some misc. pics

[smokinreefer]

i borrowed my friends digicam to play around with...here are a few shots..
sailfin tang
http://members.shaw.ca/smokinreefer/sail.jpg
my new multibarred angel
http://members.shaw.ca/smokinreefer/angel.jpg
the brain
http://members.shaw.ca/smokinreefer/brain.jpg
my copperband butterfly
http://members.shaw.ca/smokinreefer/copper.jpg
and a small pocillopora frag that grew from a bud/planulae that settled on my magfloat
http://members.shaw.ca/smokinreefer/magfloat.jpg
hope you enjoyed the pics!

[Delphinus]

Sigh .... what a gorgeous tang!!!!! I've been looking for a Z. desjardini for my setup for a while. I was all set to buy one from SWC but it ended up being too big for my tank, so I passed and am currently waiting someone to bring in some smaller ones somewhere....

Verrrrry nice pictures Shao! thanks for sharing!!! 8)

PS. What does the copperband eat? I thought they were supposed to be fussy?

[Jack]

Awsome tank and nice pictures. I can't wait for my new 120 to get going here then I can maybe share some pics.

[AJ_77]

Wow, that's quite the digi-cam! Great pics! :D
How long have you had the Copperbanded? What was it like to acclimate? And to repeat Tony's Q, what does it eat?

Thanks, great pics - lots of fish!

Aj :D

[Delphinus]

Hey Shao you wouldn't be interested in selling me your tang would you? How about a trade for a nice shiney Passat? (don't mind the "thunk-thunk-thunk" coming out of the tranny ... it is .. um ... it is of no consequence ... er ... it is somehow a "special edition" feature).

Actually a serious question ... just curious, where did you get yours? I emailed J&L and they basically flat-out told me to not bother trying to get one from them. (I currently am waiting on SWC to bring some in..) So I'm guessing you found yours somewhere else?

[Samw]

Hey Shao you wouldn't be interested in selling me your tang would you? How about a trade for a nice shiney Passat? (don't mind the "thunk-thunk-thunk" coming out of the tranny ... it is .. um ... it is of no consequence ... er ... it is somehow a "special edition" feature).

Actually a serious question ... just curious, where did you get yours? I emailed J&L and they basically flat-out told me to not bother trying to get one from them. (I currently am waiting on SWC to bring some in..) So I'm guessing you found yours somewhere else?


Curious what makes this sailfin tang so unique that J&L won't carry them? When I went to Seacare, they had dozens of sailfins but I don't know if they're the ones that you are looking for.

[smokinreefer]

hey guys, thanks for all the kind words.

the copperband i have had for a few months, maybe half a year.

it did not eat any prepared foods at the time of purchase, it was only in for a couple days and was healthy looking and alert, so i bought him.

he also did not take to any prepared foods for atleast a month, probably 2. he would pick the live rock/sand bed for microfauna...worms, etc. and though i have never seen him eat aiptasia, he has rid my tank of them, less the sump and the couple areas my maroons wont let him near. though quite stressful to not see him eat, he was still full bodied, never thin looking and was still shitting, so i atleast had some comfort in knowing that so far there were enough food stuffs in the tank for him to eat.

but he has since taken a liking to frozen brine and mysis and has a healthy appetite.

tony, as for the tang...
i had waited for a few months before i found him. i got him at Big Al's Aquarium Services. probably at about 2.5" and roughly $40.

when did you ask JL? i am sure i have seen 1 or 2 there in the last few months...what size are you lookin for? i can certainly keep an eye out for you if i see one.

[terryp01]

That's a nice looking angel.

[Delphinus]

Hi Sam,

There are two sailfin tangs. Z. veliferum is the Pacific sailfin tang and is reasonably common. In fact I see it nearly everywhere. Z. desjardini (pictured) is from the Red Sea. At first glance they look nearly identical. However Z. veliferum does not have spots on the cheeks. The pattern on the dorsal fin of Z. desjardini makes semi circles whereas Z. veliferum the lines are just criss-crossing or checkered almost.

So, if a retailer don't import a lot from the Red Sea, then they won't really be importing Z. desjardini. J&L told me they maybe see this fish, once, or twice a year. Probably depends on how often their supplier brings them in. These fish also tend to be more expensive than their Pacific counterparts, so maybe people buy them less often. One LFS in Calgary told me he doesn't bother bringing them in "because they don't sell." Go figure..

Ironically, when I did see this fish it was at Big Al's in Calgary. This was earlier this year, when I wasn't able to house a new fish. :( Now that I AM able, they're suddenly scarce (Murphy's Law).

Shao, yeah please, if you see one somewhere please let me know. Thanks. SWC did promise to bring some in for me, I just have to wait until it happens (later this month I am told). Ahhhh patience is a virtue .... I'm apparently not very virtuous .... ;)

[StirCrazy]

Hi Sam,

There are two sailfin tangs. Z. veliferum is the Pacific sailfin tang and is reasonably common. In fact I see it nearly everywhere. Z. desjardini (pictured) is from the Red Sea. At first glance they look nearly identical. However Z. veliferum does not have spots on the cheeks. The pattern on the dorsal fin of Z. desjardini makes semi circles whereas Z. veliferum the lines are just criss-crossing or checkered almost.



so by your decription this one is a mix of the two? it has spots on the cheaks and it has croses on the fins.. ???

http://members.shaw.ca/crystalK/sailfin.jpg

Steve

a

[smokinreefer]

i would say yours is veliferum.

[Delphinus]

I would agree, Z. veliferum. I seem to remember reading somewhere(I could be wrong), that sometimes Z. veliferum has spotted cheeks as a juvenile. As it matures the spots fade out. On desjardini the spots stay.

But yours doesn't look all that juvenile? And furthermore I've seen some baby Z. veliferum recently that didn't have spots .... So maybe they sometimes have spots and sometimes they don't. ... ??? :?

Very nice fish though!! Jealous...

[smokinreefer]

agreed, that is a very nice veliferum.
:D

[Delphinus]

This is the page where I had read about the spots...

http://www.exotictropicals.com/encyclo/marine/tangs/desjardin.htm

and

http://www.exotictropicals.com/encyclo/marine/tangs/sailfin.htm


Both very nice fish! Seems the stripes stay more striking on veliferum whereas as desjardini matures the stripes fade somewhat and are replaced with spots. ... I guess if a person were to have to choose, they'd have to think do they like spots, or stripes better .... Now I don't know what to decide ... ??? :? ???