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The Snowflake Eel is a member of the Moray eel family, but unlike it’s cousins, this guy is actually very friendly and can be kept in a community tank. For those of you who own Moray eels, this may seem unbelievable, but trust me, with the correct precautions your exotic fish and snowflake eel can live together peacefully.

As implied above, this species of eel is very docile and hardy. In captivity they can live for many years and actually grow quite large. I believe that the average length of a snowflake eel is three feet. Because they may grow quite large, having at least a 75 gallon aquarium is required. Like other eels, snowflakes like to spend time “hiding” so make sure that you have plenty of rocks and ledges for them to reside. On this note, you are also going to want to make sure that any rocks or other “decorations” are securely planted in the sand. Unlike fish, eels can’t simply dart out of the way should one of these things fall over.

As long as snowflake eels are well fed  you should have absolutely no problems with them attacking your fish. Crustaceans and invertebrates, however, are a different story. This is because these little guys are the snowflakes’ main source of food. But, if you feed your eel the recommended two times a week until they are full, you shouldn’t have issues. However, if you’re introducing new, smaller eels into a tank where there is already a large snowflake eel, you may see a bit of cannibalism. The snowflake doesn’t like to have its territory threatened by someone of their own species, so I wouldn’t recommend keeping two snowflake eels in the same.

When feeding the snowflake eel, it’s important to keep your hands out of the way. Using a feeding stick is recommended. Even though the snowflake eel doesn’t have the sharp, pointed teeth of other members of the family, the blunt, crushing teeth of the snowflake can cause some serious damage. It should also be noted that these eels can go into a hibernation and not come out of hiding or eat for several weeks. Should this happen, don’t be alarmed, this is completely normal. However, should it become a common occurrence you might want to contact an expert in eel management to see if there is a problem.

Do you own a snowflake eel? If so, post a comment telling us about your experiences!

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Today I decided to write a post on the Harlequin Sweetlips for a very important reason. Oh, whatever, I lied, I just like this fish’s name, so I decided that I’d give the species their chance to shine on my blog. Sweetlips, it just makes me think of the 1950’s and laugh. Though, if anyone ever called me sweetlips, they might find themselves on the floor with a very pained nose….

The Harlequin Sweetlips is one of those fish that changes appearance once they grow from a juvenile age to an adult. As juveniles they are a reddish brown color with white spots that are outlined in black. These spots occur all over the body and fins. As adults Harlequin Sweetlips are white in color, with a faint rainbow pattern, with dark brown or black dots all over their body.

When purchasing Harlequin Sweetlips, it is important to keep them away from any fish that  could possibly harass them. These guys aren’t very good at defending themselves. However, they aren’t above eating snails, ornamental crustaceans, or worms should they get the chance. These fish are carnivorous and should be fed daily. Using live food is generally the best way to get juveniles to feed.

Another feature that is extremely interesting about these fish is the way that they swim. Harlequin Sweetlips use their pectoral fins and undulate their bodies to move, almost as if they were dancing. Usually active at night, it is exciting to watch these guys swim. During the daytime these fish like to hide, so providing rocks or some kind of ledge in your tank would be beneficial.

What do you think of this particular fish. Do you own a Harlequin Sweetlips? How do you feel about their development and characteristics? Let me know by posting a comment today!

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If you are looking for a beautiful fish to put in your salt water aquarium you shouldn’t have to look much farther than the jewel damsel. However, as this fish’s name might suggest, it does display a little bit of spoiled behavior (jewel=princess, get it?). This fish is extremely territorial and can be aggressive, but because of it’s small size, this generally isn’t an issue. So, pretty much this fish has a loud bark, but absolutely no bite. However, it is recommended that you keep only 1 damsel per tank, as they can harass each other unmercifully.

The jewel damsel is easily distinguishable by it’s dark blue background and bright, bright blue dots all over the body. Other features are typical of a damsel and include: a perch like profile, continuous dorsal fin, and forked tail. The fish usually grow to be about 3 inches in length in a captive environment.

Besides being great to look at, jewel damsels are also a lot of fun. These fish are extremely energetic and it is hilarious to watch them badger a larger fish into leaving “their” area. Damsels are also extremely easy to care for. They are omnivores that must be fed daily. All that they really require are a few rocks to hide behind and plenty of space to swim. See, a jewel damsel isn’t nearly as demanding as a real princess. A minimum tank size of 10-30 gallons suits them just fine.

Do you own a jewel damsel? If so, I have a feeling that you probably have a funny story or two to tell in relation to this particular fish. Let me know by posting a comment today!

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If you are looking for an aquarium fish that is both beautiful and entertaining to watch, then perhaps you should think of purchasing a Heniochus Black and White Butterfly fish. This exotic species received their name for their distinctive habit of “fluttering” through reef systems. They are also extremely fascinating to look at with their black and white bands and completely yellow tails. These fish also have an elongated dorsal fin that often floats delicately behind them as the flutter around.

Otherwise known as the Poor Mans Moorish Idol or the Bannerfish these little guys are from the Indo-Pacific region and are extremely easy to care for. They will acclimate to an aquarium environment rather quickly and feel comfortable in their new home. A minimum of a 50 gallon tank is recommended for this species.

As to the behaviors of butterfly fish, they are rather standard of other reef fish. Juveniles prefer to be alone and will often isolate themselves to certain areas of the aquarium. Once in a while you will see them approach mature butterfly fish and pick parasites from their skin. Adult butterfly fish will sometimes be seen in pairs, but don’t usually adopt a school style of socializing. While these fish won’t usually cause damage to invertebrates or soft corals, they could possibly damage stony corals.

I hope you’ve found this information interesting and helpful. Any tips? Questions? Stories? Well, let me know by posting a comment today!

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While many may assume that keeping a salt water aquarium, or any aquarium for that matter, is a relatively new hobby, all are sadly mistaken. Keeping ornamental fish and other sea creatures for pleasure dates back to ancient Roman times. Granted they weren’t very good at keeping their specimens alive, they did pioneer the practice. The Romans like to put sea anemones in jars full of salt water to decorate an areas. Sadly, the anemones didn’t thrive and died soon after. These ancient fish keepers did have more luck with keeping eels, however. Some archaeological documents suggest that these eels sometimes lived in excess of 60 years! The ancient Babylonians have records describing treasure troves of exotic fish dating back to 500 BCE.

Of, course, when most people think of ancient fish keeping, their minds automatically turn to the ancient Asian countries. This is with very good reason, as the ancient Chinese mastered the art of keeping and breeding fish early on in history. Keeping fish in ponds was first documented in 960 AD during the Sung Dynasty. Keeping fish was seen as a sign of wealth, so early on the most affluent in the Chinese society would go out (or have their servants go) to the many rivers and streams in the area and bring in massive carp. They’d then place these carp in a pond for beautification. Later they would begin to breed these fish, resulting in many of the goldfish breeds in the world today. Several years later this practice spilled over into Japan, who is now the world’s leading exporter of goldfish.

Salt water aquariums as we think of them actually didn’t come around until approximately 1950. It was at this time that scientists developed flake food, making aquariums accessible to the masses. Before this time aquariums had mostly been owned by scientists who were aware of how to properly feed fish.

All of this information is pretty interesting, huh! If you have anything to add, or would like to ask some questions, please do so today by posting a comment!

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Continuing on yesterday’s topic of fishy food groups, today we will focused on some more specialized groups. Pretty much the About.com article I read changed from classifying different foods to the fish that eat those certain foods, if that makes sense. So this post will be just a bit different from yesterday’s, but still follows along the same theme. Again, I’d like to thank Stan and Debbie Hauter for taking the time to put together the wonderful article at About.com where I got both my inspiration and material for these blog posts.

Continuing on from yesterday we come to General Bottom Feeders. These fish are sometimes known as “sucker fish” and they are opportunistic feeders. These guys will eat pretty much anything they can get their mouths on. Crustaceans, small fish, worms, and more will be gladly consumed by these bottom feeders.

Next we have fish who eat fish. These guys will generally lure smaller fish in and attack them when they aren’t prepared. You shouldn’t keep these predatory fish in a tank with other fish, as they will, umm, eat them. You should provide these fish with a live feeder fish diet to keep them healthy.

Coral feeders do just what it sounds like they do. These fish generally eat the polyps that grow inside the skeleton of stony corals. While this isn’t harmful on a small scale, if you have too many of these fish in your aquarium you may find  yourself without any coral.

Crustacean feeders work in much the same way as coral feeders. They eat crustaceans, what a surprise! Small crabs and shrimp are the main items on these fishs’ diets, but they won’t shy away from downing worms and clams as well.

General invertebrate feeders eat the smaller or less mobile inverts. This could include motile crabs, shrimp, snails , sea urchins, coral polyps, or even starfish. Generally these types of fish aren’t harmful to an aquarium because there are usually larger numbers of invertebrates present.

Finally we have fish that eat parasites. This may seem harmful, but actually it does a lot of good in an aquarium. You may sometimes see these fish picking parasites off of other species and then eating them. This rids fish of parasites and provides some nutrition for those who consume the parasites.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this two-parter! Let me know what you think by posting a comment!

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I came across an article telling about the eleven main groups of food at About.com earlier this morning. The estimable Stan and Debbie Hauter have managed to outline types of fish food into eleven main groups. You’ve probably seen me write about some of these foods in previous blog posts, so now you’ll be able to learn a little bit more about them. Thanks Stan and Debbie for taking the time to organize this list! I’m forever in your debt.

First on the list is a food group termed Algae and Seagrasses. The foods in this group are mostly made up of micro- and macroalgaes and seagrasses that aren’t truly classified as algaes. This food group is mainly consumed by herbivorist fish. However, you’re going to want to supplement this food group with some other nutrients because if the fish subsist on only grass and algae they will lose color and may ultimately become sick because their body’s aren’t getting the vitamins and minerals conducive to health.

Next we have the Algaes. Algaes are defined as only macroalgaes, no microalgaes or seagrasses are included in this category. Algae isn’t eaten on its own, but is usually consumed as omnivores scavenge for small crustaceans. The algae gets in the way and is consumed along with the unfortunate invertebrates.

Algae and Detritusis another food group for fish. You’ve probably seen me write about detritus before. This is the solid waste that is produced by fish, invertebrate, coral, and any other species that you have in  your salt water aquarium. While this may sound a bit unsanitary, the detritus is actually consumed with algae and small invertebrates, giving fish great amounts of nutrients.

Sponges aren’t commonly eaten on purpose, but they did garner a place on the list. Sponges are mainly consumed by Angelfish because other species don’t find them particularly appetizing. However, sponges may be eaten by species while they are trying to pick up some algae.

Plankton are kind of the combination of everything left over in the tank. Zooplankton is comprised of copepods, amphipods, shrimp, mysids, larvae, and much more. If something small dies in your tank, it will probably be consumed as plankton. However, this conglomeration of “stuff” isn’t enough to balance a diet, it should be supplemented with algae or other nutrients.

Our look at fish food groups will continue tomorrow. Until then…..tata!!

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Orange sun coral is an absolutely breathtaking coral that will no doubt be one of your favorite additions to any reef tank. This coral may be delicate, but it’s also hardy and well worth all of the work that goes into keeping it healthy. The polyps on this coral resemble sunbursts or sunflowers, so the coral is also sometimes referred to as the Sunflower Coral.

Orange sun coral is a large polyp coral with stars at the end of each tubular extension. While the skeleton is extremely delicate, once it has been placed in the tank, there should be no issues. As little handling as possible of this coral is recommended. This particular coral may not open up during the day, but when the polyps yawn during the night, they are spectacular.

There are some difficulties to raising this coral however. The initial hurdle is actually receiving the coral with no problems. It is difficult to ship because it is so delicate. Another issue is feeding. This coral isn’t photosynthetic, so it’s going to need to be fed several times each day. More particularly, each polyp on the coral must be fed individually. Owners recommend an eye dropper for this onerous task. An interesting fact about this coral is that in the wild, it grows upside down because that is the easiest way to catch food. Pretty cool, huh?

A few other things about orange sun coral that you should be aware of are especially it’s living conditions. As mentioned earlier, this coral isn’t photosynthetic, so little to no light is necessary. The coral requires only medium current to thrive. There are also several things you should watch for in regard to the coral’s health. Be on the watch for hair algae, because it can easily kill the coral. You should also be aware that when purchasing orange sun coral parasitic nudibranches and Wentletrap snails will often hitch a ride. Keeping the coral in a quarantine tank for several days should allow you to get rid of these nasties.

Do you have experience with an orange sun coral? If so, let me know by posting a comment today!

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If you are looking for a beautiful fish to brighten up your aquarium, then adding a green mandarin might be a good choice. Be forewarned, however, that these fish are not the easiest to care for. But if you can get them to thrive they are amazing! Let’s learn a little bit more about this extraordinary swimmer.

This particular fishie has several aliases. The green mandarin fish is also known as the mandarin goby, the striped mandarinfish, and even the mandarin dragnet. While this exotic fish is often described as “blenny-like” it is actually a member of the dragonet family.

Let me go into a little more detail about this guy being difficult to care for. Your main hurdle is actually going to be getting the mandarin to your home. These fish do not ship easily. In fact, many of the online retailers who sell this breed do not offer any kind of guarantee that the fish will arrive alive. Once you’ve got a green mandarin at home, getting it acclimated to your tank is another issue. Though these fish are small, they need at least a 30 gallon tank to swim around in, with plenty of rock work to hide in. Some type of sand should also be covering the bottom of the tank.

Now let’s focus on the good. Obviously, the green mandarin has a lot to offer in terms of looks. It is one of the brightest fish available on the market today, and is relatively common. Another added bonus is that while these fish are pretty hostile to other members of their species, if you can find a mated pair, they will reproduce in a captive environment. Caring for the baby fish is difficult, but experts have mastered the task.

Do you own a green mandarin fish? Have you had an experience with one of these species? Let me know by posting  a comment today!

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One of the first things you are going to want to do, before anything else when planning a salt water aquarium, is to tackle the first steps of aquascaping. You want to have at least an idea of what your aquarium will look like so you can order the appropriate materials. One of the most important things you’ll want to consider is live rock.

Live rock is often used as a method of natural filtration used in conjunction with a mechanical filter. The live rock helps to filter out bacteria and other waste and helps it along to the mechanical filter.

There are many things to keep in mind when preparing to order live rock for your aquarium. I recommend looking at some pictures of natural reef systems and deciding what set up you’d enjoy for your aquarium. This way you’ll know what size and shape of live rock to order. With live rock you can form ledges, recesses, caverns, overhangs, and many other formations that will give your aquarium a realistic look.

When putting your rock formations together, first and foremost realize that they MUST BE STABLE. You can achieve this in many ways. The easiest thing to do is wrap the rocks together or attach them with string. You could also use underwater epoch to glue the rocks together as well. You must keep in mind though, that there must be space between the rocks. This will allow water to filter through and also provide fish with a place to hide.

Another handy tip for aquascaping is to keep anything you place in the aquarium away from the edge of the tank. This will make cleaning the glass much easier, and allow water to filter smoothly. Also, keep in mind that less is more. If you fill your tank full of plastic palm trees and castles, it will detract from the natural beauty of your corals and fish.

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