High temperature tolerant organisms

[Triterium]

Hi Dr. Ron,

I have just set up a 300 gallon salt water system in a greenhouse and am expecting to have high temperatures during the summer (hopefully below 87 degrees). I would like to have fish and corals which come from areas which experience large temperature fluctuations. I am expecting the temperature to start at 72 degrees and reach the mid 80s and possibly 90. Any suggestions on which fish or corals would do ok?

[rshimek]

Hi,

Temperatures up to 90 or so won't bother most animals from Indonesia, etc., althought the low temperatures will be a problem.

If you get animals from a higher latitude reef, you will find animals tolerant of the low temps, and maybe the whole range, but really it is pretty iffy. Generally, there are a limited number of cold tolerant animals and then most reef organisms are tolerant of the warmer ranges.

My suggestion would be to put heaters in your system to make the low end no less than about 80F. Then get animals from warmer areas, and they should be able to tolerate the warmer spikes without too much distress.

[Triterium]

Thanks Dr. Ron,
Outdoor temperature in my area during the summer reaches 90-105 consistantly for several months. I am depending on night temps of 60-70 degrees to cool the water each night since I have no chiller or any other means to cool the water. I am guessing the reef will be 80-90 degrees in the summer and 70-80 degrees in the winter. I could maintain cooler temps in the summer and warmer temps in the winter, but the price would be very high. I was hoping there were some organisms which would be ok with a daily 10 degree temperature fluctuation and 70 degree low in the winter and a 90 degree high in the summer. What about tide pool animals or seagrasses? Ive heard macroalgaes do not do well in water above 85 degrees. Any input on that? I remember reading in a thread a while back that you went to a reef near Hawaii that had huge daily fluctuations (70-90 degrees). I think it was Johnston atoll. Do you know any specific species from this area or where I can find a list? Thank you very much for your help

[rshimek]

Hi,

Higher latitude reefs (both south and north of the equator) will contain animals which can tolerate such ranges, but as I indicated the low temperatures are the real problem here, not the high ones. You really don't need to maintain the temperatures cooler in the summer if you can kept the lower end a bit higher.

In any case, I don't know of anybody actively importing things from the really cool water reefs - such as Johnson atoll. The reason for this is that there are NOT a lot of species living there. These are coral reefs, but they are stressed coral reefs containing only a few species relative to reefs where the conditions are more benign. If you want to find lists of species from these areas, thy local large university library awaits thine presence....

Keep in mind, that a widely distributed species - one found in such areas - is not likely to be imported from such an area. That means that the specimen you obtain may or may not be either genetically or physiologically adapted for the conditions you are proposing.