clowns. Nemo is near the top next to the heater. You can barely see him at 18 hours post-storm, and the tank is only 13 inches deep.

 

[Samhain]

Well, the heartbreak continues. I came home from work today and Coral and Nemo are MIA. They always come out and say hi when I get home, and today? Nothing. And I can't find any sign of where they've gone, either. The only thing I can figure is that one of my additions resulted in a fishie disease being introduced into the tank. That's the only thing I can think of that would result in the inverts, corals, and parameters all being fine and supposedly hardy fish dropping like flies. The tank is on lockdown until the end of January at least, perhaps even into February to ensure that any remnants of the disease are gone. As of this posting, I believe I am down to one tiny little fish, and I don't know what tomorrow will hold. Is there an upside? The only bright side I can find is that my corals and inverts are all doing great. :sad: