Starting to Contemplate

F

FaithWarren

Ok so here's the story.

We got a 700 gallon tank, 1,090 gallons total, with the 135 gallon in wall refugium growing feather caulerpa in it, to all three sumps below the 700 full of caulerpa and various other filtration thingys like rocks and sand.

The tank was set up for like 6-7 months when I had a leak and had to maniacially move everything to other tanks drain it and fix it back in March. The entire time the 135 continued it's little thing chugging along and now 8 months later looks ready for seahorses.

When you look into the tank it is a few rocks and smack full of feather caulerpa (I chose feather because it is purty). You can see all the different kinds of pods squiggling around in the tank with your nekkid eye, and I have newbs ooh and ahhh over just the stupid pods. Sheesh look at the 700 gallon materpiece will ya!!!

But I have been debating the seahorse thing, should I go all out and pay the top dollar for the most expensive hot orange seahorses in the world? Or should I try a few common black ones from a local fish store that look like they are eating?

There's the debate... Will 135 smack full of caulerpa give em enough food? How many should I stick in there? give me a place to start? I got questions. This tank is going to be dedicated and has low flow, it very slowly pours over into the 700 (which is why the anthias take up post right in front of the tube from this tank).

Do yall think the seahorses will decimate the pod population?

I also have to prune this tank back quite often as it gets thick withthe caulerpa. (Please don't call me for any, I sell it to a local store for free stuff.)

Yall weigh in, what would you do? I am really curious, I know some of yall are die hard seahorse fanatics, am I thinking all wrong about this? I want to just put them in there any maybe throw live brine in as a treat for them... Am I thinking a biosphere that sustains itself is the wrong thing, am I gonna need to feed these guys more than what grows in caulerpa in a refugium (albeit a huge refugium). Is there something else I could grow in there for them to eat?

Questions, questions, questions... Least I am asking them before I buy a hot pink one or something like that!
 
Here's my view on the whole deal.

I've had seahorses for about 2 years. As for color: They will change however there is no guarantee that a black will change to yellow or a yellow to black. I think genetically they are predisposed to certain colors. I have Erectus I have raised. Their colors range from greenish to brown to reddish. The only time I see them with vibrant colors is when they are courting. I have a purchased horse who is orange and has always been orange. I had another orange one that stayed orange until I had to qt him for illness - he turned brown and stayed brown until I lost him. I think it's hard (impossible?) to tell what colors horses that are brown in the LFS are genetically programmed for. However if they show yellow and orange color there, in the right environment they should show it again.

As far as feeding them, I'm not sure how long a pod population would last. I truly believe they would decimate the pod population slowly but surely (or rapidly). I had lots of pods in my tank before adding horses, and I don't ever see one now, even though I have a refugium. I would plan on at least supplementing feeding with frozen mysis

I would buy the healthiest seahorses I could fine. I don't believe I've ever read a bad review abot Dan at seahorsesource.com . I've bought items (not seahorses) from him and have been totally satisfied with my experiences with him. I would buy from an LFS only if none of the seahorses appeared to have any disease and they were eating frozen.

Be sure to add your purchases to a QT tank -seahorses are unfortunately susceptible to disease and I'd hate for your nice 135 gallon to be contaminated by one sick horse.

It will be interesting to read others experiences.
 
Faith,
I've totally declined saying anything about this hoping others would chime in. Okay well so no one knows what will happen :oops:

Truth is I don't know anyone personally that's kept seahorses in that size tank and not still fed them frozen mysis twice a day. I know a few people talked about having tanks this size alone with seahorses. I would definately go with buying some good CBB seahorses from Dan @ seahorsesource.com or dracomarine.com. I would actually suggest dropping an email to Dan over at seahorsesource.com or making a post in the seahorse.org forums.

What an interesting idea. I do personally think that over time the seahorses will deplete the larger ampihpod population.
 
You think just two would decimate the population in a 135??? I will take pix of it tonight and post them. i was thinking that since it is a part of a larger system it would regenerate the food they need??? But your right I am going to ask a heck of alot more questions of a heck of alot more people before I dive in. Heck (since I like that word today) I might not get them at all... Just thinking about it right now and mulling it over and the ramifications.

I am more of the low maint type of tank person, the 700 is pretty stable and self sufficient I don't want to spend alot of time spoon feeding some seahorses. If they can live in this ecosystem I think I have built and is pretty durn stable I am thinking of getting them. But to be honest spoon feeding them is not an option for me. I have more pressing matters...
 
I think 2 would be fine in such a big space. The only thing is that they don't eat the little tiny copepods, they eat the larger ampidpods. I'm pretty sure with 2 seahorses in such a large space you'll not find them to keep an eye on them though :? . I'd just want to make sure they are eating enough. I know in mine I'm constantly counting heads.
 
And I'll add that feeding the seahorses frozen is not tough either. I thaw my mysis in a cup, rinse it and then put it in a cup of saltwater. I just pour what they will eat in the tanks, and then put the rest in the refrigerator for use the next day.

Perhaps if you supplemented your pod population with frozen feeding a couple of times a week you'd be OK?

Jag-as far as color, what colors have your horses chosen to wear??
 
I know I said I would take a pic, but I got busy and forgot...

But there are ALOT of really BIG pods in that tank. I think like 1/4" big, those eat the like tiny micro ones I think, when the micro ones aren't eating the corpses of the big ones. It is a cycle. I think they get replenshished fairly well from the sumps pushing water up there too, so it is not like an enclosed 135 gallon tank we are talking about. We are talking about a 135 gallon tank tacked onto a 700 gallon tank with 400 gallons worth of refugiums full of marco algae, sand, and rock.

There are also tiny snails, limpets, bristle worms, feather dusters, tiny starfish of all kinds, etc on and so forth...

Do they ONLY eat the BIG PODS?

What do they eat in the wild? Is there video? I would like to know?
 
I believe they eat pods of all shapes and sizes. If it moves it is eaten in my tank. I think I even saw a tiny bristle star get snicked yesterday. It had let go of a rock and was being blown about, along comes a seahorse who probably thought it looked like mysis and it got snicked up - I expected to see it get spat out but it didn't.
 
Hey right on! I know these guys eat PE Mysis that are sometimes about 1/4" big and they eat them up. I put in some ghost shrimp as a treat once and away they went as well.

I have one that is somewhere between yellow/tan/golden. The 4 that are mostly black, unless they are courting in which case they turn white and sport stripes of all sorts. And I have one that is very light rose/tan. The little girl with IGD. I haven't treated her yet, but I just moved everyone into the new tank and. .she looks 100% healthy no bubbles or anything. I have no idea. :roll: The next 4 I would like to get from DracoMarine with the cirri on them.
 
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