A 55G link in the Golden Chain

[Melanie]

Yes, they look like they are plumping up. Keep on doing what you're doing and maybe it will fill in. My alien eye brain looked half dead when I got it and parts receded to the skeleton. The color was horrible. I put it in the very top spot in my tank and target fed it after lights-out about once a week (plus I feed my fish often so it's getting some from that too). After a month (a loooooong month) it is getting its amazing color back and even growing into the skeleton areas.

[goldenmean]

Yes, I have him near the at the top of the reef near the lights.
I have been target feeding him a cyclopeeze/oyster egg combo one day and a couple days later I fed him some of my homemade squid and shrimp slurry. I have also been using Live phyto-feast twice weekly for my filter feeders. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

So the last couple of week when I take my flashlight to the dark tank I have seen a cirolanid isopod. I have seen him at least a half dozen times. When The light goes on him he drops into the substrate. Well last night I saw where he went. I grabbed the fishnet and put it near when he landed. eventhough I could not see him any longer I put the net on the sand and he swam away. But not fast enough, I netted the little bugger and he is no more!! I dont know if he is the only one but I have only seen one cirolanid swimming at a time.

I am seeing more and more beneficial pods of various sizes in the tank in bot the substrate and the rocks. I also have seen a tiny shimp of some kind. He is 1/4-3/8 of an inch long. I got two peppermint shrimp with the TBS Package. One of which disappeared the second I added her to the tank so I dont think she survived. The other peppermint I usually see every evening although I have not seen him for a few days. He could just have gone into hiding to molt. Or he was hanging out by the mantis and became a feast.
The tiny shrimp is pretty cool looking. I have tried to take pics but they are too blurry. I did take some this morning with the flash but I had to go to work so I have not seen them yet. Maybe there will be a descent pic. He has big eyes on his tiny head and his tail section points upward
I have seen him on one of the ball sponges a couple of times so I am guessing he is eating phyto-feast or oyster eggs that is caught on the sponge.

[Melanie]

Thanks for the update. I love reading about your tank.

[goldenmean]

Here are the best pics to date of any of my Mantis shrimp.
Mantis #1

[GeeWizzItsMe]

That would scare me to DEATH!

[Melanie]

Wow, he's so colorful! I love it.

[goldenmean]

I took a few pics this eve and i thought I would share a couple.

Full Tank Shot 10.24.07


Big Rics
I cannot believe how big the green ric gets.


The chalice is hanging in there.
There seems to be some slight improvement.
He just needs some more time

[Melanie]

Your sponges still look magnificent! I like your aquascaping a lot.

[goldenmean]

Thanks Melanie!
I lost a couple of sponges but the rest of them are doing well.
I even have a couple of new small HH yellow ball sponges that have just popped up. You can see them in this pic. They are behind the zoanthid frag.

Oh that lil zoa frag was "rescued" from my nano. They were lost and floating around behind the rock for some time. They were all brown. Now under my MH they are starting to perk and color up.

[lcstorc]

Very nice!!

[Wooden Harpoon]

Ah ha! I've just read the entire thread. Thanks for checking out mine and steering me over here (Learning a lot of possibilities.) I am itching with anticipation of setting up my 55 gallon. I can only hope that I have the success that you are having with yours. Soon, I hope to start a journal of what goes on from start to finish. B-E-A-Utiful Aquarium!

-Thanks

[Dentoid]

Looking good Jeff! Are you getting your christmas fish-list together?

[Melanie]

Dentoid's avatar is scaring me.

[rebekwl]

Originally Posted by Melanie

Dentoid's avatar is scaring me.

That's exaclty what I was just thinking, hehe!

Your tank is looking great! Good luck with the Chalice, it's a beautiful coral, I hope it pulls through!

[ScubaDrew]

Hey Golden!

Tank looks great - I have a couple of the yellow ball sponges also, they seem to do well.

question, whats that on the right side of the picture? Does it have small 'furry' tentacles that come out?

Keep up the good work, glad you got that isopod out, hate those things!

Drew

Originally Posted by goldenmean

Thanks Melanie!
I lost a couple of sponges but the rest of them are doing well.
I even have a couple of new small HH yellow ball sponges that have just popped up. You can see them in this pic. They are behind the zoanthid frag.

Oh that lil zoa frag was "rescued" from my nano. They were lost and floating around behind the rock for some time. They were all brown. Now under my MH they are starting to perk and color up.