January Monthly Update Progress made over the last month: Over the last month some exciting and new behaviors have occurred in our tank, from receiving a gobie, to adding 2 damsel fish, and even a nudibranch. The most exciting new behavior was that the gobie we got was much larger than the first to that were killed, and it immediately found the snapping shrimps burrow! This is exactly what we have been waiting for and researching on for the past few months. Finally, the symbiotic relationship that we have been wanting to see! This was not the only relationship we saw this month, one of the new damsel fish has taken a liking to the peppermint shrimps rock cave and has begun to swim through the little tunnel they made, going in and out multiple times when we feed them. Life Spectrum Fish Formula, a small pellet fish food is still the go to meal for the organisms and is extremely useful for getting the snapping shrimp out of it burrow. What has been very exciting to see is that when the lights are off in the tank room, you can see the goby and the snapping shrimp out of their burrow looking for food. This is a symbiotic relationship where the shrimp digs a burrow for the goby to hide in, but the goby is big enough to protect the shrimp as it goes out in search of food. The conch is still roaming around the tank, it will disappear under the sand for a few days and then it will be on top of the sand constantly looking for food. The sea urchins move around the tank more than any of the other organisms, they are in different places every day, and are always sticking to rocks or corals. The sexy shrimp have made a relationship of their own with some of the corals in the tank. Since they are so small they stay under the corals protective branches until they can dart out and get food. This month has brought a lot of exciting advances and we are eagerly waiting to see what unfolds over the course of next month. Tank conditions: For the past month the water levels in the take have stayed consistent even when we add new organisms. Every day of the week we have switched off on who does the daily observations which consist of checking the salinity, temperature, and Ph levels. We have been using the lifeguard, a refractometer, and a hydrometer to track these conditions. The new organisms that we received this month are the goby, two damsel fish from an other groups project, and we replaced some corals with new ones. These organisms did not affect the water levels in any way and we were able to keep a consistent record of the water measurements. We are lucky to not have any problems with the water levels because that could have an effect on many of our organisms.
Are the two extra damsel fish going to increase the risk of the other organisms getting hurt?
Since the corals we replaced were bigger than the ones now, is that going to affect the shrimp’s hiding spots?
Why do urchins always have snails attached to them?
Has the goby found the other snapping shrimp? (he only hangs around one of them)
What triggered the goby to want to jump out of the tank?
*Some of these questions can not be answered *Some of them can be answered in future observations *Research and asking Dr.Reynolds could help
Future plans The goby came in late this month, so I think we should still focus on his reactions to the damselfish and his mutual relationship with the snapping shrimp. We only see the snapping shrimp once and a while, so I think we should come and make our observations at different times of the day because all the organisms act differently. The damselfish addition plus the gobies new reactions are going to be very important to keep track of. If the damsel fish was responsible for killing the last gobies, it will be important to monitor the behavior in the tank as a whole to insure a good relationship among all the organisms.
Progress made over the last month:
Over the last month some exciting and new behaviors have occurred in our tank, from receiving a gobie, to adding 2 damsel fish, and even a nudibranch. The most exciting new behavior was that the gobie we got was much larger than the first to that were killed, and it immediately found the snapping shrimps burrow! This is exactly what we have been waiting for and researching on for the past few months. Finally, the symbiotic relationship that we have been wanting to see! This was not the only relationship we saw this month, one of the new damsel fish has taken a liking to the peppermint shrimps rock cave and has begun to swim through the little tunnel they made, going in and out multiple times when we feed them. Life Spectrum Fish Formula, a small pellet fish food is still the go to meal for the organisms and is extremely useful for getting the snapping shrimp out of it burrow. What has been very exciting to see is that when the lights are off in the tank room, you can see the goby and the snapping shrimp out of their burrow looking for food. This is a symbiotic relationship where the shrimp digs a burrow for the goby to hide in, but the goby is big enough to protect the shrimp as it goes out in search of food. The conch is still roaming around the tank, it will disappear under the sand for a few days and then it will be on top of the sand constantly looking for food. The sea urchins move around the tank more than any of the other organisms, they are in different places every day, and are always sticking to rocks or corals. The sexy shrimp have made a relationship of their own with some of the corals in the tank. Since they are so small they stay under the corals protective branches until they can dart out and get food. This month has brought a lot of exciting advances and we are eagerly waiting to see what unfolds over the course of next month.
Tank conditions:
For the past month the water levels in the take have stayed consistent even when we add new organisms. Every day of the week we have switched off on who does the daily observations which consist of checking the salinity, temperature, and Ph levels. We have been using the lifeguard, a refractometer, and a hydrometer to track these conditions. The new organisms that we received this month are the goby, two damsel fish from an other groups project, and we replaced some corals with new ones. These organisms did not affect the water levels in any way and we were able to keep a consistent record of the water measurements. We are lucky to not have any problems with the water levels because that could have an effect on many of our organisms.
New research:
Choi, Seona, ed. "Thor Amboinensis Squat Anemone Shrimp." Animal Diversity Web. N.p., 12 Oct. 2013. Web. 25 Jan. 2015. <http://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Thor_amboinensis/>.
__http://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Thor_amboinensis/__
Wolfenden, Dave, ed. "Special Relationships: Keeping Pistol Shrimp and Gobies." Practical Fish Keeping. N.p., 12 Sept. 2012. Web. 16 Jan. 2015. <http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=5250>.
__http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=5250__
Questions
- Are the two extra damsel fish going to increase the risk of the other organisms getting hurt?
- Since the corals we replaced were bigger than the ones now, is that going to affect the shrimp’s hiding spots?
- Why do urchins always have snails attached to them?
- Has the goby found the other snapping shrimp? (he only hangs around one of them)
- What triggered the goby to want to jump out of the tank?
*Some of these questions can not be answered*Some of them can be answered in future observations
*Research and asking Dr.Reynolds could help
Future plans
The goby came in late this month, so I think we should still focus on his reactions to the damselfish and his mutual relationship with the snapping shrimp. We only see the snapping shrimp once and a while, so I think we should come and make our observations at different times of the day because all the organisms act differently. The damselfish addition plus the gobies new reactions are going to be very important to keep track of. If the damsel fish was responsible for killing the last gobies, it will be important to monitor the behavior in the tank as a whole to insure a good relationship among all the organisms.