Ever wonder how your wild-caught fish, corals, and invertebrates are collected from the reef? Well, landlocked hobbyists are in for a treat, as Talking Fish gives us all a little more insight as to how one of the larger aquarium collectors operates. This episode follows the family owned and operated aquarium collecting group, Cairns Marine, on their way to collect aquatic life off the Great Barrier Reef. Besides showing us all how they collect and house their fish, we also get a brief explanation of the harmful practices used in aquarium collection even to this day. Obviously these practices, which include cyanide and dynamite fishing, aren’t being used by Cairns Marine divers, but is merely showing viewers just how much more sophisticated their own operations are and how they achieve such a healthy catch.

Climbing aboard a pair of vessels that each surpasses 70 feet in length, the collectors hand catch every single fish and take every precaution to make their trip back to the Cairns Marine holding facility as smooth as possible. Once the fish are collected, they are placed in a collection bucket and allowed to slowly decompressed. This process is intended to prevent any expansion of the swim bladder and is accomplished by suspending buckets at various depths for a certain amount of time. The buckets are suspended from a long rope and are hauled to the surface one after the other, simulating a conveyor belt. Once on the boat, each fish is placed into its own containers, which are then placed into a very large drum full of water. Upon the boat’s arrival back at the docks, the barrel of fish (there’s a firearm related joke in there somewhere) is unloaded, with each fish being grouped not by species, but by the diver that caught them.

This process of grouping fish to the collectors is unique in the industry, and allows for a very in-depth paper trail that helps clear up a confusing and convoluted supply chain. The methods used by Cairns Marine not only allow us to find out what part of the world the fish came from, but also who caught it. Sort of reminds us of a restaurant in Hawaii called Mama’s Fish House, where individual names are tied to the meal you eating, provided its fish that’s on your dinner plate.

Finishing off the clip is a brief view of how the fish are bagged and tagged. Each animal is individually packaged in a suitably sized plastic bag, and newspaper is placed in the outermost (or dry) bag to keep it as dark as possible to reduce stress. From there, the bags are placed in large styrofoam containers, permits are filled out, and everything is shipped to their destination, whether it be a final destination or just another point in the supply chain.

All in all, I would have to say this video is very informative, though not every aquarium collector goes to these same lengths.

Back in September, AquaNerd contributor Keith Hatch stumbled upon a brand new open top aquarium from Deep Sea Aquatics (DSA) called the Neo Storm. The aquarium, which is basically a beefed up version of the Neo Nano, was first spied at the Super Zoo pet show in Las Vegas, and despite looking very similar to its smaller predecessor, the Storm has some fancy new features that allow for better water flow while still keeping the surface virtually ripple-free for optimum look down viewing. When we first laid eyes on the tank and heard a few details about its return plumbing, we weren’t exactly sure how it would all work. We weren’t doubting its abilities, rather we were curious how water was going from the rear chamber to the front two outlets. Fortunately, the guys at DSA have released a “how to” video demonstrating the proper setup of this tank, which clears away all confusion about how it operates.

The back wall of the Neo Storm aquarium, which is significantly taller than the rest of the tank, holds a three chamber drain and return system. The two smaller chambers that flank the much taller middle chamber serve as dual drains into the sump. The tall middle chamber is the return, which is where the Neo Storm stands apart from the Neo Nano. In the older Neo Nano, the water simply fills the chamber and flows over the top like a waterfall. This water was pushed over the chamber slow enough to be dead silent and not create a lot of surface movement, but the tank obviously lacked any real water flow. The Neo Storm, on the other hand, modifies the concept by pushing water both through holes in the chamber (which are submerged) and through two outlets toward the front corners at the bottom tank. As the chamber fills, gravity causes the pressure to build up forcing water through soft plumbing and gently out of the two return fittings. But not wanting to limit flow options for customers, DSA did something rather ingenious. They put multiple holes in the return chamber of the Neo Storm, but also included plastic fittings to fill these holes. The more holes that are plugged, the greater the pressure is within the chamber and the more water will be pushed out of the two returns at the front of the tank.

We recently discovered a little video dialogue from C Harding Productions showing both supporters and opponents of aquarium collection in Hawaii. The arguments are fairly well represented from both sides, as experts from different viewpoints chime in as to why each issue is important. We get to hear the typical points, but one individual struck a nerve with us. While one of the pro-aquarium industry arguments against the ban is centered around preserving the livelihood of aquarium collectors since they need to put food on their families’ plates, one individual counter-points by saying aquarium collectors can pick up employment elsewhere. Around the 50-second mark, Mel Malinowski, who happens to be both the publisher and author of “Snorkel Hawaii”, explains that Hawaiian species are more valuable if left in the ocean. But the argument doesn’t stop there. He further explains that aquarium collectors should drop their nets and pick up their snorkel gear to parade tourists all over the reef. We have a huge issue with this because the anti-aquarium establishment is completely hypocritical. They are in bed with the tourism industry and only want to ban the aquarium trade because it competes for the same resources. They don’t care at all about protecting fish and saving the reefs. Just look at their complete lack of arguments against the recreational and commercial fishing industries that are also very active in Hawaii. There aren’t any bills proposing a ban on recreational fishermen. There’s nobody complaining about anything else really, just aquarium collection.

We first spied the stunning Cuban Gramma dejongi basslet almost two full years ago. And even though we’ve seen plenty of images and videos of these amazing and virtually unattainable fish since then, we still can’t seem to get enough. Unfortunately for our addiction, the story doesn’t stop with just this species, as it gets a little more interesting with a bit of hybridization. As if the rarity of the G. dejongi wasn’t already enough, Japan-based B-Box Aquarium showed off a brief video of a G. dejongi x G. loreto hybrid. That’s right, a hybrid basslet of an already extremely rare fish! The amazing Royal Gramma Dejongi, as we’re calling it, sports a predominantly yellow body but borrows quite a bit of purple facial coloration from its Royal Gramma cousin. The De Jong’s basslet does naturally have some purple coloration on its pelvic and dorsal fins, but every individual we’ve seen has had an entirely yellow face instead of the purple splotches we see on the individual in the video above.

With the De Jong Gramma already being so pricey and difficult to get here in the states, we don’t even want to know what kind of price tag the hybrid will fetch.

While we don’t typically chat about freshwater systems, this new installation from the crew at Aquarium Design Group is a build that we just had to share. The setup is a room divider, separating what appears to be a closed in porch area and a living room area. These types of aquariums aren’t uncommon in the hobby, but this particular setup blows all others away with both its beauty and unique design. The wall separating the two rooms is rather thin, too thin in fact to hold such a deep aquarium, but that didn’t stop the ADG fabricators from coming up with an ingenious solution. The stand is built thinner than the aquarium, but uses an extended ledge that sits on top of the wall that is already in place. The wall is essentially acting as the front half of the stand and helps support the weight of the aquarium. The room divider aquarium setup is finished off with a wood panel on the front and dressed up in the back with a similar wood frame. The lighting is very subdued, giving the tank a deep Amazon appearance.

Here’s a video to help get you through this long Monday. It’s a brief clip showing a cone snail, noted for its very deadly venom, attacking and devouring a small goatfish. The snail is a slow assassin, inching closer to the sleeping fish, eventually paralyzing it with chemicals that it releases into the water. Once stunned, the fish can only sit idly by while it’s eaten. The snail opens and extends its mouth to completely envelope the fish, which is then pulled inward and killed with an injection of venom. The venom of the cone snail is quite a powerful tool. It is stronger than cyanide and can kill humans. There have been some reported cases of human death from cone snails, and with no antivenom, the victim stands a very slim chance if stung. Despite their deadly nature, cone snails are also of great interest to science, as researchers and chemists are constantly finding new uses for their venom for biomedical purposes.

Video originally found on Gizmodo.

Recently at the CES show, Samsung unveiled their OLED driven “Smart Window”, which is a transparent touchscreen LED screen that can be installed on windows and other glass surfaces. Watching the video above, we immediately thought of potential aquarium uses. From the reports we’ve read, the transparent screen doesn’t replace a glass window, but simply attaches to it. This means the window could potentially be mounted to the front pane of the aquarium, completely redefining the aquarium experience. Now you wouldn’t have to put an aquarium on some random wall or tucked away in a corner because your television is taking up prime viewing real estate. With the transparent LED screen, viewers could watch tv on the front of their aquariums. And because the back of the screen isn’t see-through, a privacy feature Samsung built into the screen, the inhabitants of your aquarium won’t be subjected to bright lights and flashes, which could cause them to cower away in the rock structure. When the Smart Window isn’t in use, it can be completely transparent, allowing aquarium keepers to gaze upon their mini-reef without distractions. But a television on your fish tank isn’t the only possiblity.

By hooking up the Smart Window to say, an aquarium controller, hobbyists could display graphs of water parameters on the front of the aquarium or potentially even control various other equipment with the touchscreen display. Obviously a Wi-Fi enabled aquarium controller would probably be required, but you could ditch the display compenents of the controller in favor of a massive touchscreen.

At the moment, this tech is all in the experimental phase, but it sure makes us scratch our chins and ponder the possiblities.

Curacao has been somewhat of a center for rare aquatic life as of late, with several very rare indiviuals being hauled up from extreme depths and finding their way into the tanks of rare livestock dealers. Fish from the Lipogramma genus seem to be making up a majority of this catch, and in keeping with the trends, the latest amazing and rare deepwater beauty to surface out of the Caribbean is another gem from that genus. The Lipogramma robinsi is a beautiful but small fish that is so rare to the aquarium trade that the video above is the only known footage. This individual was collected sometime last month at a depth exceeding 500 feet, most likely with the help of a submersible. This footage comes to us from Blue Harbor in Japan, who will likely put a price tag greater than $10,000 on the L. robinsi.

The year is still so young, but we’ve already got a rare fish sighting to report. Over the past couple of months, we’ve seen the Interruptus Angelfish (Centropyge interrupta) show up in only a couple of places. The first was a video clip from Blue Harbor in November. Then LiveAquaria posted a couple of these beautiful angels for sale in their Diver’s Den, which is one of the very few times these fish have ever been available in the US. Now, we see a brand new video from B-Box Aquarium (see below) that shows this stunning juvenile angel swimming around in an in-tank specimen container.

With the Interruptus angelfish being so rare, we’re curious as to how three different companies (Blue Harbor, LiveAquaria, and B-Box Aquarium) have each gotten their hands on one or more. Sure, five different individuals could have been caught by collectors, and probably even the same collector. Then we started to wonder if the fish seen at each of these places aren’t the same individuals. We realize this is a bit of a stretch, but it’s not unusual for vendors to buy from each other, especially if the fish are really rare and highly sought after. Blue Harbor first showed off their pair of angels in early November. Then LiveAquaria showed off their pair in December, one of which sold rather quickly. Well, it was removed from the Diver’s Den, so we assume it was sold. Now, B-Box Aquarium is showing off just one juvenile angelfish. Is it possible that this fish has flown from Japan to Wisconsin and back to Japan again? Again, we realize this is a bit of a stretch, but people have gone to more extreme lengths to get their prize fish before.

Tridacna clams are some of the most interesting and colorful invertebrates we could put in our aquariums. They have a brightly colored and wildly patterend mantle, can retract into their shells when startled, and can even take up nitrate and free-floating particles when they are filter feeding. Another trick they can do is mass spawn in a reef aquarium, as can be seen in the video above from YouTube user “reefralf”. According to “reefralf”, this ocurrence is acutally a very common one for his reef. The clams apparently spawn at least three times a year and the event is usually brough on by some small change he makes in the aquarium. In this particular instance, the simple changing out of four metal halide bulbs is getting the credit for the spawning activity.

It’s not uncommon for a shift in water parameters or sudden changes in the aquatic environment to induce reproduction. Anemones have been known to split (their asexual form of reproduction) when stressed, corals usually reproduce after certain events, and as we can see here clams spawn after an alteration to their everyday environment. In most situations, mass spawning in the aquarium is an unsuccessul venture. There is usually only one sex present, meaning the eggs don’t get ferilized or the sperm don’t have anything to fertilize, but the situation of the spawning clams is a little different. Juvenile clams are often only male, meaning they only produce sperm. As they mature, however, clams start to produce eggs in addition to sperm, meaning they are hermaphroditic and can fertilize their own eggs. In theory, a single clam can reproduce successfully in an aquarium, but with all of the filtration and hungry reef life, it’s highly unlikely.
Despite this miracle in aquarium keeping, spawning clams actually presens a major problem, at least for some aquarims. As with any mass spawnin event, the eggs and sperm that are released will quickly start to degrade, fouling up the water quality in the process. “reefralf” states that his aquarium often clears up within two hours of the start of the spawning, but this is probably due to the relative volume of his aquarium and a more than capable filtration system. In the typical situation, however, the immense amount of material being released will quickly outpace and ovewhelm the aquarium equipment trying to filter it out. Some fish and corals will get a big meal from the ordeal, but a series of big water changes is a must in this situation. The water changes will remove the free-floating genetic material before it can die and cause a massive tank crash.