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Biotope Biologist

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Everything posted by Biotope Biologist

  1. Biotope Biologist
    Discus are very sensitive to water parameters if you are reading stable, you may be able to add more discus. They prefer to be in a school but I would only add 1-2 similar sized ones at a time. They will eat most flaked food, but for better color feeding live or frozen foods is ideal
  2. Biotope Biologist
    I am a huge fan of stocking natives. Not only are you helping genetic diversity but you also can just plant and forget so to speak. Here are a couple submerged/fringe plants: -Brasenia schreberi -Nuphar polysepala sometimes Nuphar letea -Polygonum amphibium -Elodea candensis and nutalli -Comarum palustre Native fish are much harder to come by but you can stock with fathead minnow, whiteclouds, and weather loaches (sold as dojo).
  3. Biotope Biologist
    Congrats! You are doing something right! Always rewarding to see flowers in your aquarium
  4. Biotope Biologist
    You won't have any issues. Just watch your ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite levels after adding them make sure your bacteria colony can handle the extra waste. Your water also may test on the softer side since you have plants. You would be surprised at how much organics have an effect on your water parameters. The reason they are considered a "semi-aggressive" fish is because they are one of the larger tetra species so they do not risk being eaten by piscivorous fish. They are peaceful fish and the only real problem you may see is that they like to eat new growth on some more delicate plant species.
  5. Biotope Biologist
    Yes Sand compaction is very much a thing. But that only happens when you do not establish an ecosystem. When the sand does not move and the water stagnates in the sand all sorts of anaerobic bacteria take up residence. In saltwater especially this leads to hypoxic zones that when released damage fish gills and stun or kill them. Having that been said there are ways to insure the sand moves. I personally like buying cheap submersible heater cable and suctioning it to the bottom. This establishes a convection current that moves the sand. You can also buy a small powerhead with a fan attachment or perforated hose attachment and set it upside down on the sands surface. This makes sure the sand is constantly agitated. The perforated hose will be buried and force water and thus oxygen into the sand. Gobies love sand and caves to hide in and forage for food. Establishing these environments will allow you to see how they naturally behave. They are very timid fish so being able to see these behaviors in the wild takes alot of patience and makes it even more fulfilling when you are succesful in the home aquaria
  6. Biotope Biologist
    Looks good to me! It is striking to me how many similar species we have all the way over here in Washington State. The one you are concerned about looks like an aquatic isopod of some sort, but I lack the confidence to properly I.D it. I see a caddisfly larvae halfway through building its home, stone fly larvae, cyclops, daphnea
  7. Biotope Biologist
    You can buy ones that have their own pumps. Most come with black plastic sleeves to protect your animals from the radiation. The longer the bulb the longer the irradiation time is, thus the more effective. They come in lots of varieties now. HOB, submersible, or literally in line. Although the latter is only for those with pressurized water filters. They are not cheap and I believe most bulbs only have an effective life of 6 months. Just something to mull over, although I tend not to recommend them as they literally kill all free floating things not just algae. They are mostly used for quarantine tanks for this reason.
  8. Biotope Biologist
    Relying on animals to do the work is hard. They tend to do whatever they want. I do wish you luck, Algae problems are often best resolved with elbow grease and dedication. But I also understand if you want to just plug a UV filter in and forget. Although you will have to make sure it is an inline one as certain new scientific articles suggest short wave UV radiation can cause chitin damage that may effect your shrimps health.
  9. Biotope Biologist
    Nerites don't breed in freshwater! Why they are a beloved aquascape snail. That and they are gorgeous. They are kinda lazy algae eaters though, so I wouldn't rely on them to do a good job
  10. Biotope Biologist
    If I am not mistaken @Cory loves his bladder snails that is likely what it is and there will be more. Nerite snails do not breed in freshwater. Is it just me or are all the jpegs uploaded black?
  11. Biotope Biologist
    Otocinclus are social in nature, but putting them into the aquarium where they no longer face natural predators you will see their behavior change. When you see them in an established tank they exhibit a variety of behaviors. Some become territorial over the best algae spot and chase off other otos, others group up and never leave the group. Some weirdly decide they are not bottom feeders anymore and swim around the water column. I would worry more about food than attempting a social group. Your otos and nerite snails will be happy having a supplemental diet of wafers. Although be careful with portions if you give them to much wafers they will ignore the algae. Why bother working for food when it's just handed to you right?
  12. Biotope Biologist
    I can't quite put my finger on it but something tells me you may be biased 😋
  13. Biotope Biologist
    Well there you have it! That makes sense then that you have heterozygotes. This would have been a way cooler experiment in a genetics class than boring snapdragons.
  14. Biotope Biologist
    The babies will not develop the fins until maturity. Depending on the breed you may see variation amongst females and males. I do not have specific experience with that breed. They are pretty though.
  15. Biotope Biologist
    I am so happy Bichirs are starting to get more love, they have lots of personality and truly look like dinosaurs... Not to detract from your unfortunate situation
  16. Biotope Biologist
    I think that works. the ingredients should just say carbonate salts and nothing else. This will raise your kH I am not sure the difference between the one above and Seachem Carbonate reef? I wish their website would tell us chemists what it actually had in it.
  17. Biotope Biologist
    Wow those are crazy fluctuations. I have only ever seen pH swings like that in river deltas. But, if that works for you kudos. pH swings do indicate to fish that rainy or dry seasons are upon them and make them more willing to breed. In their native rivers they can see huge pH swings from 7.5 all the way down to 4. I would say as a general rule they do prefer acidic conditions but as stated above they can live in a wide range of conditions. You should have no issue. I think OP might have meant 110 liters though? which is about 29 gallons.
  18. Biotope Biologist
    Malaysian trumpet snails are also great because they like to root through the substrate and unlike Nerite will actively breed in freshwater. But it is up to you Nerite are quite beautiful.
  19. Biotope Biologist
    Hence why common names are so frustrating! Both are males and both are thick-lipped. I would remove the aggressor as stated above and grab the other male a female to try to bond with. Hopefully your LFS is nice enough to let you return. Compatibility issues are always a pain
  20. Biotope Biologist
    It depends, which is an annoying response, I know. Algaes are harmless to everything except our idea of beauty. If you really want to get rid of it UV filtration will kill the free floating algae (FFA).
  21. Biotope Biologist
    Likely establishing dominance. Males tend not to like eachother and prefer having a harem of females or a bonded female. The one pictured appears to be a male. If you can grab profile pics of both of them we can more accurately I.D. Or just take a quick peak. Pointed dorsal rays=male rounded=female When I had golds I had one male and 4 females. Interestingly dominant females release hormones in the water to stunt the growth of lesser females thus making it more likely the male breeds with them
  22. Biotope Biologist
    Most photosynthetic algaes are fairly simple light and nitrogen and they are happy. Once the plants mature they are nitrogen sponges and effectively starve the algae to the point where new algae colonies become very easy to manage. You may also notice the green dust algae disappear in favor of slower establishing algaes such as beard algae and hair algae. I personally love the look of these algaes and you will find your shrimp and fish grazing on these.
  23. Biotope Biologist
    I hate to I.D on blurry pics but that looks like it could very well be ich. Luckily most ich medications are plant and nitrifying bacteria safe so treating in the main tank won't be an issue. Just more expensive as you likely are treating a larger volume of water. Ich medications do not kill the adult ich which you see on the body, they inhibit sexual reproduction and kill the free swimming parasites. Follow instructions and complete treatment. The adult ich will die and fall off eventually depending how far along in their life cycle they are
  24. Biotope Biologist
    You have green dust algae or green spot. Pretty common in newly established planted tanks. You got options. Physical removal will be your easiest option. Shrimp will pick it off the rocks too for a bit but not that glass. You will likely have to deal with it for a while until your plants can outcompete the algae for nutrients. Even then you will always have some. I personally like leaving it on the hardscape to soften the edges and I am lazy. Using a smaller micron filter floss will collect it out of the water column as well
  25. Biotope Biologist
    Nope tannins will slowly be released from the wood for quite awhile often staining your water with that lovely tea color. Other ways to soften water is by adding other pre-boiled organics and letting them decay. This is naturally how streams and rivers become acidic. Also you will likely get a white film on your wood when it's first introduced this is normal and a bacterial colony that will go away after awhile.
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