64g Tokyo tank

[Anonymous]

Some new pictures of old acquisitions this time. First of the pink zoas I bought a while ago. They were originally too far back in the tank to get a decent shot of, but so far back they got overgrown by some Dictyota so I had to take them out to do some weeding. I put them back in a more accessible position to keep an eye on them to make sure the Dictyota doesn't come back and because I'm not sure they were really thriving directly under the MH.

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010094.jpg[/rimg]

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010095.jpg[/rimg]

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The second lot of shots is because I'd never really got any decent shots of the Tosaka (Stereonephthya?) and I know it's probably the one that CJ's most interested in. :wink:

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010098_1.jpg[/rimg]

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010096.jpg[/rimg]

 

[Anonymous]

That's a really sweet looking softy.

Some nice algae in that last shot too.

 

[Anonymous]

Yes, that's the Dictyota I've been fighting (thread in the GRD). Actually, that bit's no longer there and neither are any of the other bad patches of the stuff, as I spent about 2 hours last weekend but one methodically taking the rocks out and scraping it off (though there are still some small patches which I might have a go at this weekend). I'm under no illusions that that will beat it for good though and have some Algaefix on order from Premium Aquatics which should hopefully take care of it (another reefer here has had good results with Dictyota using the same stuff). What's holding up the order is also having ordered a couple of reverse flow reactors for GFO and GAC which should also help keep algae from taking off again. Plus I'll shortly move from 10% to 20% water changes, as I have another large container coming to help me mix up more water at once.

My latest headache is a fungus on some of my zoas which kills them fairly rapidly. I have Lugol's solution on order with the same Premium Aquatics order, but I don't think it will get here quickly enough, particularly with Christmas and having to wait for the reactors on order. So I'll try and find something today to use as an alternative dip. :x

Actually, this isn't a bad point at which to update this thread with a couple of new acquisitions. I'll upload some photos, hang on.

 

[Anonymous]

What looks to me to be an Acanthastrea echinata.

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010002.jpg[/rimg]

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010027-1.jpg[/rimg]

Which came with a hitchhiker. Kind of drab, but looks to me to be an encrusting Montipora? Anyone have an alternative suggestions? That gives me a bit of a positioning dilemma, unless I somehow separate the two (tricky without a dremel).

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010025.jpg[/rimg]

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010026.jpg[/rimg]

Also a friend gave me a couple of RBTAs. They're a bit bleached, but otherwise looking healthy, eating well. Picture taken with the powerheads off, so they're a bit more open-looking than normal.

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010003.jpg[/rimg]

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010008.jpg[/rimg]

Not only that, but he gave me his A.ocellaris pair! I didn't originally intend to get Ocellaris, preferring Percs, but the coloration on this pair is really nice, so I'm actually very pleased. They've not gone into the RBTAs yet, but apparently were in his tank, so I'm hoping they will eventually find their way back in.

Apologies for the poor shots. Taking pictures of fish is beyond me.

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010023.jpg[/rimg]

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Another bad shot, of my firefish.

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010004.jpg[/rimg]

 

[Anonymous]

And with that last shot, you can see one of the remaining patches of Dictyota. :x

 

[Anonymous]

Which I've just removed at the same time as doing a water change. The battle continues...

 

[hitmanhoos]

Nice Acan!

Have you checked out this treatment for the zoas? http://www.zoaid.com/articles004.php

I had a problem with a colony. I don't know if it was zoa pox or not but the treatment helped.

 

[Anonymous]

Thank you! Good advice, but I can't get hold of Furan (I'm guessing it's a medicine sold through veterinarians?), as it's not available here in Japan or through the US online vendors. I tried a dip in Seachem's Reef Dip last night, but one of the affected corals is not showing huge signs of improvement, so I will re-dip it if there are still no signs of improvement after another couple of days.

 

[hitmanhoos]

I think I got it at Foster & Smith, but I don't know if they ship to Japan.

http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/p ... catid=4827

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks again. I'm sure whether they ship to Japan either, but it's encouraging to see an online reef vendor selling it. Maybe if I ask Premium Aquatics, they might be able to lay their hands on some for me.

 

[Anonymous]

Doing nice Tom. I have to refrain from looking at you tank. Every time I do I feel the urge to start another tank and I am just not there yet.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks Mark, it's nice to get feedback! I'm struggling with a number of issues at the moment (zoa fungus, Dictyota), but so far it's still giving me a lot of pleasure. Thinking about next moves now and the idea that I might need about 30-50% more live rock is slowly gaining traction..

Hope the tank materialises for you when it makes sense for it to. I had over 4 years without one in the end and that was pretty darn frustrating.

 

[Anonymous]

Thinking about next moves now and the idea that I might need about 30-50% more live rock is slowly gaining traction..

Nah. I can understand the appeal since it'd give you a lot more spots for coral placement, but fwiw I like the look you have going right now.

 

[Anonymous]

I understand what you're saying and I was probably overstating how much more I'd buy (more like 15-20%). It's the rear of the tank to the right that is a barren area at the moment and I'd quite like to have the island on the right bend round at the rear towards the middle. It's one of the brightest areas of the tank and it'd be nice to use it for something.

In other news, it turns out that the shot of the firefish above was the last one of it alive. My wife found it dead this afternoon wedged between a couple of rocks. At this stage, I'm not sure what caused it, but am assuming my isopod problem never actually went away, but instead kept dining on the little goby at night when I couldn't see it.

 

[Anonymous]

This evening I took out a colony of zoas that wasn't doing well (receding in the middle) and dipped it in Coral Pro X, Seachem Reef Dip apparently having done nothing to stop the decline. I also decided to remove some tube worms (or whatever you call those things that have two fine tentacles instead of the feather head of a feather duster but otherwise look alike), as I wondered if the sheer number of them (with bodies wedged between the polyps of the zoas) might actually be irritating the zoas. To my surprise, I found not only a small sundial snail, but also a sea spider. Nasty little things didn't seem to have been knocked out by the Coral Pro X (the sea spider held on for a bit). I don't know if that means I was wrong in diagnosing fungus on this particular colony, but the dip can't have hurt either. The purple and green colony, by the time it was beyond saving, was falling apart and smelling bad, so undoubtedly something like a fungus was to blame. I've not dipped more than another couple of the zoas, as none of them are looking too bad. The ones I dipped was a small frag of the green and purples, just in case they are harboring the fungus and the pinks, given that they always have a few closed polyps. Otherwise, everything is fully open at the moment, but I'll be keeping an eye on things.

I hope my reply to Mark wasn't a case of famous last words.

 

[Anonymous]

I'm starting to think that I might be getting ahead of myself in suspecting an isopod in the death of my firefish. A friend pointed out, that with their habit of retreating to the rockwork at night, it could have been a crab. I certainly removed one moderately large crab when I was cleaning the dictyota previously (maybe just over an inch long). Time to start trapping I think.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks Mark, it's nice to get feedback! I'm struggling with a number of issues at the moment (zoa fungus, Dictyota), but so far it's still giving me a lot of pleasure. Thinking about next moves now and the idea that I might need about 30-50% more live rock is slowly gaining traction..

Hope the tank materialises for you when it makes sense for it to. I had over 4 years without one in the end and that was pretty darn frustrating.

Maybe with the new job. I have been stating quite often I want a new tank. Seeing that my birthday is in March I may be able to start getting the pieces.

 

[Anonymous]

Well, Mark, just to try and tempt you some more before your birthday, here are my latest purchases.

What I think is a Cyphastrea, but which was marked as a Mukashi coral (enter that into Google in Japanese and it throws up Stylocoeniella guentheri, but Cyphastrea are unknown here AFAIK, so I wouldn't be surprised if it were mislabeled).

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010069-2.jpg[/rimg]

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010056.jpg[/rimg]

A pretty, tank grown pinky-purple montipora.

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010059_1.jpg[/rimg]

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010065_1.jpg[/rimg]

And, oh my god, he didn't. He did. He really did. 8O

Yes, that's right, my first Acro frag. Very rare to find anywhere in Japan selling frags and at this good price (about $20). Here's hoping I can get it to flourish.

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010057-1.jpg[/rimg]

[rimg]http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab238/TheEscapedApe/Long%20awaited/P1010065.jpg[/rimg]

 

[Anonymous]

8) looking nice Tom

 

[Anonymous]

Looks nice Tom. I was measuring out a space today. Time to start negations with the wife.