Dwarf Seahorses

[ramsey]

I'm thinking about converting my 12g nano cube into a dwarf seahorse tank. I've read up on them and my biggest concern is hydroids. I would like to have live macro in the tank with them and possibly LR but it seems that the risk isn't worth it. Anyone have any experience with them?


The other thing I'm thinking about is selling my nano cube and buying a smaller tank like a Fluval Edge and going all artificial (plants, rock and substrate). It seems cheesy but much safer.

[Europhyllia]

check with Mr Cob he is good at raising hydroids :)
Also since the dwarfs require live food anyway maybe you can consider gorgonians? You'll already be culturing live foods anyway so why not feed both?

[Mr Cob]

Yep...my old 8g BioCube was cycling for about 8 months.....the pod population was crazy...all kinds of live pods including Mysis shrimp....right when we were ready to purchase dwarf seahorses we notice "jellyfish"...LOL! Darn hydroids!

Shot the project to poop real quick. That and vermetid worms....both can be big problem for dwarfs.

[Still Learning]

simple fix...there is a product you can purchase that can rid your take of hydroids. I personally would do a little live rock with lots of macro algae.

[Europhyllia]

Oh as for macro: I just got a little bunch of dragon's breath form Stephen and love it. So very pretty and non invasive.

[Third Coast Tropical]

When I was at UTMSI, we had artificial plants in a bare bottom tank, used a sponge filter, and had reproducing dwarves. You'll need to raise artemia to feed. We would feed newly hatched artemia twice a day. Not terrible difficult to have them, just a lot of tedious work

[Europhyllia]

The live food requirement is such a commitment. I find myself being really motivated for that kind of stuff for the first 6 months or so and then it gets old. So I've started to look at things in a : "can I still see myself doing every day this 2 years from now?" - kind of way and that's now affecting my livestock choices.
I am fine with feeding frozen two or three times a day because my fridge is in the kitchen right next to the dining room - any more inconvenient and I may drift off into a lower frequency pattern there too...
They are adorable though and would make a wonderful projected for somebody more dedicated!

[ramsey]

This is for my Wife so I'll have to make sure she wants to feed them live food every day. I have a hatch kit and it's not too difficult to hatch everyday. Still, I don't want to end up doing all the work!

[ramsey]

Oh as for macro: I just got a little bunch of dragon's breath form Stephen and love it. So very pretty and non invasive.

Yeah, I got the other half of that! :P It is nice and I was planning on using it though I don't know if I want to take the risk after doing my research.

[Europhyllia]

oh you can sell your half to me then! I love it!
every time I walk by passed my crammed QT tank I think "oh this is so stressful and sad" - and then: "wow but I really like that dragon's breath!" lol

[Mr Cob]

This is for my Wife so I'll have to make sure she wants to feed them live food every day. I have a hatch kit and it's not too difficult to hatch everyday. Still, I don't want to end up doing all the work!

Awesome....mine was also for my wife! :)

We also picked up a good read for dwarfs if you want to borrow it. I wasn't too concerned about the everday feeding and I was hopeful of slowly getting them to accept other food other than live food over time. Other have done it. Also, when buying tank raised from the right breeder you may have a better chance.

As I said....feeding live would have been doable because I don't have any serious feeding requests in the 144....so I was up for a little more commitment.

[ramsey]

oh you can sell your half to me then! I love it!
every time I walk by passed my crammed QT tank I think "oh this is so stressful and sad" - and then: "wow but I really like that dragon's breath!" lol

I may do that actually. I'm going to test and see if my tangs would eat it or not. If they don't, it's going into my main display. If they do, it's going into my fuge or will be for sale.

[ramsey]

Awesome....mine was also for my wife! :)

We also picked up a good read for dwarfs if you want to borrow it. I wasn't too concerned about the everday feeding and I was hopeful of slowly getting them to accept other food other than live food over time. Other have done it. Also, when buying tank raised from the right breeder you may have a better chance.

As I said....feeding live would have been doable because I don't have any serious feeding requests in the 144....so I was up for a little more commitment.

Thanks, I may take you up on that.

[Europhyllia]

Just noticed this while researching clean up crews:
Nudibrach learchis poica (http://www.ccritters.com/catalog/i60.html) http://www.ccritters.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/.pond/leachis.jpg.w110h54.jpg (http://www.ccritters.com/catalog/i60.html) Caribbean learchis poica . Feeds on the stinging hydroid pennaria distichia very much helps remove these unwanted tank pest. A nice addon to any clean up crew. They ship very well have had very few loses..

[Mr Cob]

^nice Karin!

[ramsey]

Indeed, that's good to know. I'll research that before I completely tear down my 12g nano and start over. Thanks Karin!

[StevenSeas]

what species of seahorses are you thinking of doing? i know ORA has shipped us some pretty high quality easy eating captive bred seahorses before so there are definitely some out there. One of our customers feeds hers 3 times a day PE mysis for her little bit larger ones and baby mysis for her smaller ones, even though they try to eat the PE mysis first lol. I have also see wild caught eat live ghost shrimp. Talk about unexpected and a nice show LOL

[ramsey]

I'm looking for the tiny dwarf sea horses (Hippocampus zosterae). They're the only sea horses I've found that'll fit in a 12g nano.

[StevenSeas]

this what you looking for ;) its from ORA's site, shows they should have them and ship out once weaned onto frozen foods
Dwarf Seahorse - Hippocampus zosterae

This species is found in tropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. As its name implies, this seahorse reaches a maximum size of less than 2 inches.

It is found mostly in seagrass beds. They can range in color from yellow to black.

The Dwarf Seahorse's small size makes it ideal for nano tanks. Groups of 5 or more can be kept in tanks as small as 10 gallons. This seahorse is sold at 1 inch and is weaned onto frozen diets.

[Europhyllia]

this what you looking for ;) its from ORA's site, shows they should have them and ship out once weaned onto frozen foods
Dwarf Seahorse - Hippocampus zosterae

This species is found in tropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. As its name implies, this seahorse reaches a maximum size of less than 2 inches.

It is found mostly in seagrass beds. They can range in color from yellow to black.

The Dwarf Seahorse's small size makes it ideal for nano tanks. Groups of 5 or more can be kept in tanks as small as 10 gallons. This seahorse is sold at 1 inch and is weaned onto frozen diets.
if you keep going you'll make me want some too...