Observations

[grubbsj]

For the past two weeks, the "peace" in our tank seems to have been disturbed. Our green-BTA move from the front center to the left side of the tank and the Gold Banded Maroon clown's territory moved to the left with him.

After the clown's initial bit of chasing everyone off we have notice that the larger of our 3 blue-green chromis and our 6 line wrasse have been going after each other off and on for about a week now. On occasion, the same chromis and the clown still have trouble seeing things eye to eye.

No one shows any damage and they all look as vibrant as ever.

Looks like every one is adjusting to a different bit of elbow room.

- - - - - - - - - -

Fish: 3 - chromis, 1 - clown, 1 - 6 line wrasse, 1 lawnmower & 1 scooter Blemmy, & 1 - fire fish.

Inverts: 1 - emerald crab, 1 - sally light foot crab, 4 - "cleaner" shrimp, 1 - brittle star, 1 - sand-sifting star, 1 - lettuce nudibranch, + cleaning crew

Several soft corals, 2 anemone worms & 1 - green BTA

Very soon we will add a Royal Gamma & a Yellow Tang. After that, when the cepalopods are more abundant, we well add a Mandarin Goby.

[amcarrig]

You do know that the scooter blenny has the same diet requirements as a mandarin? And I think you mean amphipods and copepods, not cephalopods

Can you tell us more about your tank? There may be a reason why your anemone is on the move.

[Tangster]

If the BTA has been in place for a few months and is not a rather new addition I'd guess that the pattern of the water flows have been changed , or even lighting may have changed ? or maybe the Clown fish wanted it to move ? They will sometimes peck at the tentacles enough to make the anemone move I have seen them tear one up until the anemone either moved or died.

[grubbsj]

Amcarrig, interesting point on the scooter. From my initial readings, I have the scooter as a scavenger working through the sand, not as a live feeder like the Mandarin. But after your comment, I have gone and looked deeper into the subject and see several comments as to how difficult the scooter is to keep, mostly directed to tanks less than 55 gal....


You are correct about which of the little bugs I was trying to refer. We have a bunch of the amphipods and copepods first show up in the fugue, then several weeks later they became visible in the tank. This system is just 3 months old. (Setup just after the Tangster's.)

The BTA was added at the 8 week point. So, about 4 weeks ago. Spending the first two weeks attached to the live rock/yellow leather that I purchased it on. It was adopted by the clown with in the hour of being added to the tank.

To Tangster's point, the left & right power heads are on a 10 min wave timer cycle of the Reef Keeper II and are directed behind the live rock. The sump return has 2 legs which is adjusted every week during the tank/sump maintenance. The sump pump is an 850 mag pump, 1 inch PVC plumbing, discharge ball valve is full open.

As for lighting, there are only 4-T5s (2 white/2 Atenic). The BTA moved to an area of lower light and flow.