Didogobius & Axiopsis. Credit: Wirtz 2008

 The pairing of pistol shrimps with watchman gobies is a common sight on Indo-Pacific coral reefs, as well as in the home aquarium, but few aquarists are aware of the strange relationship that exists along the Western African coastline between an altogether different goby and shrimp. Discovered only in the last decade, this poorly known symbiosis has yet to appear in the aquarium trade and is all but unknown outside of the scientific literature, but its uniqueness warrants a closer look. 

D. amicuscaridus & Axiopsis. Credit: Schliewen & Kovacic 2008

 As a brief review, the watchman gobies familiar to aquarists originate from the Indo-Pacific and belong to a handful of genera (primarily Cryptocentrus, Amblyeleotris, and Stonogobiops), while their crustacean companions are all classified in the hyperdiverse pistol shrimp genus Alpheus. A similar relationship exists as well in the Western Atlantic with the goby Nes longus and the pistol shrimp Alpheus floridanus, though the two are rarely collected. Things get altogether different in the Eastern Atlantic, as there are seemingly no known pistol shrimp/goby pairings documented. Filling this niche instead is a strange crustacean called Axiopsis serratifrons, known commonly as a “ghost shrimp”, though it’s actually more closely related to lobsters and crayfish than it is to any shrimp. Like the pistol shrimp, it lives within a burrow it constructs in the coarse sediments of shallow tropical waters, feeding on whatever organic bits it can gather. 

D. wirtzi. Credit: Schliewen & Kovacic 2008

 Living alongside Axiopsis are a couple of small gobies unknown to science until 2008, Didogobius amicuscaridus and D. wirtzi. The former—whose name appropriately translates from the Latin for “shrimp friend”—is known from São Tomé and Principé, while the latter is recorded only from the Cape Verde Islands and Senegal. Their placement in Didogobius is somewhat provisional, as this small genus of cryptic gobies is poorly studied and otherwise only known from the Mediterranean and Canary Islands. 

Axiopsis serratifrons. Note the difference in claw shape with respect to Alpheus pistol shrimps. Credit: Moorea Biocode

 Rather than the close symbiosis seen in the true watchman gobies of the Indo-Pacific, Didogobius and Axiopsis are only grudgingly roommates. The ghost shrimp is often found by its lonesome and clearly doesn’t necessitate the presence of a fish in the same way that pistol shrimps do.… More:

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Good morning from Curacao…. We continue to have high winds and zero rain which is quickly creating a not so beautiful Caribbean landscape. Aimee and I are still taking out water and food to the desert everyday to our secluded little oasis which as can imagine is a big hit for the local wildlife. I have been trying hard to get some diving done this week but because of the high winds creating big swells the visibility is awful.  NEWER POST:

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Childhood education is crucial to encouraging the aquarium hobby and maintaining awareness of the health of our oceans and reefs for our future generations. The Monterey Bay Aquarium has just submitted a use permit for a $30 million project to create a new education center. The Aquarium currently works with schools and hosts school children every day. To date, over two million school children have visited the Aquarium since 1984, through its free educational programs. The new education center will be a four story,  26,000-square-foot facility, with an event center on the fourth floor. Some of the features currently planned include wet labs with marine life, a sea life support system and running sea water. The city has thirty days to review the plan and if all goes well, the Aquarium hopes to break ground by this fall.The building, designed by the San Francisco-based architectural firm Mark Cavagnero Associates, will be constructed to U.S. Green Building Council LEED Gold standards, and will feature solar panels and water conservation. Although the Aquarium hosts many children, currently there are only two small labs for hands on encounters for the kids. The new education center will put the focus on interactive learning. “With larger facilities in the new center, nearly every visiting student will be able to take part in one of the many programs we’ve created to help school districts and home school families better meet California’s Next Generation of Science Standards,” said Rita Bell, the aquarium’s director of education.  “There’s a serious need in California to bolster science and environmental education in our schools and we’re responding to that need.” MORE… More:

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One of the coral systems at Reef Wholesale, Toronto.

This week we’re joined by EcoTech’s Jay Sperandio and Trina Parsons and Patrick Foster of Reef Wholesale in Toronto. Our discussion is about the EcoTech Coral Lab project and focuses on the experiences Patrick and Trina have had while converting the lighting in their wholesale operation to LED fixtures. There is lots to learn that will help hobbyists. Be sure to download the Coral Lab white paper to learn more. Download the podcast here, or subscribe to our podcasts at iTunes. Also, follow us on Twitter at reefthreads.—Gary and Christine

Sponsor: Rod’s Food
Rod’s Food website

Coral Lab/Reef Wholesale white paper
A Coral Lab Case Study of Reefkeeping with LEDs

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ASD Rainbow Phoenix MontiThis weeks featured coral of the week comes to us from Aqua SD located in San Diego, CA.  Recently our friend, Joey Nichols at Joe Knows Reefs had 2 frags on their stunning Montipora frags but they didn’t last long and they are currently sold out.  Hopefully we will see more of this coral in the trade as it’s grown out and fragged for others to enjoy. This weeks featured coral of the week comes to us from Aqua SD located in San Diego, CA.  Recently our friend, Joey Nichols at Joe Knows Reefs had 2 frags on their new arrivals page. Joey’s stunning Montipora frags didn’t last long and they are currently sold out.  Hopefully we will see more of this coral in the

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“Tubastrea” caboverdiana. Credit: Ocaña et al 2015

 Northern Africa is not a part of the world known for its coral reefs, but three newly described species are helping add to the region’s biodiversity. The new corals are part of an identification guide published late last year covering the corals and anemones of the Cape Verde Islands and neighboring reefs of Morocco. Loaded with in situ images of a great many unusual and rare corals, this is a paper worth taking a look through. 

Africana wirtzi. Credit: Ocaña et al 2015

 The three newly described scleractinians are all azooxanthellate (=non-photosynthetic). Perhaps the most interesting of the lot is Africana wirtzi, whose colonies are formed of a small number of pinkish polyps. Only a single specimen has been discovered thus far, but it turned out to be distinctive enough to necessitate the creation of a new genus for it due to the peculiar mix of morphological traits.  

A. wirtzi. Credit: Ocaña et al 2015

 Of note is the Pourtalès plan-like arrangement of the septa (a trait seen only in the sun corals of the Family Dendrophyllidae), the solid walls of the skeleton (which are porous in dendrophyllids), and the absence of lobelike structures called pali (which rules out other similar genera). Unfortunately, there was no genetic study done, so the true affinities of this species is uncertain, but, for now, the authors have chosen to place this curious coral into the diverse (and polyphyletic) Family Caryophillidae. 

Thalamophyllia wirtzi. Credit: Ocaña et al 2015

 Thalamophyllia wirtzi is another new caryophyllid, named (as in the previous species) after Dr Peter Wirtz, a prolific researcher on these poorly known African reefs. This species grows variably as either small groups of loosely connected polyps or more hemispherical masses with embedded corallites. It’s color in life also varies from a ghostly white to pink, while the underlying skeleton shows a series of attractive ridges (=costae) externally. 

“Tubastrea” caboverdiana. Note the unusual branchlike structure of this colony. Credit: Ocaña et al 2015

 Lastly, there is a new sun coral (yay!) in the form of “Tubastrea” caboverdiana, named after the Cape Verde Islands where it was discovered. If you’re wondering why I’ve included the scientific name in quotations, it’s because the authors have misspelled the genus in their publication—the correct spelling being Tubastraea, with that extra ‘a’ being an important difference.… More:

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Using a Booster Pump to Improve RODI Performance A RODI system is an important piece of equipment for maintaining a healthy reef tank. It purifies water and limits problematic algae growth by removing such things as silicates, phosphates and nitrates. RODI systems also remove chlorine and other harmful elements such as heavy metals. To run a RODI unit at an optimal level it is critical to have sufficient water pressure since low pressure can have a negative impact on the purity and output of the product water. If pressure is hovering in the 40 psi range or below, then strong consideration should be given to a booster pump. A booster pump will increase water pressure going into the unit and result in higher production rates. The pump will

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Pomacanthus xanthometopon, the blue face angelfish. The epithet “Pomacanthus” is translated from the greek words meaning “cover-thorn”, in reference to the large opercular spine (in white) present in all angelfish species.

 Good March everybody. After last week’s foray into some rather unbecoming “reef” fishes, we’ll make a Uey back into familiar territory. Literally nothing is more familiar to the casual aquarist than angelfishes and surgeonfishes. Today’s epithet etymology elucidates the generic meaning behind these evergreen staples, starting of course with the ever popular members of Pomacanthidae. The family Pomacanthidae houses about 89 species of angelfishes in 7 genera, all of which can be characterised by having at least one prominent opercular spine on their gill covers. This feature comes in handy, especially when trying to diagnose an angelfish from the rather similar butterflyfish. This may seem superfluous to aquarists and reef enthusiasts, but angelfishes are very often misidentified in the field by a novice. Even the iconic Moorish Idol appears angelfish-esque to the general public, shocking as that may seem. 

The beautiful blue face angelfish, or, whimsically, cover-thorn-yellow-forehead. Photo credit: Lemon TYK.

 It really comes as no surprise then, that the etymology behind the genus Pomacanthus (and family Pomacanthidae) is really just a nice and literal way to describe this feature. The epithet “Poma” is derived from the greek word for “cover”, and the suffix from the greek “akantha”, which means “thorn”. When combined, the words “cover-thorn” quite nicely refer to the opercular spine on the gill covers. Pomacanthus xanthometopon above is an example of a lovely species from the family. Its specific epithet “xanthometopon” is again rooted in greek, with “xantho” meaning yellow, and “metopon” meaning forehead. Although its taxonomic name draws attention to its yellow forehead, its common name suggests otherwise. P. xanthometopon is known colloquially as the “blue-faced angelfish”; a nonetheless interesting species that is named after both color patterns on its head, depending on which name you choose to adopt. 

Acanthurus leucosternon, named after it’s thorned tail and white chest. Photo credit: Lemon TYK.

 A thorny parallel can be seen in the surgeonfish family, Acanthuridae (and genus Acanthurus). Like angelfishes, the family is also named in reference to a thorn, but in Acanthuridae, this is not present on the gill cover – instead, this feature is manifested as a retractable blade on the caudal peduncle (non-retractable in the genera Naso and Prionurus).… More:

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It is estimated that data centers consume three per cent of the world’s electricity, could putting them below the waves make them more sustainable? Computers generate an awful lot of heat.  Take the fan off your desktop’s CPU and wait for it to start smoking, if you doubt me.  Large numbers of computers in commercial data centers use an awful lot of power, much of it used to keep the components (and the humans working in them) cool. In an interesting trial, Microsoft has taken a server rack, encased it in a steel container, and placed it on the sea floor off the Californian coast.  The capsule, dubbed “Leona Philpot” after a Halo character, was sunk near the town of San Luis Obispo.  It was plugged in and ran for over 100 days at a depth of 30 feet. So what’s the point?Data center operators are keen to reduce their power consumption to save dollars, by using the natural environment to absorb waste heat.  Some companies have placed data centers in cold climates, but this is not always possible as data centers need to be as close as possible to users to reduce latency and given that half of the population are close to coasts, coastal locations make attractive propositions. Microsoft is one of many companies looking to use more sustainable energy generation technologies to cool its data centers.  According to a report from the BBC, Facebook opened a data center in the far north of Sweden, in the mining town of Lulea, 70 miles from the Arctic Circle. The 84-acre site houses tens of thousands of computer servers and runs entirely on renewable energy generated by nearby hydroelectric schemes. Most commentators suggest that it was a nice piece of PR and underwater data centers are a long way off, but it is certainly interesting.  Will there ever be a day when data centers are part of the ocean floor?  What will be the effect of their heat output into the local environment?  Will they become artificial reefs within areas protected from fishing and other activities?  Interesting. Images credit: Microsoft News   … More:

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Your senses play as important a role in maintaining your aquarium as test kits and monitoring devicesWe marine aquarists depend heavily on store-bought test kits and devices for monitoring water quality and parameters (like the FishBit monitor we discussed here recently), but we’re actually born with some of the best tools available for figuring out what’s going on with our tanks—our innate human senses. With the possible exception of taste (I’d recommend observing the general admonition that you shouldn’t put your tongue on anything related to your aquarium), our senses can tell us quite a bit about the health and well-being of our systems—if we pay them heed, that is. Here are some examples of how:Sight Obviously, our eyes give us the most comprehensive information about our tanks, so we’ll start there. They reassure us that our livestock is healthy and behaving normally, getting enough to eat, and interacting peacefully; that there’s ample water movement in the system (evidenced by swaying corals, particulates kept in suspension, etc.); that the lighting system is fully functional with no burned out bulbs/tubes/LEDs; and so forth. But sight isn’t the only sense that’s helpful to the marine aquarium hobbyist. There’s also… Hearing Unusual or louder-than-normal sounds often indicate that something is wrong in an aquarium system. For example, a rattling sound coming from a submersible pump or HOB filter could indicate a broken or cracked impeller.

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Tomorrow, Saturday March 4, will be a big day for yours truly. I will be speaking at the Frag Farmers Market at E.O. Smith High School, as well displaying a large selection of my latest corals at a booth throughout the day. The coral swap and sale is in Storrs, CT, from 11:00-5:00 and features over 50 vendors from throughout the region with thousands of corals for sale, as well as a huge raffle. I will also have my brand-new coral foods, ChalicePower and NutriGorg, distributed by Two Little Fishies available for sale. It’s an honor to work with such an established and respected company to bring some of my creations to hobbyists across the world. I formulated these foods to specifically meet the challenges of the specific feeding methods and nutritional requirements of these different groups of coral. ChalicePower is negatively buoyant and cuts right down through the water column, settling on the mucous layer of the coral. The coral is then able to easily transport the food to its mouths via cilia on the coral colony’s surface, without smothering the tissue underneath. NutriGorg stays suspended in the water column to feed small-polyp coral such as Gorgonians. They are now available at our Hunting Station location across from Walt Whitman Mall. You can also come by and talk to me tomorrow at the Frag Farmer’s Market in CT, I’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have!… More:

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There are a number of choices when it comes to the rock you use for aquascaping, my personal favorite is live rockToday’s marine aquarists have more options than ever before when it comes to the types of rock used to aquascape their tanks—from live rocks, whether aquacultured or wild-harvested, to all manner of dry rocks and even natural-looking man-made rocks. Each type has its advantages and drawbacks, and the choice that’s best for any given hobbyist depends on, among other factors, his or her aquascaping goals, budget, risk tolerance, and desired level of control over the system’s biodiversity. Call me old-school (or Lord Admiral Jeff of the Universe—whichever you prefer), but my aquascaping material of choice has always been live rock, whether comprising the rockwork entirely or at least a major portion of it. Here’s why:Fascinating biodiversity Live rocks come loaded with organisms that emerge or hatch out for many weeks and months—even years—after they’re added to a tank. Various “pods,” fan worms, sponges, tunicates, mollusks, worms, coral colonies, macroalgae, and coralline algae are just a sampling of what might appear. And this process/progression is truly amazing to observe. I’ve never tried it, but I think it would be fascinating to set up a live-rock-only (LRO?) tank, with no fish or intentionally introduced invertebrates, and just sit back and watch what pops out of the rocks over time

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Good evening friends, I did a super fun dive today with our buddy Mark from the one and only Dive Bus Hut, the hands down BEST dive shop in Curacao!!!! Our goal was to try and find some kind of fun reef scene that could be used in a photo showing Mark in action and this is what we ended up with. Our dive started out rough with not seeing anything that was photo worthy and then as we approached the half way point I spotted this monster lionfish hovering above the reef without a care in the world at around 80 feet! I quickly signaled Mark to swim around to his left side and I was on the other, we later called it a lionfish sandwich! As you can see here this fish never really moved, he or she just hovered there the whole time without a care in the world and let us take photo after photo until finally I had to leave as I was running low on air. The lionfish populations have lessened in the shallows and increased on the deeper reefs due to so many recreational divers hunting them on a regular basis.

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“We have fish and reptile pets; our power inverter gives us the peace of mind to know that their tanks will still function properly and keep them safe even if the power goes out.” -Dale K., Libertyville, Illinois PART 1 Over the last five years, my wife and I have enjoyed having reptiles and fish as pets in our apartment. We live just outside of Chicago in a town called Libertyville, where, just like Chicago, we experience chilly winters and hot summers. The first time our power went out, we didn’t think much about our lizards and fish because the power came back on within 20 minutes. However, the next time it went out, we were running around trying to think of how to keep our lizards’

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Good morning from one of the driest places on the planet! Yesterday morning I took the dogs and re-opened a small piece of single-track that has been closed for around 9 years. I had originally built this little section of trail to help keep traffic i.e. walkers, cyclists and motorcycles away from the poor flamingos which tend to feed right along the shores.

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This is a continuation from the article, Save Aquariums in a Power Outage: Keep Fish and Reptile Pets Safe with a Power Inverter (Part 1). Doing some initial research, my wife and I found that buying a power inverter to keep our reptile and fish devices running during a power outage was the right choice. Now came the challenging part: deciding which power inverter would fit our needs. To our surprise, there were loads of options to consider when buying a power inverter for our apartment. Most importantly, we had to consider budget and output ability. Furthermore, we found out there are two main types of power inverters: Modified Sine Wave and Pure Sine Wave. Our first concern was price. We had quite a bit of

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I have long held to an educational philosophy that teachers teach best when they can teach what they are passionate about, and in my professional life, I spend much time helping craft programs and curricula that allow faculty to do just that. It is a philosophy that has worked well, and one that I carry over into my job as Editor of Reefs Magazine. Rather than assign subject matter, I seek out the best writers I can find and allow them to write about the things that excite them. If you look back over the 8 yrs. worth of material we have produced, you will find a wide range of subject matter for hobbyists and reef enthusiasts of all levels. Sometimes, however, author submissions align and cluster around common areas of interest and by some quirk of the Fates, this is one of those times. Our staff has coined this the ‘Fishue‘ as all the articles in one way or another are piscine-centric.  – Randy… More:

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Good morning friends, your looking at some of the most endangered corals on the planet that are being faced with extinction due to global warming, storms, trash, boat anchors and snorkelers. This very fragile, shallow growing Elkhorn coral is right in the path of just about everything bad and can’t seem to catch a break. Yesterday we swam out to do a photo-shoot with Aimee snorkeling with one of the new Ikelite housings and immediately ran into this poor Elkhorn colony covered in nasty plastic! Because this coral was only in around six feet of water removing the plastic was super difficult due to the passing waves creating a strong surge. I had a knife with me and had Aimee hold my camera while I fought the surge trying to cut it loose, I swear plastic with be the death of this whole planet! Once removed you could see where the coral had died due to choking to death and was now bleach white, I will go back and take a close-up for you to better explain.

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Halichoeres nigrescens. Credit: RVS Fishworld Inc

 Oftentimes, a species’ abundance in the wild doesn’t necessarily translate to its abundance in the aquarium trade—for instance, Halichoeres nigrescens. Despite being one of the most ubiquitous fishes of nearshore, weedy habitats, this hearty and attractive wrasse is almost entirely ignored by the fishkeeping community. Thankfully, the fine folks at RVS Fishworld have procured a stunning specimen illustrating the full aesthetic potential this wrasse has to offer. 

Easily identified when you know what to look for. Credit: RVS Fishworld Inc

 In keeping with this fish’s mix of obscurity and abundance, there are a great many common names by which it is known: the Pinstripe Wrasse, Bubblefin Wrasse, Diamond Wrasse, Green-back Wrasse, and White-button Wrasse. This latter appellation is my favorite of the bunch, as it references the distinctive white lateral markings seen in females. 

This female clearly shows the sooty back and white spots of the species. Credit: Keido Uchino

 There has been a tremendous amount of taxonomic confusion surrounding what is and isn’t “Halichoeres nigrescens”, as quite a few superficially similar species share its red and green patterning. It can be quite challenging remembering them all, which is why I created an identification guide to help in diagnosing this group (which I totally had to use to identify the specimen in this article). Adding to the confusion is the uncertainty as to whether this fish, which ranges from the African coastline through the West Pacific, is truly a single species or a pair of geminate sister taxa split into Indian Ocean and Pacific populations. In the latter scenario, H. dussumieri is the correct nomenclature for those found in the Indian Ocean. This awaits genetic confirmation, but be aware that both names are widely in use by various authors. 

The red along the body appears to be highly variable. Credit: ぶー

 Identification of this species can be challenging, as it is rather non-descript for its genus. Males and females possess separate patterns. Females sport a prominent black spot in the soft rays of the dorsal fin and have a lightly colored belly set off sharply against a thick lateral band running across the midline of the body. Often there is a distinctive row of white spots along the midline, though, to some extent, these appear to be behaviorally controlled. 

These are said to be the most abundant wrasse in weedy coastal habitats of Hong Kong.

… More:

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Where do you place your clams?

We’re back for more reef talk. This week’s subjects include a Todd from Australia update, placing clams in your reef, Project 365, filter socks, and all-in-one aquariums. Download the podcast here, or subscribe to our podcasts at iTunes. Also, follow us on Twitter at reefthreads.—Gary and Christine

Sponsor: Rod’s Food
Rod’s Food website

Placing clams
Clam Positioning—Inspiration from the Wild, Richard Aspinall, Reefs.com

Picture a day
Project 365, My Reef Journal, One Photograph Per Day, Urbaneks, Reef2Reef

Dirty socks
Why replace a filter sock every 3 days?, b4tn, Reef2Reef

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