DIY Brine Shrimp Hatchery and Shell Separator

Adult brine shrimp are not considered a good source of food for any fish, but they are sometimes used to entice a slow eater to start eating. Newborn brine shrimp, however, are an excellent source of food for many small…

New Giesemann Futura-S LED gets performance boost

The new Giesemann Futura-S is getting a performance upgrade thanks to incorporating CREE X-series LEDs into the fixture. The updated light was designed with a modular approach each using 20 5W CREE X-series on each board without the need for secondary…

Purple Firefish: A Shy Beauty for the Small, Peaceful Aquarium

Marine aquarists looking for a gorgeous, interesting, nano-friendly fish might entertain the idea of keeping the purple firefish (a.k.a. the purple dartfish, elegant firefish/dartfish, and decorated firefish/dartfish, among various other common names). Given appropriate tankmates and care, this graceful, hardy,…

LiveAquaria has the lock on some large show size Trachyphyllia

Trachyphyllia is one of those iconic corals that has been in the hobby since forever, and therefore we all know that they are supposed to look like. Especially in regards to size, we expect a typical large specimen of Trachyphyllia to…

Rock Flower Anemones Resurge in Popularity

Rock flower anemones are trending in popularity as of late in the reef aquarium hobby. They have always been readily available in the industry, as they are harvested close by in the Caribbean. But despite their relatively easy accessibility, they’ve…

ProScope + iPhone + AquaPac = underwater microscope

The ProScope is a specialized iPhone case that turns your pocket computer & camera into a portable microscope. Better yet, throw the ProScope assembly into a specially designed AquaPac and take the whole rig inside your aquarium. With an iPhone,…

Why You Should Never, Ever Release Marine Aquarium Livestock into the Wild

In a perfect world, every fish, invertebrate, or alga introduced to a marine aquarium would be allowed to live out its entire lifespan there. But as we all know, there are many contingencies that can make it necessary for hobbyists…

Ecotech Elements Frag Plugs show up in Ecotech Store

The Ecotech Store started out as a halfway house of spare parts for Ecotech Marine parts but if you haven’t seen it lately, it’s packing quite a stock. The most notable new additions to the Ecotech Store include the Ecotech Elements…

Observations on the yellow hawkfish, Paracirrhites xanthus

What more can be said about Paracirrhites xanthus, the yellow hawkfish? Reef Builders showcased a beautiful yellow hawkfish specimen a few years ago, and although still very rare, one has turned up in my care in a private collection in London,…

Some idiot planted Xenia on a Venezuelan reef to awful effect

We reefers have long considered Xenia species to be a particularly weedy species in our aquariums. There once was a time when any Xenia was worth its weight in gold but now you’d be lucky to get $10 a pound, and…