just found a gorgonian in the ocean

[tboy]

hi
i just went fishing today in CA and caught a nice piece of gorgonian, i cover it with a wet napkin and a wet towel. i went to the fish store and ask them to pack it for me so i could send it NJ where i live. things didn't go right, FedEx want it for $107 to ship it out to NJ. of course i wouldn't ship it.
do u guys think it will survive in a bag till wed night?
by the way, it was out of the water for about 6 hours before i got to the fish store.
thank you

 

[tank watch]

I heard that what ever part touches air is going to die. Just what I was told at a LFS. Hope that helps...Matt

 

[sharkbait9]

What color is it. A few spices can not touch air while the other can. I went on a scuba excursion I found a nice piece of it. I pretty much did the same thing as you except I kept it in the hotel room with me and every day I would open the bag and fill it with air from my tank ( no scuba air is not O2, just clean compressed air) and it lasted the whole 8 days and the drive home. The pic is what it looked like after it acclimated itself to its new home. Since then I have fragged off new growth and its still going strong years later. Good luck with it and nice catch

 

[alyssia]

Originally Posted by tank watch
I heard that what ever part touches air is going to die. Just what I was told at a LFS. Hope that helps...Matt

I have been told on here that isn't true.

 

[tboy]

Originally Posted by sharkbait9
What color is it. A few spices can not touch air while the other can. I went on a scuba excursion I found a nice piece of it. I pretty much did the same thing as you except I kept it in the hotel room with me and every day I would open the bag and fill it with air from my tank ( no scuba air is not O2, just clean compressed air) and it lasted the whole 8 days and the drive home. The pic is what it looked like after it acclimated itself to its new home. Since then I have fragged off new growth and its still going strong years later. Good luck with it and nice catch

my is red. do u think it can touch air?
oh yeah. do u think regular air is ok?

 

[sharkbait9]

yeah it should be fine. Regular air, compressed air all the same thing. Keep adding air to the bag like they do at the fish store. Close it up and relax. Better yet buy a cheap cooler at like a wal-mart or some place add sea water and couple of hours each day make a few waves in the cooler to replenish the o2 in the water. When you get it home you really should qt it for a couple of weeks. It will take a while for it to open up. Mine took like a week and a half to start to “bud”

 

[whitey_028]

in my opinion you have 50 50 chance. if i injected air into your bloodstream what kind of chaces would you have of living? same principle here. also goes for sponge too.

 

[promisetbg]

I take them out all the time to frag them. glue them. etc. All different types. Never had a problem. Sometimes things in this hobby are mythinformation.

 

[sharkbait9]

Originally Posted by whitey_028
in my opinion you have 50 50 chance. if i injected air into your bloodstream what kind of chaces would you have of living? same principle here. also goes for sponge too.

Wait..... what.... who... What are you talking about, injecting air in to some ones blood stream :notsure: No one is injecting air into anyone or anythings blood stream

If you are referring to me and my compressed air, it was into the bag not the invert.
Were did you get that thought from

 

[whitey_028]

i was always told this if they touch air they are dead i have heard this from many different fish stores... I may have been misinformed and another good reason to never listen to fish stores...

 

[sharkbait9]

Originally Posted by whitey_028
in my opinion you have 50 50 chance. if i injected air into your bloodstream what kind of chaces would you have of living? same principle here. also goes for sponge too.

In a nut shell, injected air into the blood stream would/could cause an air embolism. Kind of like the bends, a hyperbaric chamber will compress the air into micro bubbles to be released. The victim would be in severe pain but could make a full recovery if treatment was administered promptly majority of the time they do

Sponge- certain sponge can be taken out of water for short a period of time.
A lot of these can not be taken, can not be fragged are uninformed or misinformed keepers.
Now let it be said once again before any one gets on a soap box and starts spouting off.
very few species can not be taken out of water for long periods of time.

 

[ophiura]

So I am assuming you have a cold water tank, and certainly had the collection permits and were not in a restricted area? In the unlikely event, IMO, that it survives (exposure to air is one thing but I have seen several not react well at all to handling)...I really hope it is not going into just a typical indo pacific style reef tank if it was "caught" off california?

 

[tboy]

my bag is very smelly now.
wonder if that is ok?

 

[ophiura]

In general, it is not a good sign. The animal is just not likely to survive being carried around in a bag for a few days. Lack of oxygen, lack of appropriate temperature control, buildup of ammonia, drop in pH....not going to survive, IMO.

 

[hardcrab67]

Give it some fresh ocean water. Corals that are shipped, spend a couple of days in a bag w/ no water change and survive. Not sure of the species, but this time of yr and the currents, its probally not a cold water species. You better get that permit though, CALI will lock you up just for being from the East Coast

Just tell them, if anyone asked, you purchased it, because they don't have them back home. They probally wouldn't know what they're looking at anyway! Cali has some strict laws on what come in and goes out, so to be honest you are taking a chance. If you say you purchased it, they will likely just confiscate it and throw it away and send you home empty-handed.Good luck w/ your find!

 

[ophiura]

They also are specially bagged and generally temperature controlled...
What part of California was this?

 

[tboy]

thanks everyone
i'm coming home tonight and i will post whether it live or not.
btw. wish me luck
thanks

 

[hardcrab67]

Ya, double bagged and a shot of air in a stryofoam box. Hi-tech stuff. Whoever thought a thermos would work?

 

[sharkbait9]

Originally Posted by hardcrab67
Ya, double bagged and a shot of air in a stryofoam box. Hi-tech stuff. Whoever thought a thermos would work?

Now, now, now. She has a right to her opinion and feelings on invert care. You are right on the dble bag and air and box thing and a thermos and ice/heat packs are not that accurate, they reach a set temperature and that its, no thermostat. Either it’s cold or its hot and that’s not very high-tech either.
I think some people how ever put to much stock in just how fragil coral are.
AGAIN BEFORE ANY ONE GETS ON A SOAP BOX. Some/certain coral do not ship well, but we are talking about a gorgonian. They are delicate because of the feeding habits how they are affected to algae in poor circulated areas. IMO not an expert but have had years of dealing with mine and fragging it out, they are hardy shippers and can withstand quite a rough trip. Its all in the hands of the keeper and whether or not the keeper has right conditions and willing to feed appropriately.
One should not start spouting off about permits and this that and the other thing, he caught with a hook, not like he was poaching for it. Relax about and wish them luck with it.

 

[ophiura]

I said "specially bagged" not high tech, its not high tech, that is true. But as mentioned a cooler or something with air is a good plan as Sharkbait mentioned, but I didn't see further mention of that. But just a coral, in a bag, for several days? Just not sure about that....especially if the bag smells.
Many species can certainly be exposed to air, that is a really common myth not only for corals but for other animals. But by the same token, probably relatively few species are avialable in this hobby, and are not representative of all. I've seen some disintegrate where they were touched. So some species are real hardy (and so common in the trade), and some not.

Surface water temperatures in California seem to be in the low 70s now, but this is abnormal, and are usually in the 60s. So it would be interesting to know where it was "caught"

because temperature really could be a factor, IMO, in keeping it. Just like with keeping other critters from the region (eg Catalina Gobies). Something to think about, IMO at least.

Thanks Sharkbait...it is all JMO