For many decades, the quintessential Chocolate Chip Starfish, Protoreaster nodosus, has graced our FOWLR (fish only with live rock) tanks and refugiums with their magnificent spines and bright colors. Short-spine stars, Echinaster spinulosus, while less common, have been around just as…
Other Inverts
Frequently asked questions on Hermit Crabs
Hermit crabs are often the first critters we place into new tanks, but are they reef safe, what type should we add, and how many? We answer all your questions on hermit crabs for reef aquariums here. Are hermit crabs…
Observations on Dry Rock Aquascaping
Throughout my years in the marine aquarium hobby, I’ve typically aquascaped my systems using cured live rock from Fiji. However, when setting up my 125-gallon tank in our new home about a year and a half ago, I wanted to…
Sponges, Sponges Everywhere!
If you do any diving anywhere, you will see sponges everywhere. Some of them are more colorful than corals, and some of them you can sit in. All sponges are water pumps and filters, which makes them useful in the…
A Proven Method for Treating Bacterial Infection in Anemones
Recently I had an urge to get back into keeping anemones and planned on setting up an anemone-specific aquarium with the 90-gallon tank I resealed. I knew I wanted to start looking at what has been out in the market…
Astraea Snails Make Short Work of Algae
This past year, I rediscovered how great an army of snails can be. We go pretty light on cleanup crews in general. For example, there really aren’t any hermit crabs to speak of in our systems. In 5,000 gallons of…
4 Crabby Caveats to Keeping Clibanarius tricolor
Clibanarius tricolor, the blue-legged hermit crab, is very commonly introduced to marine aquaria, either in conspecific groups or as part of a multi-species “reef janitor” package or “cleanup crew” (aka “CUC” for those who just can’t get enough of those…
Tridacna derasa: A Good Excuse to Clam Up!
Of all the Tridacna spp. clams available to hobbyists, perhaps the hardiest and easiest to maintain of them all is Tridacna derasa, the so-called smooth giant clam. This species is so smooth, in fact, that amorous, gold-chain-wearing male specimens have…
The Green Brittle Star: Little Fishy, Beware!
“Voracious predator” is not a term one commonly associates with brittle stars—that is, of course, unless the brittle star in question happens to be Ophiarachna incrassata, or the green brittle star (aka “the green death”). This bold species has a…
Sea Apples: Hazardous Holothurians Best Left to Advanced Hobbyists
In several posts here at Saltwater Smarts, I’ve mentioned that certain marine organisms routinely offered in the aquarium trade should come with a warning label—especially for novice hobbyists. In these cases, I’m usually referring to animals that are really gorgeous…