My new love the Maxi Mini.

lumpy

Reefing newb
So I finally found maxi mini nems at my LFS and all I can say is WOW. The variation and color are amazing. Did some research and it sounds like they're pretty forgiving corals. I also read that they are easy to reproduce by cutting them in half. Is that correct? How else do they reproduce? I'm wondering if I got a couple might I start seeing baby nems with different color patterns. Also how hard is it to remove them from a rock?
 
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They are living creatures just like a bubble tip anemone, not a coral. They eat, they poop, they can move around, etc. I've had mine for a couple years and he has not moved, ever. Not once finding his spot after the first couple days. Once in a while I'll feed him a whole thawed silverside. My little clown got too close recently (brushed up agains the nem) and the nem closed up right on him! Had to quickly grab something to start poking at the nem and free the clown. The clown was pretty dazed for a bit.

As far as i know they can split on their own but I've never seen it happen personally. I have with my red bubble tips, several times. I also haven't seen anyone split them by cutting them. I'd be interested to know if that was true or not.
 
Awesome little nems! I had some that never moved, some that moved all the time and 1 that moved almost monthly. Yes you can cut them up. I've only seen them cut in half but have heard of people getting 4 from 1. As long as there is a piece of the mouth with the frag, it will regenerate. Cut them in half and give them a 5 minute iodine dip and back into the water they go. I've also never seen 1 split. Mine spawned a few times and made the tank pretty cloudy.
 
How much are they asking for them might I ask? Some people think they are still worth top dollar but you can get them fairly cheap nowadays.
My avatar is one of them.
 
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the LFS is running 50 bucks for a large one (about 3-4in in diameter from memory) and 30 bucks for a smaller one (about half the size of the large)
 
Yes you can cut them up. I've only seen them cut in half but have heard of people getting 4 from 1. As long as there is a piece of the mouth with the frag, it will regenerate. Cut them in half and give them a 5 minute iodine dip and back into the water they go. I've also never seen 1 split. Mine spawned a few times and made the tank pretty cloudy.

Pretty cool. :D I'd still be too scared to do it. :lol:
 
If thats the only place you can get them then it would be about right for those prices. I've seen them at petco for 25. If you have a petco near you check them out and if they dont have them ask if they can order for you. The one by me has and you dont have to pay shipping since it comes with their order anyways. Pick it up the same day they get it in and it never makes it into their tank. There is also a guy close to me who sells online and does $19 shipping to northeast. He has maxi minis for $25 and $35 for the exotic ones. I've been to his facility several times and can tell you they are top notch! They are sponsors of several other forums but not here(I'll have to run this site by him). Check out his site and if your looking for something you dont see there, send him an email and may have it. Has way more stuff than whats on the site. CultivatedReef.com, Aquacultured Coral Frags
 
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They can produce buds. One of mine has two little buds forming on it right now although it takes a long time for them to develop. You can cut them in half in an iodine bath. It is ill advised to cut them into more than just halves, as the success rate drops dramatically if you don't just cut them in half. Google it and some people have some pretty detailed descriptions on the best way to do it.

Also as someone posted above that Petco sometimes has them. Please, please please, never buy any aquatic life from Petco( or anything for that matter), they have absolutely no regard for any animals, and the systems that they attempt to keep aquatic life in are just plain cruel. They spend no money on proper training of any of their associates and also source fish from anyone who can get them the fish the cheapest. Support local stores that give a crap and know where their livestock comes from.

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They can produce buds. One of mine has two little buds forming on it right now although it takes a long time for them to develop. You can cut them in half in an iodine bath. It is ill advised to cut them into more than just halves, as the success rate drops dramatically if you don't just cut them in half. Google it and some people have some pretty detailed descriptions on the best way to do it.

Also as someone posted above that Petco sometimes has them. Please, please please, never buy any aquatic life from Petco( or anything for that matter), they have absolutely no regard for any animals, and the systems that they attempt to keep aquatic life in are just plain cruel. They spend no money on proper training of any of their associates and also source fish from anyone who can get them the fish the cheapest. Support local stores that give a crap and know where their livestock comes from.

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I worked for Petco for years. Nothing we had was state of the art, but myself and those under me did the best with what we had, which included finding proper homes for every animal we sold.

It's all about the associate, not the store. I have several "local" stores that don't care about their animals. Find a place you like and stick with it. Always go in doing your research FIRST so you know what you're talking about.
 
The Petco by me is run by a friend of mine with many years of experience. The company has his hands tied pretty tight so he cant put the time into their tanks as he would his own. They have several tanks for display,quarantine,frags,inverts and such. Not just a tank full of "stuff" like I've seen in some pet shops. Very well done IMO. When he ordered for me he would call and let me know when the delivery was coming in so I would pick them up in the bags floating in their tank. And I dont have to pay for shipping which is a good reason to continue doing business with them. Win-win for both of us.
Some of the people under him are a little sketchy but they are new to salt just as we all were.
 
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Petco is meh. It is the only LFS anywhere near me (within 50 miles) and it is right up the street from my apartment. they even sell corals.

The staff is not knowledgable but they seem willing to learn. Whenever I get something, they know to ask me how it needs to be handled. I've politely warned them about a few things before. For example, I was there while they were "acclimating" and introducing new stuff to the tanks and did not drip the starfish and exposed them to air. No clue if they listened to me but they seemed interested. Idk if they do it better now.

Regardless, they're fine if you know what to look for. At least this one is. They can also order me fish, which is nice, and have a VERY extensive list of fish and corals...and they will call me when it coems in and I can run up the street and get it before they even put it in their dirty tanks...so no harm no foul imo
 
Ahhh the recurring Petco vs. PetNO debate. :mrgreen:

It all depends on the individual store. Some are good, some are horrible. There are half a dozen Petcos in the city where I live, and I would never buy fish from some, but am perfectly comfortable buying fish from others. Like any store, you are looking for clean tanks and healthy, active, disease-free fish. You can find that at some Petcos, and some local fish stores are lacking that too.

I started my first saltwater tank in 2000. I bought almost all of my first fish at Petco. I recently sold my tank and all my livestock a few months ago. The livestock I sold included a blue damsel, a yellow tail damsel, a sixline wrasse, a coral beauty and two pajama cardinals that I bought from Petco. Back in 2000 to 2002. When I had my first saltwater tank. The livestock I sold also included half a dozen other fish that I had purchased over the years that came from local fish stores. Was there any difference in the quality of livestock? Nope -- fish from both places were clearly healthy and grew old in my tank.

Check out the store first, before you make any judgments about the knowledge of their associates or the quality of their livestock.

That said, Petco is the ONLY store I have ever been in where I have overheard something as crazy as, "A yellow tang can be acclimated to freshwater if you give it enough time." :lol: That is a Petco associate I would avoid!
 
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