Gulf live rock shipment in...and some ID ?

ISpeakForTheSeas · Mar 30, 2022

Solga said:
Another something new(ish). I have seen an orange colored (what I thought was) sponge on top of this one rock. This morning when the lights came on, I noticed it taking shape, rather than being an orange ... Blob.

It looks kind of pretty, whatever it is.

Frisk · Mar 30, 2022

Solga said:
Another something new(ish). I have seen an orange colored (what I thought was) sponge on top of this one rock. This morning when the lights came on, I noticed it taking shape, rather than being an orange ... Blob.

Looks like a tunicate to me, Got lucky with that one, they're beautiful but filter feeders so they need to be fed if you want to keep them long term.

Solga · Mar 30, 2022

Frisk said:
Looks like a tunicate to me, Got lucky with that one, they're beautiful but filter feeders so they need to be fed if you want to keep them long term.

Wow, that's pretty cool. That would be the 3rd or 4th kind of tunicate that I have... Makes me happy, I must be doing something correct, so far. I have had this rock for 3 weeks (tomorrow), and it's still kicking. Along with a couple other tunicates, as well as everything else that came in with the live rock. I am sure the Caribbean rose coral has grown, and the gorgonian still looks healthy, to me. The star coral, on the other hand, I can't tell if anything is good or bad with it...it still looks the same.

I will definitely have to order some phyto to see if I can keep these things alive.

Solga · Mar 30, 2022

Here is a short clip of something else, I think is another kind of tunicate. I'm still working on the quality of pictures and videos though...

EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal · Mar 31, 2022

No idea but it looks really cool!

Subsea · Mar 31, 2022

Gulf Live Rock said:
If you guys get any quality pics of hitchhikers send them to me and Ill add them to my id page on my website. Thanks Dan

Dan,
Glad to see you here. Are you still diving this time of year. Any plans to bring in more dry rock to be inoculated. Even after a year, I continue to see different stuff sprouting on GLR you collected from last Easter.
Patrick

Subsea · Mar 31, 2022

I normally buy next day air freight for diver collected rock. I have opted out of shipping in water because when something dies, if it’s shipped in water, it will spread contamination. I prefer shipped damp & wrapped covered in paper. When you pay $0.80 per lb and Water weighs 8.4 lbs per gallon, I pre&er not on shipping water.

Subsea · Mar 31, 2022

On both of my < 1 yr old tanks, I established nitrification bacteria in dry aragonite substrate prior to receiving GLR. There was no ammonia spike when I added live rock. I choose not to add fish who grazed on new sprouts, to further evaluate what I wanted, not what survived the CUC. Urchins, crabs along with rabbits & tangs are aggressive grazers which can be added when needed. I prefer to be the first curator.

First two pictures are 55G & 30G both at 11 months young. Last picture is 25 year mature 75G tank with some GLR from 11 months ago that have gorgonions and red tree sponges emerging. Excuse dirty glass, it’s Spring garden planting time.

Solga · Mar 31, 2022

Subsea said:
On both of my < 1 yr old tanks, I established nitrification bacteria in dry aragonite substrate prior to receiving GLR. There was no ammonia spike when I added live rock. I choose not to add fish who grazed on new sprouts, to further evaluate what I wanted, not what survived the CUC. Urchins, crabs along with rabbits & tangs are aggressive grazers which can be added when needed. I prefer to be the first curator.

First two pictures are 55G & 30G both at 11 months young. Last picture is 25 year mature 75G tank with some GLR from 11 months ago that have gorgonions and red tree sponges emerging. Excuse dirty glass, it’s Spring garden planting time.

Really nice looking tanks you got there !!
I actually started my 10g very similar to what you did with yours. Only I had dry rock that I started to seed with the dry sand, for about 1 month prior to getting the live rock shipmens in from GLR & TBS.
As soon as the ocean rock came in, the dry rock went into a brute can, along with the remaining dry rock that was soaking.

Solga · Mar 31, 2022

This is a full tank shot of the 10g. It was originally going to be a holding tank for observation while I got either my 20g, or my 40 breeder going. But... I just got the ok from the wife to put a bigger tank in the living room, so it looks like I will be going with either a 75 or a 90 !

Frisk · Mar 31, 2022

Solga said:
Here is a short clip of something else, I think is another kind of tunicate. I'm still working on the quality of pictures and videos though...

Looks like a bivalve of some sort that has burrowed into the rocks. I got quite of few of these on my order but not much else. You got some cools stuff!

Sod Buster · Apr 1, 2022

No April fools here. Tampa Bay to upstate NY in less than 24 hours. Unidentified crab and octopus didn't make the flight from GLR. 30 second swish in ready saltwater, then into the only tank I have room for. Of course it's an Evo. Dug it out of the garage a few weeks ago. I got the nano pack, 19lbs shipped. Life has perked up in the last 15 minutes. Good stuff.

Solga · Apr 3, 2022

Sod Buster said:
No April fools here. Tampa Bay to upstate NY in less than 24 hours. Unidentified crab and octopus didn't make the flight from GLR. 30 second swish in ready saltwater, then into the only tank I have room for. Of course it's an Evo. Dug it out of the garage a few weeks ago. I got the nano pack, 19lbs shipped. Life has perked up in the last 15 minutes. Good stuff.

Very good looking rock ! I got some rock from TBS as well. Even though their primary shipping method is air freight and you pick it up from the airport, I am working 7 days a week, and couldn't get to an airport, which is over 2 hour drive, one way. These girls helped me out and shipped mine overnight through UPS. Amazing customer service, rapid communication through emails, and overall great rock !
I will be using both companies again when it comes time to upgrade to my bigger tank !

Feel free to post up more pics as you see more life !

dstockwell · Jul 21, 2022

Very cool pics, just ordered 10lbs to go into my cycling 55 to seed it with.

Solga · Jul 21, 2022

Although I couldn't get pics (phone was not close by) earlier this week, I saw an all white crab that had what looked like spikey thorns all over it's legs. Pretty sure I saw a leopard flatworm too... That would explain where a few of my snails have gone too...