Pseudo-saltwater journal

[OnlyGenusCaps]

On 12/9/2021 at 11:57 PM, ChemBob said:

spousal approval

Yes, that's a double edged sword.  It keeps me from doing projects I want to all the time, but it also keep me from being the weird [fill in the hobby blank] guy on the street. 

[OnlyGenusCaps]

Well, that didn't take long!  Seems the boys, or at least one of them, has convinced another lady to deal with a mouth full of eggs again.  She's even a bit smaller than the previous one, so I am not hopeful in terms of her likelihood of successfully raising them to fry.  But, it's nice to know I'll get fairly frequent chances with them.  Still, I'll hope for the best.  These are such beautiful F1 with location.  I'd love to get more of them in this world. 

[OnlyGenusCaps]

Well, well, well.  Two days ago, I thought I saw a flash of a small fish in the rockwork.  Just enough to think there might be something there.  Was that a Julie baby?  Have they reproduced in the rocks?  They sure are defending them.  Maybe!

However, patient searches yielded nothing.  Then today, as I went to feed my fish, I saw a little flash again.  But this time in a dark corner near the top of the tank by the overflow, prefilter.  Upon closer inspection, sure enough, there is a little fish there.  A Cyp.  A baby Cyp!  🤯  She did bring her fry to maturity.  All on her own, and her first time!  I couldn't be more proud of this little lady!

Sure, one fish is not impressive in terms of production.  But it does tell me that this species combo is not lethal for the Cyps actually colony breeding.  Well, there goes my case for a cylinder aquarium.  For now...  😈

Sadly, I can't seem to get a photo of it.  It's doing a great job being in that dark corner.  But it managed to grab a few crushed flakes, so I think there's a chance it'll make it. 

[eatyourpeas]

Congratulations, grandpapa! Looking forward to pictures when you get the chance! 😎

[OnlyGenusCaps]

My legendary terrible photography skills are still at play here, but I did manage, with some effort, to get a photo that proves there is a Cyp fry in the tank.  Or Sasquatch.  Definitely some creature moving through out-of-focus areas.  Could go either way.

I hadn't noticed until I shined the flashlight on it, but it already seems to have a bit of yellow and blue going.  That's crazy!  The color on these little beauties have absolutely beaten my best hopes.  I think I'm a sardine keeper for life.  🙊

[Torrey]

I love the two shadows due to the thickness of the glass! Definitely a babes there, and yes, I see yellow very clearly. 

What an exciting surprise!

Maybe Barbie's husband is onto something, handing visitors a flashlight before sending them into the fish room😁

[Crabby]

Oh wow, how cute!! How big is it?

[OnlyGenusCaps]

On 12/19/2021 at 6:43 PM, Crabby said:

How big is it?

It's pretty good size; I'd say about 5-6mm.  I think at this point it is too large to be directly eaten by any of the adults in the tank.  I'm sure they could kill it and rip it apart, but they couldn't get it down in one gulp.

Today's discovery is that I was wrong - yet again.  I'd thought that the small flash I saw in the rockwork must have been the Cyp baby.  Nope.  I saw it again.  This time more clearly, and while the Cyp baby was out in the water column.  So, I've got at least one more fry in there!

Big question that remains though is, fry of what?  Would the Julies tolerate a Cyp baby hiding next to them in their rocks?  They sure don't seem to tolerate much else.  Could it be a Juli baby?  That would be incredible!  If I am already getting young from both species, then this combo definitely works together as a dual colony breeding setup.  Sadly, the moment the small fish in the rocks noticed me peeking, it darted away not to be seen again.  Seems I need to be sneakier.  And don't get your hopes up on a photo.  🤪  I guess I'll just need to keep an eye out and try to figure it out from flashes of sightings. 

[OnlyGenusCaps]

Turns out there are at least two little fish in one of the rock piles!  They are absolutely cichlids based on how they move their dorsal fins.  Of course because I only have two Tangs in there, this helps narrow the identification down not a whit.  It's like a maddening treasure hunt!  Every time I try to learn more, I get new information, but not the piece I was seeking.  Who are you baby fish???!!!  🙀

[OnlyGenusCaps]

Well, confirmed yesterday: I have at least two young Julidochromis ornatus 'Congo' yellow hiding in the rock pile on the left.  That means the two Tang species in there are capable of successfully colony breeding together.  This is just the best news in my mind!  I prefer to colony breed my fish when I can, but this is my only tank with two species of fish in it.  In some ways I actually think these two work better together than along.  Well, at least for the Julies.  The territorial pairs are not harassing the subordinate individuals who like to shoal with the Cyps.  Seems like thy might reduce intraspecific aggression together and still be able to breed.  Not bad in my estimation.

I wonder what other species I can colony breed together....?

[Crabby]

😲

Congrats! It’s so cool to hear you can do that. I would have thought it unlikely (considering the amount and kind of fish) but as you said, it’s so much better to be able to use a single tank to colony breed multiple species. I’m a big fan of that approach too (where possible).

[OnlyGenusCaps]

Well, unfortunately the one Cyp fry I had went missing two days ago.  No sign of a body, but it's been hanging out in the same spot for weeks and now it's gone from there and doesn't seem to be anywhere else.  I think I'm going to try a Zenzo style ABS tube hide to see if that helps in the future.  I'd be surprised if anyone in there ate it as it was easily 9mm, if not 10mm last I saw it.  It was getting a bit more bold and venturing out further though.  Who knows...

The good news is that the latest female Cyp has released her fry.  Today!  Saw one in the rockwork.  It's so tiny compared to the one I lost.  The Julies don't seem to care that it is there.  One of the females still guarding her fry in that pile swam right alongside the Cyp fry and didn't seem interested.  That seems good.  Still, I'm planning on making a little rock pile for the fry to better hide out from the adults.  Hopefully that helps too.

Last update: the Julie fry are growing at a clip.  They are starting to hang out at the openings to the rockwork caves.  Still can't get a real count though.  Much like the older Cyp fry, these seem like they are getting bolder at this stage.  Hopefully they don't meet with the same fate.  I'm optimistic though because the parents are still clearly protecting them. 

That's all from the fake reef for now.

[OnlyGenusCaps]

Busy night ahead, but I wanted to post a bit of a concerning update quickly.  Seems a disease that wiped out my fish in another tank (the old Algae Ecosystem Journal) has made an appearance in this tank.  One of the male Cyps is exhibiting the same symptoms.  I now suspect that is why I lost of the Cyp fry a couple days ago.  Unfortunately, even with @Colu's help, I never figured out what the issues was last time and all the fish in that tank died over the course of about a month, despite medication efforts.  Because of the time lag, I suspect it is a parasite of some sort, so I'll be adding Expel to the tank.  I couldn't get it locally today, so I've ordered it from the Co-Op.  Thank goodness for their fast shipping!  As always, I'll document the outcome.  Wish me luck folks! 

[Torrey]

On 1/7/2022 at 4:10 PM, OnlyGenusCaps said:

Busy night ahead, but I wanted to post a bit of a concerning update quickly.  Seems a disease that wiped out my fish in another tank (the old Algae Ecosystem Journal) has made an appearance in this tank.  One of the male Cyps is exhibiting the same symptoms.  I now suspect that is why I lost of the Cyp fry a couple days ago.  Unfortunately, even with @Colu's help, I never figured out what the issues was last time and all the fish in that tank died over the course of about a month, despite medication efforts.  Because of the time lag, I suspect it is a parasite of some sort, so I'll be adding Expel to the tank.  I couldn't get it locally today, so I've ordered it from the Co-Op.  Thank goodness for their fast shipping!  As always, I'll document the outcome.  Wish me luck folks! 

Wishing you the best for you and your tanks!

 

[OnlyGenusCaps]

Well, turns out last night one of my kids come in and announces "Dad, I found the sick fish!"  "Where is it?" I ask.  "It's floating upside down on the bottom."  "I think we can stop calling it 'sick' now."

So, that's one down.  If anything it seems the Cyps succumb even faster than the pupfish did once you can tell they are sick. 

Also I wanted to be clear about my mentioning Colu in the last post (I hadn't intended to tag him).  It was intended as an indication of how mysterious this thing is - if Colu's advice didn't solve it, then you know it's bad!

I do think think it is a parasite of some sort though at this point.  And now that it's in a tank in the house and not secreted away in my basement fish rack, I have learned that one of my wife's post-docs previously studied fish parasites.  So, I'll be preserving the unfortunate individual from yesterday and hopefully she can find the cause of death.  Good to know that's a resource currently!

Lastly, I wanted to thank everyone who hit the "like" button on my last post.  No one used the "sad face" emoji and I appreciate that!  The next several posts are likely to be unfortunate, and that's a bummer.  But, I am motivated to figure this out, so it's not a sad thing in that regard.  I'll press on despite the outlook not being great at the moment. 

[eatyourpeas]

On 1/8/2022 at 6:07 AM, OnlyGenusCaps said:

Well, turns out last night one of my kids come in and announces "Dad, I found the sick fish!"  "Where is it?" I ask.  "It's floating upside down on the bottom."  "I think we can stop calling it 'sick' now."

So, that's one down.  If anything it seems the Cyps succumb even faster than the pupfish did once you can tell they are sick. 

Also I wanted to be clear about my mentioning Colu in the last post (I hadn't intended to tag him).  It was intended as an indication of how mysterious this thing is - if Colu's advice didn't solve it, then you know it's bad!

I do think think it is a parasite of some sort though at this point.  And now that it's in a tank in the house and not secreted away in my basement fish rack, I have learned that one of my wife's post-docs previously studied fish parasites.  So, I'll be preserving the unfortunate individual from yesterday and hopefully she can find the cause of death.  Good to know that's a resource currently!

Lastly, I wanted to thank everyone who hit the "like" button on my last post.  No one used the "sad face" emoji and I appreciate that!  The next several posts are likely to be unfortunate, and that's a bummer.  But, I am motivated to figure this out, so it's not a sad thing in that regard.  I'll press on despite the outlook not being great at the moment. 

Dealing with disease is very difficult. I am experiencing this for the first time as well, and the not knowing the cause is extremely frustrating! I hope you can figure it out and find a prompt treatment. 😞

[Torrey]

On 1/8/2022 at 7:07 AM, OnlyGenusCaps said:

Well, turns out last night one of my kids come in and announces "Dad, I found the sick fish!"  "Where is it?" I ask.  "It's floating upside down on the bottom."  "I think we can stop calling it 'sick' now."

So, that's one down.  If anything it seems the Cyps succumb even faster than the pupfish did once you can tell they are sick. 

Also I wanted to be clear about my mentioning Colu in the last post (I hadn't intended to tag him).  It was intended as an indication of how mysterious this thing is - if Colu's advice didn't solve it, then you know it's bad!

I do think think it is a parasite of some sort though at this point.  And now that it's in a tank in the house and not secreted away in my basement fish rack, I have learned that one of my wife's post-docs previously studied fish parasites.  So, I'll be preserving the unfortunate individual from yesterday and hopefully she can find the cause of death.  Good to know that's a resource currently!

Lastly, I wanted to thank everyone who hit the "like" button on my last post.  No one used the "sad face" emoji and I appreciate that!  The next several posts are likely to be unfortunate, and that's a bummer.  But, I am motivated to figure this out, so it's not a sad thing in that regard.  I'll press on despite the outlook not being great at the moment. 

I want to 💜 your positive outlook, and let you know that I am grateful you are documenting so much. 

Glad you discovered a resource to [hopefully] help identify what is happening. 

(Yes, I am ORD again 😏)

[OnlyGenusCaps]

Don't you just hate it when you order meds and then the USPS tracking says "In Transit, Arriving Late: Your package will arrive later than expected, but is still on its way. It is currently in transit to the next facility."  🙄  In other words, they have no idea where it is right now. 

Placed a second order for the meds on the evil empire shopping site.  Still hope my Co-Op order gets here first though.  Luckily no further losses in this tank.  Did lose a fish on the rack above the initial infected tank, and pretty sure it's the same thing.  I think at this point I might need to medicate all the tanks.  If it works, great!  If not, I guess I get to fix all the stuff I would have changed in hindsight when I start from square one. 

No matter the outcome, good things will come from this.  I'll make sure of that. 

[eatyourpeas]

On 1/11/2022 at 5:08 PM, OnlyGenusCaps said:

No matter the outcome, good things will come from this.  I'll make sure of that. 

I like your positive attitude. I have a lot to learn from you! 🙃

[Atitagain]

@OnlyGenusCaps sorry to hear about this. But your attitude of worst case scenario is you learn something, is great and encouraging. There’s a lot to be said about grinding in a way your always learning. Focusing on the problem never solves the problem, focusing on solutions is what solves problems.

good luck mate 

[OnlyGenusCaps]

On 1/11/2022 at 7:46 PM, eatyourpeas said:

I have a lot to learn from you!

I'm not so sure about all that.  I'm fairly confident I have very little I could teach anyone.  😛

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

@OnlyGenusCapsim looking forward to the upcoming veterinary talk on 1/15, good timing for what’s going on in your tank world. Sorry this is occurring with all the breeding you had going on. Maybe send a question to @Zenzoaheadnof time if you need to! 

[Patrick_G]

I just got caught up on this thread. Congrats on the fry, and I hope you find a treatment for the unknown ailment. 

[OnlyGenusCaps]

So, I'm still waiting on the meds.  Probably good I bought so much though now that I'm now losing fish in every tank but one.  If this keeps up, I'll have more aquariums than anybody else - who doesn't have any fish that is.  This is going to end up being one of those defining times.  The ones you take loads of lessons from.  You know, the ones your dad would say "build character"?  Yeah, I never liked them either.  😝 

[Vanish]

Oh dear