They went from this (I later removed the kenya trees that were attached to them):
To this:
Haha, you can even see the aiptasia in both pics! They have been the fastest growing zoa in my tank I would guess. They aren't the fanciest polyp around or the most interesting but I really like them.
Love your description of what's happening with your tank Synergy-gives me great visuals.
Thanks Miztanks! I think describing everything the best I can will be helpful for people setting up a tank and for me in the future when I go back and see how I could have done things differently. I'm glad you have enjoyed reading this thread. I plan to keep this tank running and updating this even after the contest as over, and I already have a few ideas for after the contest... stay tuned for a sneak peak...
Originally Posted by Sir Patrick
Those blue/red polyps are pretty cool!
Thanks Sir Patrick. I they are some of my favorites, they aren't growing as fast as some of the others but I was able to frag a little piece off and mount it a little bit lower in the tank to see if they like a little less light and flow.
One thing I did notice about them is there are at least two different morphs in the frag/colony. Majority just have a solid blue/grey center but a few have the red skirt, blue center with an orange circle surrounding the mouth. Here is a pic showing what I mean.
So I took a single polyp frag from the radioactive dragon eye colony that has been growing very well for me and placed it near the bottom of my tank. The original colony is at the very top. Am hoping to compare the growth, coloration, skirt length etc. in different spots.
Here is a pic of the 1 polyp frag from a week or so ago:
And here is a fuzzy pic from today:embarrased: It has sprouted a baby polyp already!
Here is one of my favorite Zoas, Bam Bams, from about a week ago under the PC lighting:
And one under just the Royal Blue LEDS I got from Ebay. The color is so amazing in person, but the picture isn't too bad.
Everything in the tank is doing well, but it seems like periodically a few of the colonies will close for a bit then re-open. I know one day last week the temp in the tank got to around 86 degrees Fahrenheit and the zoas didn't like that. I need to install a fan up to keep the temps down now that summer is rolling around.
Algae hasn't been an issue, seems like it only grows a little bit on the back wall, which is easy enough to scrape off. Hermits do have a tendency to walk all over the zoas during the day but they open right back up when they decide to move on.
Hope you enjoy the update, let me know if you have any questions!
Here are the "mean green" zoas I picked up at the Lansing Swap. Haven't noticed too much growth but teh polyps are so small and there are so many I haven't really been counting. I think part of the slow growth is because I have moved them around several times. They have been in the same spot for a little while now and are finally starting to spread onto the adjacent rocks.
Here are some random green palys/zoas that I got at the swap. Not the most colorful, just green and white, but they sorta sparkle
"Green Bay Packer" zoas in there permanent spot. These grow very, very fast for me. Have already spread onto the adjacent rock in several spots, and started forming another mini colony in another location in the tank.
Here is the mini colony that spread off when I had the original frag just sitting on the rock trying to find a good spot for them for about a week. Started off as one polyp and now has 7+.
Here are the "Tubs Blues" I picked up at the last swap. These are one of my favorites. The blue color is really striking and you cant see it in the picture but the skirt has a neon green hue to it. Really cool color contrast. After I bought this frag I immediately fragged it into several pieces and spread it around the tank so I don't loose the whole colony to disease and to spread the cool blue color around the tank.
"Happy People Eaters" that I picked up at the last swap as an impulse buy. These are really big polyps (see the Green Bay Packers in the bottom corner for comparison). I have been feeding these sinking pellets every few days and they seem to be loving it. Can't wait for these to spread out!
Another picture of the red/blues I showed a few posts back.
I was told that these are "Fire and Ice" zoas, not sure but I think they look nice. Have put on a few new polyps since I got them, hard to tell how much they have grown though because of the location.
Here is an overhead shot of the left side of the tank. Some of the polyps closed when I opened the hood
Put me in line if you ever sell any of those blues.
Thanks 2pairs! They have been growing pretty well, should have some frags sometime this summer. Will keep you updated.
Tank Update
Even though the contest is over, I plan to keep the nano up and running and let things grow in. I am very happy with the current stock list and will probably keep it unchanged unless I find something that I just cant pass up.
I did make a recent purchase for the tank that I am excited about. I really want to keep the rockwork in this tank unique and open but wanted some place to put frags I'm growing out other than the sandbed. The solution:
Rock-mags, from aqua-mags. Its an artificial rock with magnets embedded within it so you can attach it to glass and it appears to be floating.
I was planning on building one myself with cut dry rock but these were so cheap I figured I would give them a try first. I really only have room for the smaller of the two in this contest tank but since I was already paying for shipping I picked up the larger version also and will incorporate it into any future tank I set-up.
Top down view of the larger "rock". You can see how the magnets attach the rock to the glass. One downside, as you can see are the dry-side magnets stick out about 3/4" but I guess it isn't anymore unsightly than a magnetic cleaner. Dimensions are ~9"x5"x4"
The smaller rock, which will be going into the contest nano. This rock is only attached with one magnet. Dimensions are ~4"x4"x3"
Front view of the larger piece. The material is really easy to cut and shape. I plan on drilling some holes into teh rock so I can place frag plugs into it.
The smaller one, from the front. Since it only has one magnet it can be mounted 4 different ways, but I like they way it is in the picture the best.
Overall I think the rock-mags are decent for the price. The magnets would be too weak for tanks with thinker glass, and even though the back of the rock is flat and seems to be smooth I am a little concerned about it possible scratching the tank. Therefore, I am going to but a thin layer of silicone on the back before installing them on the tank. They are very light and easy to drill which is nice, and I think the look they will provide in the tank will be really unique, and look nicer than just an ordinary frag rack.