Peanut Worms in the Reef Aquarium

A well-stocked reef aquarium can be a diverse place, full of invertebrate surprises. But identifying the fauna traipsing about on live rock can be a challenge for the average aquarist and few creatures are quite so confusing as the Peanut Worm.…

Tank Profile: Joe Garza’s SPS-dominate Reef Savvy Rimless Aquarium

The blue thumb behind this beautiful reef, Joe Garza, is a U.S. Navy veteran who spent years traveling the oceans, exploring the globe, and admiring the beauty of the aquatic world. He kept aquariums filled with all sorts of colorful…

Women in the Hobby, and the lack thereof

With it being Mother’s Day Weekend I thought it would be interesting to discuss a topic dear to my heart: The relative dearth of women in the hobby.  While reefkeeping has been around for approximately 30 years and the advances…

1.1 Fairy Wrasses: The lubbocki group

The lubbocki group houses six members divided evenly into two separate but closely related clades. They are the lubbocki clade and the marjorie clade. All members of this group are small to medium sized species with a recurring red and white…

Advancing technology helps build a more realistic robotic fish

We have covered robitic fish quite extensively, but recent advancements in technology and the availability of cutting edge “off the shelf” technology in the new maker movement, robotic fish  are getting more advanced and approachable. Take for instance Maurizio Porfiri,…

Awesome Fish Spotlight: Zebrasoma xanthurum, the Purple Tang

It’s been some time since we last featured an Awesome Fish Spotlight, and what better way to continue than with an evergreen aquarium favourite from a well loved genus. Zebrasoma is without a doubt the blue eyed boy of the…

Cirrhilabrus marinda, a cryptic new species of fairy wrasse similar to C. condei

Cirrhilabrus marinda is the newest species of fairy wrasse to be described, with the new fish being a very close offshoot of the common aquarium favorite, Cirrhilabrus condei. Marinda’s fairy wrasse looks very similar to Conde’s fairy wrasse with a nearly identical…

New Marine Depot video shows how to make an attractive Aquarium screen top

Screen tops are the best way to keep fish from jumping out of the aquarium. For many years, glass tops were the preferred way to keep fish inside the aquarium, preventing them from going carpet surfing. Just about every plastic-braced…

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…

Waikiki Aquarium management has head in the sand about recent animal deaths

The Waikiki Aquarium has been a bleeding edge aquarium institution in the world for the better part of a decade. We aquarists have revered and longed to see this world-famous display of marine life in Hawaii ever since it was…