Dwarf Sea horses

[platyplakia]

Hello all. I was writing to see if anyone out there has any experience with dwarf sea horses. I have ordered some online and want to make sure that I haven't missed anything. ANY and ALL help would be much appreciated.

Here's what i have as of today and what I am planing on getting:

12 gal eclipse with the built in hood.
4" bed of oolite sand to help with nitrates
I have covered the intake of the eclipse pump with a "sponge"
I will be adding an air pump attached to a piece of rigid tubing with holes drilled for a little more subtle circulation.
I'll be adding a few pounds of base rock.
I'm scared to add any live rock(don't like unwanted guests:yuk: )
Debating on what type of sealife to add. I'm not adding anymore fish, just cleanup crew, caulerpa (not sure what kind), corals, etc.

I think that hits the basics. Just looking for some first hand experience to help me along the way...

Thanks so much!

 

[glxtrix]

agree

 

[lenny]

We already talked about this, but make sure that the other life you add can't eat the seahorses. And you'll need enough flow in the tank to move the food around because I'm told that they will normally wait for the food to come to them instead of heading towards it.

Just have good and appropriate hitching posts in various locations, and scape the base rocks so that there's both lit and shaded areas in the tank

 

[flipturn88]

Sent ya a PM earlier today, but I'll add my thoughts to this page so that others can see as well...

I have mainly researched and kept the larger species of <span style="font-size: 1-1px;">Hippocampus</span></em>, so my knowledge of <span style="font-size: 1-1px;">H. zosterae</em></span> is rather limited. I can offer a bit of advice, though:

Just as live rock is a concern with these small fish, macro algae can also bring in unwelcomed guests, namely hydroids, which can inflict a nasty sting on your dwarfs. Again, I am no expert, but I would add the algae with extreme caution - or possibly quarantine it first. You could also use plastic/fake plants, although I know they don't produce the same effect (or help with nutrient removal!). I've seen people experience success with both routes, so it's really up to you.

Also, I would be sure to enrich your brine with selcon or the like; brine itself is devoid of nutrients, so it would be like eating only white bread on a daily basis.

I hope this bit of info helps! Please let me know if you have any further questions, and best of luck! I'd love to see some pics when you have the system up and runnning.