Fish 'N' Chips
A Monthly Marine Newsletter
December 2001 Issue
Index
|
From Liz Nature in Five Panes of Glass What's Up @ Reefs UK |
Caught In The Net Marine News Chips...er...Tips |
Upcoming Events Prove It!, a Bibliography Newsletter Disclaimer |
Happy Holidays! I hope that all your year end festivities were filled with happiness. May you and your family have a healthy, happy, and peaceful New Year.
Recall of Scuba Diving Devices - Diving Unlimited International (DUI) Inc., of San Diego, California (USA), is recalling 3,500 Overpressure Valves (OPV) used with Buoyancy Control Systems. The overpressure valve can stick in the open position causing a drowning hazard to divers. Two reports have been received but no injuries have been reported. Sold in two versions, jacket and wings style, all overpressure valves with red pulls are being recalled. The new OPVs have yellow pulls. The Buoyancy Control Systems were sold from November 1997 to November 2001 for about $590. Discontinue use immediately and contact the dealer for a free replacement. DUI can be reached at (800) 325-8439 (8am - 5pm PT Monday through Friday) or http://www.dui-online.com/. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recall press release, along with a photo of the product, can be found at http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml02/02072.html.
Visit This Month's Subscriber's Tank Showcase
Bruce Wager's Reef Tank is this month's Showcase and can be seen at
http://www.marinefiends.com/showcases.html (updated 8/24/04).
Nature in Five Panes of Glass
Edited By Elizabeth M. Lukan 12/30/01
As a LFS owner and manager, I am constantly being asked to provide an exact formula for saltwater fish and reef keeping. My answer is, "There is NO such thing!" We can not duplicate nature in five panes of glass with any degree of exact science. Nature simply is not exact and all living things adapt, or do not adapt, in their own way. The only way to have a tank be "perfect," without having to pay attention to it, is to hang a plastic fish in front of a blue background!
There are variables within water quality at different depths and areas, which we need to adjust to the basics needed, before we even add our salt mix. Each and every animal has its own personality, which we need to learn. Live rock does not come with exact sizes, shapes or amount of porosity, and who knows what lives in all those myriad holes. The list could take books on the many variables and still not cover half of them.
Luckily, we do know basic water quality parameters, have a fair idea of the living habitats of the animals we keep. We have learned the compatibility of most of these animals also. If we keep these basic three things in mind, we can be successful and our animals will be happy and healthy.
One of the most important things that we need to do, to be successful, is LEARN, watch our tanks and keep LEARNING! All animals want stability and it is especially important when one takes an animal out of its normal home! Only you live in your house and know exactly how you take care of your animals, how noisy or quiet your house is, whether you topped off your water tonight or checked your temperature etc. Only you know how each of your animals act during any given condition. You must be aware of things like this. It is the difference between life and death to them. When you ask for help from your LFS, we need to know these things also. Without knowing, we can not give you the probable diagnosis and remedy.
Research and pick your animals with care, give them the most natural home you can, keep it clean and stable, then enjoy this fascinating view into another world.
Please give your tank inhabitants the same attention that you give your dog, cat or spouse. Hopefully, you do give them the best of care also. You did not randomly pick them as you walked by, and you do not leave them alone in a small cage either. Remember, five panes of glass is now their ocean!!
Editor Comments:
The above was submitted by Judy Shaner of The Salt Box. Please visit Judy's site at
http://www.coralreeftanks.com/ (url dead 10/06/05). My editing
was limited to formatting, spell and grammar checking.
What's Up @ Reefs UK
- http://www.reefsuk.org -
12/2/01:
To join the Reefs UK Mailing List, send an email to
post@reefsuk.org.
To join Reefs UK Chat (Email Discussion Group), visit the Reefs UK Website for instructions.
Editor's Comments:
Information in this section covers the latest happenings at Mark T. Taber's Reefs UK Web Site. Mark
has given me permission to publish any information from his mailing list that I feel would be of
interest to Fish 'N' Chips subscribers. So, the above, although reworded by me, should be credited
to Mark or to Derek Scales who works closely with Mark on the running of Reefs UK. The dates in bold
coincide with Mark or Derek's mailings and are provided as a reference.
New Stuff Found
On Reefs.org (http://www.reefs.org/):
12/6/01 - Hawaii, US: Three species of nonnative algae have invaded
Hawaii's Kane'ohe Bay and now threaten the survival of the bay's coral reefs. There are now
five known introduced species of seaweed and at least two native species of seaweed causing
problems on Hawaii's reefs. Some were introduced by accident, while others, such as those in
Kane'ohe Bay, were brought in intentionally during the 1970s to launch a new industry to
Hawaii. The entire news release can be found at
http://ens-news.com/ens/dec2001/2001L-12-06-09.html (url dead 8/24/04).
12/10/01 - DC, US: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) budget will include $34 million for coral reef conservation. The
entire news release can be found at
http://ens-news.com/ens/dec2001/2001L-12-10-09.html (url dead 8/24/04).
12/11/01 - DC, US: A report released by the World Conservation
Union (IUCN) states that half the world's population is living on the coasts, and human
impacts on the coastal and marine environments are growing. The report also states that
it will take improvements in international ocean governance to deal with fisheries
depletion and deteriorating marine conditions, especially due to pollution. The entire
news release can be found at
http://ens-news.com/ens/dec2001/2001L-12-11-01.html (url dead 8/24/04).
12/11/01 - DC, US: Fishery managers have agreed to reevaluate
the impacts of commercial fishing gear on essential fish habitat as a result of a court
settlement. The entire news release can be found at
http://ens-news.com/ens/dec2001/2001L-12-11-09.html (url dead 8/24/04).
12/17/01 - Maputo, Mozambique: Translucent waters, unique coral
reefs and rare marine species off the East African nation of Mozambique now have a new level
of protection. The entire Bazaruto Archipelago was declared a national marine nature reserve
by the government of Mozambique on Friday. The entire new release can be found at
http://ens-news.com/ens/dec2001/2001L-12-17-03.html (url dead 8/24/04).
12/21/01 - Texas, US: A giant squid seen and photographed in the
Gulf of Mexico last year was just the latest in a string of eight sightings around the world
of what may be a whole new class of the strange creatures. The Mystery Squid, as it has been
dubbed, has turned up west of Africa, in the Indian Ocean and in Hawaii, at depths ranging
from 6,300 to 15,390 feet. None of the squids had been collected, but they have the same
characteristics and one was estimated to be about 21 feet long and another was 13 to 16 feet
long. The entire new release can be found at
http://ens-news.com/ens/dec2001/2001L-12-21-03.html (url dead 8/24/04).
Chips...er...Tips
RO Mineral & Total Acidity
Edited By Elizabeth M. Lukan 12/30/01
Acidity of water is its quantitative capacity to react with a strong base to a designated pH. The measured value may vary significantly with the end point pH used in the determination. Acids contribute to corrosiveness and influence chemical reaction rates, chemical speciation and biological processes. The measurement also reflects a change in the quality of the source water. Strong mineral acids and weak acids such as carbonic acetic. Hydrolyzing salts such as trivalent iron or aluminum sulfates may contribute to the measure acidity according to the method of determination. Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater recommend titration with sodium hydroxide an endpoint pH of 3.7 to determine mineral acids, and to titrate to pH 8.3 to determine total acidity.
Editor Comments:
The above was written by Bryan Crenshaw of Aquatic Reef Systems. Please visit Bryan's site at
http://www.aquaticreefsystems.com/.
To Submit Your Tip: Send your tip via email to fishnchips@mail.com and I'll publish it in an upcoming issue of Fish 'N' Chips. I'll write it up for you or you can do it yourself if you are so inclined. Make sure you let me know if I can include your name and email address or if you'd rather go anonymous.
| Event | Start Date/Time | End Date/Time | Location | Event Details, Notes, and For More Info |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aquarist Profile Survey | Aug. 2000 | Open Ended | Info: What is the profile of a marine aquarist? Visit the #Reefs website at http://www.reefs.org/. | |
| Mandarin Survey | Jan 2001 | Open Ended | If you have ever kept a mandarin, please fill out this survey, even if it has died. Visit the #Reefs website at http://www.reefs.org/. | |
| International Coral Reefs Conference of Paris (CIRCoP) | Feb. 2003 New Dates | Paris, France | Info: http://www.circop.com/. |
To Submit Your Event: Send your event and all the specifics (date, time, location, pricing, contact info, etc.) via email to fishnchips@mail.com and I'll publish it in all issues of Fish 'N' Chips prior to the event.
Article: From Liz Recall Notice
Article: Marine News
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