Fish Folk

I only meant to spend 30 mins down in the fish cave tonight. Hand on my heart. But stuff happened, and nearly everyone was asleep when I resurfaced. Every “fish-tail” is a story in medias res. Where to begin? Well, my Discus tank has been … struggling a bit of late. I do weekly water changes, but less frequent filter maintenance. Gunk was accumulating — particularly around my Indian swampweed (Hygrophilia polysperma). The Discus are normally friendly, but of late they’ve been cagey. So several days ago I did a water change… ripped out the Hygro almost completely, which released a load of gross accumulates (molm, algae, whatnot)… then I started squeezing the sponge filters in the sink… which were in much need, inevitably releasing bio cloud into the tank… leaving me continuing the water change long past my normal 30%. I probably did a 70% WC. Fish recovered fine. It’s a well-established tank, so I’m not worried about any soaring ammonia over taxing a struggling bio colony. But then early today, I saw my GBRs in there who I’ve raised from last summer acting interested. So tonight, I’m trying to locate the male GBR, and I notice him hovering over a stone with a little haul of eggs! So, what I’ve been doing most recently to hatch eggs is floating a DIY flow-through fry tray in the tank(s) that eggs are laid in, moving eggs over, adding air… some anti fungal… and eventually java moss. This maintains the same water quality, temperature, etc and seems to help eggs hatch very well. Earlier on today (or yesterday?), I’d moved my Southern Redbelly Dace fry out from this floating container into a new 10-gal so they’d stop escaping through the holes in the coarse sponge flow-through, plummeting into the open mouth of a young Rainbow Darter! So this tray had sat dry on my floor all day. But when I added water to it, oh my! There were SRBD fry still alive! So I tried to catch them out and move them over to the 10-gal. I might have been only partially successful. Then I went to get the rock the Rams spawned on… But there’s another issue: the DIY floating container was sinking just to the water surface, making it possible for fry to slip out… This called for another DIY solution… I cut another styro piece to fit under the lower lip edge of the container. However, it was too buoyant. So I solved that by cutting a portion out from the center. That lifted the upper styro collar about 1/2 inch above the surface. So far, so good 🤞 I dosed antifungal m-blue, covered, and we shall see! I cannot resist the thought of more Rams! Now i just need to find something tall to go back where I cut out that Hygro!

Oh dear! Confounded new math… 13 21 34 55 gallon tank… I knew this was in store 89 … nearly a 90 gallon tank… 144 Oy!

Last evening, I noticed fry were making it through the coarse sponge on the flow-through handles, and dropping into the tank (left side). A young male Rainbow Darter was loving the surprise snacks! So today, I determined to fix the problem. Got to move the fry from this floating container… Over to this new 10 gal, set up with (1) cycled substrate (2) cycled sponge (3) tank water… I decide to add a few more plant cuttings… Then drain water out enough water yo allow for displacement… So i can float the fry tray… There’s definitely _not_ as many fry as originally hatched left… But there’s enough for BAP 😎 Fry are released… here we go little guys… Tank cloudiness settles fairly quickly — even in time it’s taken for me to make this post… P.S. Someone is NOT pleased that snacks are gone…

If I recall, the 2nd bottle (reagent) in titration tests needs to be really vigorously shaken up to render an accurate nitrate test result. It may be that your original test at home was not accurate. Conversely, it is possible that your LFS test was not performed properly. For my part, I like to test water to determine major "out-of-bounds" parameters, but I like to rectify this way watching the tank carefully over time. None of my aquariums are show-stopping aquascapes. But I can typically tell by watching things for a few minutes if something is out of balance. It may be that the hornwort needle droppings affected your nitrate. But perhaps something else is going on here too. It doesn't sound like you overdid the EasyGreen. I am not a chemist, and cannot say if there's any compositional changes that may occur to it if unused for any long period of time. I have heard reports (I cannot confirm or deny) that decaying plant materials produce more ammonia in planted tanks than dying fish. If the nitrate increase was a steady rise, perhaps that's what happened. On the other hand, if it was a spike immediately following addition of fertilizers, perhaps something else went on here.

Sounds like you're doing well. I'll suggest maybe investing in some new / different foods. Vibra bites are OK once in a while, but as a standard fare, they may lack some nutrients. Plus, if they get old or rancid, as with all fish food, nothing good follows. @Colu might chime in with insights on medication and treatments. As for salt baths, I'm no help -- having never tried it with my fish before. ACO has a great article I'd refer you to though here: https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/aquarium-salt-for-sick-fish

Love these posts! Is there ever much interest from your customer base for North American natives besides the Florida Flagfish? Are the laws in Washington State very strict about selling species such as Rainbow Shiners? Or native Darters? Just curious. I know that our LFS out here stays focussed on the bread-and-butter sellers. Neither of our local stores has a temperate / cool water tank. But If it's allowable where you're at, I'd be curious to see if just one tank set up featuring friendly, compatible U.S. natives would garner enough interest to make it worth while.

Have you ever considered the Red Flame Sword? It's also a petite Echinodorus species, but grows lovely colorful brown and rusty leaves along with green. I have a similar sword form the CoOp called a "Red Melon" sword that is easily my favorite small sword ever.

Awesome! If you do nothing, some of those eggs will hatch and a few fry might make it in the jungle. They must like something you've got going on! Changing tanks is one of the trigger-tricks breeders use for certain species to get them to spawn. Something about new digs turns them on!

So sorry to hear. How often do you perform water changes? What temperature is this tank being kept at? What foods are you currently feeding the tank? Bettas are sometimes very hardy fish. But other times, they're old or inbred, disease-prone, etc. We've had both kinds in our hobby at home over the last few years. It seems like you're being attentive, and doing a good job. If the other fish in the tank seem happy as ever, it may be something with him. If your substrate is getting really mucky, sometimes these fancy Bettas get fin rot when they rest on the bottom over night a lot. I'd just do a 25% water change, using something to treat the tap water. I'd make sure the temperature was warm enough. Almond leaves (Catappa leaves) are very beneficial. Make sure your food is not old / rancid . . . and take care not to overfeed your fish tank. Others can chime in with thoughts on treatment. Different aquarists handle treatment decisions differently. Some isolate in quarantine early, and dose with focussed medicines. Others tend to work on the fish by carefully adjusting the environment and allowing healing to occur in their tank. It does depend on what's going on with him.

I've yet to try breeding Bolivians. They sure can develop once colors if well cared for. They really resemble mini geophagus -- much more than GBRs. I especially like the way that they display pink on their fin edges. I suspect that a diet reasonably high in carotenoids is helpful (e.g. brine shrimp, krill, vibra bites, Xtreme krill flakes, Bug bites color enhancing flakes, etc.)

1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 33 54 87 141 ... (my wife is going to cancel this Fibonacci fellow!)

At our fish club, some folks sell them in sealed plastic food storage containers. They fit 2/3 with the vinegar mixture, and leave ca. 1/3 air t the top. One breeder sells his with an added piece of sponge since the eels like a bit of structure to group around. I think that you could sell them in any bottle. Vinegar Eels are very hardy. I did find, however, that you want to keep them away from sustained periods of direct sunlight on a window sill. I buy vinegar "with the mother" in from the natural foods section of our grocery store and add that as my use depletes the vinegar. Sometimes I add a small slice of fresh apple . . . but I'm not convinced that's all that necessary. If you haven't watched it, Cory's recent visit to Dean's fishroom features a lovely Vinegar Eel setup. It's worth watching just to see the Eels!! 😂

@Torrey I do understand. We made it out the last few years during the off-season. On the Shakleford Banks, I snapped this of the horses... But also this indelible sign of the times, even out on the banks... My little guy went hunting for Mosquito fish... And my wife and I enjoyed quiet beach walks with very few folks around (we go in off-season)...

@Torrey we often vacation down near Emerald Isle, NC. The Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium has a fascination freshwater exhibit. Loads of darters that most people fly by. They're my absolute favorites now...

I've finished adding links to articles and videos for NANF from Alabama through Michigan, going back through the list alphabetically. I continue to learn so much in this project. Sometimes I stumble upon a research-work-of-love by some obscure biologist who has spent years patiently documenting observations on a single species. But I am also fascinated by the random person who just grabs some fish from their backyard, puts it in a tank, and shows how natives can adapt to captivity. I learned that Mummichogs were the first species of fish sent into outer space (1973). And I had no idea how many people are into "micro-fishing" for small native fish on ultralight tackle. I've discovered a number of species that did not make this list . . . and I am thinking of going through every state, and adding a different fish from each state to continue this study. Right now, I'm watching videos of the Tangerine Darter eating black worms in a museum fish tank . . . and swimming naturally in its wild environment in the upper Tennessee river system . . . it's such a bright, lovely fish. I feel like every U.S. native tank should feature some.

“Cortana, I’m going to need some Aquarium Info!”

Great start! I’m curious where you found the moss at in your tank? Bear in mind: a female guppy will hold onto milt from any male who has spawned with her for a long, long time. Generally speaking, the first few batches will put out colors unlike the male you’ve chosen. After awhile, his genes begin to take over. I love those Bug Bites flakes! I use them quite often. Other food servings can balance out their diet too. I like Omega One Kelp flakes. Not an absolute favorite in the fishroom, but a very balanced food choice.

@Johannes That certainly seems like a very good possibility! The adult males of that species color up dramatically in spawning season. Here are a few photos I found of Phoxinus phoxinus with that similar vertical barring that appears on the sides of yours... In addition, a number of uploads by naturalists and hobbyists combined can be found here on fishbase. Photos from the Phoxinus Genus have been uploaded here on iNaturalist as well. Again, those males in breeding colors are absolutely stunning...

Working on finding articles and videos to link up on my NANF list, I stumbled upon this video . . . this YouTube Channel . . . this new Killifish. Love it all! The Argentine Pearl Killifish (Austrolebias nigripinnis) also goes by a nickname that recommends it as a target for @Baphijmm who works at an observatory out west: "The Starry Sky Fish." Enjoy ya NERMs...

The cap, with excellent, varied LED lighting is a huge game-changer. You can get reddish-plants, pop on a pink LED over them, and end up with something that looks like this. Lots of plants -- you'd need to carefully plan through the soil, so that those plants can explode like this. Basically: Build the FLORA. Then add the FAUNA.

I'd suggest looking into a _female_ powder blue dwarf gourami. Much less boisterous than the males. But they retain the lovely colors.

Here is what inspires me right now. I’d love to see something resembling this done on a smaller, 20gal long scale…

Hmm… if she’s egg-bound, you could read through this article. Looks pretty bloated. Whether eggs or not, I’m unsure. She’ll need a strict diet, and careful attention.

(“Whoops!” Oh Brittany…) For tannins, I learn a lot here. Study designs built by others…