1/25/06: Indo-Pacific Sea Farms order is in.
My IPSF order arrived today. I'm really mixed regarding the "I paid $100 for THIS?" reaction that some people have. In other words, I'm not thrilled, but I'm not terribly disappointed either.
The order was packed in a styrofoam box, and heat packs were included, but apparently they had run out by the time the package reached me (was send FedEx 2-day), as the contents were quite cool, and the heat packs didn't seem to be giving off any heat at all. But all the snails, hermits, and worms appear to have survived. The amphipods, I'm not so sure about (more on that in a bit).
I had planned to put the WonderMud in the refugium, and the Live Sand Activator in the main tank. However, the LSA was not quite what I expected... instead of sand, it consisted of fairly coarse crushed coral (but with quite a few little creatures crawling around in it, including a tiny starfish). Because I didn't want pebbles mixed in with my sand bed, I decided to add both the WonderMud and the LSA to the refugium, and the bristleworms that were bagged separately (the LSA had plenty of worms in it), hermits, and most of the snails to the main tank. Regarding the WonderMud, I don't know what was in there, because I was not able to see through the murky water after I dumped it in a plastic container.
The hermits (appear to be dwarf zebras) are quite industrious... as soon as I added them to the tank, they were immediately scurrying around to find things to do. Likewise, the snails all dispersed from where I dropped them.
The amphipods were acclimated and added to the refugium. I saw movement in the bag, but looking in the refugium now, I see a few large carcasses on the sand, so obviously some did not make it. Hopefully there will be enough left to build a good population. I do see numerous smaller bug-like creatures crawling around in there, but I think most of those were from the LSA.
The other components of the "Amphipod Breeding Kit" were a bag of flaked food, and what was supposed to be the "Pod Mat" ("their preferred breeding habitat... a lush green mat of Ulva macroalgae"). However, I received some additional "Tang Heave Red" instead (I guess they were out of the Ulva).
In short, I was not blown away by this package, but I do not feel that it was a total waste either. At a bare minimum, I got about 15 neat hermits, a dozen or so snails, quite a few bristle worms, and a lot of other little creatures that will hopefully reproduce.
"Yes, I'll have the bristleworm and snail soup please."
(I've since moved the macroalgae to the rear of the refugium)
--Mike
My IPSF order arrived today. I'm really mixed regarding the "I paid $100 for THIS?" reaction that some people have. In other words, I'm not thrilled, but I'm not terribly disappointed either.
The order was packed in a styrofoam box, and heat packs were included, but apparently they had run out by the time the package reached me (was send FedEx 2-day), as the contents were quite cool, and the heat packs didn't seem to be giving off any heat at all. But all the snails, hermits, and worms appear to have survived. The amphipods, I'm not so sure about (more on that in a bit).
I had planned to put the WonderMud in the refugium, and the Live Sand Activator in the main tank. However, the LSA was not quite what I expected... instead of sand, it consisted of fairly coarse crushed coral (but with quite a few little creatures crawling around in it, including a tiny starfish). Because I didn't want pebbles mixed in with my sand bed, I decided to add both the WonderMud and the LSA to the refugium, and the bristleworms that were bagged separately (the LSA had plenty of worms in it), hermits, and most of the snails to the main tank. Regarding the WonderMud, I don't know what was in there, because I was not able to see through the murky water after I dumped it in a plastic container.
The hermits (appear to be dwarf zebras) are quite industrious... as soon as I added them to the tank, they were immediately scurrying around to find things to do. Likewise, the snails all dispersed from where I dropped them.
The amphipods were acclimated and added to the refugium. I saw movement in the bag, but looking in the refugium now, I see a few large carcasses on the sand, so obviously some did not make it. Hopefully there will be enough left to build a good population. I do see numerous smaller bug-like creatures crawling around in there, but I think most of those were from the LSA.
The other components of the "Amphipod Breeding Kit" were a bag of flaked food, and what was supposed to be the "Pod Mat" ("their preferred breeding habitat... a lush green mat of Ulva macroalgae"). However, I received some additional "Tang Heave Red" instead (I guess they were out of the Ulva).
In short, I was not blown away by this package, but I do not feel that it was a total waste either. At a bare minimum, I got about 15 neat hermits, a dozen or so snails, quite a few bristle worms, and a lot of other little creatures that will hopefully reproduce.
"Yes, I'll have the bristleworm and snail soup please."
(I've since moved the macroalgae to the rear of the refugium)
--Mike
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