IS this hard to keep?

[becky]

i am wondering how hard it is to keep sponge in my 30 gallon tank. Does it require lots of lighting?? I have seen some beautiful orange sponge.
Also i saw some kind of red invert that has string like stuff hanging off the top and bottom of it.. was in the shape of a claim. What is this thing?

 

[blueberryboomer]

Hi Becky, the only thing I can tell you about the spong is don't take it out of the water, fresh air will kill it.
I think the thing you want an ID on is a scallop, they filter the water.
Hope this helps some, Later Lisa

 

[andymi]

They say it can be tough to keep. It depends on the type of sponge. I have some orange tree sponge in my tank and it has been doing good. Most are filter feeders so are usually good in a more established tank. I think some feed off of zooxanthallae as well , just do research on the exact type before picking it up. Take a look at the book Invertebraets by Julian Sprung.
The other thing could be a flame scallop.
-Andy
[ October 04, 2001: Message edited by: andymi ]

 

[becky]

Are those scallops (red) hard to keep??
They sound good for the tank

 

[blueberryboomer]

Becky, Scallops are pretty cool critters, but the only problem we have had with the ones we've had is they jump around alot, ours would lodge themselves under rocks, that makes it hard for them to eat. Lisa

 

[becky]

Thanks Lisa
How long have you had your saltwater fish???
You seem to have a lot of helpful information!

 

[indy1]

From what I've read scallops are short lived

 

[becky]

does this mean they don't last long in a tank.. or at all period?

 

[von_rahvin]

i would be careful. cup sponges and most of those collected from the atlantic have problems adjusting to tanks, (I am not saying it is impossible or that they all die but all the same . . .) if they do die they release a toxin that the have built up in their systems. this toxin can and will kill your tank. but this is if the sponge has died and started to fall apart. so if you want one cool, but when it dies get rid of it quite quickly

 

[flydan]

Hey,
I've got a couple of sponges, one red and one tan, that just hitched in on some lr. They are doing great, but I didn't plan on them. They just appeared over a few months. I do dose with DT's phytoplankton.
Dan'l

 

[ironreef]

branching sponges can be hard to keep. They don't like tanks with alga. They need alot of filter foods=dt. flame scallops are/canbe short lived in marine tanks= not enough filter food

 

[jamos6]

Hey i bought some lr that had the tan sponge on it and it is doing good, but I bought some lr not to long ago and it had a big black sponge on it. Its colony measures @ 4-5 in wide and 5-6 in tall. It is doing really good. I will take some pics of it and post on my webpage. I got what i think was a good deal on the rock. I paid $5/lb and the rock is covered in tan sponges, the black sponge, a bunch of different kinds of macro algae, purple, green and orange coraline algae.

 

[hermit enthusiast]

The one's that are collected from the atlantic grow to enhance their ability to catch creature's. they grow into the current. And if you put them in the tank they can't utilize the current like they did in the wild. That's why they are like corals in the sence that they do better if they are small when you put them in the tank.