Reef Ramblings

Reef News 23/2/12

A new scientific survey studying the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) offers aquarists the chance to take a ‘virtual dive’ on the GBR. Although the survey is not yet fully underway, you can take a look at a number of coral bommies around Heron Island. To see the demo go to: The Catlin Seaview Survey

This has the potential to be a great resource for reefkeepers looking to put together a more natural, captive reef display.

The Heron Island images range from a depth between approximately 6m to 16m, giving you an appreciation of natural coral colouration on the reef.

The Catlin Seaview Survey, which was officially announced today, marks the launch of a pioneering scientific expedition that aims to carry out the first comprehensive study to document and reveal the composition and health of coral reefs on the Great Barrier Reef across an unprecedented depth range (0-100m).

Chief Scientist for the project, Professor Ove Hoegh-Guldberg from the Global Change institute at The University of Queensland said that the scientific data gathered during the project will strengthen the understanding about how climate change and other environmental changes are likely to affect ocean ecosystems like the Great Barrier Reef. He stressed that the visual nature of the project will also help bridge the gap between scientific knowledge and public awareness.

“The Catlin Seaview Survey comprises a series of studies which will reveal to the public one of the last frontiers on Earth: the oceans. For the first time in history, we have the technology available to broadcast the findings and expedition through Google. Millions of people will be able to experience the life, the science and the magic that exists under the surface of our oceans. This project is very exciting.”

The Survey is not just another scientific expedition – it aims to capture the public’s imagination and engage people with the science like never before.

The Catlin Seaview Survey camera, developed specifically for the expedition, will capture thousands of 360-degree underwater panoramas which, when stitched together, will allow people to choose a location, dip underwater and go for a virtual dive at all of the locations visited by the expedition.

Google is collaborating with the Catlin Seaview Survey and is working on a new feature on Panoramio (which links photos to locations), so that the 360-degree panorama images can be uploaded and made available to millions of people worldwide. This will eventually mean that roughly 50,000 panoramas from the Survey will be accessible on Google Earth and Google Maps. The project will also have a dedicated YouTube channel and the ability to broadcast Hangouts on air, which allows people to watch live streams of the expedition team from the ocean floor.

The Catlin Seaview Survey will include a shallow reef survey, a deep reef survey and a mega-fauna survey, which combined will provide a baseline assessment of the composition, biodiversity and wellbeing of the Reef. The expedition will launch on the Great Barrier Reef in September 2012.

The Catlin Seaview Survey:

1. Shallow Reef Survey:

The shallow reef survey will use a custom-designed underwater vehicle with a 360-degree camera to generate imagery of the reef. In collaboration with The University of Queensland, this will be assessed using image recognition software to enable a rapid visual census of corals, fish and many other organisms at 20 sites across the entire length of the 2,300km Great Barrier Reef. This will provide a broad-scale baseline for understanding climate change on coral reefs.

2. Deep-water Survey:

Using diving robots, the deep-water survey will explore the reef at depths of 30-100 metres, of which little is known, yet may hold some of the secrets of whether or not the coral reefs will survive rapid climate change. Using a combination of HD cameras, deep diving robots and survey equipment, the deep-water component will provide a comprehensive study of the health, composition and biodiversity of the deep-water reefs.

3. Mega-fauna Survey:

The mega-fauna survey team, led by Emmy award winning cinematographer and shark researcher Richard Fitzpatrick, will study the migratory behaviour of tiger sharks, green turtles and manta rays in response to increasing seawater temperatures. A total of 50 animals will be tracked with satellite tags that continuously monitor their geographic position, temperature and depth. This data can then be compared against oceanographic data to get a better understanding of the animal’s behaviour and migrational responses to the warming of the oceans.

The Catlin Seaview Survey is collaboration between global insurance company Catlin Group Limited, not for- profit organisation Underwater Earth (project creators) and partner Google.

The content captured through the Catlin Seaview Survey will be added to Google platforms and will also be available on the Catlin Seaview Survey website – catlinseaviewsurvey.com. Over the coming years, the Survey intends to expand globally to reveal the oceans in regions of importance all over the world.

Update, 26th September 2012

Catlin Seaview Survey added to Google maps streetview

Along with the virtual dives at the Catlin Seaview Survey website, Catlin Seaview is now available on Google Maps, and can be accessed in 2 ways, via the Street View Gallery or through the links below:

Heron Island, Great Barrier Reef

Lady Elliot Island, GBR

Apo Island, Philippines

Oahu, Hawaii: Hanauma Bay

Maui, Hawaii, Molokini Crater

Wilson Island, Great Barrier Reef

Multiple virtual dives are available at these sites but so far I’ve found it easier to navigate these dives through the Catlin Survey website.

Tim Hayes

Reef Ramblings

26 September 2012

People often ask, “Is the Miracle Mud system proven?” or, “Does the Miracle Mud system really work?” The answer is a definite, “Yes!”

This brief article is intended to give you a glimpse at just a few of the successful reef aquaria around the world that run on EcoSystem Miracle Mud.

First off it has to be the reef belonging to Leng Sy, the inventor of the Miracle Mud system. These photos were taken a few years back when I visited EcoSystem in California. Leng referred to this as a ‘Soft coral and angelfishes’ display, remarkably it featured a pair of adult Emperor Angels, alongside a number of other exotic angelfish species.

The second aquarium using Miracle Mud is one of my own. I’ve included it because this is the aquarium where I experienced a soft coral reproducing through sexual reproduction. The species in question is a Briarium species, commonly referred to as ‘Star polyps’. Spawning has taken place irregularly over the years and on at least one occasion the planula larvae have successfully settled creating new corals.

Stay tuned to this station …

… this article will continue to be updated over the next day or two

Tim Hayes

Midland Reefs

EcoSystem Aquarium UK

©2012

There’s news this week from Phuket that government researchers have reported an improvement in the condition of the coral reefs around Phuket and along the Andaman coast.

In May 2010 we started to hear reports of extensive warm water coral bleaching in the Andaman Sea. It was believed to be the worst case of bleaching in Thai waters for 20 years. Coral reefs off Phangnga, Krabi and Phuket, including popular diving sites such as the Similan, Phi Phi and Surin islands were affected. Coral reefs in the Andaman Sea had previously suffered severe bleaching in 1991 and 2003.

            Bleached coral at Koh Payu at the Similan Islands Marine National Park.

            Photo: Marine National Park Operations Center.

I wrote about this at the time in Reef Ramblings: see ‘Andaman Sea coral reefs hit by bleaching’

Last Monday Boonchob Sudthamanaswong, Director-General of the dep. of Marine and Coastal Resources Andaman Coast Group (DMCR-Andaman), chaired a seminar in Phuket to debate government plans to revive damaged marine resources in addition to reviewing the progress of environmental monitoring systems in Phuket and the Andaman Coast provinces of Ranong, Phang Nga, Krabi, Trang and Satun.

Mr Boonchob told the media there were great improvements in the conditions of coral reefs within the region since the devastating coral bleaching episode in 2010. Concluding “I am happy to announce that more than half the coral damaged has already returned to its original condition,”

You can find out more about coral bleaching, its cause and the effects it has on the reef, by going to Reef Ramblings: ‘Global Bleaching 2010’.

Further articles on Reef Ramblings discussing the condition of the reefs and the various threats to their survival are listed below:

• ‘Is the End in Sight for the World’s Coral Reefs?‘
• ‘Reefs at Risk Revisited‘
• ‘Reefs Require Greater Care at Both Global and Local Level.‘
• ‘Our Dying Planet by Professor Peter Sale – the end of the Coral Reef Ecosystem.‘

Tim Hayes

Midland Reefs

©2012

Today while I was doing some house keeping on the Reef Ramblings website I was surprised to discover that it has now been going for five years.

The first Reef Ramblings online was published on the 10^th February 2007 at 17.05 and entitled, ‘Reef Ramblings Revived!’ and featured the following subtitle…

Reef Ramblings.

or …

A philosophy of sorts, on all things reef …

Reef Ramblings was originally a print column in Practical Fishkeeping magazine at a time when I provided the bulk of its reef content, offhand I can’t recall the date of the first column, probably sometime during 2004 or 2005, and ran until late 2006.  I then had numerous queries about what had happened to the column so, as a result of the interest shown, decided to resurrect the column online.

Over the last five years more than 220 articles of one sort or another have been published here, that’s around 44 per year, considerably more than the 60 columns that would have appeared in print over that time.

It remains a fairly eclectic mix of content with news about the natural environment, issues concerning reef keeping, talking about new equipment, commenting on different ways of running a reef, and now features a lot more coverage of the ethics and responsibilities of the hobby.

I don’t know how many of you out there actually read these articles but I hope you have enjoyed them to date and found some value in them, I also hope that you’ll agree that I’ve stayed true to my introduction in the first ever column where I promised an occasional series of incoherent ramblings on all things reef! I just hope its not been too incoherent…

Tim Hayes

Midland Reefs

©2012-02-12

Family Fungiidae.

Commonly referred to as Plate or Mushroom corals (not to be confused with mushroom anemones), these are free-living corals that are found living directly on the bottom substrate. Do not place these corals on rockwork; it’s neither natural nor safe. These corals are capable of moving themselves around so if placed up on the rocks there is a very real danger of it trying to move to a new position and ending up falling on to some other coral below; usually with disastrous results to the coral it lands on, as these are strongly stinging corals. In some circumstances it may be necessary to corral these corals with small pieces of live rock to prevent them from moving into a position where they can sting other corals.

Genus Cycloseris

Genus Fungia

Common species: Plate corals, Mushroom corals.

There are a number of species of these two genera that are difficult to identify to species level. Circular, low-lying corals with a single mouth. Very hardy but should be placed on the bottom substrate of the aquarium. A naturalistic display can be achieved by placing a number of the corals together in a group on a sand substrate.

Excellent choice for those new to stony corals.

Genus Heliofungia

Common species: Long tentacled plate corals.

Similar to Fungia species these are circular in form but have long tentacles and may appear reminiscent of certain Anemone species. This is one coral that cannot be recommended as being suited to any other than advanced aquarists. The majority of these corals imported do not survive in captivity.

Genus Herpolitha

Genus Polyphyllia

Common species: Slipper corals.

Difficult to distinguish to species level these corals are very similar to Fungia except rather than being round they are elongated plates with rounded ends.

Fungiids – Mobile corals

Click for full image.

Unlike the majority of corals attached to the limestone substrate that makes up the reef, Fungiids can actively move around and find themselves better habitats. Compared to other species, they have a relatively thick layer of fleshy tissue covering the top of their calcium carbonate skeleton, expanding and contracting this tissue allows them to move around.

Corals on loose substrate, such as sand, are vulnerable to being covered by sediment if there is any shifting of the substrate owing to weather conditions or if foraging fish, digging for food, dump sand on them. Under these conditions corals can become smothered and suffocate, some species can dislodge sediment by expelling mucous but as a free-living corals Fungiids use the same technique as they do for movement to rid themselves of sedimentation.

To investigate how these corals coped with being buried in sediment Dr Pim Bongaerts, from the University of Queensland, brought specimens into the lab and put them in aquaria in order to film the process using time-lapse photography.

The corals were covered in a sediment made up of coarse sand (0.5 – 1.0 mm) and then over 20 hours were photographed every 10 seconds, the resulting footage shows the corals inflate and deflate their entire body in a series of rhythmic pulses shedding the sediment in a matter of hours.

Dr Bongaerts findings have been published in the journal Coral Reef:  Mushroom corals overcome live burial through pulsed inflation (P. Bongaerts, B. W. Hoeksema, K. B. Hay, & O. Hoegh-Guldberg)

For more information about Fungiids on Reef Ramblings, see also:

• Previously Unknown Feeding in a Large Polyped Stony Coral.
• 3 Aquarium Corals Feature in Top 10 List of Endangered  Coral Species.

Tim Hayes

Midland Reefs

©2012

A few thoughts on the mundane task of cleaning the reef aquarium.

Glass cleaning.

It’s important for your viewing pleasure to keep the front pane of the aquarium free from bio films. The frequency with which this is required will depend on a number of variables including the maturity of the reef tank, water parameters, feeding regime, and the unique assemblage of animals.

Types of bio films.

With out going into unnecessary detail, there are two basic types of bio films that we have to deal with, soft and hard.

Soft bio films can be bacterial or algal in nature, with algal films, comprising green micro-algae, hair algae, diatoms, cyanobacteria, etc. and are usually easy to remove.

Hard bio films are comprised of various species of coralline, or calcareous, algae and, if allowed to persist can be more difficult to remove.

Coralline algae are red algae belonging to the order Corallinales, phylum Rhodophyta.  They are distinct, from other species of Rhodophyta in their rock like appearance and texture resulting from the incorporation of calcium carbonate into their cell walls. Although usually encountered in shades of pink and red, they can also be coloured green, blue, purple, yellow, white etc. depending on species. Although attractive in colour and texture they have no place on the viewing pane of the aquarium, particularly on the viewing pane of an acrylic or plastic one.

The age of the aquarium is often implicated in type of bio film encountered. Newly set up reefs will typically start off with blooms of diatoms covering every surface in a yellow through brown to gold film (also associated with water changes and evaporation top up where high levels of silicate are present i.e. When using tap water rather than Reverse Osmosis (RO) filtered water). Over time, different species of algal films are seen, one taking over from another (algal succession) culminating in the appearance of coralline algae.

Any bio film can reappear if the conditions in the aquarium alter, usually when maintenance is neglected and water parameters deviate from target levels.

Glass cleaning.

Essentially for this task there is a choice between two different tools: algae magnets or bladed scrapers.

Algae magnets

Algae magnets have two components, the one with the cleaning surface goes inside the aquarium glass while the second is positioned on the outside of the glass, opposite the first. The magnetic attraction allow you to move the cleaning magnet across the glass from outside of the aquarium enabling you to clean algal films for the glass without getting your hands wet. The outer magnet usually features a soft cloth surface to prevent the outside of the glass from scratching,

The cleaning surface is generally a Velcro like surface that is mildly abrasive, hard enough to remove algae without scratching the glass. Note: algae magnets designed for use with acrylic or plastic aquarium use different materials to reduce the chance of scratching.

Glass tanks

Standard algae magnets are fine for general maintenance and will usually cope with all but coralline algae.

Take care though to avoid picking up sand, gravel, or bits of coral form the substrate as this can become trapped on the cleaning surface of the magnet and result in the glass becoming scratched on the inside.

Acrylic or plastic aquariums.

The material these tanks are made from is much softer than glass and more prone to scratching. Make sure that you buy the right algae magnet for the shop – one designed for use with acrylic or plastic.

The danger of scratching the inner surface is much higher than with glass, take care when cleaning and avoid picking up material from the substrate.

Quality

Higher quality algae magnets have at least two important features: they float and they use non-ferrous magnets.

Floating magnets are easier to work with. If the magnet inside the tank becomes separated from the outer controlling magnet it simply floats to the surface making it easier to retrieve, Non-floating magnets however can end up getting stuck amongst the rockwork in a reef and be difficult to recover.

Cheaper magnets use ferrous-based magnets; these should not be left permanently in the aquarium as they rust, in the process often distorting the casing rendering them useless.

Non-ferrous magnets use the rare earth material neodymium, they are far stronger, less likely to become separate in use, and rusting is not an issue. Because of their greater strength you should be careful when handling them outside of the aquarium as a moment of inattention may result in getting a finger trapped between the two magnets, a potentially painful experience so do keep them away from children.

The use of rare earth magnets explains the higher price of these items but the extended life and higher performance more than makes up for the price. At the time of writing, availability of rare earth materials is driving up the price of aquarium products utilising these materials such as algae magnets, high-end pumps, and magnetic pump mounts.

Additional features offered by higher quality magnets include things like angled edges to protect silicon seams of the aquarium and protruding cleaning surfaces to enable you to clean behind in-tank equipment.

Sizing

Algae magnets are usually sized according to the thickness of the glass that they will clean. When purchasing an algae magnet make sure that you know the thickness of you aquarium glass and buy the appropriate sized magnet.

• Too weak a magnet, one for thin glass, the more often it will fall off inside the aquarium and the less efficient it will be at removing algae.
• Too strong a magnet may be almost impossible to move on glass of less than the recommended thickness.

Bladed magnets.

Some algae magnets come with a blade that lets you remove the more stubborn coralline species that ordinary cleaning-pad algae magnets cannot deal with. Using a blade is also kinder to much of the micro-fauna inhabiting the inside surface of the viewing pane, cleaning-pad magnets can end up killing many of these small species by crushing them while a blade just pushes them off the glass.

Bladed  Scrapers

Generally T-shaped, the down stroke being the handle, with the blade mounted across the top. You have to get your hand into the tank to use these but for smaller tanks these are probably the most efficient way of removing stubborn coralline algae, particularly if it has been allowed to build up over time.

Blades

Blade quality is important with these. Corrosion resistant stainless steel is claimed by most manufacturers but some blades do seem to be less resistant to corrosion than others. You can extend the life of the blade by rinsing it in freshwater then drying it after use. Its best to remove the blade for rinsing otherwise corrosion can take place inside the blade holder.

Double-sided blades offer greater usable life than a single sided blade and of course you do want a scraper where replacement blades are readily available.

Build quality

For reef use look out for an all-plastic handle. Beware of steel handled scrapers with a plastic covering as these corrode unnoticed until suddenly the handle fails under the pressure of use.

Easy removal of the blade for cleaning and replacement is essential, some designs if not kept scrupulously clean can be very difficult to open for blade removal once corrosion has set in.

Size

Tends to be a choice between a hand scraper i.e. handle just fits to the hand or scrapers that can accept a longer handle (often not supplied). Some manufacturers offer a range of scrapers with different length handles.

Cleaning Tips

Take a close look at the inside of the glass while you are cleaning it; you may be surprised to find the occasional primary polyp of a newly settled coral growing there. Spotting a primary polyp before cleaning it out of existence allows you to preserve it and let it grow to a handle able size before carefully removing it and mounting it on a piece of rock.

Close observation also allows you to assess the number of different species living on the glass allowing you to gauge the bio-diversity of your reef.

Regular cleaning of the front glass every two or three days puts micro-algae, copepods, and other benthic zooplankton into the water column making them available to your aquarium inhabitants as food.

An additional benefit of regular cleaning of the front glass is that it forces your snail population to concentrate their efforts on keeping your rockwork free of algae.

When cleaning a neglected or overgrown front pane you may want to consider syphoning out the excess material rather than leaving it to break down inside the aquarium increasing the nutrient load. This is particularly important when you are dealing with an outbreak of cyanobacteria.

Be careful not to damage any silicon seams with a blade. Blades and scrapers are designed to be safe in use but nonetheless take care. I tend to leave a 5 – 10 mm margin uncleaned near the seams as a precaution.

Tim Hayes

Midland Reefs

©2012