55g tank progress with PICS

[Pufferluv09]

I started off with about 14lbs of uncured live rock to cycle the tank...


I monitored the parameters for 3 weeks and watched the ammonia and nitrites come and then disappear, leaving only nitrates (a VERY small amount though). Near the end of the cycle is when the brown algae came...

And now, the other day, I purchased about 15 more lbs of cured live rock, two turbo snails, two bumblebee snails and a banded shrimp. Sadly, the shrimp didn't make it.




And noww, this morning I discovered some new life on my live rock!

Can someone tell me what the name of this coral is?
I hope it is puffer-safe!

I also found several other tiny organisms that I'm unable to capture on camera. I believe I have some feather dusters, and there are some others that are very tiny and have a thin base and white hairy tentacles. Oh and there are many teeny tiny white bugs on the glass that are hardly visible. Copepods, I think!

[Pufferluv09]

I just discovered a small Brittle Starfish! It hides in crevices of the rock and sometimes pokes it's arms out. Earlier today I saw a couple tentacles poking out of holes in the rock and thought they were some sort of bristley worms... but later on I found it crawled half way out of a nook, and I could see part of it's body and three of it's arms.

[xrayjeeper83]

stuff like this makes me want to set up my extra 10 as a salt tank, just not sure where to start

[SammyDee]

thats probably aptasia. it should be removed. Its an anemone just a bad one and can sting other corals and reproduce like crazy if not controlled son enough. Peppermint shrimp will eat it so will nudibranches and a few fish (which I forget which ones).

[SammyDee]

you can remove the rock and scrap it off or go the primitive way and inject it with a needle full of lemons juice. Just remove the needle as soon as the aptasia leaks bc lemon juice has a ph of 2 and u dont wanna mes with other life-forms in the tank

[SammyDee]

second thought wait till someone else says what it is. After having a second look it may be something else.....zoa??

[solothedrunk]

Looks like a Zoa

Sammy what kind of lighting are you using?

[Lil' Swimz$]

Wowee looks amazing. I agree it makes me wanna set up an extra bowfront for that...

[CarmenH]

It looks to me like a button polyp, not aiptasia. I've got a bunch of these and they're cool. They were all the same when I got them but they change color depending on the light. And man they love to eat! A squirt of water with a bit of melted food and they start grabbing and then close up until they're done eating!

[jdak]

Might be a majano anemone... Just as bad as aptasias....

[Mek0ng]

Nice tank, Id put my money that its a palythoa. Kinda like a zoa.

[SammyDee]

Looks like a Zoa

Sammy what kind of lighting are you using?

I am using a 36" T5VHO with 2 white and two actinic and 8 led lunar lights. Its made by "aquaticlife" its really nice. I got it for 300 but ive sen it online for 280 not including shipping.

[SammyDee]

Yea the way its discal area is flattened makes me think its not aptasia. Stillid keep an eye on it.

[SammyDee]

Jdak are those Majano anemones as common as aptasia. Just curius so I can be on the lookout for it...

[jdak]

I just took that pic from google. I had two that were in a patch of zoos. I kalked them and never saw them come back. They aren't as common in my tank but i have been having an aiptasia outbreak sense i upgraded my lighting.