Armco Aquariums

Installing the new Radion light fixture

rich — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 20:35:42 +0000

One of the Armco techspointed out that I haven’t shut up about the new Radion light fixture from Ecotech Marine since I installed the first one last weekend. I have been hanging LED’s above aquariums for years now and I have to say that this fixture is the most impressive.Right out of the box it begins to shine (no pun intended). If Apple computers made aquarium lighting, it would look like this. Sleek, compact, great packaging. The choice of materials stands out. Ablackacrylic floating top with soft touch plastic wrapping around it. For this installation I would be mounting the Radion in a existing canopy. The black acrylic top has touch sensitive buttons for manual operation, so I didn’t want to mount it tight again this surface. The top uses 4) 5mm bolts with female heads. Ecotech provides you with short 5mm bolts with eyelets for hanging, but since I would be mounting the fixture in a canopy, I purchased longer screws and nylon spacers. The nylon spacers gave me the clearance needed to operate the touch buttons. Mounting light fixturesis nothing new, but programing them with a laptop certainly was. There is a mini USB port on the side of the Radion so it is easy to connect. But I hear the next step is to allow for wireless programming. The softwaredownload is quick and easy and using it proved to be intuitive. I really like theway you can program groups of Radions together. For this application two Radions were both recognized by the software and programmed together even though only one was connected via USB. Oh yeah, and about the lights. The light pattern seamed to bathe the aquarium which contrasts some other LED fixtures thatseem like laser pointers. The color is highly variable due to five different colored LED bulbs. The light blue zone is my favorite and brings on a sky blue hue that is different than anything I have seen in aquarium lighting. Ecotech continues to innovate with the new Radion.

Tomato Clownfish

rich — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:47:41 +0000

Tomato Clown, (Brevoort, 1856)
Amphiprion fenatus

Native to: Western Pacific: Gulf of Thailand to southwestern Palau, north to southern Japan, south to Java, Indonesia(fishbase.org)

Max Length:5.5″ (14cm)

Description: These colorful fish often host in anemones(such as the Bubbletip and Leathery Sea Anemones) in the wild, but do not require them for survival in captivity. They can become very territorial defending their homes from other fish who may try to take them and will not tolerate the presence of other anemone fish.

Feeding: These fish will eagerly take a wide range of foods. A mixed diet of both high quality pellet food and formulated frozen foods is recommended for long term health.

Special Notes: In captivity, these fish will often attempt to host in corals when anemones are not present. This can sometimes irritate corals and should be carefully monitored especially when large polyp stony corals are introduced.

Sources:
Michael, Scott; Marine Fishes
fishbase.org(image)
wetwebmedia.com

Flame Hawk

admin — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:45:19 +0000

Flame Hawk, (Castlenau, 1873)
Neocirrhites armatus

Native to: Pacific Ocean: Ryukyu Islands to the Line Islands and Mangareva, south to the Great Barrier Reef and the Austral Islands; Caroline, Mariana, and the Wake islands in Micronesia.(fishbase.org)

Max Length:3.5″ (9cm)

Description: This bright red and black fish is an extremely hardy animal in captivity. All Hawk fish are perching fish often seen resting on branches of large corals or hanging out near anemones. They are typically voracious eaters and are very good at taking out mobile invertebrates.

Feeding: Meaty high protein foods are important for this fish. Crustaceans, mysid shrimp, and high quality pellet and frozen foods are all good choices.

Special Notes: Perching fish such as this one may help with water circulation around large stony corals and their waste can serve as a source of Nitrogen for the coral as well.

Sources:
Michael, Scott; Marine Fishes
fishbase.org(image)
wetwebmedia.com

Hippo Tang

admin — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:42:24 +0000

Hippo Tang, (Linnaeus, 1766)
Paracanthurus hepatus.

Native to: Indo-Pacific: East Africa, including the Mascarene Islands to Kiribati, north to southern Japan, south to the southern Great Barrier Reef, New Caledonia, and Samoa. (fishbase.org)

Max Length: 12.2″ (31cm)

Description: This bright blue, black, and yellow fish can prove difficult at times to adapt to captivity as it is vulnerable to many of the common diseases found in aquaria. Once acclimated to captivity, this fish must be fed well for long term health or they do not typically survive to maturity. The Hippo Tang was popularized significantly when Pixar’s Finding Nemo was released in 2003.(Dory).

Feeding: This fish requires frequent feedings of meaty and vegetable matter. Both frozen and pellet formula foods are a healthy choice. Quantity and frequency are very important.

Special Notes: Use caution when your hands are in the water with this animal as it has a sharp bone protruding from its body which it will use as a defense mechanism.

Sources:
Michael, Scott; Marine Fishes
fishbase.org
wetwebmedia.com(image)

Purple Tang

admin — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:35:46 +0000

Purple Tang, (Blyth, 1852)
Zebrasoma xanthurum

Native to: Western Indian Ocean: Red Sea to the Persian Gulf; recorded from Maldives(fishbase.org)

Max Length:9.8″ (25cm)

Description: The purple tang is a highly sought after fish among reef keepers. Recently, two of the countries they are typically imported from have limited the amount of these fish collected to lessen the impact on wild populations. This has further increased the price of these beautiful animals. Once acclimated, these bright purple and yellow fish are extremely hardy and can help keep down pest algae. In the wild, this species and most related Zebrasoma fish are found swimming in large groups.

Feeding: This fish requires frequent feedings primarily of vegetable matter. Its staple food should be marine algae. Additional high quality pellet food and frozen food should be fed as well as occasional treats including small pieces of zucchini, broccoli, and lettuce.

Special Notes: This fish’s color will often change drastically depending on its mood. At night and when they are under stress, their colors often fade. Also, use caution when your hands are in the water with this animal as it has a sharp bone protruding from its body which it will use as a defense mechanism.

Sources:
Michael, Scott; Marine Fishes
fishbase.org(image)
wetwebmedia.com

Sailfin Tang

admin — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:32:24 +0000

Sailfin Tang, (Bloch, 1797)
Zebrasoma veliferum

Native to: Western Indian Ocean: Mozambique. Pacific Ocean: Indonesia to the Hawaiian and Tuamoto islands, north to southern Japan, south to the southern Great Barrier Reef, New Caledonia, and Rapa Island. (fishbase.org)

Max Length:15.7″

Description: This quick agile fish is a great choice for community reef tanks. This is the least aggressive of the tangs within its genus. They will typically leave corals alone if well fed.

Feeding: Like other members of the Zebrasoma genus, this fish requires frequent feedings primarily of vegetable matter. Its staple food should be marine algae. Additional high quality pellet food and frozen food should be fed as well as occasional treats including small pieces of zucchini, broccoli, and lettuce.

Special Notes: Use caution when your hands are in the water with this animal as it has a sharp bone protruding from its body which it will use as a defense mechanism.

Random Fact: In the Indian Ocean, this species is replaced with the Desjardinii Tang, Zebrasoma desjardinii.

Sources:
Michael, Scott; Marine Fishes
fishbase.org(image)
wetwebmedia.com

Monti Cap

admin — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:21:36 +0000

Monti Cap,
Montipora Capricornis

Description: These thin flat stony corals found in a wide variety of corals including yellow, green, pink, and more. Their growth patterns are dramatically impacted by flow and light.

Feeding: These corals have very small polyps and require no feeding as they get most of the energy they need to live and grow from the symbiotic algae that grows within their tissue. They may feed on small quantities of oyster eggs or golden pearls or other very small plankton foods.

Special Notes: These are typically very hardy animals in captivity and can easily be fragmented to create new daughter colonies. Fragmenting or “fragging” is where a piece of the coral is removed in an attempt to create another coral.

Fungia Plate Coral

admin — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:18:21 +0000

Fungia Plate Coral, (Dana 1848)
Fungia sp.

Native to:”Red Sea and East Africa to central Pacific” Sprung

Description: There corals are indipened polyps which are capable of moving aross the sand bed. They come in a vast array of colors including, but not not limited to, purple, green, brown, red, orange, silver, pink, yellow, and mixtures of the above. They are often found in groups in the wild and are often climbing over each other.

Feeding: These animals benifit from, but don’t nessarily require, target feeding.

Special Notes: Hobbyist are often told to never remove sick or seemingly dead corals from the aquarium. The reason behind this is because they are capable of production daughter colonies even after the coral appears to be completely lifeless. The tiniest piece of flesh can generate miniature replicas which, when mature enough, will be severed from the mother colony and “walk” away.

Scientist have also produces full sized corals from fragmenting single septa from the coral.(septa being the rigid lines which radiate from the center of the coral.) Specimens in captivity kept healthy for extended periods of time can be sliced up into pizza like sections and can recover into a full circle.

Pulsing Exenia

admin — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:13:02 +0000

Pulsing Xenia, (Lamarck, 1816)
Xenia sp.

Native to: The Red Sea

Description: These soft octocorals are often shades of brown and tan, and can change colors slightly in different water chemistry. The “waving hand” part of the animals are the polyps. The parts of the polps which look like petals or small feathers are called pinnules. There are 8 pinnules on each polyp.

Feeding: These animals have very primitive “mouths” and do not feed. They receive most of their energy from the symbiotic relationship they have with photosynthesizing zooxanthellae(unicellular algae that lives within the corals tissue).

Special Notes: While no scientist claims to know “the” reason why these animals exhibit their pulsing behavior, there are many benefits of this behavior for the animals. While pulsing the polyps move water across their tissue allowing them to absorb certain elements from the water column which they need to construct new tissue. Also when the polyps are closed it allows parts of the animal below the polyps to be illuminated for photosynthesis. The least likely reason for the pulsing behavior though is feeding as these animals do not obtain energy through feeding.

admin — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:08:40 +0000

Hermit Crabs

Native to: Very wide spread. Most tropical and subtropical intertidal areas. Some temperate intertidal areas.

Description: Hermit crabs(though not “true” crabs”) are crustaceans. They belong to the infraorder Anomura. There are both terrestrial and aquatic species of hermits.

Shells: Hermit crabs use shells left behind by other animals such as snails and conchs for protection. As they grow they must find new shells to make their homes.

Feeding: They are scavengers and feed on a very large variety of foods of both vegetable and meaty matter. In an aquarium well stocked with fish it is usually not necessary to add additional food specifically for the hermits.

Identification: It is very difficult to identify hermit crabs to species. Hobbyists often refer to hermit crabs as “red legs”, or “blue legs”. As a consequence to naming these animals by colors hobbyist are sometimes sold hermits that are known to do harm to corals or even eat fish, as opposed to the “red legs” that are mostly reef safe. Use caution when buying animals online site unseen.

Special Notes: Do not be alarmed if you see what appears to be the lifeless body of a hermit inside the aquarium. Like many other crustaceans hermit crabs will moult their exoskeleton in order to grow and regrow limbs. Lobsters, blue crabs, and shrimp will also moult.

Sources:
wetwebmedia.com(image)