So I'm wondering about our LFS...

[AquAsylum]

Would you consider some of the SRQ LFS to be "good" if that's possible?

We go to Seascape and the Fishbowl about once a week just to pacify ourselves while we wait for everything to stabilize. I can't believe how much they charge for mediocre specimens. We were unfortunate enough to visit the Fishbowl on a day when they had just gotten their new livestock in. It was appalling how they just took a fish from the box and carried it around in a net wondering which tank it should go in and then arbitrarily decided "how about this one?" They did that with each fish...

I was very tickled when I saw my UV sterilizer on the shelf at Seascape for FOUR Times what I paid at drsfostersmith ;)

I like to "use them" for suggestions that I can then research and discover the wrongfulness of here at RC.

So, in the grand scheme of things, where do our locals rate in the evil world of the LFS?

[Trapper]

I really don't know how they stack up against the rest. I've only gone to ones in Sarasota, Venice, and Tampa. It seems to me that locally seascape has the best quality and variety and that is subject to times. I can't help but think that there out to make a buck every time they say something. But knowing the expense I go through I can understand there need for profit. But they are nice to visit, and occasionally you will find a gem. Welcome back.

[sandman12]

i prefer coral connection for local coral, jeffs pet place for real local (for me, bradenton), he is getting alot better, new tanks and nicer coral. Fish and other ichthy stuff in oldsmar for everything (best store aorund).

James

[jerrymlr1]

Seascape is definitely high on their supplies. Anywhere from 2 to 4 times what you would pay elsewhere. He's an arrogant chap as well. He (Rick) told me he was the only one who could get a mated pair of coral banded shrimp because he actually dives for them himself. :rolleye1: "Ok" I thought. I mentioned to him that I thought he was gouging his customers and that John at Ichthythings sells most of his supplies at the same prices as the online retailers. There were plenty of customers standing there. He lost it.:mad2: I left and haven't been back. I'd give up the hobby if I had to buy from him.
Jerry

[sandman12]

^^how true^^ :D , did he kick u out? That place is a joke for coral and there fish are alot, although they do qt there fish.

[myakkareef]

I understand what your talking about, I have delt with all the LFS in the area for over 8 years in S.W. Supplies and Live stock....I think that anybody with enough concern to study places like this "R/C" then we will understand that they are in it for the Money...Seascape has been around along time. I was born in Sarasota 43 years ago, not sure but they have been there as long as I remember. Andre at Fish Bowl i believe used to work for Rick at Seascape and started his own business because he did not like the way some things where handled. I remember visiting Fish Bowl not long after they openend, and hearing his wishes to be a differnet shop. Pesonally I like Andre at Fish Bowl, yes he has gone on to become just another livestock seller but he is a personable guy....The worst of the Worst hasclosed down in SRQ I will not mention names but anyone been around for while knows who....These people survive on the beuty of the Marine Fish..And the people who get into the Hobby for a year or less....
$1500 tank, $1000 assecories, $500 livestock, $500 livestock, $500 live stock, major Hair Algae Outbreak, Tank smells there gone.....Not much different then the person who buys a puppy and after it piddles on the carpet, poos on the carpet and isn't a cute little puppy no more they abandon it....I really do not think we can blame the LFS, It is the people who see it as this beutiful thing untill they have to take care of it and can not leave it for a week on end.....These people would just go to the next shop if they said "we will not sell you this because we do not think you are the reponsible person" Well I think I have rambled and you probally see my point so to end it this is JMHO...Oh by the way I buy basically nothing at the LFS. I bought a new tank because there are very few places to buy a tank Online. I will buy a nie specimen if it is mismarked or something I think I can not get by trade....

[sandman12]

amen

[myakkareef]

I understand what your talking about, I have delt with all the LFS in the area for over 8 years in S.W. Supplies and Live stock....I think that anybody with enough concern to study places like this "R/C" then we will understand that they are in it for the Money...Seascape has been around along time. I was born in Sarasota 43 years ago, not sure but they have been there as long as I remember. Andre at Fish Bowl i believe used to work for Rick at Seascape and started his own business because he did not like the way some things where handled. I remember visiting Fish Bowl not long after they openend, and hearing his wishes to be a differnet shop. Pesonally I like Andre at Fish Bowl, yes he has gone on to become just another livestock seller but he is a personable guy....The worst of the Worst hasclosed down in SRQ I will not mention names but anyone been around for while knows who....These people survive on the beuty of the Marine Fish..And the people who get into the Hobby for a year or less....
$1500 tank, $1000 assecories, $500 livestock, $500 livestock, $500 live stock, major Hair Algae Outbreak, Tank smells there gone.....Not much different then the person who buys a puppy and after it piddles on the carpet, poos on the carpet and isn't a cute little puppy no more they abandon it....I really do not think we can blame the LFS, It is the people who see it as this beutiful thing untill they have to take care of it and can not leave it for a week on end.....These people would just go to the next shop if they said "we will not sell you this because we do not think you are the reponsible person" Well I think I have rambled and you probally see my point so to end it this is JMHO...Oh by the way I buy basically nothing at the LFS. I bought a new tank because there are very few places to buy a tank Online. I will buy a nie specimen if it is mismarked or something I think I can not get by trade....

[myakkareef]

Wow how did that happen??????????????Double post sorry..This new fangled DSL high speed stuff, happened so fast I never saw it...

[myakkareef]

Oh, Aquaasylum, Take a trip to Oldsmar to see Fish and Other Ichty Stuff sometime...It is well worth the time....Wait till all the tourist go home though...And do not take anything I said earlier personally...I see you are new to R/C...the advice I give to anyone who asks is take it slow and give it 3 years...After that it is easy....Untill then you can pull your hair out and the Hair Algae out of the tank....

[wahwoo]

Puss and Pets in Venice on 41 N. by-pass has some nice live stock at reasonable prices. The staff is very helpful and friendly.

Ive seen corals there that sell for much more in other stores.

Personally, I think the selections are bland all over lately. Before I moved here, when I came to visit I used to be impressed with the great prices and vividly colored corals. Especialy at Venice Pet. I used to always fly home with a bag or two of coral. Now the corals all over seem very dull in comparison to the past.

Try Puss and Pets. They negotiate and wont gouge you. Nice looking live rock too.

[Bugs825]

^
I agree

Puss'n Pups in venice is very good, talk to Alex he's very cool. Venice Pet Center is ok.

I think that the Fish Bowl is very high on their prices. They try to sell Rics for $15 per head. I will not pay that, I think thats nuts. But I am cheap and know what they pay for it. I have owned my own business and i am not against them making a profit but you have to be fair. 500% markup is NOT fair.

Nathan

[jerrymlr1]

I have been to the Fish Bowl also. The people I have dealt with there have been very personable. The prices were a bit high but nothing like Seascape. I'll buy from a local before I buy online anyday of the week even if the prices are a little high. We need local stores and it's good for the local economy. When I asked Rick about his inflated prices my motives were to get him to drop his prices a bit or to cut a deal with someone if they asked. He wouldn't budge. $45 for a maxijet pwhd, $1400 for a chiller that I could buy from John for $800 or anybody else for that matter. I didn't go there to **** him off. Why would I want to do that? I was just trying to get him to cut me a better deal once in a while so I wouldn't have to drive to Oldsmar or buy online when I needed something in a pinch. IMO we both lose. He lost a customer and I have one less place to shop.
Jerry

[AquAsylum]

Interesting comments. We'll be heading up to TBS in about a month, so maybe we'll make a day of it and go to Icthy...whatever :) Puss n Pets- never heard of it but will check it out.

Think we already have hair algae- crap! Fortunately, not in the tank yet so we may be able to scrape it off before the official move.

I remember when FishBowl opened also- my father in law is a bio teacher at Riverview and they were students of his so we got special treatment- and they seem to have lost their motivation to "be different" than SS. Kind of sad. I'd actually like supporting a LFS if they deserved it.

[Agu]

My favorite LFS is Brians garage aka bgdiving. Pretty much all captive propagated corals. He also supplies half of Puss and Pets corals. I also like Venice Pets, again because they carry captive propagated fish and corals. Is there a theme here? Yes, I prefer captive propagated whenever possible.

jmo,

Agu

[wahwoo]

My wife and I called up Coral Connections in Sarasota yesterday. They arent officially open until next week. Hope you dont mind, James, but I dropped your name and the co-owner, James invited us in.

Very Nice shop! Very nice informative and conversational people. You guys have to give them a try.

We also found another coral shop. Its in a Booze Bar, has a pool table and fish/coral tanks around the walls. It was closed when we arrived so we only looked in the windows. Has any one been to this place?

[wahwoo]

The corals and fish are for sale in the bar.

Any one want to play pool for corals?

[Bugs825]

Hey Guys,

Don't get me wrong, I love to support our locals much more than buying online. But, I also like the statement that "if they deserve it". I also like saving money. For instance, my wife bought me my skimmer for christmas. Its a Prizm that you can get the Deluxe model for about $75 on eBay. She paid $160 for the regular model at Puss n' Pups. I was a little ticked off. I let the store know that I didn't think that it was far to rip off my wife. She knew nothing about how much a skimmer costs and put trust in the guy (who no longer works there) at the store. Charging $160 for equipment that might cost them $40? Thats 400% mark-up. The Fish Bowl charging $45 for a 3 polup frag I think is nuts. I don't feel that is fair.

Speeking of brian! He brought in some really nice SPS into Puss n' Pups. Bird's nest, tricolor acro, a blue something. Looked good.

Nathan

[sandman12]

Don't mind at all wahoo. Did u pick up a yellow gorgonian? It should be a pretty good store with in a couple of months. The bar place ur talking about is Atlantis, just down the rode from CC. I was going to go in after going to CC but they were closed so i just looked in the windows. Looks like a strange place. I guess if some one just had to have a fish at midnight that would be the place to go.:)

James

[AquAsylum]

By "the booze" place, do you mean Atlantis Aquariums on Clark/Stickney Point? We've been in there a couple of times. He's still getting started. I don't think he had any coral for sale, just fish and some basic supplies. He seems to be a DIY'er (recently) gone professional- honest, doesn't want to rip anyone off...sent me to Petsmart for something...that being said, some of the fish were in pretty rough shape, but I'll chalk it up to it being a new system or bad shipment. He says he makes the money off of the beer and wine- lucky punk!

[AquAsylum]

Sorry sandman, didn't see your call on Atlantis...as a p.s., he's open from 3 p.m. to 2 a.m.- certainly more bar hours than petstore.

[celldweller]

Hey there wahwoo... I was the other guy that was in there when you and your wife stopped by. I was busy helping them get their DSL hooked up and going over some details regarding their website with them. Just thought I'd say hey since I recognized your name here that your wife mentioned.

And sandman12, or James rather... I've been working with Ray and James for some time now and they've mentioned how close you are to me. I think they said you just live over on 49th St. maybe? I'm just on 59th. Maybe we should get together and check out each other's tanks sometime.

This week I'm finishing up the website for Coral Connection, as well as their store signage and business cards. I know I mentioned it when you were in there yesterday wahwoo, but I just wanted you all to know that I've got a forum setup for them on there. Reef Central here is good, but it's so huge it seems easy to get lost in. Not to mention they are using an older version of vBulletin so it doesn't support sub-forums, which would make these supporter's forums a lot nicer.

ANYWAY, I'm rambling... bottom line, www.coralconnectionsarasota.com is ready and will be live when they open next weekend, along with their forum that I hope you guys that are local here will get involved with.

Hope to see you all on there!
~ Shawn

[sandman12]

Hey Shawn, I remember them talking about u and setting up ur tank. I'm on 17th ave along the golf course. U should come by some time. Ill see when i dont work next (thursday i think) and we can meet up then. Finally, a reefer that is close to me!

milkmanf12@aol.com

[celldweller]

Originally posted by sandman12
Hey Shawn, I remember them talking about u and setting up ur tank. I'm on 17th ave along the golf course. U should come by some time. Ill see when i dont work next (thursday i think) and we can meet up then. Finally, a reefer that is close to me!

milkmanf12@aol.com

sounds good! but it may be next week before I have the chance as I'll need this week to put the final content to their website. I'll take down your email address here and we'll be in touch soon!

[sandman12]

OK, let me know when ur ready.

[Primetime]

Hey everyone,
I am a newbie to this site. I saw a link on saltwaterfish and followed it.
I have been doing business with SeaClear, and so far they have been taking care of me. But I do go to Jeffs as well.

Dion

[sandman12]

Use the forums over the LFS's dion, u will be much more happy. Jeff is really starting to clean his place up.

[wahwoo]

Hi Shawn,

Im looking forward to seeing the new site. It seems like you guys are working on a good thing with that new shop. Hope you decide to stay involved in RC and the Sarasota Reef Club meetings.

James, How long have you had your yellow gorg? How is it doing. Wehad one a few years ago that did well. Almost bought one from CC and then realized that the last gorg we had eventually died off when I had an algea problem. Since using Oceanic Salt I now have an outbreak and think I have to wait to get that under control before adding gorgs and SPS.

I suspect that Oceanic may contain high silicates that cause the outbreaks. I am running a phosphate absorber even though my phos is 0. They also absorb silicate. Its early to say for sure but I am seing a serious die off on the algea after three days. I also switched to Tropic Marin Salt. They also suggested at CC that my lights might be shifting to the red scale since they are due to be changed and that could also cause a bloom. We shall see.

I hope to be back to CC soon for a yellow gorg and a frag.

[sandman12]

ive had mone for about 4 days now. Seems to be doing great.

[wahwoo]

Did you get the Marine snow? Thats what I used to feed mine.

[sandman12]

nope, no marine snow. I feed cyclopeezzzzzzz :)

[multi striped 12]

Sand man ... I also live In Bradenton just a little west of Mayaka ..
when I am ready I will host a meeting changing a few things now....

The new coral store on Clark looks nice.

[benter]

Just so everyone knows..If you guys want some fish let me know and I can bring some up from fort myers..I travel all around the state and the sarasota area is absolutely the highest price area in the state that I have seen so far..Aquarium and reef supply in Cape Coral seems to be the best around..there is even a wholesaler in bonita springs that opens to the public on weekends..I p/u a minneatus grouper for $35.00, and a couple of purple firefish 12.50 ea...I wish i could get the stores in your area to buy from me..I could buy them here , drive up there and mark them up 20.00 apiece and the sarasota stores would still be making money off you guys...maybe we could get together at the wholesalers one weekend..okay it's a long drive..just a thought ..

[celldweller]

coralconnectionsarasota.com (http://coralconnectionsarasota.com) is live and the store opens tomorrow at 10:30 am!! Check the website for more details. Everyone should go check out the new store in person if you get the opportunity!

[sandman12]

looks good. Let me know when u want to set something up shawn.

[AquAsylum]

Hey, all...stopped by CC on Saturday. Everything looks great- so clean and new! Very nice frags too. Made me very impatient, so I went home and made my milkshake in the tank- we're officially on our way to a tank!

I'm also happy that they had $5 green chromis, which is what I've wanted for my starters...

[myakkareef]

So is Coral Connections any part of Aqaurius..they look on the map very close to each other??
Nice looking store on the photos...Nice Website...I will check htem out next time I am down that way....

[celldweller]

Originally posted by myakkareef
So is Coral Connections any part of Aqaurius..they look on the map very close to each other??
Nice looking store on the photos...Nice Website...I will check htem out next time I am down that way....

No, no connection between the two. I myself don't know much of Aquarius other than having heard their name. But I'm not really sure what Ray and James (Coral Connection) know of them.

[AquAsylum]

Aquarius?? Do you mean Atlantis?

I'm literally around the corner from both places, so we're happy! I wonder if CC will do water tests for me...

[wahwoo]

whats going on with the meeting this month

[wahwoo]

HAS ANYONE GOT IT TOGETHER YET?

[celldweller]

Originally posted by AquAsylum
Aquarius?? Do you mean Atlantis?

I'm literally around the corner from both places, so we're happy! I wonder if CC will do water tests for me...

you should ask them on their forum or use the contact section of their site and ask...I'm not positive, but I really think they would :)

[myakkareef]

Yea, Atlantis thats it...Only been in there afew times awhile back...

[multi striped 12]

I picked up a couple of things at Coral connection today...

Good looking store

[frag master flash]

I stopped by CC today and was pretty impressed. Definately better than I have seen in the surrounding area. They don't have the largest selection or carry a ton of SPS, but they seem to be off to a great start. Quality of corals looked pretty good. Prices of corals I looked at were very reasonable. Things that I liked were
1. they seemed like hobbyist
2. they were willing to talk reef
3. they get their stuff from several places and could tell me where each piece came from - tank raised, aquacultured, etc.
I do feel that CC has great potential and will definately stop by again.

[sandman12]

frag master flash- where in bradenton are u? Iam on 17th ave by the country club.

[AquAsylum]

Originally posted by frag master flash
they were willing to talk reef


Yes, they were! They even indulged all of my "did I get the right fill-in-the-equipment-here??" questions, and when anyone has that much patience after only 3 hours sleep, they get big points in my book!

[frag master flash]

Sandman12 - I am on 57th right off of 41

[sandman12]

we should meet up and check out each others tanks/trade frags.

*edit) o yeah! ur the guy that i was going to trade frags with, ur hard to get ahold of. One day here then gone for a week!:)

[frag master flash]

Thats me. The joys of working many odd hours and having a girlfriend that lives 2 hours away.:) I would definately still like to swap tank tours and possibly a frag trade. I will shoot you an e-mail with my cell. PM or e-mail is also a good way to get in touch.

[Agu]

Went to LFSs today.

I was very impressed with Coral Connections, they had corals for everyone. Large corals for the collector and frags for the grower. I was hard pressed not to buy a Galaxia frag for $6 but I had other stops to make.

Atlantis Aquatics was a funny disappointment. Beer and Fish, and not many fish.

Seaclear, well they had a lot of stuff, if you could find it. Their livestock looked OK but I felt like I was in a warehouse and asked to pay boutique prices. Don't know how long they've been remodeling but it looked like it was their normal situation. It didn't create a lot of faith in their husbandry practices if they can't even take care of the store.

jmo,

Agu

[wahwoo]

How does the Fish Bowl rate on a scale from 1-2?

I stopped in there yesterday for ha-ha's. About two months ago we visited them for the first time and decided right away that this was not a store that I could appreciate doing business with. We were about to buy a clown and sabae when they doubled the price from the first quote minutes before. We walked out and laughed.

Guess what happened yesterday? I took a fast look around, was about to leave, then noticed an orange fan sponged that I liked. I asked its price and was told $20.00. Then the guy went in the back and out came another guy. This second guy said the price is $60.00. I said "Wow, are you sure? Most stores sell them for $20 to $30." He replied in a snotty tone "Go buy em up then." I said "I wont pay you $60 for it." He began to get very testy and I told him "Look, I wanted to do some business with you. If youre unreasonable, Im smart enough not to finalize a deal here. I dont care what you charge for thngs. Charge $150 for it and I could care less, but you wont have my business. I'll leave laughing" Which is what I did.

[Bugs825]

Dang!

That really sucks. I think we should all go in and put together our own store. I feel the problem is that most of these places know that no matter how many customers they **** off, there will be a new sucker coming through the door in a few minutes. If they took the time to do a fair business the customer would come back and may even tell some friends.

My Poo list...
Sea scape
Fishbowl

Kudos list...
Puss N Pups (Alex is real cool)
Venice Pet Center (not as good since Neil left)

jmo
Nathan

[jerrymlr1]

Anyone know the address of Coral Connections? I can't pull up the website and yellow pages doesn't list them.
Jerry

[wahwoo]

Jerry,

Coral Connection is on Clark Rd, Sarasota. I cant find the exact address but here is the link www.coralconnectionsarasota.com

PM James or Sean for the address.

[wahwoo]

Got it: CoralConnections 2828 Clark Road, Sarasota.

[jerrymlr1]

That was quick! Thanks.
Jerry

[Pete Starostecki]

I was at Jeff's Pets this evening. I was expecting more corals, but he does have more room now that he has his new tanks in. A few things popped out at me.
Royal grama $10
2" false percula $21
Shunk shrimp (sm) $12
Small lions $25
Yellow tang $23
NICE purple/blue maxima clams $55

[sandman12]

yup the clams are nice and at a surprising price. I was thinking about getting the 6"er

[myakkareef]

Next Episode "When Good Stores go Bad, and when Bad Stores Just Stay Bad"
Agu-Good report, I need to visit Coral Connections, I have heard only good things about them. Then again everyone must remember that alot of stores start out good then need to pay more bills and make more income....I really though SeaClear was out of business. Atlantis-Beer and Fish, Sounds like Home to me...

I just have an opinion on why some stores go bad. I think when a store/owner get involved with doing the Custom Setups for Dr's. Offices, Million Dollar Home Owners, and people who really do not know what money is if it does not contain 6 figures. And all that these people want is a tank that looks great with no regargd to cost. Then the owners lose site of the needs and financial ability of the Hobbyist. Kinda the old Price and Demand situation, if someone is willing to pay 4x more for it. That is who you are going to sell it to. It is sad but if I had the oppurtunity to make the money now I would jump all over it. Unfortionetly these are usually short lived gains. Hopefully you see my point during my rambling....

James/Pete where is Jeff's???

[Pete Starostecki]

Jeff's Pets is in Bradenton on the SW corner of Cortez Rd and 43rd Ave. Its in the Albertsons shopping center, but I don't know the exact address.

[myakkareef]

Thanks Pete...

[CoralConnection]

"Then the owners lose site of the needs and financial ability of the Hobbyist."

Although this is probably a valid opinion, we feel strongly about providing high quality Corals and dry goods to the whole community. I am more than happy to sell a Beautifull $6.00 frag as I am selling a large collector coral at a great price no matter what your financial situation. We make a great effort to
support our local aquaculturists as well break up high color acros into frags so they are affordable to everyone. Our business model is based on volume, the more I sell the more I buy from our transhipper the bigger discounts I aquire. Our hopes are we will be able to bring our already good prices down as we become more well known. I know it has been a tough situation for the average hobbiest in the area, believe me; I was one of the frustrated budget hobbiest and I will always appreciate your feedback and honest dialog.:)

James

[myakkareef]

James of CC..Just you posting here shows that you are interested in the hobbyist. I have been into SW and Reefs for about 7 years and it is a passion to me. I was born in SRQ 42 years ago and have seen different stores and such. I remember my father trying SW about 30 years ago, He made a good go at it but the equipment was just not there that we have today. He marvels at my tank and what I have accomplished. Again the store that brought him to SW 30 years ago still exists today. Not my favorite by any means but they have done something right to still be here serving this area. I like your attitude about selling sizes for everyones budget, I think this can go along way.
I personally enjoy buying smaller pieces so that they can be with me for many years to come. People who have seen my tank know that I have some large specimens that have been in the tank from its begining. I live in B'town now but look forward to visiting your store and meeting you and your staff.
Maybe someday we can do a meeting at your place so we can learn what it takes to run a business while trying to keep all the people happy. I am sure it is a nightmare....Take it easy Bro, See Ya soon.....Scott Earl

[CoralConnection]

Scott,

I look forward to meet you and showing you our shop. I regret I was busy with another customer when Agu stopped in last week.
My business partner Ray spoke with him. I think we would be more than happy to host a meeting although I'm not sure how many folks we could fit in the store. Possibly a cook out in the parking lot in the evening with access to the store would work. I will have to talk to our Landlord if something like that would interest ACROS.

James
CC

[Bugs825]

Hey James,

I'm glad to see that you are taking part in the RC community. I'm not sure if it was you that I met when I was in last week with my son. I would love to get a bunch of stuff when I get my prop tanks going. But for now I have to stick to the budget. Did you get in any more red mushrooms??? I will try to stop in soon.

Nathan

[CoralConnection]

Nathan,

Yes that was me, It was very nice talking with you. I did get in some wild collected Reds and Blues. Seems they are getting harder and harder to come by. I guess I need to spend moretime propagating them. I also got some incredible High colored Acros in you should drop by just to take a look at them. It was a pleasure having you and your son in the store. Most kids these days aren't so polite and well behaved.

James
CC

[sandman12]

Acros huh.....:)

[CoralConnection]

Hey James,

Yes Acros,:D Very nice High colored Indonesian Ocean Aquacultures pieces. How are the blue zoos doing?

James
CC

[Bugs825]

Hey James,

Yep, I can not complain about my son. Hes a very good kid and I really have been blessed in so many ways.

I will stop in on Saturday to check out the red mushrooms.

The Blasto and Candy Cane that I was telling you about are the ones in my avatar <-------


See you soon
Nathan

[sandman12]

I think i may stop in also....

[CoralConnection]

James, Nathan,

Sorry I missed you guys on Saturday morning, I was busy at home setting up a couple hatching tanks for my Percula Clowns as they have been laying and hatching fry for months now.

James
CC

[sandman12]

sounds cool. Let us know how the hatching works out, its not an easy task.

[Bugs825]

From the looks of my pair, I should have some soon. They are still young but so much in love. ha ha ha

Nathan

[sandman12]

The fire zoos i got from u guys is probably the nicest coral I've bought in a while.

Thanks!
James

[tankcrazy]

Glad to here that James, again sorry I missd you on Saturday. The Percula Clowns are scheduled to hatch on Thursday, I will keep you up to date on my progress with them.

James
CC

[sandman12]

What do u plan to feed them? Do u have any cultures of phyto or rotifers going?

[CoralConnection]

Feeding rotifers for the first week then on to newly hatched brine shrimp then cyclopeze.

James
CC

[Trapper]

James, nice place. You really have the store for hobbyists.:)

[CoralConnection]

Thanks,

We try very hard to keep it top quality. Let us know if you have any questions we are always here to help.

James
CC

[multi striped 12]

Every thing I have picked up at CC has done well, and James thanks for the
nice store

[CoralConnection]

Thank You, we won't sell anything we think isn't doing well.

Just to keep everyone up to date who is interested, my clowns hatched last night, however the breeder tank was still cycling so the parents ate well. There are a few still in the tank that seem to be doing good. Also the rotifers aren't quite ready yet. I will be ready for the next hatch though. These fry seemed to be bigger than the last batch and seem to be swimming better as well. These hatched in 8 days where as the last batch was ten days.

James
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[Bugs825]

Hey James,

I don't know if you know but Brian said that he has Rotifers. He told me to let him know when mine decide to lay.

Nathan

[CoralConnection]

Hey thanks,

I didn't know that. If mine don't do well at least maybe I can get a small culture from him to restart mine.

James
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[CoralConnection]

Just a heads up for anyone that is interested, Sid & Nancy or I guess it would only be Nancy, laid an even larger batch of eggs yesterday. As well the fry tanks seem to be well on the way to being cycled. The rotifers are doing good so I guess next Saturday or Sunday we will have new fry ready to rear.

James
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[CoralConnection]

Nathan,

Thanks! Brian called and offer some rotifers. Mine are ding ok right now but it's great to have a back-up in case mine crash.
Which did happen to one of my cultures as I started two seperate batches. Mom and Dad AKA (Sid and Nancy) are very busy working on fanning the eggs.:)

James
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[Bugs825]

by "faning" do you mean when they do a booty shake???

Mine do that a lot when they are near their "nest". Its the rock that is covered with hair algae that I told you about (they love to host in the hair algae. It does have a nich underside that they could lay eggs in. I have not seen any and they are still fairly young. Is this a good sign?

Nathan

[Bugs825]

Oh, you are very welcome!

Glad to see that the younger guy that came into the store decided to get the Orbit lighting system for his 29 gallon. And that lone red mushroom that I got is doing great. Thanks a bunch!!!

Nathan

[CoralConnection]

Yes I think he made the right decision, I didn't want to push him toward that light to much as I didn't know his budget. But for the long run he will be much happier with that light especially for the price difference.

As for Fanning, Its different than thier mating dance. They, especially the male will spend most of the day and night actually fanning the eggs with Thier Pectoral (Side Fins) to keep good water circulation around the eggs. They even seem to blow water from thier mouth at times on the eggs.

Oh, and yes Nathan that's a good sign they have picked out an area and are doing thier mating dance. I found mine started laying eggs after I feed them live brine shrimp. I've also read that somehow live food helps trigger egg laying.

James
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[myakkareef]

James just want to make sure you know you are welcome to any of our meetings. Always good to have knowledge on hand. I know you have a store to run also though. If you would like to come to this months meeting shoot me an e-mail and I will send you a map...
sdearl@verizon.net

[CoralConnection]

Thanks,

I'd like to check it out, I'm not sure if I can make it or not. I should know better as the date comes closer. Do you guys do any auctions or anything like that?

James
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[myakkareef]

James, we can do anything...AGU is the official auctioneer but if he does not make it then we can find a alternate..not sure if they would bring as high a price as AGU though, he is ruthless...We also do some frag swapping, look at the host setup, have some munchies, meet new friends...As far as when meetings are at my place I always invite family and friends. This makes it easier for people to relax talk to people they don't know...
This thread has alittle about this months meeting..

May meeting (http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=594963)

[CoralConnection]

Thanks Brian!

My Rotifer culture crashed, Brian Greene brought me in a 5 gallon bucket of Rotifers and a gallon of green water. Hopefully I will do better with the Percula Clown Fry than I did with the Rotifers. However I 'm going to blame DT's for the crash as the phyotoplankton didn't quite smell right. I'm talking with Brian about supplying us with Rotifers and Greenwater for the shop as well.

Sid and Nancy should be proud parents this coming Saturday. I will keep everyone posted!

James
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[Bugs825]

cool!
:thumbsup:

Nathan

[CoralConnection]

no babies last night, howver Sid isn't eating this morning. He's to busy fanning the eggs, as well they have gone completely clear with large silver eyes, so I'm almost positive that they will hatch tonight. I'm tempted to remove the shell with the eggs tonight after the lights go out and place it in the breeder tank to hatch instead of trying to dip them out of the tank and place them into the breeder tank. It's possible this will interfear with there breeding schedule by upsetting Sid and Nancy.

James
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[CoralConnection]

babies last night! Sid does such a better job at keeping the eggs fanned. Only half the eggs hatched in the breeder tank with an air stone under them for circulation. Sid's rate is almost 100% when he's in charge. Babies doing good this morning eating rotifers. Been fishing in the gulf all day, so we will see how many servived the day.

James
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[sandman12]

sounds cool. What'd u catch today?

[AquAsylum]

Congrats James- I bet you and Sid are both proud papas!

[CoralConnection]

Hey James,

Caught some spanish, snapper, trigger, key west grunts. Not a very productive day as fishing goes but a beautiful day on the water. I must say I'm a bit burned though, use to go almost every weekend and was much more acclimated to the suns rays. Not so any more, a bit pink, red and brown I guess you could call me a tri-colored kid.

Just a note on the baby clowns if anyone has any ideas, I've attemped them in the pastand made it to day four. Thought I lost them before due to no heater in the tank as well not feeding live rotifers. This go around, heater, live rotifers babies made it to day two only. Ideas would be appreciated.

[CoralConnection]

Update on Sid and Nancy, they are at it again laid eggs last night! talked with a fish breeder friend yesterday, she thinks i made fish stew, we worked out a new set-up and I will be trying this again. i'll keep everyone posted.

James
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[Bugs825]

Dang James

You have some busy lovin fish!

:love2:

Nathan

[wahwoo]

James,

Since youve been talking to Brian... I understand he was one of the first few known to be successful at breeding of clowns.

Dave

[Agu]

James,

I have Joyce Wilkersons book "Clownfish and their Host Anemones" that you can borrow. It has extensive info about raising clown fry.

[myakkareef]

Well I finally made it into Coral Connections this weekend, I would like to backup what everyone else has said. Very nice store, very Clean store, and Very nice owners and apprentices...
James and Patrick it was great to meet you both.
I even purchased a nice Acro frag., pretty exciting since this is the first acro in my tank since I upgraded lighting, hoping for great success. I know prior to light upgrade I had a hard time even with Caps and the cap Sandman gave me is growing well.
Thanks James and Patrick have a great one...

[CoralConnection]

Thanks Scott,

It was very nice talking to you, please keep me posted on your lighting and the beautiful acro frag you took home with you. Let me know if you decide to raise your lights a bit and the effct on your tank, alway interested in how adjustments fair.

James
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[CoralConnection]

"I have Joyce Wilkersons book "Clownfish and their Host Anemones" that you can borrow. It has extensive info about raising clown fry."

Agu, it was nice meeting you as well this weekend, I know I missed you the first time in. I would love to borrow your book if that's ok with you. Maybe it would help ingrain the process into my mind. As well ,let me know how the galaxia frag does.

Regards,
James
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[myakkareef]

James, I raised my light when I got home about 4-6", My Halides had not fired yet, basically It looked as though my Colt which really seems to have not liked the lighting might have been alittle happier, but I realy saw no other effects other then maybe temps being a 1/2 degree cooler....I will continue to monitor though...

[CoralConnection]

for anyone interested, sid & nancy's fry should hatch tonight, i'm dipping them this time as i had better success leting sid hatch them before than pulling them early and using an airstone. Rotifers ready thanks to Brian Greene! I think I have a much better set-up ready for the little guys. Also thanks everyone for all the nice comments.

James
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[CoralConnection]

Little percula babies are all doing well, new set-up is working great! i think i've had one loss so far.

James
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[CoralConnection]

corx, no losses, found the baby clown in the 5 gallon bucket still swimming the next morning, dipped him out and placed back in the breeder tank, new set-up is fantastic on day three no losses. all clowns have fat little bellies.

James
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[CoralConnection]

for those interested, one loss last night, babies are doing great at day four, looking forward to the transformation on day five.

James
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[sandman12]

sounds sweet.

[AquAsylum]

pictures!

[CoralConnection]

I'll do my best with the pictures, really not much to see so far.

James
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[CoralConnection]

well picture were pretty bad, not much to see, clowns have gone through transformation and are now almost a black red color with a single white band behind the head, lost most during the 5th through 7th day. still have six, Sid and Nancy have already laid a new batch of eggs that should hatch Sunday or Monday. Guess i'll set up another breeder and try again, cute little guys, would like to have better success than 6. working on hatching baby brine to feed the 6 remaining.

[sandman12]

6 still alive on the second batch is good IMO.

[CoralConnection]

thanks, hate to say i lost all but two, anyway Sid and Nancy have hatched yet another brood. I've got a couple hundred this time around, doing my morning and evening feedings and water changes. Have lost about a dozen, hundreds left, hope to do better with this batch, they strip the wate rof rotiers pretty fast, feel like i'm always behind the curve getting enough food to them, added a little bit of golden pearls this morning, hope that will help feed them till tonight.

James
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[myakkareef]

James, are you raising these in the store??? I would like to see a brood sometime just so I can imagine what they look like...

[CoralConnection]

Scott,

I'm raising them at home but i'm planning on moving the parents tank into the store as well the breeder set-up if i'm more successful this go around. it would be much easier to raise them here.

james
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[CoralConnection]

Update on the clowns, started eating baby brine shrimp last night! Can't say how happy that makes me, i can put a small amount in the tank and they only need to eat 4 or 5 to fill the littel bellies as opposed to spending an hour straining rotifers and watching them strip the water of them faster than i can put them in. Looking forward to moving Sid and Nancy to the shop if the continue to breed. It would be much easier keeping them fat being here all day. However no new eggs and it's been 12 days now, possibly they are happy with the way i'm bringing up this batch, or possibly they think i need a break!

James
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