This week's TOP 10 Questions on Jellies.Warning..! Some answers are a little tongue-in-cheek but are not meant to offend. Question 1) Q. Can you send these tanks to me in Perth. W.A . ? A. Yes, We can and do send these tanks anywhere in the country, Jellyfish themselves can be an issue getting them to some locations in under 48 hours, at a reasonable cost though in which case you may need to seek a supplier in your state if you don't want to chance a death in transit. Unfortunately we don't actually know of any other suppliers in the country right now. Question 2) Q. How much will it cost to send my tank to me ? A. Hard to say without knowing which tank, your postcode, and the weight of the tank including any options you wish added in.but typically $25 to $40 for the Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Canberra CBDs, and $50 to $150 to other state CBDs. Question 3) Q. Can I catch or collect my own Jellyfish from the ocean ? A. Careful here. Best not to for many reasons.All states have provisions on collecting invertebrates, and some have extremely high penalties, particularly on certain animals native to a particular area such as Perth Western Australia . Firstly it depends on the species and the laws that govern that particular animal , which now comes down to your identification ability, not only for law but for your safety. We cannot stress highly enough that MOST Jellies can, at best, produce a mild irritation. However, others can have symptoms ranging from minor irritations to anaphylactic shock. In many other cases they can deliver an extremely painful sting and/or kill you. Question 4) Q. Can I keep Clown fish with my Jellies in my Jellyfish tank ? A. Far too many issues to go into here, but basically Clowns CAN SOMETIMES be OK with Moons, but it's best to call and talk to us about this first. Question 5) Q. Are these Jellies fresh or salt water ? A. Ahh...let me think now, they come from the ocean...so..saltwater.Look, truth is, there is a specific species of Jelly that is generally referred to as a freshwater Jelly,...well ...sort of ...it's incorrectly considered a fresh water Jelly but it's not really. Look Below..The so-called freshwater jellyfish Craspedacusta Sowerbyi originates from the Amazon area in South America but can today be found on all continents. The fresh water jellyfish has mainly been introduced to new areas unintentionally, e.g. with shipments containing other plants and animals from the Amazon area. They are not very common and are primarily found in slow moving and standing waters, especially in reservoirs, dams and slow moving channels. They feed on microscopic zooplankton.
Question 6) Q. Can I buy Jellies and tanks directly off the Marine Boutique website ? A. Yes, simple, just like buying any product from afar, we can freight it to you too. Either jump onto our on-line shop or simply call us on 02 9037 1304 or you could email us with what you are chasing and we can even send you a quote first via email if you like and then we can simply take a credit card over the phone. We prefer to talk to you on the phone or email before you get into the hobby just so that we can make sure you understand some dos and dont's, but it's not always necessary. Question 7) Q. Do I have to cycle my tank first for Jellies ? A. Well, yes AND/OR no. Depends on what you want to do in terms of setup, how far away you are which will affect the delivery time and/or how much you want to spend. For instance, you could buy some specialised Jellyfish starter fluids, but that's a little more money ($20) and this is the best way to go about it, if there is a fair distance in terms of equating to lengthy delivery time, of more than say 24 Hours. Alternatively if you are near us and pop into the shop you could get some cured live rock, not really recommended though unless we explain a few things first but both these options will allow you to get the jellies up and running quickly. Question 8) Q. Why do some Jellies just disappear ? A. This is a really good question. In short we don't know for sure. We have only had it happen to 2 customers out of the thousands we have sold. In one case recently, Jan 2013, we had a customer that took 5 home and in the morning they were nowhere to be seen. In this case it simply seemed that their water that was mixed up by the customer was 6 basis points under( 1.017) the water we supplied the Jellies in (1.023). Therefore for all 5 Jellies to disappear in one hit, it had to be some external condition such as water quality we believe. This is way too much of a drop in 24 hours for ANY saltwater animal. In fish we say that raising only 1 basis point per day is acceptable and we generally consider dropping down in salt by a number of basis points is not really an issue for fish, BUT IT IS FOR JELLIES. Jellies have a VERY permeable outer membrane that allows less saline water to enter the main body osmotically and they can simply puff up and burst falling to the bottom of the tank and overnight the organic matter that was the membrane will decay very quickly. Question 9) Q. Do you sell Jellyfish ? A. Arh ! Lets look at the website again shall we ?. Question 10) Q. What are Jellies made of ? A. Short Answer, Mainly water..97% in fact, the other 3 percent is their organic membrane and limited organs, Other commonly asked Jelly questions. Q. Can I keep Jellies in a standard or normal or any other type of fish tank ? A. No, it MUST be a tank designed for Jellies due to the specialised flow needed so that they do get caught in corners and or damaged by the pump. Q. Are Jellies expensive ? A. This depends on the type of Jelly. Moons and Combs are some of the cheapest. Jellies such as Bioluminescent species are quite expensive due to the amount of effort in obtaining them, but some species such as the moon jelly start @ $15. Q. How do I get cheap Jellies ? A. Marine Boutique has a Jelly club that you automatically become a member of when you buy a Jelly tank from us. This membership allows you to buy Jellies for yourself at approximately 25-30% cheaper than our normal retail pricing year round. Q. Do I need the multicoloured LED options in your tanks ? A. If you purchase the kickstart Jelly Tank it will come with it as standard. If we make you a tank or you purchase the cylindrical tanks it is an option. Q. Do I need a special tank for Jellies ? A. YES..! Q. Can I breed Jellies ? A. YES..! Reasonably easy but you will need some specific product and food from the shop for them to grow. Q. Can I keep Jellies with other fish ? A. Yes if you don't love your other fish. Q. What do Jellies eat ? A. Many answers to this but VERY generally.... small to large fish & zooplankton in the ocean. In captivity we tend to feed some specialised high protein food because we don't want to putrefy the tank too quickly but we will guide you on the right food for your jellies. Q. I don't live near an aquarium or beach so can I mix my own saltwater for my Jellies ?
A. Absolutely! And your Jellies will love you for it! Some Jellies, like moons, can survive for days in pretty murky water which doesn't really bother them too much. So for those Jellies your water quality is not so important but there are some species that will want excellent water conditions. Suffice to say mixing your own salt water to the correct salinity is perfect for them and convenient for you. Ask us what salt to get for your Jellies. Q. Can I get my own salt water from the harbour or river ? A. OK, we must say NO..! But you can try at your own risk. Most boats in the harbour have a coating of Anti-foul painted on the bottom and its major constituent is copper. This is designed to peel off in very micro-fine layers as the boat moves through the water. Copper is deliberately used because it kills ALL invertebrates and therefore any invertebrates such as barnacles that try to stick to the bottom of the boat are despatched. The problem here is that this fine micro layer of waste floats in the top few metres of the harbour water and when you collect this for your tank you will slowly build up a higher concentrate of copper in your tank. So..NO.! 20 Litres is only $5.00 at your local aquarium, so why risk it? The professionals that collect for shops, like u,s send a boom out 50 metres and between 5 to 15 metres deep for this reason. Q. Can I get my own salt water from the beach ? A. Please see answer to "Can I get my own salt water from the harbour or river?". Nearly the same answer...why risk it? Whilst it is more likely that your beach water will be cleaner in places that have beaches close to a harbour opening, like Manly, it can still have reasonably high concentrations of copper on low tide in particular. So once again..20 Litres is only $5.00 at your local Aquarium, so why risk it?. Q. Why can't I keep Jellies in my normal fish tank ? A. Too many reasons to list here, but suffice to say they will have a very short life and you WILL waste your money, Q. What Types of Jellies do you get ? A. We get many different types from simple & safe Moon Jellies ("Aurelia aurita") through to the downright dangerous & deadly *Irukandji ("Carukia Barnesi " ). *When we can get them....as you can imagine, many divers won't go near them but we do get some in from time to time, often for researchers. Q. What is the safest Jelly to get ? A. This depends on who you ask..A tiny fish would say no Jelly at all. To a human it's typically a moon or upside down jelly. Q. How many Jellies can I keep in my tank ? A. How long is a piece of string...We get this question all the time, The obvious answer is how big is the tank and how big are the Jellies you have chosen. We all need our space..These are Jellies, not sardines but we for instance can keep up to 100 in 40 Litres..you will probably only want to keep 10 in that size. Q. Do Jellies make good pets ? A. Hello ! Q. Where do the Jellies come from ? A. All the oceans across the world, but we can only get Jellies from within this country. We have secured specific & specialised collectors with the correct licences to collect especially for us. Q. Can you or I bring Jellies into Australia ? A. Only if you fancy a gaol sentence. It is illegal to bring ANY type of invertebrate into this country full stop.Please don't try..apart from the law you could present a risk to our Bio-diversity and Eco systems. Q. Can I get an "Arrive Alive Guarantee" when you ship them ? A. Not in this country unfortunately. They do in the US but they have a far superior cross country freight shipping service with companies like FEDEX and UPS who can easily and quickly get packages from anywhere in the US to just about anywhere else in the US and all in around 24 hours. In this country, just getting a package from Sydney to Perth for instance will take 4 days minimum and some other areas outside of a CBD, say Perth, or Darwin, can increase the delivery time to 7 to 12 Days. We have, and regularly do send Jellies on journeys of up to 8 days transit time that (touch wood) arrive alive, but they must specify Jellies and be packed with special things to make them last the distance, but nothing can prepare them for rough treatment if the couriers throw them around. Q. Can I flush my Jellyfish if he dies ? A. Absolutely not. Flushing anything down the loo will usually and eventually lead to our oceans. Many diseases that can build up in your tank can be carried in concentration to our waterways. Please just dig a hole in the garden and drop you preloved pet in the dirt and cover him up. Q. How long do Jellies live ? A. REALLY interesting question..Moons live approx 2 years in the wild but around 10 years in captivity due to the absence of predators. Q. What predators will eat my moons ? A. Well you really should have no predators in your tank but Blue Ringed Angels love to dine on Jellies. Q. What temperature do my Jellies need and do I need a heater ? A. This will depend on the specific tank and setup you have and your location as well as the Jelly you buy...we will advise when you have decided. Q. How much is a heater ? A. It will depend on the size of your tank, but between $20 to $80 and typically $30 for most of the small tanks we sell. Q. Do I need a chiller ? A. Only if we were to supply you a temperate animal and you were in a tropical area maybe in which case we would supply you an Ice-Probe which is perfect for Jellies and seahorses in a small tank because it doesn't use a pump unlike other chiller systems. Q Are there any fresh water Jellyfish ? A. No, not really, but there is a species that looks like a Jellyfish, reproduces like a Jellyfish and is known under the common name fresh water jellyfish: Craspedacusta sowerbyi. This species is distinguished from true jellyfish by a structure called a velum that freshwater jellyfish has and marine jellyfish lack. However, most people still look at Craspedacusta sowerbyi as a Jellyfish. Q. What sizes of Jellyfish do you have ? A. Obviously our stock sizes, types and numbers can change on a daily basis, but in say Moon Jellies they are sold in sizes:Tiny 1-2 cm, Small 2-5cm, Medium 5-8cm, Large 8-10cm, Extra Large 10-15cm. Q. Where else can I buy Jellyfish from ? A. As far has we know there is no other specialist in Australia either due to lack of interest or knowledge or even specialised holding facilities. Q. Do you guys sell the Jellyfish Art range of Tanks ? A. Yes, Marine Boutique is the sole importer and distributor of the US style tanks in Australia Q. Can you build me a custom made tank for my business ? A. Yes we can and do build specialised custom built Jellyfish tanks in acrylic or glass. Q. Are Jellyfish hard to keep ? A. This depends on the type of Jelly and the type of holding facility. Moons are the most common and yes very easy to keep, even for a beginner. Q. Can I get different coloured Jellyfish ? A. Yes we sometimes have beautiful colours of reds, greens and blues in Aussie Spotted Jellyfish ("Phyllorhiza punctata"). Q. Can I eat Jellyfish ? A. Best you don't come into this store.
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