2 Little Fishies show mangroves

[pgravis]

I’ve heard that at reef shows, 2 Little Fishies will sell off the mangroves they bring. I’m considering making the drive to reefstock Denver to check them out, but I was curious if anyone had experience buying one of these? Mainly wondering about size and cost, but also any info on how acclimation and long term survivability worked out? Any info is appreciated!

 

[Ron Reefman]

Why do you want a mangrove? If it's mostly for the look, that's OK. If it's for nitrate export, they don't grow fast enough.

Mangrove propagules fall off the tree and survive for weeks and some even for 2 or 3 months if they are in the water. We pick them up off the beach, stick them ina glass of water (salt or fresh) and 80% of them put out roots ans start to grow. I've had a few in a shallow tank I had (4'x2'x14") and they do OK. However, they tend to outgrow your light in height, they expire salt out through the leaves which is normally washed off with the rain (you'll want to wipe them off or they die) and the roots can spread pretty far in the sand.

I wouldn't pay much for one that is already grown. It would be hard to get the roots buried in the sand and it will just reach the height of your light that much faster. A propagule can be bought and shipped VERY easily and they are pretty cheap.

Heck, I was just in Moab a couple of months ago and had a great time. If you can't find propagules for sale fairly cheap (under $10 each) let me know and I'll mail you 4 or 5 when they are in season.

 

[pgravis]

Thanks for the offer! Very kind of you. I love reading about your collecting excursions! Would love to come check it out at some point. The mangroves definitely aren’t for any sort of nutrient control (have the 90 gallon fuge for that!), purely aesthetics. I set up a little tank (Mangrove lagoon) for anemones, and part of the sell to my wife was that it would have mangroves (she was drawn to the look and we had a great window next to her coffee perch that works great). I have a few eBay trees going, but I want something a little more showy to pull the look off I was going for.

 

[Ron Reefman]

Well that makes perfectly good sense to me. Several of the places we snorkel have spots where we can get 'up close and personal' with mangrove roots in the water. It's a very different habitat and we find some different critters in there. I wish I had a small underwater drone I could send in among the roots where I can't fit to see what's further in than I can get!

BTW, the offer stands. If you want some propagules, just say so. They can get to be 2' to 3' tall in just 2 to 3 years. And if you ever decide to visit the Keys, please let me offer help. I want people to have fun and have realistic expectations when they visit.

Looking in from the outside we see a lot of mangrove tunicates. I collected a few one time but they are extremely difficult to keep in an aquarium. You can see how dirty the water is and the amount of debris has settled on them.