Over the many years I’ve kept marine aquariums, guests in my home have more than occasionally noted the relatively low number of specimens, particularly fish, in my tanks. You could say it’s been a hallmark of my fishkeeping career to…
Marine Aquarium Contingencies I Never Anticipated
If you’ve been watching the news lately, you may have heard about the massive Microcystis algae outbreak that is currently affecting the western basin of Lake Erie and, from this past Friday until around 9:30 this morning, rendered the tap…
5 Reasons to Understock Your Marine Aquarium
Over the many years I’ve kept marine aquariums, guests in my home have more than occasionally noted the relatively low number of specimens, particularly fish, in my tanks. You could say it’s been a hallmark of my fishkeeping career to…
The Sturdy but Shy Marine Betta
With its dark-brown body covered with a myriad of tiny white to pale-blue dots, the marine betta, a.k.a comet (Calloplesiops altivelis) is truly a dazzling sight to behold. Start out with a healthy specimen, and you’ll find it’s also a…
In the Marine Aquarium Hobby, “Close Enough” Just Won’t Cut It!
When it comes to achieving success with a marine aquarium, there’s a certain “X Factor” that comes into play—the hobbyist’s attention to detail. Let’s face it, some of us are pretty focused on making sure every parameter, measurement, calculation, and…
Harlequin Shrimps: Seeing Stars (On the Menu)
Somewhat comical and cartoonish in both name and appearance, harlequin shrimps (Hymenocera picta) are not invertebrates to be purchased on a whim. Keeping these critters, as I’ll soon explain, demands an investment of cash and effort that not every marine…
The Fantastic Fishing Gear of Antennariid Anglerfishes
As someone who enjoys a day on the water fishing, I have to give a tip of the hat to the various anglerfishes (a.k.a. frogfishes) of the family Antennariidae. These incredibly cryptic fishes make us human anglers look like rank…
5 Types of Marine Fish that are Reef Safe with Caveats
When we say a marine fish is “reef safe,” we usually mean that it won’t eat the corals or other sessile invertebrates that we keep in reef systems. Using that definition, we can easily determine that, for example, the peaceful,…
The Powder Blue Tang: An Iconic Beauty Demanding Exceptional Care
The powder blue tang (Acanthurus leucosternon) is a breathtakingly beautiful, widely recognized (even among non-hobbyists) marine fish that can be a real pain to maintain in aquaria. While it is possible to keep one successfully under ideal conditions, most specimens…
5 Ways Hobbyists Misuse Grazing Marine Snails
Of all the fascinating invertebrates available to marine aquarists, grazing snails are perhaps the most misused. Too often we treat them like expendable little lawnmowers, plopping them in our tanks with the express purpose of preventing or eradicating algae and…