New kid on the block

shooshoomanz · 10/17/2010, 05:28 PM

hi there the names josh, so heres the information as follows.
20 gallon long

zoomeds t5 lighting hood, with 10000 k 54w. daylight bulb and one 420 actinic 54w bulb. for lighting

30 lbs of argonite live sand. at 1-1.1/2 maybe 2 inches in depth

aqueon circulation pump 500gph

marineland digital heater/with led lighting indicative of temperature at or below desired.

running at ::

specific gravity @ 1.025

80 degrees Fahrenheit

unsure of any other readings need to get a test kit tomorrow,

Just bought 11 lbs of live rock.

Im using marinelife conditioner, and ontop of the live sand cycling bacteria purchased nutrafin cycle starter.. so to keep them full hah got one damsel to help cycle not looking to keep him.

My questions what to expect with the cycle, and To my GREAT SURPRISE! i have 3 different single mushroom polyps? Two maroonish red with a green hue and one whiteish, with green stripes on the live rock! haha im terrified they may not make it in the tank once this cycle starts kicking so any advice on what to do, and how to help them grow and maintain a healthy life?

I also recently noticed the live rock came with some white starfish maybe half an inch in length a crab inside a cave maybe two inches wide hes dark brown with tons of prickly things on him very timid by the way? and two white snails that havent done a thing? ill get pictures soon but any hunches or ideas and tips on how to care for all these new critters i hadnt intended on getting quite yet? THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE HELP

israel.kendall · 10/17/2010, 05:43 PM

The more you look at the rocks the more little critters you will find. I just cycled my first tank and had the same worries as you about my hitchhikers surviving. Pretty much everything made it through my cycle without me doing anything really. This included crabs, starfish, worms, and even some corals. I did run the lights during the cycle (for the corals) and threw in a cube of shrimp for the scavengers every other night or so.

Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk

philosophile · 10/17/2010, 05:48 PM

The mushrooms are probably going to survive. They're hardy little buggers. You can just ignore them and they'll do fine, or you can target feed them, and make sure you add a bit of iodide.

Maybe the starfish isn't a starfish but a bristle worm?

Maybe add a pinch of food into your tank once a week or so. They should be fine even if you don't probably. The bristle worm will eat the stuff that starts to die off like algae and stuff.

If its a starfish then it should eat algae that will grow on the the rock.

11lbs of live rock for a 20 gallon tank is a little light. Usually people recommend a pound per gallon. This depends on the kind of rock you have too, light rock with lots of holes and crevices will do more filtering than large dense rocks.

SushiGirl · 10/17/2010, 06:19 PM

Brown fuzzy crab is not good. You might want to try to get him outta there.

shooshoomanz · 10/17/2010, 06:20 PM

thanks so much for the quick replies, good to know these guys have a pretty good fighting chance.

ill have to run to get some iodide tomorrow, as for target feeding anything in particular? whats the best food ie. shrimp or others for these scavengers? something very nutrient rich? havent heard good things about brine or krill haha. As for the live rock yeah i just got 11 lbs today because its $10/lb i plan on doing about 25-30 when all is said and done, as for the starfish possibly being a worm, it had about i think 6 points and was having a blast clinging and crawling around the front of the tank, so im assuming its a star. ill definitely post pictures and a video tomorrow.

any more info on perhaps what types of mushrooms i may have, two are a deep maroon body with the top of the mushroom head a greenish hue, and one is white with maybe 5-6 stripes of a neon greenish color from the center outward almost like sun rays. they also seem to be closing up and then opening and leaning to one side then shifting, but certainly not so happily open as one would view in the store? should i worry or is it just shock so to speak from a new tank? sorry for all the questions im very excited and just amazed at this new process.

shooshoomanz · 10/17/2010, 06:21 PM

uh oh?! no good huh? what am i looking at with this guy? im certainly not concerned with removing someone that hitchhiked his way into my tank haha just a matter of how difficult this may be.

walkerbrody · 10/17/2010, 06:28 PM

I wouldnt risk keeping the crab. A tall glass at an angle near the hole with a piece of shrimp in the bottom works well. The crab crawls inside at night to get the shrimp and can't crawl out

SushiGirl · 10/17/2010, 06:29 PM

Well, it sounds like what people call a gorilla crab. You could try to trap it.
Put a glass or jar in there, angled onto a rock so he can climb in & get the bait (food), and he won't be able to crawl back out. Or you could try a bottle trap.

SushiGirl · 10/17/2010, 06:30 PM

haha! Walker beat me to it while I was looking for a bottle trap link!

shooshoomanz · 10/17/2010, 06:44 PM

haha thats no good i would say after looking at pictures online he probably is a gorilla crab, without the hair? but his legs have the exact same black and white striped pattern i dare not risk it ill be sure to get him out and take him back to my local pet store.

10/17/2010, 05:28 PM	#1
shooshoomanz Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Plainville CT Posts: 79	New kid on the block hi there the names josh, so heres the information as follows. 20 gallon long zoomeds t5 lighting hood, with 10000 k 54w. daylight bulb and one 420 actinic 54w bulb. for lighting 30 lbs of argonite live sand. at 1-1.1/2 maybe 2 inches in depth aqueon circulation pump 500gph marineland digital heater/with led lighting indicative of temperature at or below desired. running at :: specific gravity @ 1.025 80 degrees Fahrenheit unsure of any other readings need to get a test kit tomorrow, Just bought 11 lbs of live rock. Im using marinelife conditioner, and ontop of the live sand cycling bacteria purchased nutrafin cycle starter.. so to keep them full hah got one damsel to help cycle not looking to keep him. My questions what to expect with the cycle, and To my GREAT SURPRISE! i have 3 different single mushroom polyps? Two maroonish red with a green hue and one whiteish, with green stripes on the live rock! haha im terrified they may not make it in the tank once this cycle starts kicking so any advice on what to do, and how to help them grow and maintain a healthy life? I also recently noticed the live rock came with some white starfish maybe half an inch in length a crab inside a cave maybe two inches wide hes dark brown with tons of prickly things on him very timid by the way? and two white snails that havent done a thing? ill get pictures soon but any hunches or ideas and tips on how to care for all these new critters i hadnt intended on getting quite yet? THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE HELP

10/17/2010, 05:48 PM	#3
philosophile Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: San Jose, CA Posts: 1,149	The mushrooms are probably going to survive. They're hardy little buggers. You can just ignore them and they'll do fine, or you can target feed them, and make sure you add a bit of iodide. Maybe the starfish isn't a starfish but a bristle worm? Maybe add a pinch of food into your tank once a week or so. They should be fine even if you don't probably. The bristle worm will eat the stuff that starts to die off like algae and stuff. If its a starfish then it should eat algae that will grow on the the rock. 11lbs of live rock for a 20 gallon tank is a little light. Usually people recommend a pound per gallon. This depends on the kind of rock you have too, light rock with lots of holes and crevices will do more filtering than large dense rocks. __________________ 90 gallon mixed reef XPS1000SSS skimmer, 2 radions gen 1, tunze osmolator w/ kalk dispenser, 70 lbs pukani, mp40w x2; 1 tomini, 1 clown 2 mandarins. Vinegar dosing, and micro bubble scrubbing.

10/17/2010, 06:28 PM	#7
walkerbrody lost ball in high weeds Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Gadsden, Al Posts: 504	I wouldnt risk keeping the crab. A tall glass at an angle near the hole with a piece of shrimp in the bottom works well. The crab crawls inside at night to get the shrimp and can't crawl out __________________ "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't--you're right." — Henry Ford Current Tank Info: 265 mixed reef, 110 fowlr, 40g fuge, 75g sump.

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10/17/2010, 05:43 PM	#2
israel.kendall Padawan Reefer Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Land O Lakes Posts: 922	The more you look at the rocks the more little critters you will find. I just cycled my first tank and had the same worries as you about my hitchhikers surviving. Pretty much everything made it through my cycle without me doing anything really. This included crabs, starfish, worms, and even some corals. I did run the lights during the cycle (for the corals) and threw in a cube of shrimp for the scavengers every other night or so. Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk

10/17/2010, 06:19 PM	#4
SushiGirl Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Fort Worth, TX USA Posts: 8,267	Brown fuzzy crab is not good. You might want to try to get him outta there.

10/17/2010, 06:20 PM	#5
shooshoomanz Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Plainville CT Posts: 79	thanks so much for the quick replies, good to know these guys have a pretty good fighting chance. ill have to run to get some iodide tomorrow, as for target feeding anything in particular? whats the best food ie. shrimp or others for these scavengers? something very nutrient rich? havent heard good things about brine or krill haha. As for the live rock yeah i just got 11 lbs today because its $10/lb i plan on doing about 25-30 when all is said and done, as for the starfish possibly being a worm, it had about i think 6 points and was having a blast clinging and crawling around the front of the tank, so im assuming its a star. ill definitely post pictures and a video tomorrow. any more info on perhaps what types of mushrooms i may have, two are a deep maroon body with the top of the mushroom head a greenish hue, and one is white with maybe 5-6 stripes of a neon greenish color from the center outward almost like sun rays. they also seem to be closing up and then opening and leaning to one side then shifting, but certainly not so happily open as one would view in the store? should i worry or is it just shock so to speak from a new tank? sorry for all the questions im very excited and just amazed at this new process.

10/17/2010, 06:21 PM	#6
shooshoomanz Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Plainville CT Posts: 79	uh oh?! no good huh? what am i looking at with this guy? im certainly not concerned with removing someone that hitchhiked his way into my tank haha just a matter of how difficult this may be.

10/17/2010, 06:29 PM	#8
SushiGirl Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Fort Worth, TX USA Posts: 8,267	Well, it sounds like what people call a gorilla crab. You could try to trap it. Put a glass or jar in there, angled onto a rock so he can climb in & get the bait (food), and he won't be able to crawl back out. Or you could try a bottle trap.

10/17/2010, 06:30 PM	#9
SushiGirl Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Fort Worth, TX USA Posts: 8,267	haha! Walker beat me to it while I was looking for a bottle trap link!

10/17/2010, 06:44 PM	#10
shooshoomanz Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Plainville CT Posts: 79	haha thats no good i would say after looking at pictures online he probably is a gorilla crab, without the hair? but his legs have the exact same black and white striped pattern i dare not risk it ill be sure to get him out and take him back to my local pet store.