Blue Acropora Colony

This coral is amazing, though the picture does it no justice. Blue Acropra corals are probably my favorite. Since most aquariums lack these colors, the blue stands out very sharply. This particular specimen has both blue corallites and blue polyps, making it quite attractive. The growing tips of the coral develop a slight yellow and white.

Mystery Wrasse in Mixed Reef Aquarium

The Mystery Wrasse (Pseudocheilinus ocellatus) is a crowd favorite for obvious. They have a brilliant color and aren’t ashamed to show it off. These stunning fish will roam all over the aquarium and maybe even bully other tankmates. This particular Mystery Wrasse is from the Marshall Islands, and an even prettier 5-bar Mystery Wrasse comes from nearby Vanuatu.

Blue Striped Pipefish

Pictured above is a Blue Striped Pipefish (Doryrhamphus excisus). These pipefish are very colorful and instantly add personality to any aquarium. They do best when there’s plenty of live food to feed on, and may starve if copious amounts are not present. Additionally, provide these fish with a low flow environment. Their slender bodies and general lack of fins make them poor swimmers that usually just hover in a small area. Too much flow will cause them to get pushed into the rock work and might damage the fish.

Pyramidellid Snails Under Microscope

Here’s a huge threat to clam lovers. The Pyramidellid snail will hitch hike in on clams and snails, and will constantly feed on the fluids of their hosts. A small number of these parasite snails on your clam isn’t much to be alarmed about. However, these snails reproduce rapidly and will quickly become too much of a problem for the clam. The clam host will eventually die from this unless the aquarium keeper removes the snails.

Zebra Hermit Crab

The Zebra Hermit Crab (Calcinus laevimanus) is a great herbivore for any aquarium. It eats various forms of algae and detritus, but it will attack snails and take their shells. This behavior is quite common among hermit crabs, and they get a pretty bad rap for it.

Kenya Tree Coral

Here’s one of the easiest corals to both care for and propagate. The Kenya Tree coral is a soft coral that relies both on photosynthesis and, to a greater extent, planktonic food. This coral will pop up in various places throughout your aquarium. Branches will be cleaved off, set adrift, and settle on rocks and in the sand. These branches will attach to the substrate and grow into their own colonies.

Lubbock's Wrasse

Pictured above is the Lubbock’s Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus lubbocki) in a mixed reef aquarium. The patterns on individuals seem to vary quite a bit. Some have horizontal stripes while others have blotched patterns, similar to the one above. As with most wrasses, two male Lubbock’s wrasses will become aggressive towards each other if housed in the same tank. They will size each other up, nip at each others’ fins, and relentlessly hound each other until one is removed or dies from the stress.

Fighting Conch Grazing

Here’s quite an interesting snail, the Fighting Conch. This snail has a very long proboscis, making it look similar to an elephant. This snail is a wonderful detrivore and sand cleaner. It will bury its entire body in the sand, only keeping its eyes above where it can see passing predators. Another good thing about this snail, other than its cleaning ability, is its relatively small size. Unlike other conchs, the Fighting Conch only grows a few inches in length, making it very ideal for aquarium keepers.

Orange Centered Zoas and Button Polyps

Pictured above is a nice mixture of Zoanthids and Palythoas. These two colonies have done very well under T5HO lighting, and have even grown together with polyps intruding into each others’ space. The Button Polyps are noticeably larger in size than the Zoanthids, and can even eat large food, such as frozen dried Mysis and Brine shrimp.