Ok I finally got a SH

**PreauxPhoto** · 02-09-2007, 11:26 PM

Well here he is. Picked him up tonight after having my FLS hold him for a week to make sure he was ok. I sat in front of the tank for about 45 min. today watching him hunt, eat live brine, and interact with me at the glass. I look him over about 100 time to make sure he didn’t show any signs of sickness or injury. When I was satisfied I wanted to catch him myself to make sure it was a low stress as possible. I wanted to wait a little longer but my LFS ordered him for me when I told them I was setting up a tank. They taold me that I didn’t have to take him but I fell in love…… so here he is!

Now he’s home the tank he is going in is so populated with pods they are all over the glass. I will give an update in a couple of days.

Thanks Rob, David, and Greg

I cant wait for the next SH series podcast!

**Seahorsedreams** · 02-10-2007, 02:57 AM

That's a pretty male H. erectus you have there. The adult of the larger species, as you have, won't be interested in too many small pods. Most show no interest, some show a little but none will eat them enough to sustain them. Adult brine won't cut it either. Have you tried frozen mysis?

**PreauxPhoto** · 02-10-2007, 03:35 PM

the LFS have been feeding it live brine with some frozen MS in it. they said it hasent shown much interst in frozen but it will come in time. Will garlic work on SH also? can i use it on the MS to help the process along?

Also i need some suggestions on hitching posts he dosnt see to like the zip ties. here is his tank.

**lanesreef** · 02-10-2007, 10:10 PM

That is a nice looking horse. Is he holding onto the heater? Do you have any flow in there?

**wwest** · 02-10-2007, 10:28 PM

Looks like to me he's on a power head with a beard

lol

**Seahorsedreams** · 02-10-2007, 11:44 PM

Yup, it looks like it found the typical thing to hitch to...... the one thing you don't want it to. Mine fell in love with the intake tube that was in it's QT tank. That tube has since followed it where it goes.... not the filter, just the tube attached with a suctioncup.

Zip ties are too small. 1/2" PVC pipe size ot heater size pipe they seem to like.

They will die when being fed brine. If it eats live food only you will need to get more appropriate live food for it such a feeder shrimp.

Erectus are generally easier to get onto frozen than some. But you can't be guaranteed that it will ever make the conversion. Get a feeding dish and try to entice it every day. It's easier when they are in a QT tank when you can blow mysis all over the place to entice the feeding response. Easy cleanup in a barebotton tank.... don't try it in a display. But if you don't make the conversion you'll be have to go through the expense of live feeder shrimp or starve him with live brine.

**iglowce** · 02-11-2007, 12:51 AM

i'd love to have some ponies too but my sps and high current wont allow me to have one of these beauties.. but its definitely in the future plan if i upgrade my nano to a bigger tank

**PreauxPhoto** · 02-11-2007, 02:19 AM

He is on a Power head but it's off, and it's going for the ZZ top look. i tried to tell it that it wont get a good job looking like that but you know power heads these days. well he took a single piece of plankton today but he's not much on eating now. He's right behind my computer and i'll hear him trigger every once in a while. so he's eating but i'm working on getting him some GOOD food. i will try a petrie dish to put his food in and see if that works. do you think if i drill large enough holes in it he will poke his mouth in to eat?

**Seahorsedreams** · 02-11-2007, 02:31 AM

Originally Posted by PreauxPhoto

i will try a petrie dish to put his food in and see if that works. do you think if i drill large enough holes in it he will poke his mouth in to eat?

You mean a petri dish with a lid? With holes? You are better off with an open dish. What food item were you thinking of putting in the petri dish?

**PreauxPhoto** · 02-11-2007, 08:22 PM

sorry by fingers move faster than my brain. no need to give him some mysis with garlic tonight, about a second after some of the water with garlic in it hit him his head poked up and he ate like a pit bull in a butcher shop! that take a big load off my mind! this was the first time i used garlic and EVERYTHING came out to eat, even the bristle worms. never realised how many i had in that tank.

**saxman** · 02-12-2007, 11:12 PM

nice erectus, Bruce!

Originally Posted by iglowce

i'd love to have some ponies too but my sps and high current wont allow me to have one of these beauties.. but its definitely in the future plan if i upgrade my nano to a bigger tank

a nice Doryhamphus sp. pipe would go nicely in that reef. we have a Janss' (D. janssi) in our reef and she does very well in it. she hunts pods during the day and eats frozen mysis in the evening.

the only consideration might be that a pipe would be in direct food competition with your mandarin.