[OARrocks]

well lets see i have a 55 gallon tank with about 55lbs lr 50 lbs ls and a little 6 inch rock covered with green star polyps my only coral.
my critters include a 2 inch sebae anemone with his buddy an anemone crab. a 3 inch cherry grouper, 7 hermit crabs and5 snails

my setup like i said is a 55 gallon tank with a 270 gph powerhead, and an aquaclear filter/protein skimmer. the hood i have has 2 15 watt fluorescent lights.

right now my ph is 8.2
amonia 0
nitrites 0
nitrates close to zero

my questions are; i had a really cool feather duster (white with brown stripes) and i woke up this morning and it looks like a firecracker was shoved down his tube and now theres undiscernable flesh sticking out of where he used to be, who did this?

This same piece of LR has a couple other big feather dusters about the size of a quarter and hundreds of other microscopic to quarter inch in size. some are purple some are whiteish. what is the best way to get them to spread? Do the little ones grow?

my lighting as far as i have read is not sufficient for my tank seeing as i have an anemone and a green star polyps, i also heard that more intense light helps spread corraline algae. The hood i have came with the tank and the light bulbs are about 17 inch across. Any suggestions as to where i should go and what i should purchase to up my wattage would be really appreciated.

I currently Hand feed the anemone shrimp and add micro vert once a week to feed the filter feeders feather dusters GSP and the anemone. I add purple up every other day and thats about it.

I know theres a lot of info here so anything anyone can contribute is appreciated.
thanks

[leebca]

I moved your post to another Forum where I think it might get more attention.

I don't think it's the grouper that is harming the featherdusters. It would most likely be the hermit crabs, assuming the duster didn't die of other causes. Even if it wasn't the hermit crabs, I would remove them from your tank.

There is a separate forum for:
Filtration and Basic Equipment; and
Lighting

You could post specific questions about those topics in those forums if you don't get activity on those topics here.

[Reefland]

Hi OARrocks,


The small featherdusters that you have a common on good liverock, and will spread on their own. However, oftens times theior spread is not a good thing as it is an indication of excessive nutrients in the tank. It would be like a proliferation of flatworms, only not as unslightly and not dangerous. A sign of something lacking none-the-less.

You definitely need to upgrade your lighting. With the anemone, I would suggest Metal Halide, which is costly. Anemones really need the most intense lighting available.

[Ninong]

Originally Posted by OARrocks

my questions are; i had a really cool feather duster (white with brown stripes) and i woke up this morning and it looks like a firecracker was shoved down his tube and now theres undiscernable flesh sticking out of where he used to be, who did this?

I don't know based on what you say you have in your tank.

This same piece of LR has a couple other big feather dusters about the size of a quarter and hundreds of other microscopic to quarter inch in size. some are purple some are whiteish. what is the best way to get them to spread? Do the little ones grow?

They will reproduce on their own. They are capable of both sexual and asexual reproduction but I suspect that what we get in reef tanks is asexual reproduction by segmentation. The adult size will depend on the species.

my lighting as far as i have read is not sufficient for my tank seeing as i have an anemone and a green star polyps, i also heard that more intense light helps spread corraline algae.

Yes, you need to upgrade your lighting. If you don't want to get metal halides, you could get by with T5's. As far as coralline algae is concerned, yes, you need more than your present two 15w tubes to get it to spread. On the other hand, you will find that most species of coralline do better with less intense light rather than more intense. In any case, don't make your lighting selection based on coralline algae. I had two 250w 10,000K HQI DE lamps and two 55w PC actinics over my 120-gal tank and I had coralline all over the place.

I currently Hand feed the anemone shrimp and add micro vert once a week to feed the filter feeders feather dusters GSP and the anemone.

Feed the anemone twice a week and feed it something more substantial: Small pieces of shrimp from the supermarket would be a good start. Raw, of course, just chop into into small pieces appropriate for the size of the anemone. The local Wal-Mart Super Center sells something they call seafood mix or blend or whatever. I would never actually buy it to eat myself but it's a mix of different stuff including squid. If you get a handful of that and simply stick it in a plastic baggie in the freezer, it would last you forever. Just chop off a small piece when needed. Or just get a handful of shrimp and a couple small pieces of squid instead. Don't peel the shrimp. Feed shells and all.

I add purple up every other day and thats about it.

I think you could spend that money on something useful instead. How are you maintaining your calcium and alkalinity levels?

Check out the various Reefland sponsors for ideas on new lighting possibilities.

[PurePerfection]

yes he is right... better light like a Aqualight Deluxe Power Compact 48''
i would get it at Home - Pet Solutions FOR ABOUT 239.99+ship
i think you would be happy with that...your corel will indefenetly love you for it..