If you want to keep tropical coral reefs fish and invertebrates, it goes without saying that the temperature of the aquarium should be kept within the temperature range of natural tropical seawater, that is, between 25-27°C, Corals will grow best in environments within this temperature range. When the temperature is lower than 20 ℃, or more than 30 ℃, calcium coral will stop synthesizing calcium (form and destroy immediately). Once the temperature exceeds the range of 15-32 ℃, most corals will die. Therefore, the heating of the seawater aquarium must be very careful, otherwise it may cause an accident, because of the high conductivity of seawater, the current in the heater may be conducted almost completely into the water, which will cause serious damage to every corner of the aquarium. Influence.

Appropriate Lighting

Appropriate Lighting is light that ensures the continued survival and reproduction of the unicellular zooxanthellae symbiotic with invertebrates. The light is quite strong in the natural coral reef ecosystem, so it is difficult to imitate. However, the use of metal halide lamps, also known as HQI spotlights, can make the water surface illumination of the aquarium reach 80,000 lux. This intensity is sufficient for the metabolism of the single-celled zooxanthellae in the invertebrates 60cm below the water surface of the aquarium, and under such light, the coral's calcium can be synthesized smoothly, so the coral can continue to to grow.

Of course, there are some creatures that avoid strong light, so a shaded area must be established in the aquarium, for example between two lights.

Safe and stable water quality

The main concern is the stable salt composition. A saltwater aquarium containing invertebrates should preferably maintain a specific gravity between 1.022 and 1.023. Special attention is: the temperature of the measurement must be carried out under 25oC. The current state-of-the-art equipment for measuring salinity is the conductivity meter that measures seawater. The conductivity value of standard seawater should be between 47-51ms/cm. The measurement of safe water quality should undoubtedly also include a suitable carbonate hardness, which should be maintained between 7o and 9odH. In addition, other conditions that help to maintain water quality, such as: iron content (iron content) must be 0.1mg/l, and nitrate (nitrate) and carbon dioxide (carbon dioxide) content should also be noted.

Maintain the function of invertebrates

Unicellular zooxanthellae are very important for the metabolism of invertebrates. The nutrient content can be kept within a certain range. For example, the iron content in seawater is a decisive factor, and the iron content of seawater is shown to be 0.1mg/l in natural sea areas. The maintenance of function also includes the use of carbon dioxide to maintain a constant pH range, and unicellular zooxanthellae can also absorb large amounts of carbon dioxide, which in turn breaks down nitrates into substances such as amino acids. The products synthesized by these symbiotic algae include sugars, glycerol, and amino acids, which can be taken up by the host (living coral) or as part of their own tissue systems. Furthermore, these unicellular zooxanthellae occasionally absorb phosphates from seawater and metabolites of nitrogenous substances from their symbiotic coral hosts.

Biological and Chemical Filtration

Biofiltration refers to the action of filtration by biological forces, especially bacteria. Because of the success of this effect and the ingenious method of operation, more and more aquariums have begun to use trickle filters, of which the biological filter ball has many advantages. This trickle filter has two most important functions:

1. It removes excess organic matter; 2. Because of its large surface area, it increases the aquarium content amount of oxygen.

Chemical filtration refers to the use of activated carbon (activated charcoal) to filter. The main job of activated carbon is to remove yellow substances and inhibitors that hinder the circulation of water in the aquarium.

Powerful water movement

Powerful water movement is mainly to make every place in the aquarium, such as nooks, crevices, caves and rocks. The water around the coral is constantly changing. The metabolites of unicellular zooxanthellae on invertebrates are simultaneously removed by water flow, and organic matter (plankton, nitrates and other compounds) is also pressured to the vicinity of animal habitats, causing them to Easier to eat. Under natural conditions, the water will flow in the same direction for 6 hours and then in the other direction for 6 hours, thus avoiding precipitation.

Living coral

The importance of living coral cannot be overemphasized, as only living stone can make an artificial reef in an aquarium possible. The biosphere transforms into a natural biosphere. As long as the living corals have some time to start, countless algae and animals will re-grow and develop, turning the small coral reef ecology into an independent and complete biosphere again. Setting up and maintaining live corals is the most important factor in successfully maintaining a saltwater aquarium. Balanced ecology of invertebrates and fish Due to the limited space in the aquarium, when adding animals it is necessary to pay attention to whether they live in peace. For example: sea urchins and starfish etc. There are also some fish that feed on coral, such as butterfly fish or parrot fish that will bite coral, and there are also some fish that specialize in catching esophagus, which should also be avoided as much as possible.

Natural food for invertebrates and fish

Natural means the entire aquarium is in natural conditions. However, we cannot provide the natural foods that occur naturally on coral reefs for fish and invertebrates in aquariums, and generally good fish foods range from balanced artificially dried feeds to frozen juvenile mysids, It can also range from shrimp in seawater to the flesh of some marine fish. When fed to fish, many fragments are eaten by corals, crustaceans and other invertebrates. Generally speaking, corals are the easiest to feed, and in aquariums containing invertebrates and live corals, fish are fed at regular intervals, so many plankton are naturally produced, allowing invertebrates to obtain adequate nutrients .

Control

The stability of water quality must be controlled on an ongoing basis. It is not enough to measure temperature, specific gravity, pH, carbonate hardness and iron levels, but also the levels of nitrates that keep our little reefs safe.