OnlyGenusCaps Posted October 12, 2021 Author Share Posted October 12, 2021 On another thread @Patrick_G was asking me about my lighting design. Well, tonight I snapped this shot as the lights transition into their "twilight" setting: It looks like Mars. This is a state it exists in each night for about 5-10min. It is an unintended consequence of my adding red light to the twilight setting and not dropping the blue that much. I haven't changed it because I like the majority of the twilight setting, and it doesn't do this on the increase in the morning. But it makes for a funny time of day. It looks like the "blurple" used on plant grow lights in vertical grows (I'm thinking lettuce, folks! Lettuce. 🥬). Wonder what the fish think? 2 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Streetwise Posted October 12, 2021 Share Posted October 12, 2021 We live in a twilight world. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlyGenusCaps Posted October 12, 2021 Author Share Posted October 12, 2021 I have 0% idea what that is a screen shot from, but it's still darn funny! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatyourpeas Posted October 12, 2021 Share Posted October 12, 2021 On 10/11/2021 at 7:31 PM, OnlyGenusCaps said: I have 0% idea what that is a screen shot from, but it's still darn funny! Tenet? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Streetwise Posted October 16, 2021 Share Posted October 16, 2021 Just watch TENET. I don't want to spoil anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlyGenusCaps Posted October 19, 2021 Author Share Posted October 19, 2021 For some inexplicable reason the snails have stopped making their Zen garden trails of late. About two weeks ago this was what I started seeing: It's like they have all crash landed reentering from low-Earth orbit. There is no trail leading up to it, and it's happening at night because they have become completely nocturnal (probably pestered by the cichlids in the day) so I don't know what is going on exactly. Each day now, I wake up to what looks like a smattering of crash landed alien snails. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatyourpeas Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 Do they travel under the substrate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlyGenusCaps Posted October 19, 2021 Author Share Posted October 19, 2021 On 10/18/2021 at 10:01 PM, eatyourpeas said: Do they travel under the substrate? Excellent question! I hadn't really though of that. I've read somewhere that rabbit snails can/do dig, but I haven't seen evidence of that in this tank. Maybe they just can't in the 100% aragonite substrate I have in that tank? Not sure, but I don't think that is how these odd crash landings are made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torrey Posted October 21, 2021 Share Posted October 21, 2021 On 10/19/2021 at 5:21 AM, OnlyGenusCaps said: Excellent question! I hadn't really though of that. I've read somewhere that rabbit snails can/do dig, but I haven't seen evidence of that in this tank. Maybe they just can't in the 100% aragonite substrate I have in that tank? Not sure, but I don't think that is how these odd crash landings are made. It looks like my snails' patterns in the Walstad tank. Instead of the pretty cool zen designs in pristine beach sand that I started with.... they now appear to be erupting from the soil in deeper [snail made] ravines. I also have blackworms in my substrate, and the fish will obliterate the snail trail (think of the gopher 'trail mounds') leading up to the eruption point, digging into the substrate to hunt worms. I haven't seen an amphopod in 2 weeks in the Walstad tank, the endlers seem to be terrorizing everyone. 😅 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlyGenusCaps Posted November 1, 2021 Author Share Posted November 1, 2021 I've been surprised by the behavior and interactions between the two Tang species in this tank. The Cyps, which are supposed to be fairly peaceful (for cichlids) and occupy the top of the tank, are nothing like that in this tank. The tank boss is this male who is coloring up beautifully: But he is constantly harassing the other Cyps! He does battle with the subordinate male, and then the other male just faces the rocks and tries to hide. The boss also chases the females anywhere he can. There are a few of the ladies who are starting to show interest though, and for them he displays. And what a display it is too! Fluttering fins showing off all his blue and yellow glory! Interestingly, he doesn't bother the Julies at all. It's like they are occasionally inconvenient bits of flotsam. You can see on of them just hanging out mid water column in the photo above. Probably best the Cyp boss has no interest in the Julies, because each rock pile now seems to have a pair of Julies guarding them. No sign if breeding yet, but the Julies that lost out are not being harassed by the territory guarding pairs much, despite their reputation, perhaps because they hang with the Cyps. It's been really eye opening for me to watch these species together because it's broken my expectations constantly. It reminds me that often the hard and fast rules about what certain species do and thus require for proper care, may be a bit more flexible than we expect. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatyourpeas Posted November 4, 2021 Share Posted November 4, 2021 On 10/31/2021 at 6:45 PM, OnlyGenusCaps said: It reminds me that often the hard and fast rules about what certain species do and thus require for proper care, may be a bit more flexible than we expect. Quite true! The fish are stunning! I love this tank, it reminds me of a dream, a very cool dream. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlyGenusCaps Posted November 4, 2021 Author Share Posted November 4, 2021 On 11/4/2021 at 10:51 AM, eatyourpeas said: it reminds me of a dream, a very cool dream Are you still trying to get me to change the name of the tank to "Tanganyikan Dream"?! 🤣 I looked back up at the photo and that Cyp has such a sad expression to his eye. Like the weight of being tank boss rests so heavily on his pectoral fins. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatyourpeas Posted November 5, 2021 Share Posted November 5, 2021 On 11/4/2021 at 9:36 AM, OnlyGenusCaps said: Are you still trying to get me to change the name of the tank to "Tanganyikan Dream"?! 🤣 I looked back up at the photo and that Cyp has such a sad expression to his eye. Like the weight of being tank boss rests so heavily on his pectoral fins. Well, you are too young to know about Tangerine Dream, so I am not sure. Is he sad, or pondering the complications of being a monarch? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crabby Posted November 5, 2021 Share Posted November 5, 2021 On 11/5/2021 at 2:51 AM, eatyourpeas said: Quite true! The fish are stunning! I love this tank, it reminds me of a dream, a very cool dream. Well I wasn’t gonna say this, but now I can’t help it - this tank was actually in one of my dreams a couple nights ago! I was in a bit of a weird fish room with a couple fish-loving friends of mine (I’ve had a fair few dreams like this), and I remember someone saying something about @OnlyGenusCaps’s cyps, and the tank looked exactly like it does in the photos. It was pretty cool actually 😄 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlyGenusCaps Posted November 11, 2021 Author Share Posted November 11, 2021 Inspired (and taught) by @eatyourpeas, I've made my first fish video. I thought the Cyp boss chasing pretty well everyone in the tank would make a good start. So, I've made a YouTube channel, and uploaded this video. Who says Cyps are so chill?! I think the video captured the quality of the light better than the photos I've taken, but nothing I do seems to really show off the deep, iridescent blue of the male Cyps' backs. I think their backs are better looking than the blue stripe on a cardinal tetra. There, I've said it! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guppysnail Posted November 11, 2021 Share Posted November 11, 2021 That is a busy boss 🤣 Great job on the video! 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatyourpeas Posted November 11, 2021 Share Posted November 11, 2021 On 11/10/2021 at 6:31 PM, Guppysnail said: That is a busy boss 🤣 Great job on the video! And he is a beautiful swimmer too! I agree on the video, you have a future! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlyGenusCaps Posted November 11, 2021 Author Share Posted November 11, 2021 On 11/10/2021 at 8:31 PM, Guppysnail said: That is a busy boss 🤣 He does indeed seem tireless. Luckily Cyps have such small mouths he doesn't seem to be able to cause anyone any damage. And, he hasn't caused any of the other fish to really hide in a corner. There in the background you can see the one sulky males who always has his back to the boss, like if he just ignores the craziness behind him then it won't be there. On 11/10/2021 at 9:49 PM, eatyourpeas said: And he is a beautiful swimmer too! They are effortless swimmers! Where my pupfish look like Nemo's Dad struggling against a strong current anytime they want to go somewhere, the Cyps simply slice though the water. I've seen them sit with no apparent strain in front of the output from the pump, which has a random flow generator on it. That thing is putting out ~660gph, but it seems to make no difference to them. They are absolutely pelagic fish. I'd love to one day get them in something longer like a 125, with more fish, and let them school. That would be a site! 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatyourpeas Posted November 11, 2021 Share Posted November 11, 2021 On 11/11/2021 at 4:33 AM, OnlyGenusCaps said: They are absolutely pelagic fish. I'd love to one day get them in something longer like a 125, with more fish, and let them school. That would be a site! MTS alert! On 11/11/2021 at 4:33 AM, OnlyGenusCaps said: They are effortless swimmers! It was one of my favorite times when scuba diving, watching the majesty and precision exhibited by the sharks swimming around. They were amazing and beautiful! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlyGenusCaps Posted November 17, 2021 Author Share Posted November 17, 2021 So today I was trying (and failing) and getting photos of my fish in this tank for @Atitagain's African Cichlid thread, which I love and want to participate in. While I was fussing over my fish I noticed a female Cype with what looked to be a mouth full of marbles! Thinking she might be holding, I fed them immediately. She chased the food, but didn't eat. Could it be? Do I have a Cyp breeding in the works?! 🤞 As I was assessing how badly I failed at my photography project (it was abject), I noticed I had an old video of the fish in this tank on my phone. They have grown so much! The males are wildly more colorful. Something I just didn't appreciate as it has come on gradually. Take a look: 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatyourpeas Posted November 17, 2021 Share Posted November 17, 2021 They were babies not that long ago! Now off to adulthood! 😍 Congratulations on the prospect of being a grandpapa! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atitagain Posted November 17, 2021 Share Posted November 17, 2021 On 11/16/2021 at 9:39 PM, OnlyGenusCaps said: She chased the food, but didn't eat. That always is an exciting moment with cichlids! Good luck mate 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlyGenusCaps Posted November 20, 2021 Author Share Posted November 20, 2021 Well, I finally got a decent shot of the female carrying. You can see she looks like she's got a mouth full of marbles. I put the Cyps in with the Julies both because they look like SW fish in certain ways, and because I thought I could get them to both breed successfully in the tank; the Julies protecting their fry in the rocks, and the Cyps having their fry with them at the surface. As I have posted previously, the Julies that are not part of the two pairs with territories in the rock piles hang with the Cyps. The Julies have definitely made two pairs, and they keep the Cyps out of the rock piles now. With gusto! But I am concerned that the Julies in the water column are going to eat the fry, plus I've learned that the Cyp moms are prone to spitting their fry into rocks to "protect" them. In this case, I suspect they will become a quick Julie snack. I'll post updates as things progress, but I really want both species breeding. So... I'm already working on a new plan. A plan than might be tricky to get spousal approval for. I've always wanted a full cylinder tank. Not one with the central column either. Just a tube of water with nothing that breaks the line of sight through it. Those are like magic to me! Wouldn't a breeding colony of Cyps look incredible in one of those?! If they breed in this setup successfully, and the fry survive well, that's obviously better. I suppose... But, I'm looking at cylinder aquarium design (filtration seems like the real challenge). Just in case. 🤪 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnlyGenusCaps Posted December 10, 2021 Author Share Posted December 10, 2021 Well, first Cyp batch lost. She definitely dropped whatever she had today be it eggs or fry. I am given to understand it should take a bit longer to get viable fry, but there is always the chance they were eaten by the Julies. I do think she may have released early. She's pretty skinny now, and she's young. Her first batch. Plus, she's only about 6-7cm, so I'm not sure she's quite full grown anyhow. Better luck next time, I suppose. 🤷♂️ 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChemBob Posted December 10, 2021 Share Posted December 10, 2021 On 11/20/2021 at 2:20 PM, OnlyGenusCaps said: Wouldn't a breeding colony of Cyps look incredible in one of those?! I personally think this would be awesome. And I would have the same issue with spousal approval. 😆 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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