Good Growth!!

These tiny (yet beatifully coloured polyps) were very tiny when I threw them into the same bag as my first Live Rock purchase! These are actually 2 small frags that have now tripled in size. I plan to move them to a more prominent positon on the rocks when the time is right, in the hope that they will propogate further.

25th Feb 07- Sam the cleaner shrimp

Having just shed his skin (for the 2nd time) My cleaner shrimp takes up residence on the right side of the tank were he continually is preening himself (and anybody else that comes his way). Natrual behaviour after a shedding I believe.

Meet Molly

After a hard day at work, my 'other' little girl greet me with some affection.

This is Molly, my 13 year old Yorkie. She fell very ill last year and had to have major surgery, at one stage she was touch and go! But thankfully she made a full recovery and there to greet me every day on my return from work.

She will sit with me (usually perched on my shoulder!) for hours watching my tanks.................................This is one spoilt pet!!

I will try to get a pic of her perched on my shoulder, in what my daughter calls 'the parrot position'

Better picture of developing Tank - 24th February 2007

A much clearer picture of the tank layout. 3 of my 4 fish are on display, Felicity, Peter and Colin the chromis, Benny the Blenny is off on rock patrol somewhere...I think!. The feather duster is out, the sun coral is half open after feeding. My elephants ear mushroom is on the left and the yellow toadstool is just in front of this. The pulsing Xenia looks at its best, as does the Green start carpet Xenia in the top left hand corner of the tank.
All in all, its coming on nicely.

Feeding time for my sun coral - 24th February 2007

I have tried mysis shrimp and now after advise from my LFS I am feeding my Sun Coral on Lobster eggs.

You can see in the picture that it is starting to open. I believe it may take a few days to train it to open and feed.

6pm religiouslyI have fed it but still it has not come fully out!

Tonight I plan to cover it with a cut down platic bottle, and I will feed the lobster eggs into the neck of the bottle, thus ensuring that the food is 'unique' to the coral and not feeding all the fish!

Felicity joins the team

Felicity, my new Royal Gramma, peeps her head out of her adopted 'cave'. Notice the Sun Coral starting to come out, just below her. The Sun Coral has just been fed some lobster eggs..........Mmmm...Yummy,but Felicity loved them too so not so sure how much it got!
My stocking levels said I had room for one more fish. She that must be obeyed wanted "a yellow one or a pink one" So I got a half and half and couldnt lose!

Meet Peter - 24th February 2007 9:30am

This is Peter the Common Clown. He is doing really well and has grown a fair bit since his arrival. He feeds on anything! and he is very inquisitive and active around the tank. Clown fish have a great character IMO. I love thier movement and the way they swim and move about the tank.

Latest Developments

February 23rd- Stone Colds Orca update

There have been a couple of developments since my last post.

- My cleaner shrimp has moulted for the second time!

- I have added a Royal Gramma and as I have all 'boys' in there at the moment, I have called 'her' Felicity.............Just to be PC you understand!

- My Green Carpet Xenia has 'fragged' itself! That is to say a small piece of it appears to have broken off. I have placed it on another piece of rock and it has come out nicely, so I am hoping this takes 'root' there and grows.

Happy me!

This is me looking happy with my lot!! I could (and do) sit and watch for hours !

The final Layout

Not a brilliant picture of the 'new' look front view. I will try to get a better one and put it here or in another post.

All in all though this is how it looks today, 17th February. I am extremly pleased with it at the moment and now I want to spend a few weeks watching my tank develop from this state.

Current Stocking:

8 - 8.5kg of live rock

1 sun coral

pulsing Xenia

Green Star Xenia

Red flat mushroom

Purple elephants ear mushroom

yellow toadstool mushroom

2 types of polyps

1 feather duster tube worm

3 blue legged hermit crabs

3 turbo snails

1 cleaner shrimp

A few 'guest' anemones

1 'guest' crab

Fish:

1 Common Clown fish

1 Green Chromis

1 Blennie

1 false Gramma

Green Star Carpet Xenia

My new green star 'carpet' xenia. (top left) I love this coral and it has filled the top left of the tank perfectly.

February 17th - More pics

A blue legged hermit crab looks interested in some small orange polyp frags that came 'free' with my live rock.
My new sun coral can be seen in the centre of the picture at the top. At this stage it is firmly closed!

Finishing Touches

February 17th. Today I added a sun Coral and a green star xenia.
This pic shows the way the corraline algae is starting to grow on the back of the tank. My new green start 'carpet' xenia can just be seen top left.

12th February - Nearly there

12th February and I am very pleased with the way things are shaping up. Everything appears to be thriving. You can just make out Peter as he flashes past on the right. Benny is perched at the top of the tank on the purple rock. A few things have been shifted around and I now want something for the top left of the tank and I have been searching for a sun coral for inside the 'cave' and probably one more small fish, something like a watchman goby or a false gramma?Then I will let things progress and grow for a while and the picture in my head should be complete.

Pulsing Xenia added - 9th February

Its now the start of February, My new Pulsing Xenia takes pride of place and immeadiatly looks stunning. It is full of colonies of slightly diffent colours of pulsing Xenia. Everything is doing really well. The Chromis (Colin) and the Clown Fish (Peter) were now joined by the new 'star' of the tank 'Benny the Blenny'
The brown algae bloom outbreak has now well and truly gone and some amazing things have happened. My cleaner shrimp has shed his skin, 2 of the hermit crabs have hijacked some spare (bigger) shells and many critters come out to play at night! The corraline algae continues to spred and the water parameters remain very stable (much to my delight) Biggest change to happen though is with me!! I want a bigger marine tank!!

Colin the Chromis

Time for my first fish! A Green Chromis (usually a shoaling fish I know) A hardy member of the Damsel family. He was soon to be joined by a baby Clown fish (who I cant get a pic of..ggrrr) and they adopted each other!! Its great to watch! I dont suppose it is that surprising as a Clown fish is also part of the Damsel family.

Another view

This view shows off the new inhabitants nicely. The melon mushroom can be seen top left and you can just see the yellow toadstool 'hitchhicker' that was attached to the same piece of rock. I was very pleased at this stage as the tank was starting to take shape.

Polyps

Another view in which my polyps can be seen as well as an anemone and the feather duster worm in all its glory. You can just see the elephants ear mushroom, which, thankfully was now thriving, after initially looking 'dodgy'. (bottom left corner)

Colours Galore!

My cleaner shrimp hovers above my newly added feather duster worm (added towards the end of January) I purchased some liquid coral food at the same time to feed my mushrooms and my polyps which I had also purchased by now.
The corraline algae was starting to appear elswhere in the otherwise 'sparkly' tank. I cannot wait until this is growing on the back wall of the tank to help soften the black 'new' look.
I bought the bulk of my live rock at the first purchase of it at the end of December 2006. It had a nice covering of corraline algae on most of it at that stage, but it has spread even more since then as you can see above.
I must have looked a bit daft as I took advise and put it into action when purchasing the rock, as I stood by the rock tank picking out the pieces I liked and 'sniffing' them until I was satisfied I smelt a fresh sea smell!!
I was to buy no more large pieces of live rock, indeed the only pieces added aftyer the initial bulk purchase were what my corals were attached to.

Scavaging

One of my first members of my clean up crew added Mid January. One of 3 blue legged hermit crabs, who together with 3 turbo snails and a cleaner shrimp, made my initial team.
Water results had stabalised well by now as the tank had been running approx 4 weeks. Ammonia was 0, Nitrate was 0 and Nitrite was below 20ppm. Temp was well stable at a constant 78 degrees and SG was well established at 1.024. Ph was 8.2.
They settled in quickly and soon I was to add some more inverts in the form of corals to keep them company.
I continued to check the water parameters every 3 days and I decided that as long as there was no alteration from the aformentioned results then I would continue to build my tank. I had a picture in my head of how I wanted the finished article to look....but that was a long way off!

Freebie - A nice surprise!

Into January and things are starting to happen! Including this 'freebie' second mushroom that was attached to a piece of live rock.

My first Orca set up

This is one of the first pictures taken after my original set-up. I put the Live Rock in at the end of December 06. You can see on the left the large elephant ear mushroom that was attached as a 'freebie' to one of my pieces of Live Rock. Notice how clean everything looks!