Pics From Port A Trip

[rwilliams26]

We're trying to identify a little anemone we brought back (thinking some variety of Flower Anemone, but not sure yet), but thought I'd share a couple pics from the trip.

We were able to collect several Peppermint Shrimp, some Gulf Gobies, tons of sea whips, a few anemonies, and a head of sea lettuce (or several handfuls..to be more accurate). Most of this stuff is now residing at Tim's, and our neighbor's tank...but we kept a few examples.

[Nano_Steve]

fantastic pics!!! if u ever plan on making another trip down there id love to try and set up a caravan of sorts. i wasnt able to make it to the port a maast/marsh meeting so ever since ive been wanting to go and seeing these great pics makes that want even greater!!! thanks for sharing!

steve

[Nano_Steve]

yeah for sure, some more info about laws and regs would be great! i forgot to say ive never seen yellow sea whips like that before! theyre incredible!

great job, steve

[rwilliams26]

The Sea Whips are actually the easiest thing to find down there. We would simply go out in the morning (low tide this past week), and walk the beach (the Whips don't seem to be found on the jetty). In some cases, we would find large (basketball size) clumps of Seaweed and Sea Whips washed up on the shore, but in most cases we'd find them solo, just washed up on shore. Last year I was just certain the ****ed things were small pieces of fishing line (like fly fishing line) that had washed up, but my wife said she thought she'd seen some small polyps....and sure enough, they're VERY MUCH alive! We take a 5 gallon bucket and a battery operated aeration system with us, along with some long handled nets when we go. It's incredibly fun for the whole family, and we're finally starting to get the handle on what NOT to bring back with us (Sergeant Majors, for example!). We've been regularly warned NOT to collect any hermit crabs or snails (though we could bring back HUNDREDS of these if we had a better idea of which might be safe), so we don't.

Anyway, let me know if you'd like any more detail! :grin:

[rwilliams26]

Regarding regulations, I specifically ASKED a cop at the beach station near the jetty about collecting when we were there last Summer, and he just shrugged and said it wouldn't be a problem. I've not gotten any clearer or more detailed responsees regarding this yet, but I have heard the same thing Joshua just said about simply having a license. :D

[Nano_Steve]

well ive got a scuba license and i STILL havent been in the ocean yet(ive had it for almost a year now) and ive really been wanting to try it out. do you know of any regulations regarding collection while scuba diving/would it be worth the effort(are there any more critters further out that u wouldnt find right along the beach or is it more like galveston; miles of silt :p)

also if anyone is ever interested im definitely down for takin a road trip down there for a couple of days and doing some collecting!!! just let me know and maybe we could set up a little convoy or something!

take kare all, steve

[Nano_Steve]

hmm.....an interesting circumstance has shown itself. now the question is, do i have time??? josh, ill definitely keep in contact to see how that develops! id love to be able to just check it out, ive never been before! thanks!

talk to u soon, steve

[alexwolf]

i am a diver as well, and i would be intrested in a trip steve, just let me know ahead of time so i can get my gear together.

[GaryP]

My guess is that the sea whips aren't native to the area and from what Ron said is that they probably washed in on some flotsam or jetsam (which is it?). I used to collect stuff at the beach all the time when I was going to school in Galveston. Alot of neat stuff like sea horses would wash up in the sargasso that weren't necessarily native to the intertidal area. My guess is that the sea whip probably got broken lose from an oil rig or other offshore structure and washed in. The oil companies are constantly cleaning the legs of the rigs for one reason or another and this kind of stuff gets washed ashore. I used to find small pieces of some sort of encrusting coral like that as well. Remember that the Gulf Stream is just a few miles offshore and could be bringing stuff up from as far south as Yucatan.

Gary

[GaryP]

Ron, the yellow whip is fantastic and very unique. Just remember to feed it. Can I get somewhere near the front of the line for some frags when you get to that point?

Gary

[Tim Marvin]

Gary, he brought me a bunch! Come and get some.

[DaBird]

I don't do alot of posting , but this is just too good to miss. I also would LOVE to take a red or yellow for my tank . I do alot of buisness with C& B Pets (I might start calling them C& B Corals soon :) ). Thank you in advance. Danny

[DaBird]

Why does it call me a new member , I've been here for about a year ?...

[alexwolf]

number of posts you have made!

[DeletedAccount]

New Member goes by the post count, not the joined date.....

[DaBird]

Tks guys...

[DaBird]

I guess it does'nt pay to be quiet and just listen in here.... :)

[Nano_Steve]

ur current status is all based on participation. number of posts to begin with then becoming a dues paying member if you so choose.

thatd be great to do a dive! ill start a new thread tonight so we can set it up for anyone else who is interested also!!!

take kare, steve

[DaBird]

Hey Tim...How about me getting in on this action??

[rwilliams26]

Just to give you an idea of the size of these Sea Whips...most of them are about 2 1/2 to 3 feet long, and about one it three still had a little bit of it's base left. We've done some reading on them, and it's our experience with our first ones has confirmed that they DO NOT like to be on the bottom, or even scrape regularly against anything. This will lead to rotting in the area that's touching a foreign object. We've cut the two we kept this time into more manageable lengths (approx. 10" or so) and glued them into a piece of rubble. They like tons of current, preferrably current that will keep them up off the bottom.

As far as the whips not being native to the gulf...well...all I can say is we could have brought home hundreds of them this weekend, and we also brought some home over the summer....so who knows?

Jen and I would also love to be a part of an overnight "collecting trip" down there again....but it'll have to be sometime after the holidays for us now! :roll:

[GaryP]

Hey Ron,

I didn't say that they weren't native to the Gulf, just not to the beach area. Its a totally different ecology. Besides, I would guess that there is to much suspended sediment along the coast for them. The sediment has a tendency to choke their polyps. My best guess is that they probably got knocked off the legs of an oil rig offshore and then washed ashore. I have seen gorgonians growing on the legs of rigs. I have also seen some growing on flotsam that washed ashore.

The fact that so many washed ashore in such a small area makes me think that the source was probably pretty close. I don't have anything firm to base this on, just a guess based on some knowledge of how tides and currents work.

BTW, I see you also got some nice Ulva as well. You are now officially the king of the MAAST collectors. No sargeant majors huh? Awwww shucks....

Gary

[rwilliams26]

Gary,

I think you might be right on about the Sea Whips being knocked off of oil rigs!

[GaryP]

Hey, I'm usually right about once a year. Its getting close to the end of the year and I was starting to wonder if I was going to manage to get one in this year.

Gary

[rotti71]

Im Rons neighbor that he gave some of his findings too......Just FYI....if you have a spiney urchin, dont get the whips. My urchin ate all the yellow whips w/in 2 days :( I got to get rid of him soon!!!

[Tim Marvin]

Your kidding. I put all those whips in with another large spiney urchin and it hasn't bothered any of them.

[rotti71]

Tim.....he sure did. And to prove it, there is little BB sized yellow urchin poop in the tank!! :) I think I may trade him back to you afterall unless I convert my other tank to a FO. Awesome looking critter, but tends to be a pain in the neck!

[Tim Marvin]

I sure hope the rest in my tank are little yellow urchin poops. I have to give some more away.

[sholzrichter]

These pictures are very cool.
Where is the Texas State Aquarium Dolphin Exhibit? and where is the port A?
I would like to check out both places.

[TAXMAN]

Tim. Would you save a frag or 2 for my tank? Maybe a month or so until it cycles out. I have never seen sea whips. They are really nice looking.

[Tim Marvin]

I have some in my tank when your ready.

[TAXMAN]

Thanks much.

[Jenn]

Tim, I am interested in purchasing a few sea whips from you if you have any extras. They are very interesting looking.

[Tim Marvin]

I am not selling, but if you want to make a donation to the club for them that would be fine.

[GaryP]

The Texas State Aquarium is in Corpus Christi.

Port Aransas (Port A) is on Mustang Island, right up the coast from N. Padre Island and across from Aransas Pass.

[sholzrichter]

Thanks Gary. I moved to Austin 3 years ago, but I haven't been to Corpus Christi. I heard it is nice there. I was planning a trip out there a couple months ago, but it didn't work out. I will make it out there some day.

[GaryP]

The aquarium is near downtown. The USS Lexington (aircraft carrier) is on display next to it.

[rwilliams26]

The Aquarium is a nice side trip while you're down there...I have to say though, that I was rather dismayed by the treatment of several of the fish displays. In an attempt to better "market" the aquarium to kids (I guess), management decided to "dress up" several of the tanks in whimsical (and sometimes macabre) scenes. One example is a tank with Lobsters in it that's decorated like a fancy restaurant, complete with plates with plastic food on them and menus on the table. The Lobsters appeared to be huddling in the corner of the tank in fear...it was....weird. The large animal displays were great, however, and there's plenty of interactive fun for younger folks. It's a little expensive to get in, but I think you can get discount coupons at local hotels and some restaurants in the area.

Anyway, I've attahced a couple more pics...

[Sherri]

Great job on the pics! Live the silhoutte...

[Nano_Steve]

hey rwilliams,

(wow im really bringing this thread back from the dead) but i wanted to post and tell u that i found out the species on that anemone. its a nemanthus annamensis. u gave one to tim awhile back who put it in my tank that ive had here at the dorm for awhile and this past weekend i managed to kill it by trying to move it from the rock it had been connected to for months. it about quadrupled in size and was STUCK on the rock and i thought it would make it but evidently not.

they are gorgonia anemones. they attach themselves to little dead parts of sea whips and are colonial. it was my dorm mates' favorite thing in the tank, im kinda saddened its gone now :( u wouldnt happen to have any extras laying around ud be willing to sell off would u? id love to get another one, they are great! and i had no adverse effects with it in my tank for so long.

take kare, steve