#pico reef

[letsgetsalty]

He uh. Twisted himself in half.

[fishproblem]

idk how many times I have to say it but go follow me on ig goddammit

instagram.com/fishproblem

[paws-gills-and-polyps]

As requested by @letsgetsalty. Needs a little love still, going to move some more zoas over from the grow out. All the inverts except for Godzilla (cleaner shrimp) were hiding. He's probably going to go in the grow out, but he came from a tank that was infested with velvet so he's got to stay in the 4g for several months.

[horsesarecreatures]

Just finished some late night aquascaping. The tank got it’s first infestation brown diatom algae (it’s very common in tanks that have recently completed cycling) so I took out the rocks and rinsed them, scraped the sides of the tank with an old credit card, and stirred up the sand. Normally I don’t care about algae that much but diatoms are truly ugly so I don’t want to give them any chance to get established. Luckily they came off very easily. 

I decided to move the two preexisting rocks to the back. I also added another old purple coraline one I had on hand to create a little cave. Let me know how you think this looks... I’m not crazy about it but I don’t hate it either, and I think this arrangement makes the tank look bigger. Ideally I think the top rock would have a better shape but it’s what I had on hand. I don’t want to spend any money on the hardscape and buy a new rock but next time I go to the beach I’ll keep an eye out for potential replacements.

Yesterday I went to the aquarium store to see if they had any macroalgae to replace the taxifola that died. They only had chaeto but it was cheap so I bought half a cup. I like the dark green color even though it’s not as attractive shape-wise as the fern-like taxifola. I almost got a couple of soft coral frags but I’m glad I held off because having them would have made removing the algae on the rocks very difficult, and it’s probably a process I’ll have to repeat a few times. 

The damselfish is super cute but has been hiding a lot. 

[jinx-getmeabetta]

I may or may not have spent over $200 on a single coral today 🤷🏻‍♀️

[teruyalab]

How to Care for NPS Coral

Because these corals do not photosynthesize, they need to receive their energy from food. This can be problematic because the corals need to have good water quality while also consuming food constantly.

So what type of foods do you feed and how often? You will want to feed a mixture of food with a range of particle sizes, ranging from tiny phytoplankton to small rotifers and larger calanus copepods & mysis shrimp. Obviously the corals with big mouths want the big food and vice versa.

The corals should be fed every day a few times a day. The amount of food you feed depends on the size of your tank and filtration. A clever way to base your feeding regimen would be to find an existing NPS tank similar to yours, mimic its feeding schedule, and adjust your feedings based on your corals’ response.

Automatic feeders are very popular with NPS tanks. It takes out a considerable amount of the manual labor. These feeders are usually DIY and involve running your plumbing through a refrigerator to keep the food cold. Dry foods can be added with an automatic feeder that is available at your local fish store.

In the wild many corals like Tubastrea are closed during the day; in your tank you are able to enjoy them at all times once we train them by feeding them when the lights are on. Some azoox corals like Dendronepthya are found right on top the reef standing next to Acropora.

Other non- photosynthetic corals, including Distichopora, require darkness; their tissue is susceptible to other organisms growing on them. In my experience, it is much easier to have a non- photosynthetic tank than NPS corals in a mixed reef. You can manipulate the light without it costing other corals.

NPS corals need just as much current as you would put on your SPS tank. They rely on water movement to capture their food; their polyps’ position can manipulate the water around them in order to make the current most effective.

Additionally, you need a superior filtration system. Non- photosynthetic reefers have used refugiums, UV sterilizers, biopellets, and other media. These are used in addition to your standard skimmer, carbon, and water changes.

Non- photosynthetic corals require love, care, and tedious work. It is well worth it because they are mysterious and we need to have a better understanding of them.

[fishproblem]

you heard it here first, kids. fishproblem’s going salty.

[fishproblem]

This algae is.... desirable?