REEF OF THE MONTH - May 2021: Tigahboy's Macroalgae Paradise!

[Seabiscuit]

Is this the Red Ogo? It is much thicker and beautiful than the one I had.

 

[reefsaver]

I thought I would leave this YouTube channel here for any Macro Algae fans. Not my channel although I love the diversity of his tank.

 

[ReefHomieJon]

Do you have a link to a website that you use to purchase macro? I’m looking to add some to my parents FOWLR tank to help with nutrient control and just for looks

 

[mattdg]

There is something very Zen about this setup. Love the way you incorporate it into your living environment, the driftwood with plant on top and the two tanks side by side. It really does feel like a high end FW planted tank setup, in some ways, but very different at the same time. I will be sure to re visit this well deserved TOTM thread, when I am ready to set up my SW Planted display. Congratulations!

 

[revhtree]

Such a gem to R2R and the whole feeding community. Definitely setting a standard to strive for! Thank you for sharing!

 

[Tigahboy]

Such a gem to R2R and the whole feeding community. Definitely setting a standard to strive for! Thank you for sharing!

Thank you so much! Had a lot of fun working on this article.

 

[Tigahboy]

There is something very Zen about this setup. Love the way you incorporate it into your living environment, the driftwood with plant on top and the two tanks side by side. It really does feel like a high end FW planted tank setup, in some ways, but very different at the same time. I will be sure to re visit this well deserved TOTM thread, when I am ready to set up my SW Planted display. Congratulations!

Thank you! I do try to think about the overall space around the tank in addition to what's inside. Appreciate the kind words.

Do you have a link to a website that you use to purchase macro? I’m looking to add some to my parents FOWLR tank to help with nutrient control and just for looks

I buy from a variety of places - local fish stores, reefcleaners, live-plants, Alyssa's Seahorses. Not easy to come by though unfortunately. Hopefully that will improve!

Is this the Red Ogo? It is much thicker and beautiful than the one I had.

I think "Red Ogo" can refer to different species, but I don't think this is the same species as what is commonly known as Red Ogo. I wish I knew which species specifically. It is some kind of Gracilaria (but I know that covers a ton of species). Closest I could find to an ID is Graciliaria tikvahiae (but not sure if that's right either given the same species of macroalgae can grow differently and color up differently depending on lighting and other factors).

 

[Tigahboy]

Congratulations on your publication! It really is a wonderful tank. It is a dream come true for a tank keeper like me who has both a nature aquarium and a coral tank. I really like the phrase "The blend of science and art". I really do!

Thank you! I'm a big fan of your work as well. ;Cat

 

[zukihara]

always very inspiring to see these beautiful tanks!

 

[Tigahboy]

There's already a ton of photos in here, but why not add some more from a recent photo session.

 

[P-Dub]

Wow!
Congratulations! Outstanding examples of reef systems that are unique and beautiful! True inspirations!

 

[JMann]

Cool that you highlighted Sargassum as your favorite. I grew up in West Palm Beach, FL going diving and fishing off my dads boat and we interacted with Sargassum Seaweed almost daily. We’d go out 1-5 miles and there would be rafts of it floating near the surface(sometimes as big as a football field!) It created and housed its own whole ecosystem. Tons of juvenile fish and inverts grow up in it and there are many species that live out their whole life in it and are specially adapted to that life(like the Sargassum Angler.) We would catch Juvenile Sailfish, squid, Mahi/Dolphin, filefish, etc.. Harvested tiny shrimp out of it to use as fresh and frozen aquarium food as well. You could even dive under it and see all kinds of stuff. The whole food chain from tiny crabs up to sharks and Marlin congregate in/or under it. Beautiful color and form factor too.

 

[JumboShrimp]

I very much appreciate the artistry of what you have done, and it is nice to see your style of tank selected for the award. Two thumbs up!

 

[Reefjockey]

Beautiful and well kept, you make it look easy as if setting up a tank is all there is to it. I on the other hand, know better. I added a new skimmer to my 16+ year old DT to supplement my barely functioning 20 year old sump model, and learned how quickly you can starve a beautiful green bunch of Halimeda that I wanted to scale back, but not eliminate. My tank is always in a transition. It seems as though lately my new found hobby is raising Leather Coral.

Beautiful once again!

 

[Reef Nutrition]

It's quite a pleasure to see our foods being used by such a talented aquarist. The tanks, animals and algae look amazing, @Tigahboy!

Best,
Chad

 

[Tigahboy]

I very much appreciate the artistry of what you have done, and it is nice to see your style of tank selected for the award. Two thumbs up!

Thank you! The artistic aspect of macroalgae keeping (or any type of aquarium really) really keeps me going.

Beautiful and well kept, you make it look easy as if setting up a tank is all there is to it. I on the other hand, know better. I added a new skimmer to my 16+ year old DT to supplement my barely functioning 20 year old sump model, and learned how quickly you can starve a beautiful green bunch of Halimeda that I wanted to scale back, but not eliminate. My tank is always in a transition. It seems as though lately my new found hobby is raising Leather Coral.

Beautiful once again!

Appreciate that! Thank you!

 

[Tigahboy]

It's quite a pleasure to see our foods being used by such a talented aquarist. The tanks, animals and algae look amazing, @Tigahboy!

Best,
Chad

Thanks, Chad! Been using your products since 2009!

 

[DarfrogDojo]

@Tigahboy - Amazing tanks...truly works of art. Your FW planted tank influence is evident, and the crossover effect looks beautiful. I started following you on IG when I decided to dip my toe into making a "display refugium" (oops, I mean SW planted tank) with more decorative macro algae. Chaeto worked well and served its purpose, but I knew things could be better. It was like putting pathos in with my dart frogs, when there are so many more decorative plants in the Amazon. So, I plumbed a 6g tank into my maintenance DT sump and I got my hands on a few types of macro algae to see what would grow...and it all did. Now I have my sights set on a larger DT. Your work is an inspiration, and you being featured here and in print is well deserved. Thanks for your contributions.

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

Looks great
D

 

[TnFishwater98]

Pieces of Live Art! Great Work!