Nassarius not coming out when food is present

650-IS350 · 08/14/2006, 11:03 AM

I have about 6 large tongan nassarius in my 100gal. They are not dead I just pulled them out of the sand and are still alive.. the minute I let them go they rush back under the sand. Everytime I feed I never see them come out.. not like what people say.

the tank is 1 month old. 100lbs of live araganite with 100lbs of TBS coral rock and 50 lbs of base rock. Is there just too much food in the live sand that they don't bother coming out when I feed the fish? or my water movement is just to much that they don't get to smell the food..

I have 2 SEIO 1500's running on opposite sides of the tank.
I always say the queen fighting conchs tough. and the 2 large turbos.

rustybucket145 · 08/14/2006, 11:25 AM

Has your tank cycled yet? You said it is just a month old. If this is the case there is a pretty good possibility that you are going to loose everything when your tank cycles.

MJAnderson · 08/14/2006, 12:18 PM

Maybe they just aren't hungry. I cut back on my feeding and now I see them come out when I drop some food in. Or at least most do. I got woken up in the middle of the night on Saturday and went downstairs to check on the tank and they were all out cruising the rock/glass/sand.

BTW, this might be better in the "reefneck" post, but remember when a loud noise in the middle of the night used to get you thinking "burglar" and now it's "oh no, my tank!"

IslandCrow · 08/14/2006, 08:48 PM

Mine don't seem to come out just because there's food around, unless the food just happens to land right by them. So far, they appear to be finding all they need in the sand, though.

HippieSmell · 08/14/2006, 09:19 PM

Ever since I got my powder brown tang and started feeding heavier, I've noticed my tongan nass don't come out every time I feed. I think it's a sign that they are getting too much to eat.

650-IS350 · 08/17/2006, 08:46 AM

After a couple of weeks, I put 3 large nassarius in my large HOB aquafuge 1 1/2 weeks ago.. I decided to drop on small krill in the afternoon... next morning I finally see one nassarius cruising in the fuge sniffing around..

rick s · 08/17/2006, 09:05 AM

When I feed food that stays floating in the water column (Mysis) mine do not come out. I feed heavy twice a week and use more Mysis and pellets. When a pellet lands within a few inches of them, they pop right up.

Sk8r · 08/17/2006, 09:05 AM

Sometimes they come out, sometimes they don't. Depends on how hungry they are.

08/14/2006, 11:03 AM	#1
650-IS350 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Bay Area Posts: 14,555	Nassarius not coming out when food is present I have about 6 large tongan nassarius in my 100gal. They are not dead I just pulled them out of the sand and are still alive.. the minute I let them go they rush back under the sand. Everytime I feed I never see them come out.. not like what people say. the tank is 1 month old. 100lbs of live araganite with 100lbs of TBS coral rock and 50 lbs of base rock. Is there just too much food in the live sand that they don't bother coming out when I feed the fish? or my water movement is just to much that they don't get to smell the food.. I have 2 SEIO 1500's running on opposite sides of the tank. I always say the queen fighting conchs tough. and the 2 large turbos.

08/14/2006, 11:25 AM	#2
rustybucket145 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: valdosta, ga Posts: 3,707	Has your tank cycled yet? You said it is just a month old. If this is the case there is a pretty good possibility that you are going to loose everything when your tank cycles. __________________ 400gals of various tanks in the same system. Current Tank Info: 2 175w MH, 2 VH0 Actinics, Lots of Live Rock, tons of copepods, a Fat Mandarin Goby, Niger Trigger, Yellow Tang, Falco Hawkfish, Bi-Color Pseudo, numerous soft, SPS and LPS Corals

08/14/2006, 08:48 PM	#4
IslandCrow Reef Monkey Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Rockledge, Fl Posts: 5,759	Mine don't seem to come out just because there's food around, unless the food just happens to land right by them. So far, they appear to be finding all they need in the sand, though. __________________ All opinions in the above message should be taken with 35 ppt salt. -Mike C. Current Tank Info: I have a reef screen saver on my phone, does that count?

08/14/2006, 09:19 PM	#5
HippieSmell Occupy Reef Central Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Orbiting Posts: 4,141	Ever since I got my powder brown tang and started feeding heavier, I've noticed my tongan nass don't come out every time I feed. I think it's a sign that they are getting too much to eat. __________________ Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like bananas. Current Tank Info: 78"x36"x27" acrylic, 6 Orphek Atlantik V3+ Compacts, MRC Orca Pro II w/washdown, CalcFeeder Pro AC3, Emperor Aquatics 80w UV, 80/20 aluminum stand, Vortech MP60's, Theiling Rollermat, GHL Profilux 3.1T EX, Kessil H380

08/17/2006, 09:05 AM	#7
rick s Premium Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Chester, VA Posts: 2,993	When I feed food that stays floating in the water column (Mysis) mine do not come out. I feed heavy twice a week and use more Mysis and pellets. When a pellet lands within a few inches of them, they pop right up. __________________ Rick Current Tank Info: Reefer Emeritus

08/14/2006, 12:18 PM	#3
MJAnderson Premium Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: East Bay, CA Posts: 2,633	Maybe they just aren't hungry. I cut back on my feeding and now I see them come out when I drop some food in. Or at least most do. I got woken up in the middle of the night on Saturday and went downstairs to check on the tank and they were all out cruising the rock/glass/sand. BTW, this might be better in the "reefneck" post, but remember when a loud noise in the middle of the night used to get you thinking "burglar" and now it's "oh no, my tank!"

08/17/2006, 08:46 AM	#6
650-IS350 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Bay Area Posts: 14,555	After a couple of weeks, I put 3 large nassarius in my large HOB aquafuge 1 1/2 weeks ago.. I decided to drop on small krill in the afternoon... next morning I finally see one nassarius cruising in the fuge sniffing around..

08/17/2006, 09:05 AM	#8
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	Sometimes they come out, sometimes they don't. Depends on how hungry they are. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.