I Have a Ton of Questions: Caves, Overhangs, Detritus Traps, Oh My

EuphyllinOHk · Oct 25, 2024

I'm building up my first aquascape and I'm trying to make a fish friendly first type of scape. Unfortunately, I don't get to see, or rather observe, many tanks often enough. I'm conceptually familiar with the need for caves and overhangs to make fish feel safe and the need to avoid detritus build up, however, I don't know what those typically look like. I plan on having a Royal Gramma and a Pink Streaked Wrasse so caves and overhangs are a must, it seems, for these shy fellas.

I really have two major questions -
What constitutes a "cave" that fish can utilize?
I know this is dependent on flow, but what are the hallmarks to avoid for a detritus trap?

For reference, nothing is glued yet, I have a couple extra chunks of rock and I'm going to buy a fist sized chunk of live rock from my (trustworthy) LFS, I have probably excessive amounts of flow (530 - 1450gph return, Nero 5 3000gph, second hand wavemaker) that I'm going to have to wind down for LPS corals (LPS emphasis). 24"L x 21"H x 22.6"W, DV 42g, SV 53g. The tank sits in a left-hand corner so I'm stacking rocks "in that corner".

Timfish · Oct 25, 2024

What you have works fine. But FWIW, for a male royal gramma a cave is a hole deep enuogh for him to build a nest and have room for him and his mate(s) to both fit along with his nest and lay and fertilize eggs.

From what I've seen over the years there will always be areas where detritus collects. All I've ever done was siphon it out but now I only siphon out was visable in the display tank. Turns out detritus (fish poop) is an important component of reef ecosystems.

Sorry for the data bomb but here's some links:

To Save Corals in an Oahu Bay, First Vacuum up Invasive Algae, Then Apply Sea Urchins | response.restoration.noaa.gov

response.restoration.noaa.gov

EuphyllinOHk · Oct 25, 2024

Timfish said:
What you have works fine. But FWIW, for a male royal gramma a cave is a hole deep enuogh for him to build a nest and have room for him and his mate(s) to both fit along with his nest and lay and fertilize eggs.

From what I've seen over the years there will always be areas where detritus collects. All I've ever done was siphon it out but now I only siphon out was visable in the display tank. Turns out detritus (fish poop) is an important component of reef ecosystems.

Sorry for the data bomb but here's some links:

Sponsored - Establishing a Healthy Microbiome in a New Aquarium Using Live Rock - Reviews

www.reef2reef.com

https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00842/95393/103168.pdf

https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1015895108

"Coral Reefs in the Microbial Seas " This video compliments Rohwer's book of the same title. Used copies are available on line and it may be free to read on Internet Archive. both deal with the conflicting roles of the different types of DOC (carbon dosing) in reef ecosystems and how it can alter coral microbiomes. While there is overlap bewteen his book and the video both have information not covered by the other and together give a broader view of the complex relationships found in reef ecosystems and are an excellent starting point to understand the conflicting roles of Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC, aka "carbon dosing") in reef ecosystems.

Changing Seas - Mysterious Microbes

Microbial view of Coral Decline

Nitrogen cycling in hte coral holobiont

BActeria and Sponges

Maintenance of Coral Reef Health (refferences at the end)

Optical Feedback Loop in Colorful Coral Bleaching

DNA Sequencing and the Reef Tank Microbiome

Richard Ross What's up with phosphate"

To Save Corals in an Oahu Bay, First Vacuum up Invasive Algae, Then Apply Sea Urchins | response.restoration.noaa.gov

response.restoration.noaa.gov

Ooo thank you, I'll never ask for apologies for data bombs like this.

WvAquatics · Oct 25, 2024

Just chiming in. If I ask a question in this hobby and get that amount of info I wouldn't complain either. In my experience my royal grammar found an actual hole in the rock he went in. When the grammar was missing I was never able to find him. One day I went to feed the tank and literally he came out of a hole in one rock I was amazed by that!

EuphyllinOHk · Oct 25, 2024

WvAquatics said:
Just chiming in. If I ask a question in this hobby and get that amount of info I wouldn't complain either. In my experience my royal grammar found an actual hole in the rock he went in. When the grammar was missing I was never able to find him. One day I went to feed the tank and literally he came out of a hole in one rock I was amazed by that!

I read about this kind of behavior, where fish just kind of hide in the rock work for extended periods of time, often enough that it kind of leaked into my aquascaping considerations. I lose entire schools of fish in my freshwater tank's wood and plant work, only for them to show up the next day, no worse for wear. I shouldn't be too surprised. If they're going to vanish into the rocks, I'd like them to be cozy!

I've heard that fish will come out more often if they feel safe, but I suppose they'll hide at their leisure anyways. A goal of mine is to ensure the former happens more than the latter.