Female pipefish

Female pipefish "showing off". These colors are most intense just after the lights come on in the mornings. 

3000 gallon Stickleback System

Main room of the 3000 gallon stickleback system. This room has a 10 hour light and 14 hour dark cycle with a 1/2 hour of dawn and dusk where the lights slowly come on or off. Individual tanks drain to a local sump located under each racking unit (see below) and then to a main sump located in another room. 

Individual racking units with local sumps. Each racking unit is 3 tanks wide x 3 tanks tall. Each unit can be shut off to the main system and ran alone using a pump in the local sump. This allows flexibility in the system. 

Local filtration. This bucket is filled with bioballs that provide surface area for bacteria to grow (nitrogen waste) and capped with a matala mat to collect fish waste and uneaten food (carbon waste). 

Pipefish recirculating system

250 gal recirculating pipefish system. The 55 gallon barrel is used as a sump. Water is piped from the sump, through a UV filter (black tube below the rack) and then into individual tanks. Salinity is kept at 32 ppt, pH at 8, and temp at 21 C. A bi-weekly water change of 50 gallons is done using water from the stickleback system.

Tank bred and raised pipefish

Success! Pipefish born and raised in our pipefish system. The addition of crushed coral and feeding of copepods has helped pipefish fry survival rates.

One cell old Stickle embryos

Stickleback embryo at 1 cell ~ 1.5 hours post fertilization.