SaltwaterSense

Keeping a Tropical Marine Aquarium Log

One of the least expensive and most valuable things the saltwater aquarist can do for the health of his or her system (or systems) is to keep a tank log. A tank log is simply a record of your tank parameters, observations and any significant changes. The reason a tank log is so valuable is, as I have blogged about before, stability is absolutely critical to success in this hobby. While it’s important for some species to have absolutely flawless water quality, overall, stability is more important to more species over the lifetime of your aquarium.

What Parameters Should Be Recorded?

During the cycling phase of a new saltwater aquarium, you will want to monitor ammonia, nitrites and nitrates, but once the tank is up and running, there are other parameters to record that will give you a good baseline on the stability of the system.

In my opinion, pH is one of the best parameters to record regularly, because a change in pH is often indicative of something else going on. If you record pH regularly (I record it hourly with a pH probe, but once a day or even every few days may suffice), you will be able to see trends over time that will give you invaluable insight into the stability (or lack thereof) of your system. When you see a change in trends, identify the cause of the change and correct it. Any sudden changes (with the exception of the expected daily pH spike associated with the diurnal light cycle) should be cause for a full battery of tests.

In addition to pH, temperature is an essential parameter to monitor regularly (again, I log it hourly using a temperature probe). Many species are tolerant of temperature fluctuations, but any daily temperature fluctuation of more than a couple degrees is stressful and can be the catalyst for disease or infestation. Also, several other parameters have a close relationship with temperature, so, for example, knowing at what temperature you recorded your specific gravity at 1.025 will be important when considering recorded changes to specific gravity over time.

Specific gravity is another parameter I like to monitor regularly because, even if you don’t use a conductivity probe, it’s so quick to check as part of your daily maintenance using a refractometer. Obviously, specific gravity (a.k.a. “saltiness”) is affected by evaporation, top-off and water changes, so monitoring your specific gravity over time will give you some insight into the effectiveness of your husbandry insofar as it is related to water changes. Some species (especially many inverts) are very sensitive to specific gravity, and fluctuations will cause stress and even death.

Reef aquarists will want to test for a variety of other parameters, but I will leave that to a later blog entry. The above parameters—pH, temperature and specific gravity—are the parameters for which I test and log hourly using electronic probes. If you are not going to use probes, then plan to test these parameters once a day AT THE SAME TIME EACH DAY. By reviewing trends over time, you will be able to keep an eye on how stable your aquarium really is. If one or more of these parameters begins to change over time, then your job will be two-fold:

1. Find the cause of the change

2. Correct if necessary

Observation versus Testing

Personally, I don’t test daily for nitrates or phosphates because I feel as if daily observation effectively clues me in to changes in either of these parameters. For example, If I begin to get an algae bloom, I have a pretty good hunch that my phosphates are becoming elevated, which I then confirm with a test kit. While there is no harm to testing for these parameters daily, I prefer to spend the time observing my fishes and leave the phosphate testing to once a month.

Observation, in many ways, is more important, in my opinion, than dogmatic testing. You should observe your tank and animals with a critical eye at least once a day and record notes about what you see. There truly is no better way to become a better aquarist than to observe your system and log your observations. Going back over your log weekly or monthly will reveal trends and subtle changes that may otherwise have gone unnoticed. These changes then become the basis for your personal research online, at your local marine aquarium society or in hobby literature, and you then become a better aquarist.

In conclusion, aim for stability by keeping a tank log. Strive to understand the cause and effect relationships surrounding any changes in your system, and you will, over time, become a more knowledgeable and experienced aquarist. 

Captive-Bred Marine Aquarium Fishes--The Right Choice?

It seems it is really hard to sell a captive-bred animal in today’s marine aquarium industry, and I’m not entirely sure what that is all about.

Sure, a tank-raised fish is usually more expensive, but it is also generally a hardier animal. In addition to captive-bred fishes being better suited for aquarium life than wild-caught fishes, over the past few months there’s been a slew of press against purchasing certain wild-caught animals like the Banggai cardinalfish. In the case of the Banggai cardinalfish, concerns over stable wild populations have led the marine aquarium hobby press to call for a self-imposed ban on wild-caught specimens of this spectacular fish. And yet a sea change has not occurred, and hobbyists are still buying wild-caught fishes. Why is this?

In the case of the Banggai cardinalfish, it has everything to do with the fact that despite the press’ full-court press, nobody—and I mean NOBODY—is supplying tank-raised Banggai cardinalfish on a commercial level to the industry at present. I conducted my very own, unscientific survey a couple weeks ago by travelling to no less than seven local fish stores in the Los Angeles area. While many of these stores had Banggai cardinalfishes, nobody had tank-raised ones or even knew where they could get them. When I asked whether or not hobbyists had been requesting captive bred Banggais, the response was a categorical “no.”

I understand it’s hard for the hobbyist to buy something that is not available, but, by the same token, without the demand, where is the incentive for people to start commercially breeding Banggai cardinalfishes? Or to place the responsibility more firmly with the hobbyist, why are responsible aquarists not demanding captive-bred fish? When faced with the decision between buying a tank-raised fish and a wild-caught fish, why are aquarists not choosing the tank-raised animal more? Either aquarists 1) don’t buy the line that tank-raised fishes are, more often than not, a more suitable choice for the aquarium, 2) don’t believe that wild populations of some fishes are in a dangerous state of decline, or 3) aren’t willing to pay more money for a tank-raised fish.

While I hate to say this, I do believe it comes down to lack of education and money. Why do I say this? Because I don’t want to say that the marine aquarist doesn’t care. I believe that most marine aquarists are good people who have a profound appreciation for the ocean and the animals that live in it. Most aquarists I know want to do the right thing, even if that means paying more for a captive-bred animal. This is why I will be dedicating several blog posts here at SaltwaterSense to the topic of captive-bred marine fishes throughout 2009.

I will not advocate (as some recently have) that the industry should, in the future, depend entirely on captive-bred species. This is neither realistic, nor is it in the best interest of impoverished island nations where the marine aquarium industry provides a valuable source of income to local communities. I do believe we need to ramp-up commercial breeding programs for many popular marine aquarium fishes like dwarf angelfishes, certain tangs and, of course, Banggai cardinafishes, but I also believe we need to educate hobbyists on where upwards of 95% of marine aquarium fishes are collected. We need to begin initiatives to help local fishermen develop sustainable fisheries that conserve the ecosystem and supply a robust and sustainable marine aquarium industry. And of course we need to educate the hobbyist about why, in some cases, demanding and buying the more expensive tank-raised species is the right thing to do.

An Interview with James Lawrence, Editor and Publisher of CORAL Magazine

Coral is one of the most respected magazines in the marine aquarium hobby. The English language edition of Koralle, Coral has appeared in print in the United States for the past five years, although its publication almost came to an end in late 2008 when the previous publisher, EcoSystem Aquariums, failed to complete the December 2008 issue. That is when Reef to Rainforest Media, LLC. And, more specifically, James Lawrence, stepped in to ensure that this valuable publication would not only remain available to English readers, but would also increase in quality and circulation. James--who in addition to being the new editor and publisher of Coral is an award-winning publisher of books and magazines and the founder of Microcosm, LTD--was a kind enough to take a few moments to answer some questions for SaltwaterSense.com.

SS: When Koralle was first conceived in 1999, what was it that set it apart from other aquarium magazines?

JL: The goal was to publish readable and reliable articles from experts, both home aquarists and marine biologists, with a mind-boggling use of brilliant photography, and very high production values.

SS: When was the English language edition of Coral launched, and what was its reception in the United States? What other international versions of the magazine are currently in production?

JL: Coral has been published in English for five years, and it has become a collector’s magazine, read and kept permanently by many serious aquarists in many countries. It is published in Germany, France, Italy, Poland, and Russia. For the first time, we will be making a serious effort to get our edition into the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and other places where English-language magazines are sold.

SS: What is the current relationship between the various editions of the magazine world-wide?

JL: We share content (back and forth) from the German Koralle, the mother ship, ably piloted by Daniel Knop, who is personally known to many US aquarists as intensely interested in the future of marine aquarium keeping.

SS: I have heard it said that Coral provides “a content-driven alternative to most other marine publications currently available to hobbyists.” What does this really mean? Can you give us a few examples?

JL: Sure. In the first issue of 2009, Dr. Ellen Thaler takes a scalpel (maybe a machete) to hobbyists who buy fishes they have no hope of keeping alive. She says many aquarists are chronically underfeeding their fish and argues forcefully that keeping one fish of a species to prevent aggression is just wrong in many cases. Most other magazines wouldn’t have the courage to print such strong opinions, but this is from a woman who clearly knows reef fish behaviors. Even I don’t agree with every word she says, but she makes one think (and she knows how to get Moorish Idols to thrive!).

SS: Again, I have heard it said that Coral provides “a bridge” between the ecosystems upon which the hobby depends and the hobby itself. How so?

JL: Coral is where the world’s most enthusiastic reefkeepers collide with marine biologists and professional public aquaria aquarists. It’s an exciting forum that works at many levels, even for newcomers. There is an element of being on the unpredictable cutting edge that I, as a reader, always love. I find that world-renowned scientists and the t-shirted livestock manager at my local store both have the same respect for the same magazine. It’s quite extraordinary.

SS: Can you give us an example?

JL: In one issue you might find Anthony Calfo telling us how to frag Ancantastrea and Dr. J.E.N. Veron, the father of coral taxonomy, tackling the genus from his field observations. Then you might have the world’s finest underwater close-up shots by Denise Nielsen Tackett of stunning Acans in the world.

SS: Coral has always been known for its aesthetic appeal—it is, in short, a beautiful publication with an attention to detail in layout and design that is unusual for a “hobby rag.” Does Reef to Rainforest Media, LLC intend to maintain the same level of artistry that has made Coral a sought-after collector’s item?

JL: I would simply ask people to watch what we do. We will be spending more on content, printing, and getting the magazine into the hands of readers. It hasn’t been the easiest magazine to find in the past.

SS: It has been claimed by the magazine that Coral (as well as Koralle and the other international editions) is the leading reef magazine in the world. Is this the current owners’ and editors’ position?

JL: Sounds immodest, but there is no other print marine magazine that comes close to the circulation of the English edition of Coral, let alone to the combined international reach of all other editions. There are certainly bigger aquarium magazines, some very good, but none exclusively aimed at reef and marine hobbyists.

SS: The appeal of the magazine to marine aquarium hobbyists and professional aquarists is clear, but you also have said that marine biologists are an important audience. In your experience, do you find many marine biologists subscribe to, contribute to and/or read Coral? Do they view the magazine as more than a “hobby” publication? If so, why? Can you cite one or two?

JL: Among those in the Coral circle of contributors are marine scientists such as Dr. Gerald Allen (coral reef fishes), Dr. Jack Randall (coral reef fishes), Dr. Charlie Veron (stony corals), Dr. Phil Alderslade (soft corals), Dr. Rob Toonen (marine inverts). Among the many Microcosm authors helping are Scott Michael (reef fishes), Matt Wittenrich (marine fish breeding), Alf Nilsen & Svein Fosså (beginning to advanced reefkeeping), and many more.

Our Board of Advisors ranges from Martin Moe, father of the modern marine hobby in my opinion, to Sylvia Earle,(former Chief Scientist of NOAA), a passionate spokesperson for saving the oceans (and a keen supporter of marine aquariums, by the way).

SS: What influenced Reef to Rainforest Media, LLC’s decision to take on the license to publish Coral? How does it fit in with the overall mission and philosophy of Reef to Rainforest Media?

JL: I believe I first met Daniel Knop at one of the very early MACNA Conferences, and there is a great deal mutual respect. When the former US publisher failed to complete the December 2008 issue, Daniel and I connected with some urgency. People like Julian Sprung and others joined us in wanting to be sure Coral and its readers continued without missing an issue.

At Microcosm, which is sharing space with Coral, we have always tried to blend trustworthy information, great photography, and a respect for the natural reef environment. The whole Koralle/Coral empire is built on the same foundation by people who love aquariums and care about the future of coral reefs.

SS: What is the status of former subscribers to Coral? Will they continue to receive the magazine as long as their subscription is current, or do they need to re-subscribe?

JL: The former publisher, Mr. Leng Sy of EcoSystem Aquariums, has cancelled all former subscriptions. He refused to transfer or even sell them to the owners of Coral. We are ready to make all them happy if they contact us. We believe in the contract between a publisher and his or her readers to deliver what was paid for.

SS: As editor and publisher, what are your specific goals for the magazine in the upcoming year?

JL: We are increasing circulation by 33% immediately. Coral has been enthusiastically accepted for national distribution into the busiest Barnes & Noble, Borders, Books A Million and Hastings Bookstores. We have a thriving new online subscription center set up especially to help former subscribers who are frantic to re-subscribe.

We are going to be working with LFS Locator.com and hundreds of the best independent local stores to strengthen the fundamentals of this hobby, one that uniquely needs great local resources in addition to conscientious online dealers.

SS: Tell us a little about what we might expect in the first issue, and when readers will have the opportunity to get their hands on it.

JL: We have proofs of the whole issue pinned up on about 20 feet of office hallway, and everyone in the building is blown away. Matt Wittenrich’s extreme closeups of Mandarinfishes breeding and juvenile Mandarins are worth the price of admission. The triggerfishes cover story is a definitive guide to some of the most intelligent and interesting fishes we can keep. Scott Michael pitches in a review of triggers that can be trusted in the reef aquarium, and Anthony Calfo debunks a bunch of myths about reef lighting. Sometimes more is way too much. It will mail in the last week of January.

SS: Is there anything else you’d like to say about Coral?

JL: We hope people will take a look and judge for themselves. Our introductory offer gives people a first issue free. If anyone is disappointed, they get all their money back. We are betting that people will love it. We want to take a very good magazine and make it even better—a must read for the passionate marine aquarist.

To subscribe to the new CORAL Magazine and get one issue free, click here!

Tropical Marine Aquarium Fishes and Inverts Need Their Vitamins

Adding a vitamin supplement to your tropical marine aquarium food is a good idea in most situations. A lack of certain vitamins can lead to slow growth and faded colors and, in a worst case scenario, deformities, weight loss and worse. Sick or diseased fishes will also recover faster if they are not suffering from any vitamin deficiencies.

You’ve heard of people taking fish oil supplements as part of their daily health regiment, Right? Well fish oils are loaded with fat-soluble vitamins including vitamins A, D, E, and K, which are responsible for everything from general healthy growth to antioxidant effects. Fish require these fat-soluble vitamins for optimal health, and they get them from sources such as fish flesh, shellfish flesh, worms, and seaweed. Feeding a varied diet including marine fish and crustacean flesh, as well as some live foods, is the first step to insuring sufficient quantities of fat-soluble vitamins in tour fishes’ diet.

In addition to fat-soluble vitamins, marine aquarium fishes require water-soluble vitamins (most important are B and C). These vitamins are critical to healthy growth, metabolism, strong immune systems, and digestion among other critical functions. Fishes get water-soluble vitamins from a variety of sources, but they can be taken directly from the aquarium water if the vitamins are present in the water. Food sources of vitamin B and C include the same sources as mentioned above for vitamins A, D, E, and K. Vitamins B and C can also be added directly to the aquarium water.

Many aquarists rely on a varied diet finely tuned to their stock in order to insure proper vitamin uptake. It is, however, a good idea in my opinion to also soak the food in a commercially available vitamin supplement before feeding (especially frozen and freeze-dried foods). To avoid vitamin deficiencies in your fishes, consider using a supplement as a regular part of your husbandry protocol.

Be sure the supplement you use does not contain phosphates, nitrates or yeasts, which can all negatively affect your water quality. Some aquarists use vitamin C liquids and other vitamin products from their local health food store, but there are many commercially available supplements to consider including Kent Zoe, Boyd Vitachem, and Kent Marine C.

Fish, like people, need their vitamins. Feeding a varied diet and using a supplement will insure the long-term health, growth and beauty of your animals.

Tank Stability in the Saltwater Aquarium

A gentleman by the name of Steve wrote to me recently with the following problem:

MY WIFE AND I HAVE A 65 GALLON TANK THAT HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED FOR OVER 14 MONTHS AND RECCENTLY WE HAVE BEEN HAVING BIG PROBLEMS WITH THE WATER---WE USE A MAGNUM 350 WITH THE POLISHING FILTER (PAPER STYLE)--AND ALSO USE A CASCADE 3 STAGE FILTER SYSTEM WE USE CULLIGAN WATER BUT THIS WEEK AFTER THE WATER CHANGE ONLY 2 DAYS AGO 20% CHANGE AND CLEANED AND RENEW THE FILTERS LIKE ALWAYS BUT THE WATER IS VERY CLOUDY AND GETTING WORSE---8 WEEKS AGO WE TREATED FOR BACTERIA INFECTION THIS TOOK 5 DAYS AND THEN BUSINESS LIKE NORMAL--THE TREATMENT HELP A LOT WE THOUGHT THE WATER LOOKED BETTER THAN BEFORE BUT NOW LIKE I SAID THE WATER IS GETTING CLOUDY AND ALL THE TESTS ARE AT NORMAL LEVELS--WHAT AM I DOING WRONG--ANY INPUT WOULD BE GREAT

I thought I would share Steve’s question as an opportunity to speak broadly on the topic of troubleshooting tank problems and touching on my favorite topic—tank stability. When we start a marine tank, we are attempting to replicate a slice of the ocean. If we appreciate that the ocean is a remarkably stable environment, then we can also appreciate that maintaining stability in the home aquarium is critical to success. Likewise, a change in stability often results in problems—perhaps like the problem Steve describes.

To begin, I am a firm believer that a marine tank really needs a full year to stabilize and begin performing as the aquarist originally intended. Because Steve’s 65-gallon tank is 14 months old, his sudden change in water quality is of even greater concern to me than if his tank was only four months old.

Whenever something goes wrong in one of my tanks, the first thing I do is check my parameters—especially nitrates, phosphates and pH. Steve did check his parameters, and he reports that all his parameters are normal, although I’d like to know which parameters he tested.

If water testing does not help me pinpoint a water quality issue such as Steve describes, then my next course of action is to work back through my husbandry to the last thing I did that was unusual.  For example, did I recently add a new animal? Did I begin dosing a supplement? Did I change my filtration system? Did I (as is the case with Steve) treat the tank for a specific problem?

Steve says he treated for a bacteria infection two months ago, and this is where I would probably begin my line of questioning. What was the bacteria infection? What did Steve use to treat it? It does seem strange to me, however, that the water quality improved following the treatment.

If I were in Steve’s shoes, I would do the following:

• Continue to monitor the water parameters daily (at the same time each day) and record the results so he can see any trends over time.

• Review the tank’s bioload. How many animals are in the system? Is the tank overstocked? Are there compatibility issues that may be affecting water quality? Is the filtration system sufficient for the current bioload?

• Observe any changes in the animals’ behavior. Are fishes “gasping” or “breathing hard”? Are the fishes active? Are they acting normally based on previous observations? Are corals inflated and feeding, or are the polyps retracted?

• Review the tank’s regular maintenance schedule and husbandry practices. For example, is Steve changing out all the filtration media at once? If so, this can cause a major disruption in water stability, and a simple change in tank maintenance protocol may be the ticket. Alternatively, did Steve start using a new food like a liquid food for filter feeders to feed a newly added coral specimen? If so, a change in feeding frequency, amount or brand may solve the problem.

In terms of proactive actions, a series of water changes would be my first choice. I would mix up a large batch of saltwater and allow it to age for at least 24 hours and then begin a series of major water changes over a series of days making sure that pH, salinity and temperature match the tank’s parameters.

In general, our saltwater tanks are a microcosm of the world’s oceans, which are a remarkably stable environment. Stability in our aquaria is the Holy Grail, and we need to realize that EVERYTHING we do to our microcosm can affect that stability. The problems we experience with water quality are often the direct result of a disruption in stability, and that disruption is often a direct result of something—chemical or biological—that we added to or subtracted from the system. Identifying the culprit is often the first step to resolving the issue and re-establishing stability.