Minanora
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Posts posted by Minanora
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Happy Thanksgiving!
My otos! Three of them are gravid and I am trying to figure out what to do about it. I didn't expect to have three of four be female. I've ruled out dropsy. There's no pinecone effect, they're just round. They're happy as can be! Not as round as some I've seen that are gravid, but I'm most certain that mine are carrying eggs. I do not think that my male is mature enough to do anything about it... I would put in the oto from the 20G but he's just now coming back out from having been bullied by the sheer volume of guppy fry in that tank. There's now only 2! The rest are in the 10G. 108 in the 10G.... probably 30 in the 75G. Then Misty and Shiva are about to pop any day now. Needless to say, the guppies are getting separated by gender as of tomorrow.
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I remember the first time I put cucumber in one of my tanks. My husband was so concerned because it wasn't "fish food". I was a little nervous. But we feed our other pets fresh food, so why should the fish be any different? So long as it's nutritious, not poisonous, etc. Variety is great and treats are always good. This post reminds me of feeding chili cheese Fritos to the Bass at our lake when I was a kid. Lol they were huge bass! Then the story from kg tropicals where one of their store regulars only fed her Oscar premium beef hotdogs. Apparently her fish lived a long time!
Adding that I would never feed Fritos to fish as an adult.
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Cool beans. Glad you found a good buffer. I may give that one a try in my next tank! Ty. I can hardly wait to see photos of your scape!!! So exciting! I try to photograph mine weekly on my 75G to see the progress.
A side note on tetras, I have 7 happy healthy tetras in my 20G that up until a few weeks ago was at a pH of 8.2. it's currently at 7.9-8ish... thus my issues with every plant in that tank except the Pogostemon and one resilient crypt tropica. I'll get the pH down eventually. Slowly, but surely. That tank has inert substrate which I can't change for a while.
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I agree with Casual; But pH and hardness have an effect as well. I'd keep my pH close to 7.5 for a wide variety of plants to do well. I have a tank with a pH of 8.2, but the plants in there don't do as well, except my Pogostemon. I have a more acidic tank that is at 6.8 and everything thrives in there without CO2.
A good place to look at plant pH parameters are online shops that carry the plants you're considering. I've gone on several websites to find this information. Bruce plants generally has the information on the species listing pages. If you're wanting plants to thrive. pH, hardness, iron, all of these are contributors to how plants are able to take up nutrients and process them. Similar to how Blueberries need acidic soil, Grapes need neutral soil and high iron to fruit, Tomatoes need calcium but not too much magnesium, and so on.
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@Colu Thank you! Your guidance is greatly appreciated! You rock!
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On 11/20/2021 at 9:06 PM, MoshJosh said:
but we will likely be moving in 1-2 years
When my husband and I bought our house we said we'd only live here for 3-4 years. It's been 7 and we know it will be at least another 2 before we move.
I recommend making improvements for the things you enjoy, you never know what may happen with your plans.
If you're just wanting to over-winter, put all the tanks close together, insulate below and around them and use in tank heaters. Covering the tanks will help retain heat as well.
For a fish room, if you're not able to insulate the walls and ceiling (the insulation will help in the summer to keep things cooler as well), insulate your shelf bottoms or tank bottoms at least, and the backs/sides of the tanks.
In any case. Separate the open space between the fish room and shed stuff/storage with painters cloth or better yet make a wall with an door opening that has either a door or painters cloth. Less space to heat/insulate/cool. Keeps some humidity in.
Definitely put some damp-rid in the shed stuff side to protect your stuff from the moisture.
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@Colu that is a very good point. Thank you for the reminder. Catching then will be an adventure... Do you think it's better to treat the whole tank, or pull them out? Paracleanse, expel or what do you recommend?
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@Colu Thank you so much for the input. That really puts my mind at ease. Everyone seems to be perking up a bit; I've seen more usual behaviors over the last 12 hours, two of them are still on "chill mode" and they look a bit thin/small but the other four are happy and cruising as per the usual. I did add an air stone today, just because.
Nobody in my 75 really takes the bug bites. I usually have to pull them out in the morning. The corys do like frozen bloodworms and brine. I'll have to pick up some of the Hikari wafers. Tomorrow is bloodworm day. Today is the "light feed" where I mainly feed for the fry and Rasboras. I have a loose cycle of rotation for feeding. The Sera tablets I just picked up on Wednesday to add variety.
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@scott the fishmanWhat are those test strips you're using? I'm interested in testing for metals as well.
My pleco is well fed but he's all about eating my crypts and Java Fern.... Just for fun I guess. They must be tasty.
I agree with everyone about ferts. Especially if your nitrates are super low.
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@Odd Duck thank you. I didn't want so many babies, I let Misty and Shiva have their last babies in the 20G without putting them in a breeder, hoping that the other guppies, swordtails, tetras would eat most of them. Nope. Misty's babies were fearless and always up at the top of the tank... Nobody was interested in eating them. Shiva's babies were at the bottom, nobody ate them. So here I am, 70+ babies in a 20G high. I have to check nitrates every day. They grow, and so does the bio-load!
The Amanos, if there are any left, there's only one or two. Sadly I've pulled out the corpses of two. They are very good at hiding, but I'm pretty sure the hardness won. I still feel awful for not thinking about the hardness. My LFS recommended then based on the stocking and pH of my tank, so I hadn't done much research before I got them. I assume it's the hardness. Regardless, no more shrimp until I get the hardness down further. Also plan to get a more comprehensive test for metals.
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On 11/20/2021 at 8:56 PM, xXInkedPhoenixX said:
Pobre Paco 😔
I know... I feel terrible, but seriously he's loco. I'm hoping Misty is okay. She's been hiding a lot since that happened to her. She's still eating at least, and comes to see me. Just hides any other time.
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Got a few photos of the 20G. Moved Pako into the 20G... He can't be with female guppies... he made misty crash into something so hard that she's bruised on one side of her face to her gill. It's purple, her eye is black, and she has a bump on her head. Pako is banned from the ladies. Changed some water, watched some fish. Lost a Corydora. The first loss of the 7 I got back on the 5th.
The 20G has about 60 baby guppies not including the 12-15 Derp Squad Gen 1. I have to change water weekly to keep it under 10ppm Nitrates. So far no issues with ammonia or nitrite. I see tiny nudges below .25ppm nitrate now and again, but Prime does its thing and it's totally fine after it wears off. I'm moving the 10G into my office, (onto my new desk!), to grow Derp Squad 3-4 out. After they're done, that will be the home of Chili Rasboras. Future fry batches will be at the mercy of the 75G ecosystem until late spring, when I can do outdoor tubs to grow fry out. I'm already starting a plant bank for that project.
The 20G population: Red wag swordtail male is Mushroom, Red mutt swordtail female is Pepper, Red Tuxedo male guppy is Pako... He had to get moved as I said, The 3 glowlight tetras are "The Police", The 4 neon tetras are Arnold, T1, T2 and T3.
I've been playing with my "chill time" lighting profiles on my 75G. Been a lot of fun. I love teal/greens.
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- pH - 7.6
- Nitrates - 5
- Hardness - 12
- Nitrite- 0
- Ammonia - 0
- KH/Buffer - 12
- Water Temperature 76.6
Hi fam.
I've had these Corydoras since the 5th. I had 7. I have 6 as of today.
Over the last 4 days I've noticed that everyone has slowed down a bit. More chill time, less flying everywhere, being giddy and excited. I still see some playing, but it's much quieter in coryville.
As of Tuesday, I started giving them the Sera bottom feeder tablets. Before that the got overfed by my toddler on Sunday, which is when I noticed them slowing down, after that feeding.
Today I changed 5% of the water; it's the first water change they've experienced in this tank. My Nitrate is always around 5ppm, but I am changing water to lower the hardness and pH gradually. Found out that I murdered all of my Amano shrimp with my uber hard water.... Sadness. 😞
Anyway, before the water change, I noticed that one of the runty corydoras was breathing very rapidly. About an hour after the water change, he was upside down on a tuft of my Chirstmas Moss... Then he darted up to the surface to get some air, which is also super unusual.... and just freefell back to the bottom of the tank. Shortly after that, he died.
I've seen one or two other corys go to the surface for air today, this has never happened. I did use my magfloat today, which means more stuff in the water. So I just added some Fritz Clarifier and raised the flow on my Canister.
I just want to get some input. Is it normal for Corys to slow down like this? What about them going to the surface for air? That cory that passed away was pretty thin but I feed well, and if the toddler has anything to say, they get fed REALLY well... that only happened the once.
Could the Sera tablets be making them constipated? Anyone have experience with these?
I've read also that I should expect to lose about 30-40% of corydoras... but I can't accept that.
My current plan is to fast the tank for 24 hours, then give everyone some skinned frozen peas. I can't fast the tank too much because I have baby swordtails that are impossible to catch in my scape.
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Amazing! I love your basement. There's so much variety! Happy plants and lots of babies!
Do you put desiccant in your dry foods that you refrigerate? Do you get any condensation? I've been afraid to keep my dry food that isn't higher moisture in the fridge.
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They are veracious! Mine love to steal my plecos repashy.
The grate you have on the bottom looks like a plastic storm drain grate. Is it?
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I completely agree. Your tanks and fish are so lovely. I'm so glad you get that moment of "worth it". Time management can be especially hard with kids.
I only have the one kiddo for now, but between him, the dogs, the house, our property, toys, other hobbies, and work of course... it can be hard to not feel like the aquariums are more "unnecessary" work. I feel like that on days where I spend 4+ hours between the three tanks I have. Somehow I still want more tanks! Insane... but I love my fish kids and the peace they bring me. I'm fortunate in the fact that I work from home most days and get to spend lots of time near each tank when I'm home.
I've scrolled through this whole page of others comments and photos. You guys are all so wonderful. I'm thankful to have been welcomed into this community. All of your tanks, advise, fish, humor, dedication... I enjoy and appreciate it all.
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The holes in the leaf on the second and third photo look like a pleco had a snack.
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Pictures of the 20G tomorrow. There's so many babies in that tank. It's a little crazy.
Shrimp tank is coming along. Starting to make adjustments to the water profile. I didn't want to put tiny castle ruins in it, but husband did. It's growing on me. Thinking about attaching some of the ferns to it. I also want to put some wood in there. Trying to decide what kind. Leaning towards cholla for ease of adding plants.
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On 11/18/2021 at 7:45 PM, Beardedbillygoat1975 said:
I really like your double sword male. Great group of guppies it’ll be fun to see as the mutts emerge.
Thank you! I love all of my kids. Derp squad 1-2 are almost there with their colors, squad 3-4 is going to be a totally different mix.
Sword squad 1 is very interesting in color. They look a lot like mom and dad, but with some white patches. I'm sure that will clear as the age.
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Photos of the guppies! The Dumbo red mosaic male is named Mac, Red mosaic girl is Shiva (blue tail), red tuxedo male is Pako, Lyretail male is Goby, the mutt orange tail is Misty. Pako has made Misty a little cranky... Shiva is tolerating Goby, but only because he's such a good dancer. Mac isn't really interested in the girls. His mate passed away a few days ago unfortunately. He occasionally hits on Shiva. Pako is.... a nuisance. But he's very friendly. It's a shame that he's so aggressive in pursuing the females. Even with 5 girls he was out of control.
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On 11/18/2021 at 3:35 PM, Guppysnail said:
I have seen lots of types of babies. Each new one I get giddy like it’s the first fry I have ever seen. There is nothing cuter on the planet than fry…in my opinion 🥰
I totally agree. I can't stop watching them... My boss called me to talk shop and I told him that I was done working, watching the fish, talk to me about anything but work. Lol He thinks I'm a crazy person. Which, he's right! *Shrug*
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On 11/18/2021 at 3:22 PM, Guppysnail said:
Congratulations on your new babies 🎉🎈🎊
Thank you! I've never seen babies other than guppy babies in my own tanks, so that was a surprise. I love them just the same! I can hardly wait to see them grow into beauties like their parents. I want to keep one male and name him Wort. 😛
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Welcome! My return to the hobby was also born of a free 10G tank that was gifted to me by a friend.
Your tanks are awesome!
Also, hooray! Another IT person haha.
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Ah glorious day. I was observing everyone in the 75G and picking out snails. Then I look to the back corner near the intake sponge and see, what appears to me, to be a very sick looking guppy baby. On Tuesday I transferred all of the adult guppies, and a handful of the newest batch of babies into the 75G. Pako is way too happy about that... I think he's going to get moved away from the group... again... ANYWAY, so I'm looking at this little tiny fish thinking "oh no, that looks like a very sick fish.... what is going on here!?" Then upon further inspection I think "Hmm, that doesn't look like a guppy.... the tail is too narrow, body shape isn't right... and the color..." then it hits me! "THE SWORDTAILS! SWORDTAIL BABIES!" I unfocus my attention from the one I saw and see maybe 8 more of the same coloring/shape/size. "YES!" I'm super excited! These are my beautiful black swordtails children. However, I was hoping to catch mom before she dropped.... I'm concerned that many have been eaten. This is her first batch of fry, so hopefully I'm wrong and it's just a small batch that less have been eaten from, but I see more than 8, they're just very, very, hard to see. I'm so excited! I am bummed that she had them outside of a breeder box, I had noticed her being a bit more nippy but I was sure I had another week. If I had known she was about to pop I would have held off on adding the other guppies.
Pretty sure all but one of the Amano shrimp is gone. I don't really understand why; water parameters are perfect, food is abundant, temperature is good. For some reason they just didn't make it. I'm sad, but I'm hoping that I'll have a fruitful colony of sakura orange shrimp in the shrimp tank, and will repopulate the 75 with adults from that tank.
All 4 of the Otos are happy as can be! Full tummies, active swimmers. The Cory's have slowed down a bit, but they still play quite often, just not as much as the first week they were here. I see them hanging out in what I call the "Cory bench". It's very cute to see them pile together. I generally see 4 or 5 together at a time. All 7 are present.
Guppy derp squad 1-2 is coloring up quite nicely, while guppy derp squad 3-4 are notably darker in color than the first squad. They're also much more adventurous and do. not. care. about the Harlequins chasing them off for food rights. Totally unphased and just swim right into them.
Pako.... He needs to calm down. He's more interested in spawning than eating... it's kind of crazy. He's a bully.
Merlin and Mim the Swordtails are courting from time to time and I've seen several successful sessions. I'm sure more babies will be coming in the new year!
Photo order: Cory bench, Baby retreat, Main tank, Swordtail baby middle of last photo!
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What is this fry?
in Fish Breeding
Posted
SO CUTE!!!!! Molly fry for sure. They look a bit bland at first. they color up much more around 1 month old. Congratulations!