Squatch's Continuing Adventure with a 40g breeder

[Squatch XXL]

I have never laughed so hard. This is what she has done to the hermit crabs in only 2 hours:



Anyone want to place some bets on the chromis? I got an idea that this mantis will stalk and kill it while it sleeps....

 

[Squatch XXL]

This morning I observed her acting like she was going to begin a burrow right in the middle of the tank. Using my wife as a "lookout" for fear of strikes, I used a piece of pvc and a net to gently move her toward the constructed burrow.

She found it well before I prodded her the whole way, and she has been enjoying popping up on both sides of the tank without having to be visible.

Yesterday she ate a piece of shrimp, but did not like my method of feeding her with chopsticks. Today she had no issue coming out and snatching it right from the sticks.

This is the best shot I've got of her eating some shrimp and watching out of her burrow.



She has continued to murder every hermit that has gotten near her. I figured this would happen. I will have to look into other CUC options. She does not seem to mind the snails.

 

[Squatch XXL]

Serendipity:

While visiting my in-laws I was cleaning out some of my old relics. In addition to a lifetime supply of sandpaper, I found my "Supreme" Mag drive 5. It still works from my pond. I also stumbled upon another 30+lbs of agrocrete rockwork. Most of it was intentional rubble for sump, but there was 2 pieces and both have a really great shape. I am actually stoked to have found these. I have enough agrocrete to start another tank leftover from this one.

 

[Squatch XXL]

No photos for a bit. I have been "suffering" a minor re-cycle probably because of the silicone fix leaving some rocks out of water for a day. Diatoms were popping up, and I have to beef up my CUC. This mantis seems to ignore snails. I have changed 10% twice since last week, and introduced activated carbon in the sump.

In the past 2 days the bloom seems to be subsiding.

The Mantis is loving any rubble rock I can produce. I am out of cured/cycled rock to break up so I may resort to re-arranging her burrow just to keep her active. I am amazed at the size of the rocks she has managed to steal and move already. Very easily the most entertaining critter I have had.

I am curing the rest of my agrocrete that I stumbled upon. I am going to put ALL of my agrocrete into a 38g and keep it as a closed loop system for the time being. The tank has a few "chips" on the edge of the glass. I can tell it was handled rough going around a corner. It holds water, but I don't dare drill it. I actually am already envisioning a DIY project with it. The front and back glass have corner chips, the sides are scratched pretty good.......I am thinking about black glass background, and low iron for the other 3 sides. I may beef up the bottom and have it drilled for reef ready then tempered.

 

[Squatch XXL]

Been working on a future project.
The future is that I fix this 38 gallon by replacing Front and back panes (might as well do em all at that point), or I find a source for a 3 foot long 30 gallon. I also have an option to size down on this 38 if I reuse the frame.

Got the stand done. From past experience, I won't waste a drop of paint on this one.

Also, got a new phone, and now I have a 5 year newer camera. photos will be more crisp.

*EDIT*

I don't think this deserves its own chronicle. This is just something to do on the side to fiddle with a $30 dollar thrift store find.

 

[Pat24601]

I don't comment much on these threads because your DIY and saltwater skills are so far beyond me, I don't have much to add. But, I have a lot of fun following them!

 

[Squatch XXL]

The Diatoms have died down quite a bit and are almost gone. I figure they ran their course for a week, and they should be cleared out totally by the weekend.


If you look on the left of the tank, you can see her rubble pile. I simply didn't have enough with even the few extra pounds. I need to give her a few pounds more.



Some of them rocks are HUGE, and ALL of them have been placed there by her from scavenging the tank. The other side is built in like a brick wall as well.

At night she closes up the burrow between 9:30 pm and 10 pm. It has no effect on light, light times or light types. It is terribly accurate.


Close up

I don't comment much on these threads because your DIY and saltwater skills are so far beyond me, I don't have much to add. But, I have a lot of fun following them!

DIY is the mother of innovation. I have never used 2x4 for ANYTHING other than as a makeshift prop, or as a tarp hold-down. I work construction, so I imagine that I can do anything. Some projects get comical. I have always had fish tanks, but have had no time/space for the last decade....Things are getting real.

These stands are super duper easy to make. They are cheap and heavy duty. Anyone could do this with a hacksaw. I DIY because I am cheap when I think I can do something.

Thanks for the compliments. I'm glad that its interesting. This is great place to gather and share info, and I have learned quite a bit lurking about before I enrolled.

 

[Squatch XXL]

Apparently I picked up some sort of hitch hiker. I was not dipping either of the 2 corals which I got from the same place OR q-tanking the fish.

http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forum/index.php?threads/asternia-w-photos.95028/

I don't know what it is, but it seems to be isolated to a few specific zoas. I am moderate to severely upset with myself for this. There are a multitude of products to prevent this, but I never used them before......I never had something go unidentified this long before.

I think it is a starfish of some kind. Some of the "longer" ones seem to be in the middle of division. Its a concern that they are only on one patch of zoa, and not the other. However they appear for now to cause no harm.

As for the fish, its doing well. I reduced feedings....she/he still gets full, I just reduced substantially how much is wasted on the non-existant clean up crew (4 confirmed hermits out of 30)

The Mantis has been named. My wife has named her "Pussy Cat". She apparently acts goofy enough to be a loved member of the family to now have a name.

Pussy Cat has cut back from eating every day to simply not eating for the last 5. She may have gotten sick of fresh shrimp, however I seem to think molting may be in the future. She has been digging around near her burrow and closing up the last 2 nights much more "secure" than usual.

I hope "Pussy Cat" gets out of her funk.

 

[StirCrayzy]

Big changes in shrimp behavior have been signs of molting in my experience, I think your on the right track.

I don't know if I would put much effort into the 38g, it's an odd tank, I would save as a dump, or QT if I was you.

 

[Squatch XXL]

Big changes in shrimp behavior have been signs of molting

Yesterday night I saw a molted dactyl in front of the burrow. She was in a funk and did not eat for 9 days. I assume that her jaws were too soft for shrimp. She came out tonight and was very hungry.

I wanted to feed her before the fish or the turbo snail got beat.

Ill post a photo of the smasher laying on the substrate. I also have a new-ish hitchhiker of a small clam. This thing has been getting around my tank without becoming food. It has a feather duster attached to it, and shows up all over.

Red algae is starting to get annoying. The only thoughts I have is that I have too much lights.

Moon lights just for effect come on at 9 am
A set of 2 t5ho flip on at 10 am
a second set of t5ho flip on 2 pm
the first set of t5ho flips off 6 pm
second set of t5ho flips off at 930 pm
moon lights come on from 930-1030 pm.

I feed very infrequently, and have been keeping up with a 10% change twice a week. Mantis and fish both get fed 3-4 times a week max. I am looking into other clean up crew options. I added a jumbo turbo snail, and it has made it the last 2 weeks.....most of which the mantis was molting. It could get interesting.

 

[Squatch XXL]

Yesterday night I saw a molted dactyl

Since molting she has been entertaining. I think she misses all of the hermit crab friends. I added 2 more turbo snails assuming that 3 is way too much. She promptly ate one, and we are back down to TWO larger turbo snails. The one she got was the smallest. She has used its broken pieces to reinforce the burrow.





The remaining 2 turbos, and a few rag-tag snails and hermits have been doing a great job. At the rate they are surviving and working, the tank will be free of nuisance algae within a week. The turbo snails really do work all day long.

I think it is a starfish of some kind

Was identified as a colonial tunicate by Oxy with 100% accuracy. I figure at this point the tank is going to have them. May as well run with it.

 

[DaveR11]

Since molting she has been entertaining. I think she misses all of the hermit crab friends. I added 2 more turbo snails assuming that 3 is way too much. She promptly ate one, and we are back down to TWO larger turbo snails. The one she got was the smallest. She has used its broken pieces to reinforce the burrow.





The remaining 2 turbos, and a few rag-tag snails and hermits have been doing a great job. At the rate they are surviving and working, the tank will be free of nuisance algae within a week. The turbo snails really do work all day long.





Was identified as a colonial tunicate by Oxy with 100% accuracy. I figure at this point the tank is going to have them. May as well run with it.

Wow what a beauty! Fascinating animal.

 

[Squatch XXL]

Wow what a beauty! Fascinating animal.

I was really stoked at how that photo developed. Thanks for the compliment. I thought that it really captured a lot of nothing, and a small amount of a huge thing.

 

[DaveR11]

How big is she?

 

[Squatch XXL]

How big is she?

Id guess from a glance that she is just over 4".

 

[Squatch XXL]

Feeding time:

This pic shows her going back to the burrow after a failed attempt at beating my chopsticks out of my hand. You can see a blue blur by the entrance of her tail.



This us playing:



Thanks to my daughter for her photography skills.

I also restocked my CUC by adding 15 more cortez hermits. I think that this will take some of the heat off of the turbo snails. In the last month I estimate the loss of 15-20 small CUC members and one small Turbo snail.

 

[Oxylebius]

Great shot!

 

[nanoreefing4fun]

Beautiful colors !

 

[Squatch XXL]

I still have my lights sitting on my tank rim. I positively hate it. I will be doing an overhead hanging setup in the next week or so. It will be simple, and involves self-tapping screws to ductwork. I couldn't have asked for a more simple setup.

I can't wait to adjust the distance from the rocks to get the best look.

 

[DaveR11]

Id guess from a glance that she is just over 4".

They really are magnificent animals and your avatar picture is very appropriate for someone with a pet mantis!