Doing a tidepool experiment....

[Playdope]

Doing a tidepool experiment (lightly stocked tanks with tidepool organisms).... the tanks will only be setup for 2 weeks.

Do you think filtration is neccesary? If not, how often should water testing/changes be done? These tanks range from about 15-25 gals. One person recommended putting in Ulva seaweed to keep water chem. ideal. What are your opinions. Our main resource is Bodega Bay.

Thanks,
Jon

 

[shr00m]

i dont know much about tidepools but id say if its gonna be setup 2 weeks it would need filtration, or massive water changes.

 

[Joe DeSantis]

Tidepools are really cool. I was just in Maui and got a chance to really explore them. I found tiger cowries, algae blennies, blue eyed hermit crabs (black and white striped legs), huge cucumbers (8"), collector urchins, and various macro algaes plus many other critters. I would think that if you put a lot of these organisms in the set-up you would be fine. Of course any closed system will need to get water changes. How about if you set it up in very low 5"-8" acrylic tanks that are very wide and long. defenitely use live rock because that will aid with biological filtration. You could then disguise a standpipe w/ a drain in on of the corners or something to make maintenance easy. Just put a ball valve underneath and open it to drain waste water..

good luck!

 

[Anonymous]

If your collecting from tidepools in and around Bodega Bay, water movement (power heads -air srones)and a maybe 2 water changes should be suffice. Those critters are bullet proof in our tidepools. The clingfish practicly can live in air, go for some of them and some tidepool shrimps as well. Our piscavour(sp?) anemones are bullet proof, they can live in reef tanks (mid 70's) even. I don't think ulva well help you any if your only doing this for 2 weeks. Sounds fun, is this for a classroom?

 

[Playdope]

Yes, this is actually for a classroom. The specimens will be from Bodega Bay as well. You're not the first person to tell me the organisms from Bodega are super hardy/bulletproof... but I really want to make sure we are able to keep them alive. When you said 2 water changes, did you mean one for each week of the two week experiment?
Jon

 

[Anonymous]

I think you'll need some sort of filtration or at least water changes twice a week. They call 'em tidal pools for a reason :wink: .

 

[UnderGrad]

Jon,
PM Matt Wandell about this topic. He works over in that department here at UC Davis and can give you some good pointers. I hope that you're planning on keeping the water at around the mid 60's even if some of the stuff is "bulletproof". There are lots of cool things in our tide pools that aren't... like nudies! HTH.

Arlan

 

[Anonymous]

When I say bullet proof, I'm talking 90 degrees in the summer and when the waves don't reach them, it may be several days before they get refreshed! BTW, many of the nudi's in the "tidepools" are very hardy, I've kept them in cups for a long time. I'm talking from expereince as I've spent most my life in and around the very area he's going to be collecting from.