The Moorish Idol has eluded aquarists for a long time. It’s interesting, because idols aren’t particularly rare, exclusive or expensive fish. In fact, when compared to many common marine fish, they can be purchased relatively cheaply. Perhaps this fact works against the idol, as their low price makes aquarists more likely to experiment with them. Moorish idol survivability in private marine aquariums couldn’t be much worse. While some idols do survive in the hands of experienced aquarists, (and by some I mean a tiny percentage) the vast majority imported into the trade perish, even under the best circumstances. Many outlets no longer import Moorish idols, and years of utter failure have made many aquarists ask the question if they should be imported into captivity at all. Are Moorish idols truly impossible to keep? What separates them from the masses of marine fish that can adapt to captive life? Should even the most advanced aquarists shun the idea of keeping idols altogether?    Some basics:During my years aiding fellow aquarists, I’ve been involved in building and designing several aquariums, for the sole purpose of housing Moorish idols. In fact, I attempted keeping the species myself with limited success many years ago. I learned a lot about the species during this period, and was shocked to find out that certain traits appear shared by all idols. These traits involve an innate inability to adjust to captive life, mainly due to the fish’s reaction to stress. Moorish idols are named from the Moors in Africa, who were medieval Muslim inhabitants. The Moors believed the fish brought happiness and luck. Ironically enough, for many aquarists who have attempted keeping idols they have brought heartache and frustration. In the wild idols prefer flat reef beds, often on the fringe of a reef lagoon or where the reef crest drops down and evens out. Their diet consists of algae and sponge, both of which grow in abundance in this zone. They’ve been recorded at depths of up to 600 feet, and are spotted in shallow water, no deeper than 10 feet. Moorish idols travel both alone and in schools, being active during the day. At night, idols discolor, appearing drab and blending in with the surrounding rocks. It’s worth noting that nothing about idol’s natural behavior throws up any red flags, when considering keeping them in aquaria. They are the only member of their family and are believed to have descended from the prehistoric Eozanclus brevirhostris.… More:

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 In an effort to combat a pesky parasite that was harming the tanks, the Texas State Aquarium accidentally killed nearly 100 fish. This is very rare and upsetting incident. The parasitic flat worms in the tank were resistant to other treatments, so on Monday the Aquarium introduced a new medicine into the ‘Islands of Steel’ and ‘flower garden’ exhibit tank. The medicine killed all of the fish except for two. Many sharks also perished. It is not clear what chemical medicine was used in the tank, but the Aquarium has stated that it was a new medicine but one that was commonly used in the industry without adverse effects. This is truly a very sad incident. Currently, the Aquarium is offering discounted ticket prices to keep visitors coming to the Aquarium despite the losses. MORE… More:

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Aquarists have a wide variety of fish foods at their disposalWith so many fish foods on the market these days, it is really difficult to know exactly what your fish are eating. They will chow down with gusto pretty much anything you put in the tank, but do we really know what is in their foods? When we go to the market, I am sure the majority of us read the labels to see what we are ingesting. But is it the same for fish food? Usually not. Fish food labels provide a breakdown in protein and amino acids, etc., but we don’t know the exact ingredients since the FDA does not regulate fish food. Take dogs and cats for example

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 Sea Life Orlando will be opening on International Drive in Orlando on May 4, 2015. Anyone who has ever been to Orlando knows International Drive is the hub of activity in the ever popular tourist destination. The Aquarium will feature a 360 degree ocean tunnel, a rockpool experience and an interactive talking aquarium for the kids. Three new sharks were just transported from the Sea Life Kansas City and San Diego locations. The Aquarium has an independent charity, The Sea Life Marine Conservation Trust, with money donated from every ticket sale.This aquarium should be an exciting and welcome addition to the Orlando attractions. MORE… More:

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 Millions of jellyfish are washing up on Washington and Oregon beaches. Velella Velella, also known as ‘sea-rafts’ due to their sail shaped fin, are all along the North West coast beaches right now. These bluish-purple jelly’s are rather beautiful to look at, but can scary to the average beach goer. Normally the winds keep these species from ending up on the beach. However, recent westerly winds have brought the jellyfish to the beaches. Luckily these jellyfish are harmless to humans, however, I wouldn’t recommend going out of your way to step on one. MORE… More:

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Quality Marine is offering commercially raised clown triggerfish from Biota Marine Life Nursery in Palau.

We’re back with more marine/reef/aquarium chit chat. This week’s topics include Rod’s Food, Reefapalooza, the MBI workshop, MASNA scholarships, captive breeding, and parenting. 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

MBI Workshop
MBI Workshop, July 25, Cranbrook Institute, Bloomfield Hills, MI

MASNA Scholarships
MASNA Scholarship applications due June 19

Clown triggerfish
Commercially Raised Clown Triggerfish available now, Leonard Ho, Advanced Aquarist

Your email:

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Many of us are familiar with the tang police. They exist on almost any internet forum and occasionally strike from within the walls of a fish shop. Their primary goal seems to be making sure no tang is kept in too small a tank, but often they end up belittling or badgering some well-meaning aquarist. In theory, the tang police are a good thing as surgeonfish are a species often sold as small juveniles, only to grow into large adults that need a lot of swimming space. I’ve found that often the tang police lack entirely accurate evidence and base their highly objective feelings on conjecture. In fact, when reading some responses from self-appointed tang police, I wonder how many of them actually keep surgeonfish.    Dispelling rumors:I can’t think of a fish species that has more rumors circulating around them than our beloved surgeonfish. To get at the heart of the issue, let’s look at facts about surgeonfish. Acanthuridae is the family of fish otherwise known as unicornfish, surgeonfish or tangs. They exist in tropical seas, normally living in and around coral reefs. Their bright colors and active behavior have made them extremely popular in home aquariums. In fact, I would fathom to guess that Acanthuridae is one of the hobbies’ most popular fish families. All tangs have distinctive scalpel like blades, on at least one side (but often two sides) of the tail’s base. This has given them the nickname surgeonfish, as the scalpels are very sharp. Tang’s dorsal, anal and caudal fins are substantial, running the entire length of the body in many cases. Their mouths are small with a variety of different teeth, all aimed at scraping algae from rocks. In the wild tangs often travel in moderate to large schools, but in aquaria like species often clash. Tangs and ich:The rumor mill starts when aquarists begin talking about surgeonfishes’ susceptibility to ich. A quick google search will turn up lots of conjecture from private aquarists. Some claim that tangs have thin skin, others that their scale pattern allows the parasite to penetrate. Others suggest that tangs have weak immune system or that they lack the “ich-shield” other fish have. While it’s true that the slime coat of some fish species (i.e. dragonets) helps prevent external parasites, there is no such thing as an ich shield on any marine fish. In all reality tangs are no more susceptible to ich than any other fish species.… More:

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The New England Aquarium is attempting to set the right ‘mood’ for its African Penguins. The Aquarium is trying to play matchmaker to eight pairs of African Penguins so that they will breed more chicks. African Penguins are the only penguin in Africa and currently are endangered due to factors including over fishing, climate change, and pollution. They are sadly expected to be extinct in the World by the year 2025 if we continue along at our current path. However, the New England Aquarium has decided to give the penguins ‘honeymoon suite’ igloos and homes outside of the public eye, to encourage mating. African Penguins are known to be monogamous, staying with only one mate for the majority of their breeding years.  African Penguins nest in burrows and lay two eggs, which both mom and dad incubate the eggs and feed the chicks for two to four months. Let’s hope the Aquarium is able to get these penguins going! MORE… More:

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Residents of the 125 enjoying the new lightingFor quite some time, I had at least two marine aquariums up and running—a 75-gallon reef tank and a 125-gallon FOWLR tank. As regular Saltwater Smarts visitors know, that 75-gallon tank had become something of a thorn in my side. Originally set up 15 years ago, what was once a nice mix of various soft corals and a few large-polyp stonies gradually transformed into an unsightly mess dominated by green star polyps. Well, I’ve finally begun the process of tearing that tank down. Change at the speed of molasses!What took me so long? Well, as “Caribbean Chris” can attest, when it comes to making changes to my tanks, I tend to move at the speed of molasses in January. Also, I kept going back and forth on how to handle the livestock and what I wanted to do with the 75-gallon once I could get it up and running again. Despite the mess that tank had become, it still contained a handful of specimens I was loath to part with—specifically a sizeable leather coral, an open brain coral, and a few gorgonians.

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A 100-gallon saltwater fish tank ruptured unexpectedly Sunday night at The Loft Wine Bar in Benecia, California. Security cameras caught the the whole thing.  Crazy!  What are your thoughts – what do you think could have caused this?See the footage here: MORE… More:

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Those planning on attending MACNA this coming September, be heedful when selecting your hotel accommodations as there’s apparently some less than savory folks involved in a hotel booking scam, and they’re alarmingly persistent. The organization, “Exhibitors Housing Service”, has been misrepresenting themselves as serving some sort of role in the conference to those who may be attending, specifically targeting exhibitors with some rather unscrupulous and aggressive tactics in the form of phone calls and emails. 

Get this shiny “official” email in your inbox? Kindly DON’T book!

 MACNA 2015 representatives released words of caution to exhibitors and attendees alike. 

Hotel Booking Scam It has been brought to our attention that an organization is falsely representing itself as part of the Marine Aquarium of North America (MACNA) event. Our organization has only one housing source for our 2015 Annual Conference being held in September of 2015 and we instruct anyone who is participating in this scam to immediately cease and desist any further communication to our members, exhibitors, or guests associated with our program. Your practice undermines our efforts and causes confusion to our attendees. The practice is not ethical and undermines our meetings industry professionalism. You are hereby notified that if you do not comply with this request, MACNA will immediately file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission against all violator and additional legal action will be taken to protect MACNA’s interests.

 The only Official hotel booking source is through the MACNA website located here: http://macnaconference.org/2015/travel/hotel-discounts/ And the conference rate is $124 per night. Sincerely, MACNA 2015 Co-Chairs 

… More:

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Dealing with evaporation from a reef tank can be a real chore if you haven’t got a robust system in place and there’s also a pretty high element of risk involved if your chosen system isn’t up to scratch. For a start, it could fail to keep-up with demand (in which case a low water level could expose equipment and lead to a system failure), or at the other end of the scale, overfilling could make your tank literally ‘runneth-over’ (causing untold damage and recrimination). In either case your Salinity is also going to be ‘all over the place’ too, stressing livestock, possibly to death…. in short this is one area where cutting-costs can come back and ‘bite you on the bum’! Having started-off with the ‘religiously-trickling-in-a-jug-of-RO-every-day’ method back in the day, we’ve since been through a few different systems, each progressing in complexity. Our second system was a simple peri-pump on a timer which delivered Kalkwasser during the night (and which worked fine but couldn’t cope with seasonal fluctuations very well) and next we experimented with float switches… briefly

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Who knew a royal gramma would draw the ire of an Atlantic blue tang in a tank full of other fish?!I love marine fish. I really do. They’ve been part of my life for decades, and observing their beauty and behavior both in the wild and in aquaria seems to fulfill some primal need in me that’s, frankly, impossible to characterize. But then again, sometimes those scaly little creatures do things that absolutely drive me to distraction. Here are five of them that might sound familiar to my fellow salties: 1. Irritating repetitive behaviorThis refers to some type of aggravating perseverative activity exhibited by a fish, such as swimming up and down one corner of the tank or around the same object in the tank over and over again—instead of exploring the entire system available to them. Sometimes you can make sense of this behavior, for example if the specimen is nervous after just being introduced, attempting to evade a bullying tankmate or other stressful stimulus, trying to spar with its own reflection, or, in the case of naturally active species, just burning off energy. But other times, I can discern no particular rhyme or reason to it.

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On April 16, 2015, we were informed of the very the sad news that hundreds of fish had died at the Texas State Aquarium. The cause of what led to the massive fish kill is now clear: a mislabeled chemical container. In an effort to combat a pesky parasite which was infecting the tanks, the staff had added the white powder trichlorfon, a common parasite treatment, to a small test tank. The tank contained several fish and the treatment had a positive effect on the parasite with no negative effects on the fish. Aquarium workers then proceeded to put what they thought was the same chemical from a different, but identically labeled, container to try and treat the parasites in the aquarium’s two largest exhibits. However, it was not the same chemical. Although they looked the same, the chemical which led to the fish kill was in fact a highly toxic industrial agent, hydroquinone resorcinol. Aquarium CEO Tom Schmid said this substance should never have been at the aquarium in the first place. The Aquarium stated that the container had been mislabeled and distributed by a chemical company in Vero Beach, Florida, a wholesale outlet for tropical fish pharmaceuticals. The result was the death of over four hundred fish and sharks. MORE… More:

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When I was attending the Eastern Academy of Scuba Education (EASE) in 2007, a little known film named Sharkwater had just been released in south Florida. Behind the film was a man named Rob Stewart, unknown to everyone at the academy, including the head instructors who had spent their entire lives traveling the world and diving. Since we were all avid divers and training to become instructors, one night a few of us set out to watch the film. We were all left in awe and the film changed my entire view of sharks and oceanic ecosystems. A few days later during a training dive, we spotted an 11 foot great hammerhead shark and suddenly I knew shark diving would be an important part of my future. It was after completing training at EASE, I began training under the now defunct Beautiful Ocean’s Academy in Montreal, as a coral reef biology instructor for divers.  Stewart, a Toronto native, had loved sharks since he was a kid. In fact he loved them so much, that he became a biologist and underwater photographer so he could learn more about them. After seeing the plight of sharks worldwide first hand, he scrounged enough money together to produce a film and nearly lost his life in the making. Sharkwater told the story of underground, illegal fisheries that were finning sharks and focused on groups around the world dedicated to stopping them. The film went on to win numerous awards and Stewart set off across the globe, taking the film and its message right to China. A few years ago I heard that Stewart was working on a new film, tentatively titled Revolution. Yesterday, to celebrate Earth Day, Revolution was released in the United States and made available for download. The way Rob Stewart weaves the story of Sharkwater into the story of Revolution is impressive and his keen knack for drawing the viewer in, right at the beginning, sets the tone and pace of Revolution. The film beings where Sharkwater left off, with Stewart jet-setting around the globe, meeting with officials and youth to spread the message of shark conservation. It’s when he arrives in China, a major epicenter of the shark debate (due to the consumption of shark fin soup by wealthy Chinese) that the film takes a major turn. While speaking at Sharkwater’s Chinese premiere, an audience member asks Stewart what the point of saving sharks is, when it’s predicted that worldwide fisheries will collapse within 50 years.… More:

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We all know that Global warming in recent years is at its highest levels. Global warming is a huge problem, of which we don’t even know the implications of the full long term impacts of this rapid climate change. Three different ‘blobs’ of warm water throughout the World are having a huge impact on the marine ecosystem. One blob is in the Bering Sea, one blob is located off the Coast of California and one blob is in the Pacific. The blobs can range in size. However, the Pacific blog is 1000 miles long, 1000 miles wide and 100 yards deep! Although the name ‘blob’ may not sound so imposing, these warmer waters are wreaking havoc on salmon and California droughts, just to name a few. The warm temperatures are creating major changes in marine life’s normal migratory patterns, and causing variations as much as hundreds of miles off the normal course. For example, causing skip jack tuna and thresher shark to be seen in Alaska! Pygmy Killer Whales have been seen off the Coast of Washington. Scientists are still unclear on how long this will last and what impacts it will have. MORE… More:

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Chris and Jeff discuss the website with Mark of Coral ReefIt’s hard to believe that we’re celebrating our second anniversary here at Saltwater Smarts. When Caribbean Chris and I launched this site back in April of 2013, we had no idea how it would be received—or whether we’d even last more than a few months in such a crowded online space. We just had the kernel of an idea that a certain subset of hobbyists out there might appreciate coming to a place where they can get reliable, authoritative information that promotes success yet still enjoy a few laughs along the way. Over the past two years, we’ve tried to take a more egalitarian approach to information sharing, in which different—even opposing—viewpoints are welcomed and respected. We know the methods that we share here will work for you, but we also want to know what you’re doing that might work even better. In other words, we stand to learn just as much from you as you do from us. And with more and more visitors from countries all around the world joining us every month and offering their input, we’re confident that this approach is resonating.New offerings Regular visitors have probably noticed that the last year has seen some exciting changes here at Saltwater Smarts. This January, we released our first ebook—The Salt Smart Guide to Preventing, Diagnosing, and Treating Diseases of Marine Fishes by Jay Hemdal—which continues to build momentum in sales

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If you’re a reef keeper and you use the Internet, there is a good change you’ve been reading about mercury (chemical symbol Hg) lately. Mercury and marine life are terms that are used in the same sentence quite often, but usually we are talking about mercury within seafood. Years ago, concern about mercury in fish tissue led to a drop in fish/shellfish consumption within the U.S. Now we know that the benefits of eating seafood greatly outweigh the risks of mercury poisoning. This mercury discussion was a little bit different, as it involved the possibility of extraordinarily high levels of mercury within frozen fish food.    Of course this would be bad news for aquarists, who rely on frozen fish food to supply nutrition to beloved and often very expensive marine fish. Personally, I’ve fed frozen foods exclusively for years, so when I heard that they may contain high levels of mercury, I sat up and took notice. It began when Thomas Brown, the man behind Thomas Brown’s Reef Visions reported that a university he hired to test 3 top selling frozen food brands, reported high levels of phosphate, silica and mercury. The mercury reading was worth noting, largely because it was roughly 22,000 times higher than the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) safe consumption level. Aquarists were worried and at first glance, I was too. That was until award winning journalist Ret Talbot got on the case. Ret found that some traces of mercury within frozen fish food was possible, as seafood is known to carry mercury. The element bio-accumulates within fish and shellfish tissue over time, making it a mainstay in most seafood. Ret found that mercury measuring equipment would be unlikely to identify such a high concentration, largely because the person testing for mercury wouldn’t calibrate it to detect such a high concentration. Something must have been wrong with the test, right? Even in the face of essentially being debunked, Thomas Brown stood by his findings. Something fishy?:A few things about the Thomas Brown mercury disclosure were strange. One, Brown refused to release the name of the frozen food brand where mercury was discovered. He also refused to release the name of the “university” where testing was performed. More alarming, he refused to release any document from testing, such as a broken down analysis of the findings. Brown has promised them, but not until further testing takes place, which he claims could be weeks.… More:

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The fact the new ocean species are still being discovered shows how much we still have to learn about marine biodiversity. Just recently, a new species of gall crab has been discovered in Indonesia and Malaysia by researcher Sancia van der Meij from the Naturalis Biodiversity Center in the Netherlands. The new gall crab has been named Lithoscaptus semperi. The crab was discovered in the corals of the species Trachyphyllia geoffroyi . Gall crabs are very small in live in coral dwellings, feeding on the mucus created by the corals. The crabs settle in the coral as larvae, and the coral grows around them, literally creating a coral dwelling for the crab. The findings of this study have been published in the 500th issue of the open access journal ZooKeys.What is interesting about this species is that female gall crabs are on average around twice the size as their male counterparts. The female gall crabs are effectively ‘imprisoned’ in the gales due to the large number of eggs they carry and their larger size. The gall crab species discovered in this study is so far is only known to inhabit Trachyphyllia corals. MORE… More:

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A curious clownfish peers through the tentacles of an anemoneAsk any group of young children to name their favorite saltwater fish, and chances are nearly all of them will reply “the clownfish.” Of course, to most kids, “clownfish” is synonymous with “Nemo,” so the species they have in mind is Amphiprion ocellaris, not one of the other 28 Amphiprion species or the single species in the genus Premnas. In any case, owing to Nemo’s iconic nature, many kids are taken with the idea of keeping him in a home aquarium. And naturally, if they’re going to keep Nemo, then his host anemone needs to be part of the package, as well. Trouble is, as every experienced hobbyist knows, while A. ocellaris can be a good choice for kids’ tanks (with appropriate adult supervision and assistance, of course), anemones most decidedly are not kid-tank-friendly. Heck, most aren’t even adult-tank-friendly.So how can parents persuade eager kids that keeping Nemo and his anemone together is a bad idea? Here are some talking points that might help make the case: Nemo will be perfectly happy without an anemone Kids, more so than adults, tend to anthropomorphize animals—which, in this case, is perfectly understandable since Nemo actually talks and exhibits other human-like attributes in the cartoon. So, it’s only normal for them to assume a clownfish will be “lonely” or “afraid” without a host anemone in the tank

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