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FAQs on the Algae Eating Blennies Systems
Related Articles: Algae Eating Blennies,
True or Combtooth Blennies,
Ecsenius Blennies, Tube/Pike/Flag
Blennies/Chaenopsidae, Related
FAQs: Algae-eating
Blennies, FAQs 2, &
Algae Eating Blenny (AEB) Identification,
AEB Behavior, AEB Compatibility,
AEB Selection, AEB Feeding,
AEB Disease, AEB Reproduction, &
Combtooth Blennies 1,
Blenny Identification, Blenny Behavior,
Blenny Compatibility, Blenny Selection,
Blenny Systems, Blenny Feeding,
Blenny Disease, Blenny Reproduction,
Ecsenius Blennies, Saber-Tooth
Blennies, Blennioids & their Relatives,
Tube/Pike/Flag Blennies/Chaenopsidae, | MD.JPG)
With lots of live rock, space... and algae!
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Blenny Blunder? (Moving a Blenny Into A Nano Tank) My Lawnmower
Blenny was doing very well in my 125 g until I "rescued" a black-tipped
grouper from a LFS that was going out of business. After about a week
of what seemed to be peaceful co-habitation between the current tank
occupants, the blenny was obviously worse for the wear (no damage, but
was so exhausted that I scooped him out of the corner of the tank
without a fight). <Good move!> By the way, the tank parameters
are: 1.021; amm=0; nitrate=0; nitrite=0;
phos=undetectable; calcium=380; pH=8.2; temp=79-81; it's an All-Glass
125 FOWLR with 122# of LR and 150# of LS; lighting is 2 X 10,000 96W
and 2 X 420 Actinic 96W. <Sounds good!> Anyway, I removed the
blenny to my HOB refugium where he is eating and recovering nicely. Now
the question (usually that's the reason for these notes, eh?)....I'm
considering relocating the blenny from the refuge to my 12g
nano...parameters the same as above with the noticeable exception of
lighting and 1.023 salinity. The nano has 13# of LR and houses Xenia,
Yellow Star Polyps, a couple of small colonies of Zoos, and 3 small
hermits. The only occupant, fish-wise is a Yellow-head Jawfish, who has
built a considerable underground village under the LR which is supported
by pvc. As the blenny is not the world's smallest (about 3.5"), I
wonder would he be comfortable, for about 5 months, in the nano
considering the current, happily running environment. I'm adding a reef
tank after Christmas of 90 gallon size to which he would later
re-locate. I don't want the blenny or jaw (or corals for that matter)
to suffer during this time period. I'd rather give the blenny to
another hobbyist if we can anticipate problems in the nano. <Well,
the main problem might be that the two inhabit similar "niches" (i.e.;
towards the bottom). You also don't want to push the bioload to far in
such a small tank. Fish, with their greedy appetites and copious
metabolic waste products can tax water quality quickly. I'd say go for
it, but be prepared to move someone if things get out of hand.>
Thanks and sorry for the length of the note. Grunfeld in Detroit
<No problem on the length. Your accurate descriptions help us do a
better job of helping you! Good luck! Regards, Scott F>
The corals don't like the Blenny Hi, <Hi Lisa!> I got a
rock with a few orange/purple Ricordea and another with green star
polyps about 1 1/2 weeks ago. They were doing great until I got
a Sailfin blenny. He climbs all over the rocks and occasionally
the corals. He knocked the Ricordea rock over 2 times! <Hee
Hee! Very normal Blenny behavior. They don't seem to care much what
they "climb" over or perch on, and in fact, mine will forcibly throw
objects off of his favorite perch!> The first time he just tapped it
and they seemed fine, 2nd time it was flipped and sitting on one of the
shrooms. I finally got some glue but when I picked up the rock I
realized the Ric was only partially attached to the rock. It also has a
small chunk missing, the purple looks grayish and the mouth does too.
<Gluing or otherwise attaching corals is a wise choice to prevent such
falls.> Is it dead or injured? Anything I can do to save it? <It
sounds like it is a bit bleached. It should recover quickly and
completely if you prevent further insults.> As if that's not enough
trouble from the blenny, he's also upset the GSP. They were 1/2 closed
up after the first day w/the blenny, now they've been closed solid for
2 days. Are they OK? Will they get used to him? <It is normal for
GSP's to periodically close for a while. If you are sure it is the
Blenny, they may adapt, but it is probably best to move the GSP's out of
his territory. Thanks, Lisa Spencer <best regards! Adam>
Potters Angel <Lawnmower Blenny and Catalina Gobies> in Possible Danger
Related to Lack of Research. Howdy! <Hey there!> I'm
not sure where to start, so I'll start from the top and be very verbose
(my apologies).... <No apologies my friend.> 2 months ago I
set up a brand new "NanoCube 24" by JBJ (24 gal) with about 30 pounds of
live rock, and 2 bags of live sand. The rock came from a friends 75gal,
which he had for 6 years. There is about 16 gal of water in the tank
(at a guess) and it has been doing fantastic. <OK.>
I let it cycle for about 3 weeks, then inserted my test pilot, a small
Yellow Tail Damsel, who also did great. <Not the most
ideal means of cycling a tank. Please read here for future reference: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/estbiofiltmar.htm >
The following week, the insanity overtook me, and I had a trio of
Catalina Gobies, 5 different button corals, and few very pretty
mushrooms delivered. <Mmm, yes, insanity and impatience. My, this
is not a good mix. Catalina Gobies (Lythrypnus dali) are a cool water
species, preferring water temps between 64-71 F. Please
read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/lythrypnus.htm
Your corals are found in tropical waters. An appropriate temperature
would be around 78-79 F.> The mushrooms were in baaaad
shape, most having detached from their strata and curled into spit wads.
<Is that the technical term?> Currently, 1 is doing great, 2 are
doing ok, and the other 2 are losses. <See temperature
suggestion above and below.> The button corals have their days where
they are wide open, and their days where they are partially open....
<See temperature reference above and below.> At this point, all
of the fish were doing great. Some hermit crabs and snails were added
to help with some algae, eventually swelling to 16 crabs (tiny blue
legs, zebra, Scarlets, and some normal Mexican red legs), and about 12
snails of various kinds (the Turbo snails will be exiting the tank in a
day or 2, due to their constant tossing of my corals). <A lot of
crabs and too many snails for such a small system. High likelihood of
starvation for the snails.> 2 weeks ago I inherited a Lawnmower
Blenny from a friend, and he too is doing well, though I have never seen
a blenny swim freely so much... <He's probably hungry.>
He seems to eat well, and everyone gets along. <The minimum
recommended tank size is 55 gallons for a Lawnmower Blenny (Salarias
fasciatus). The Blenny may starve in systems that are not well
established or have insufficient algae growth. Your system is too small
and too new to be an appropriate home for this fish. I would try to
find a more appropriate home for this fish.> A small peppermint
shrimp also came with the blenny. <OK.> 4 days
ago, my girlfriend heard me say "That is a beautiful fish. I wouldn't
mind getting one at some point, like when I have a 75..." at which
point she wandered off to look at the puppies. When I got home from
work the following evening, she surprised me with that beautiful Potters
Angel acclimating in his bag in my 24! I was delighted, yet also
totally freaked out. I called the pet store, and they wouldn't take him
back. Now, they had him for 2 months, and he has done better than any
other Angel (save a little Eblii they had). I took about 2 hours to
acclimate him, and during the transfer from bag to tank, my dog barked,
which surprised both me and the fish. He became tangled in the net due
to that gill spike, and it took me about 2 minutes to extricate him with
very small scissors snipping the net. <Aye!> Since then, he
has been very active in the tank, and was nipping at the glass, rocks,
and strands of algae the very next morning. I've recently done a
profusion of reading, and I am in fear that he won't last in my little
24. So far, he seems very happy, but only eats off of the rocks, and
occasionally nibbles at the dried seaweed I clip in. No one chases
anyone around, and it is a very peaceful tank with everyone mingling and
swimming about, including the Potters. I change out about 2-3 gallons
every 3 days, using RedSea for my salts. and the daily temperature
beings at 72*F in the morning, at is usually at 75.5*F in the evening
when I turn off the light. <This water temperature and
its fluctuation is less than ideal for your system, best to keep temps
stable and warmer, 78-79 F.> I've been able to keep "perfect" water
quality, with almost nonexistent Nitrite and Nitrate, and the KH is at
the optimum level. My question is... what can I do to keep this
fish happy and alive? <Actually the Potter's Angel
(Centropyge potteri) is the most appropriate fish you currently have in
your tank. I would try offering some well-rinsed frozen foods soaked in
Selcon several times a day. The problems lie with the Blenny and
Gobies. Your system is not an appropriate home for either. The gobies
do not belong in your system. They require a cool water setup. The
gobies need to be relocated to an appropriate cool water home. The
blenny should be kept in a larger more established tank.>
I've called a few stores in the area, and the only one willing to take
him off of my hands will only take him for free. I'd hate to break my
wonderfully misguided gals heart by giving her gift away, and I do like
the Potters so.... Any advice or help would be GREATLY
appreciated. <Your girl seems to have done more homework regarding
appropriate choices for you system than you have my friend. She is not
as misguided as you may think. Her selection is more appropriate than
your selection of a Lawnmower Blenny and Catalina Gobies. Your water
temperature should be higher and more consistent. You have too many
snails and quite a few hermits which will compete with the angel for
algae. Please do more research before making purchases. The lives of
these amazing creatures are solely in your hands. You may want to
consider a book by Robert M. Fenner titled "The Conscientious Marine
Aquarist" to help you on your journey. I think you will find it most
helpful. It is a book I continuously reference. It is money well
spent. Thank you, Darby
<Welcome. -Mich>
Re: Potters Angel <Lawnmower Blenny and
Catalina Gobies> in Possible Danger Related to Lack of Research.
Mich, Thank you very much for your advice.
<Hello Darby! You are quite welcome!> Doing research can be so very
frustrating because there are so many contradictory sources out there,
especially the people in the shops "who know" and urge you on to get
things going quickly. <Yes, it can be a big challenge, but doing
your own research is essential to be successful in this hobby. Shame on
shops who encourage quickness... the antithesis of appropriate.>
I may have found a home for the Lawnmower Blenny, and a good number
of the snails will be making an exit this evening. <Very
good, as long as they are going to appropriate homes.> I'll continue
to look for some place for the Catalinas, as I'd hate for their lifespan
to be shortened on my account. <Yes, a shame these fish
are occasionally sold as tropical species to well intended folks as
yourself.> Perhaps I should set up a second tank ( I have a 10 gal
that could be used for that, but it would be too small, except for a
refugium). <This might be a good temporary solution. Where they are
at now is too warm. The issue here really is temperature. In many
places in the world this system would require a very expensive
chiller. If you are in a Northerly climate, there is a possibility, but
these fish like it as some would say, cool, I would say, brrr... cold.>
Another question, if you don't mind: How can I keep the water
temperature from fluctuating, without heaters or chillers?
<Mmm, you need a heater if you're keeping tropical fish, my
friend. These are quite affordable, tiny ones are less than $10 and
super deluxe go for around $50. I am shocked that you don't have
one. Go get one ASAP. And while you're out, stop at your local
bookstore and pick up a copy of "The Conscientious Marine Aquarist" by
Robert M. Fenner. This book will be a tremendous resource for you. I
reference it frequently. It is money well spent and you will use it as
long as you are in the hobby.> I keep my house at a constant temp,
so I can only theorize that it is the lighting system raising the temp,
which I was assured that the Nanocubes were immune from. These little
systems don't leave very much, if any, room to add systems... <Yes,
an inherent problem, but add a heater please.> thank you again,
Darby <Welcome! Mich>
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