1.4 Fairy Wrasses: The bathyphilus group

The bathyphilus group, despite being a very small congregation, is by no means any less interesting or provocative compared to its congeners. In 1997 during the Indo-Pacific Fish Conference held in New Caledonia, five unidentified specimens of Cirrhilabrus were brought…

Tryssogobius Tuesday: A guide to the genus of fairy gobies

Amongst the giddying myriad of nano-sized gobies suited for the home aquarist, few genera exuberates brilliance and mystique quite like Tryssogobius. The genus comprises of delicate dainty gobies, of which seven are scientifically recognized. There are invariably many more waiting…

Monday misnomer: Will the real Pseudoplesiops rosae please swim up?

In another effort to rectify the various misnomers that plague the aquarium industry, we’ll take a look at a small innocuous dottyback that has been masquerading under an inaccurate alias for far too long. The fish above in the tile…

The Reefkeeper’s Skill Set

Like Liam Neeson in the Taken movies, over time reefkeepers develop a unique set of skills. Even though today most of the equipment we want is readily available, unlike in the early days of the hobby when most of us…

The Pros and Cons of Using a Marine Aquarium Cover Glass

To put a lid on it or not to put a lid on it, that is the question! Okay, with profuse apologies to the Melancholy Dane, the point I’d like to mull over in today’s post is whether it’s a…

1.3 Fairy Wrasses: The lanceolatus group

The members of the lanceolatus group are some of the largest and showiest fairy wrasses, collectively celebrated for their grandiose caudal fin and chromatic brilliance. The group spans most of the Indo-Pacific, with its various species occupying a series of…

Signs that Allelopathy Might Be Agitating Your Inverts

Since corals and other sessile invertebrates are more or less stuck in place and can’t chase away competitors or run from predators, many of them—particularly among the soft corals—have evolved the tactic of exuding toxins into the water to prevent…

Synergy Reef Acclimation Fallout Shelter a handy way to acclimate fish

Acclimating fish to a new environment is essential to all inhabitants of your tank and the handy Synergy Reef Acclimation Fallout Shelter is a great investment to ensure you’re giving your fish time to get used to its new home. Whether…

O’ don’t you love this anthias – Odontanthias unimaculatus

Odontanthias is a small genus which includes slightly over a dozen species. Members of this genus are quite unlike the slender cliché of regular anthiines, and are characterized by having rather deep body profiles and steep foreheads. Being exclusive worshippers…

Xynosphaera: the Parasitic Nephthea Shrimp

Green Nephthea is one of the most colorful and popular soft corals in the aquarium hobby, but most aquarists (and scientists) have never heard of the curious crustacean which calls it home. The above illustration [credit: Bruce, 1994] depicts Xynosphaera colemani,…