Chandelle Endlers, and a log of the mini menagerie

[Elodie Rose]

I hadn't intended to get back into fishkeeping, in fact, I was picking up that 2 gallon used aquarium to be used as a terrarium. But somehow I just couldn't resist putting a couple of guppies into it, and then a pink snail. Now I'm trying to learn to grow live plants, create ecosystems, and breed livebearers. It's a lot of fun, but it's like an entirely new hobby!

In past years I've kept cichlids, at another time fell in love with fancy goldfish, and most recently failed to keep a number of fancy guppies alive. I was going to try again when I found Endlers. I fell head over heels in love with them, and am now the happy caretaker of two breeding colonies. My very first batches of fry are starting to color up! 

Darkwater 10 gallon, 3 months old, 72F - misc varieties of Endlers, predominantly black bar, received from a local hobbyist. Also 6 hasbrosus corydoras, 4 green neons, and an army of snails. The water looks like iced tea when I change it, but the water lettuce, hornwort and duckweed seem to love it. 

N Class 10 gallon, 3 months old, 72F - N class red chest Endlers from Shenandoah Aquatics, which I dream of supplementing someday from AdrianHD, but not just yet. There are 4 corydoras paleatus in it, which were purchased by mistake when I was trying to find corydoras habrosus. They seem happy, though I have plans to move them to a bigger tank so I can add to their little group. 

Japan Blue-gold lyretails, less than 1 month old, 76F, this is a 5 gallon quarantine tank suddenly turned into a temporary breeding tank. My pair from Dansfish arrived, and the female promptly gave birth to half a dozen tiny golden fry. I didn't have anyplace else to put the adults, so I added a bunch of acrylic yarn for the babies to hide in, and put in a few more ladies so the original mama didn't get hassled too much. This is temporary, and I need to be figuring out a solution involving at least a 10 gallon.

20 gallon for egg-scattering fish - new, finally regathering the fish that were scattered into makeshift tank situations when their tank broke a couple weeks ago. There are 10 galaxy rasboras/CPDs, 3 white clouds (the 4th died last night), and 1 rainbow shiner (the other 2 disappeared). There are a few misc male endlers in here, who are flirting madly with the poor single shiner. 

Zoe's 2.5 gallon - darkwater tank for a gorgeous Betta, a little Valkyrie. She's a halfmoon mustard gas Betta that I impulsively imported from Thailand when I fell in love with Irene's Betta Sonic. I spoke with the breeder, who was super sweet, and am keeping her in water with a bit of salt and some of the almond leaves he recommended, since he uses them with his fish. I adore her. I feed her frozen bloodworms in the evenings, and a few pellets in the morning.

Wash's 2.5 gallon - he hasn't arrived yet, he was ordered at the same time that Zoe was, though from a different fish farm. Hopefully he will arrive tomorrow. I will never ever import fish again. 

Every tank, apart from Zoe, received the first dose of Paracleanse last night. They will receive another dose in 2 days. 

[Miska]

So: I demand regular and thorough pictures daily. (Not really- but I do humbly request photos every now and again). Also I demand a photo of Izzy. Just for @TheSwissAquarist and my edification. (His Dalmatian is amaaaaazing). 

Also: At the fish swap, what I hear is, we need to be on the prowl for rainbow shiners and Long Fin Mountain Minnows.

I can't wait to see Wash!!! And Zoe!!! Squee.

I really want to breed the Emerald Dwarfs. Are you planning on breeding the CPDS? 

[Elodie Rose]

Here are some photos! I'm definitely planning to try breeding egg scattering fish over the summer, but the white clouds will be the first. :-) 

 

 

Edited March 24, 2023 by Elodie Rose

[Miska]

There are several wonderful blogs on this!! I am following two of them right now! by @beastie

 

 

This one is about Rainbow Shiners which I know you want to breed too. But the person is a Mountain Minnow Breeder of Awesomeness! @WhitecloudDynasty

 

 

The other two journals of theirs I found to be interesting:

 

 

[Elodie Rose]

The newest member of the mini menagerie at Chandelle arrived this week, Washburne the half moon mustard gas betta male. He is active at times, but actually lays on the gravel at times, which is super weird to me, there are real plants, a decoration with a gently inclined top, and even smooth river rocks. Why on the gravel?

He turns his nose up at frozen bloodworms (thawed and dangled with tweezers at the surface, then dropped), but does eat the hikari betta pellets recommended by the LFS lady. He’s in a 2.5 quarantine tank with salt and almond leaves, recommended by the breeder, a gentleman in Thailand. 

***

Zoe, the female MG betta that I received recently, is like a little prowling tiger, her fins are so like an arrow, she’s fierce when eating and there’s no doubt she’s ‘hunting’. I adore her.  She’s still in the 2.5 gallon QT tank she’s been in, and I did a partial water change today. The water lettuce rotted instantly upon being removed from Dragon and placed into Mushroom, as it will now be known. That tank has the cutest little mushroom house, lol. A birthday gift that I think is cute. The hornwort is doing fine, of course the duckweed is fine.

She is also in slightly salted water with old tank water from Dragon, a darkwater tank. There’s a leaf in there, but I definitely need to boil them first in the future. I’ll have to do a little research. It’s the little things that trip me up sometimes. What kind of container to boil it in, or whether to just steep them, etc.  From the first hour she arrived, Zoe has been a little warrior, thus her name. She swims through the mushroom house, or lingers in it, she glides around the tank, or checks the hornwort for anything she missed while eating. 

***

The 20, named Galaxy, is doing fairly well, though I had to remove the shiner, because he was bullying others, and the single fancy guppy male, because he was being bullied. They are both in a 5 gal (with a divider like those used by Simply Betta). Not a permanent home for either of them, I have to figure out what to do with them. Rehoming is very likely, but not until the Paracleanse has been finished at least twice more. I can’t have them stressing others or getting so stressed they get some -other- sickness, since they’re likely already compromised. 

The 10 galaxy rasboras/CPDs seem to be doing well, the males have colored up quite a bit, and I see them chasing and displaying. They seem to love the grass-like seedlings growing in the back. I didn’t think they were big enough (or old enough?) to be spawning yet, but maybe they are. They’re all over the tank, from exploring the grasses to playing in the bubbles. Super cute and fun to watch.

Only 3 LF White Clouds are left, but they will be getting some company soon. They seem to be doing fine. 

Male Endlers. Male. Endlers. *Boys* why. They chased the shiner around until he got cross enough to start chasing literally everything in the tank in an attempt to carve out some territory, and then they stressed and nipped at that poor male fancy until I had to remove -him-. That poor, poor fancy. He deserves a much better  home.And now I know that I can’t mix them. 

***

Blue-Gold… why can’t we call them “lyretails” instead of “double sword tails”? I am baffled by that. It’s so inelegant, for such a graceful creatures. They are currently in a 5, which was meant to be a quarantine tank, but is now a temporary spawning tank. Originally it was a pair from Dansfish, gorgeous, lovely creatures. The female is yellow! All my other endler females *were* gray. Since then, I added a trio of similarly yellow females (one of whom belongs to Miska!), and there are a dozen or so fry in the tank, some tiny and some extra-tiny. They hide in the plastic Christmas garland, which is beneath a layer of hornwort and java moss tangled together.

I keep trying to decide whether to put them into one of the other two 10 gallon Endler breeding tanks (one mixed and one N-Class), or whether I should put them in their own 10. I don’t know yet. Right now everyone is being medicated.I’m not sure which tanks might have infected fish, after all.

The guppies that were added (I literally did not have a place to put a third Endler male at that time, the 20 wasn’t up yet, and I had makeshift tanks going everywhere while I waited for that ridiculous grass to grow… I couldn’t remove the male, he’s the one from Dansfish, a very precious boy and girl) were from House of Tropicals in Glen Bernie, and they do quarantine their fish.

However, it felt like going to battle during a Black Friday sale at Walmart. I like the idea of a line, but OMG why is the line in the exact center of like 5 pathways. WHY. I cannot go there on a weekend day anymore, never again. I’ll take a long lunch. (I’m neuro-divergent, that trip required some serious recovery time.)  Miska wrote a better post about that trip. Will add a link when editing…. I’m not quite sure how.

***

 

 

 

 

Edited March 26, 2023 by Elodie Rose
Meant to cut/paste, not post.

[Miska]

It won't allow me to react to any more posts, but LOVE THIS. 

I am happy to let her live there forever and just take offspring lmao.

 

[Elodie Rose]

[Elodie Rose]

The tanks were treated with a second round of ParaCleanse today.

***

Dragon tank, whose water is the color of sweet tea, seems to be thriving. The dwarf water lettuce and duckweed are large, and lush, the lettuce flowers are broad and the roots are very long and elaborate. I can see fry of many sizes, a few are even coloring up. Hornwort is also doing great, and somehow there’s some guppy grass. Just a single strand, from a shipment or a store, I think. The bottom of the tank is pretty hard to see, and so is the back. 

Reigning male at the moment is my Tiger Endler, or Green Cobra? I’ll have to get a good picture of him. He’s definitely yellow and black. 

The Hasbrosus gang seem to be well, I see them glass surfing once in a while, or resting in the roots of the water lettuce. Their wiggles are super cute. 

***

Zoe’s tank really needs a scavenger, but I’m worried about snails with the salt. There are so many rotting dwarf water lettuce leaves and roots, though. I wonder if an Amano would like the slightly salted water, and be too big for her to eat. That will have to wait until I can find other places for the duo currently in the 5 gallon meant for her. 

[Elodie Rose]

Gave Washburne a little exercise today. What a beautiful boy he is. I also tried him with tubifex worms, he loved them, and I’m delighted to find something he likes. I also used a Turkey baster to remove the rotted water lettuce leaves in his tank, which looks much better. 

[Elodie Rose]

Two German Blue Rams from GuppySnail joined the tiny menagerie at Chandelle, they are acclimating to their new tank. It’s the one the guppy/shiner misfits have been in for the past week or two, but they are in the 20 gallon in the office now. So now only the 2 Rams and a pair of Amano shrimp are in the tank. I hope the Amanos are okay with the high temp. I think they should be, but I’m a little worried. There’s a tiny pot of Monte Carlo and another of… something smaller… in their tank, as well as a couple handfuls of Java moss, a strand of hornwort, and inevitably, duckweed.

***

A dozen or so new shrimp, also from GuppySnail, joined the ones in the Jacaranda 10, or the office 10, where the N-Class Endlers are colony breeding. That tank has become a jungle, and I love it. I’m trying to get a crypt lutea to adjust in that tank, without noticeable success. The Anacharis Elodea, though, is doing well. There’s some in Washburne’s tank, a strand in the White Cloud 20, and they’re doing great. 

I think the Paleatus Cories in the Jacaranda 10 laid a few eggs on the glass! I scraped them off and put them in a container in the tank, in an attempt to protect them. I need to have a better plan in the future! I didn’t expect this from them, but I have been feeding them a lot of protein lately. That sheen of iridescent green they have is so lovely. 

Now that there is so much cover and so so many hiding places in this tank, I’m seeing endler babies! Itty bitty ones! They’re even brave enough to swim in the open a bit. I love it, it’s great. There are four or five young males coloring up, one of them is one of David’s endlers for genetic variety. It’s a black bar, with a lot of blue/green.

***

The White Cloud 20 is doing great! I didn’t find any Longfin white clouds at the swap last weekend, so I bid on the ones on Aquabid. The seller was fantastic, greatly helpful, and they arrived today at 68F, and went into a tank that averages 70F. The 3 older/bigger ones seemed so happy to be welcoming new buddies. I just can’t get over how lovely they are.

I put the shiner back in, but he needs a new home. He’s a little too big, I tend to like fish 2” and below. I was hoping that another dozen white clouds would help keep him from getting picked on and becoming a bully. Poor guy. That was supposed to be a trio. 

***

Amano shrimp were introduced to Washburne’s 2.5, to the German Blue Ram 5, the Zoe 2.5, and the Whitecloud 20. Two in each tank, to begin with at least, from Go Fish, $5/each. The betta tanks particularly needed scavengers, as neither will eat food once it has fallen to the gravel.
 

I wish I’d had two more to put into the Blue-gold 5, where the Japan blue-gold double swordtail from Dansfish and his little golden harem are colony breeding. 

***

Washburn’s tail is healing, it is almost completely mended now. He still lays on the gravel once in a while, but I made him a little leaf hut, and he likes swimming through it and lying on that leaf. He gets a little bit of mirror time each day, and has been eating the guppy pellets from Miska (he doesn’t like the Betta pellets, but he will eat them, spitting them out about 4 times to chew them) and tubifex worms. He loooooves tubifex worms. Tonight I showed my housemate how to feed him, what he does when shown a mirror, and where the light switch is. I would be so, so, so happy if my housemate took even the slightest bit of interest in a fish.

***

Zoe’s tank has gotten some serious tannins going. I need to get the light working on her tank, I just put a big clump of java moss in it to help the Amanos evade my little prowling tigress. She gets a mixture of hikari betta pellets and frozen bloodworms each day. I had to switch to a plastic dropper to give her the bloodworms, because she was biting the metal tweezers so hard I was afraid she’d injure her mouth. She will -sometimes- eat the worms as they fall, but half the time will ignore them to prowl at the top. She glides, she’s fierce, she is glorious. I have got to find something other than a scratched up 2-3 gallon. 

***

The 20 is doing well. The grass grew to about 6” and seems to have stopped. The pothos roots are exploding, and the java moss and duckweed tangled in its root ball seem to be doing well too. 

There are 13-15 Longfin White Cloud Mountain Minnows in it, 10 Celestial Pearl Danios/Galaxy Rasboras, a pair of Amanos, a single shiner because the other 2 died, and half a dozen misc Endlers. The tank seems to be doing great. It’s usually at 70F.

***

Edited April 2, 2023 by Elodie Rose

[Miska]

I am so glad! I cannot wait to see them! I saw them in the bag and they were amazing, but happy and colored up????

 

I can't wait to write of my adventures today too! Even in the tempest wins. 

[Elodie Rose]

Thank you so much!! I am very grateful to you and to GuppySnail. 🥰💖

[TheSwissAquarist]

Nice journal! That betta is incredibly flamboyant and Izzy looks cool too! 🙂

A picture of mine (Polo the Dalmatian and Gretel the tiny terror who makes up for her size with her attitude) 

[Elodie Rose]

What adorable babies! Thanks for posting pics, they’re such fun. 😀

 

[Elodie Rose]

Water tests this morning showed some adjustments needed to be made, and space also dictated that some stocking levels change. 

I currently have 2 Endler breeding colonies in 10 gallons, and 1 in a 5 gallon.

That 5 gallon the blue-golds are in feels too small for me, and I want them in a 10. I’m not quite sure how to accomplish that, but that’s what I’m going to work towards.  The numbers weren’t great today, so I did a 2 gal water change, and vacuumed out a ton of snail poop. I’m going to have to put in a cucumber and pull some of those out. That wasn’t set up as a permanent tank, and its starting to show. I guess even QT tanks need to be a little more thought out. Zoe needs to move out of hers, since it seems she’ll be a solo fish, and into something more permanent. 

I don’t think I can call the office 10 an “N-class” tank anymore, so that’ll be the Jacaranda tank. They got a pair of extra females and a few fry from blue-gold, as I realize that I’m not line breeding wild Endlers, and it’s okay to mix them a little. There are too many males just reaching breeding age in that tank, and as I can catch them out, they’ll go into the White Cloud 20, which I will only house *male* endlers. 

A few young endlers went into Washburne’s tank, to keep him company, and so he has something else in there with him than Amanos and snails. I really want to put the blue-golds in a 10, and give that 5 to Washburne. He doesn’t seem to have any aggression, and would probably do great with a few more guppies, maybe a few habrosus cories. They have stayed so tiny in the 10, and I love them. 

The German Blue Rams are doing well, they got a few half-inch endler buddies from my oldest tank, the one nothing has been added to in more than a month. I’m being cautious! But I am hoping that they will adjust to the heat, since they’re young, and provide a few dither fish for the GBRs, or possibly live food, but I’m working on developing other sources for live food. I tested the water this morning, numbers are the same as usual. It had been running with a pair of fish in it for a while.

One of those was the single shiner that remains of the trio that I bought from Dansfish. I’m so sad about that. Also, ouch, they were expensive. He’s back to bullying already, and nipping at the CPDs and LF WCMM. Into a breeder box he went, because I don’t have any other place to put him right now, but I’m frustrated. I really wanted him to get along in the 20, it is the best fit for him, being cool water and offering decent swimming room (at least among my nano tanks), until I find him a better home. Miska, please rescue this poor fish! That was an impulsive purchase, and I’ve regretted it. 

The Jacaranda tank in the office was a joy to watch this morning. The shrimp seem shy, but a few of them were in evidence. I may have startled them by turning on a room light, and/or turning up the tank light a bit. 

I’m learning to use a net, and very awkward with it, and not nearly slow enough or patient enough. I did better today, but I’m still dismal at it. Problem is, I want to move them around as little as possible, so I’m not getting a lot of practice. Maybe this coming week when I try to get a few of the males out of the Jacaranda tank.

The German Blue rams need names, and I’m leaning towards painters, because of the name. Before I just use any of my favorites, I want to look at the ones from that specific time period, who might have used that shade, or Prussian Blue, I’ve never been sure if they’re the same. My painting days were too long ago. 
 

Speaking of names, my single male Green Cobra (he’s most assuredly yellow) needs a name. GI Joe comes to mind, of course, I never did see the movie they made. I looooved the Community episode though. Maybe one of those, lol. The only one I can remember at the moment is Buzzkill, so that might be our winner. 

[Miska]

That's adorable. You are awesome. 

[Elodie Rose]

The above post was from a few days ago, l don’t know how I managed not to post it when I wrote it, but here I am. 

It’s been a few days. I’d noticed that Zoe had gotten pretty plump, and then yesterday I realized I could see the white spot beneath her belly, the ovipositor, which meant she was ready for breeding. 

Last night’s makeshift breeding situation wasn’t very good, but today I have them set up in a 6 gallon, with about 4-5 inches of water, she’s in a clear container, and they both are displaying at one another. I think Wash started his bubble nest, yay! I didn’t expect this so soon, but that is what I bought them for, along with my lonely desire for a true wet pet. 

While Wash is out of it, I took the chance to rehaul the 2.5 he’s been in, which was a QT tank, and hadn’t been set up for him the way I wanted it to be. He doesn’t seem to want to eat the guppies I’d put in with him as a test, so probably he will go into a community tank. I put black sand as the substrate, it’s running a sponge filter, and I removed the floating plants that just kept dying and rotting in there. I put half a dozen Japan blue-golds, as the others had gone into the Jacaranda tank. 

I posted on a fish rehoming FB group, and someone may take the misfit shiner. If not, I’m setting up an outdoor tub-pond, and he’s going in it. The breeder box situation cannot continue. I think it’s supposed to get down to the 40’s next week, so I might put in a little heater as well as a sponge filter, and some used tank water and substrate.  

The pickle jar experiment has continued, and wonder of wonders, Jar B AND Jar C both have some sprouts! Jar B has a nice big clump of them, and even though Jar C has fungused over for the most part, there are some tiny green plants struggling. I put in some tannin-garlic water last week, in an attempt to deal with the fungus. At some point, it is my hope that I can create 3 pickle jars with carpeted bottoms, and put in enough plants for a betta to be housed in while growing out, or as somewhat comfortable temporary housing. Right now I’m giving the jars sunlight, and a few sprays of water with Easy Green in it, every day or every couple days. 

Everyone else is just doing very well, I took a break from testing today, except for the GBR, whose numbers are still the same/good.

I trimmed the right half of the dwarf hair grass in the 20, because the very top ends are getting yellow-brown, and I was hoping to see if it would help stimulate growth. The areas where the root tabs are seem about the same. Of course there’s not enough substrate - I’ll be adding more periodically, I added 5 pounds or so of black sand today over the Fluval stratum. The pothos is going CRAZY in that tank, the white roots are almost creepy looking. So naturally I put baby Groot riiiight beneath them. Not sure if that’ll be cute or hideous, but I’m here for either. 

 

 

 

 

[Elodie Rose]

[Miska]

Beautiful photos! (I’m meant to be in bed but I was staring at fish) 

[Elodie Rose]

I have that problem too, lol. 

[Elodie Rose]

 

BETTA Breeding Attempt 1? Night 2-3… probably. Time blindness is a problem. That’s why I meant to keep this every night. 

So, Zoe is very willful and daring and tattered. They can almost dance, but haven’t quite gotten there. Washburne has repaired the nest that was destroyed last night, and Zoe escaped the clear plastic enclosure I’d put her in (which never happens to the Australian YouTuber I love, Keeping Fish Simple.

GERMAN BLUE RAMS 

The GBR kiddos, Simon and River, are doing great. They’ve been eating really well, although they miss a lot of the food if they don’t specifically see it falling in front of their nose. That’s why I have some young guppies growing out in that tank, and a pair of Amano shrimp. I’ve been spending time with them, Simon is usually at the glass, with bold colors. He seems to chase River away from the front, but it seems protective more than bullying. She comes out though sometimes, I’ve gotten to see a little of her colors too. She’s so dainty. 

VINEGAR EELS

It’s been 1 month since I set the first culture up in a pickle jar with plums. I checked on them, and created some other cultures with organic vinegar (with mother) from Target, and a couple apples. The young guppies in the 2.5 were Not Interested, lol. They’re stored in the cabinet in the utility room. One of them is for Miska. 

BLACKWORMS

The blackworms arrived today. Very cool, I put some of them into the green-water and algae pickle jar aquarium  with the small sponge filter that helped to get the White Cloud 20 started. 

Some of them were portioned out into small cups, condiment cups with lids (holes poked in), in clean water with a couple flakes of fish food, and a few leaves of duckweed. Small amounts in these, maybe a teaspoon? I don’t understand the weight thing at all.

But they are so clean. If I had to pick through them to find leeches, there is no way in Hades I’d be culturing them. Hard no. These are very clean, and very lively. This weekend they’ll be going into a new 5 with an old filter, some almond leaves, and I have a plan written out in my notebook. I’ll have to snap a picture later. 

TUB POND (Attempt #1)

Why it got into the 80’s in April near Baltimore I don’t know, that’s something I’d expect in Atlanta. I hope the shiner is all right. He’s the only fish in it, though there are a ton of ramshorn snails that I’ve removed from Jacaranda. 

JACARANDA

I haven’t seen the Longfin in a couple days, I’m concerned. The other 3 are out and quite bold. I’m wondering if they wouldn’t be happier in the 20, but it’s so new. And also how on -earth- would I get them out of a jungle tank.

 

 

 

 

 

[Guppysnail]

On 4/6/2023 at 8:36 PM, Elodie Rose said:

GBR kiddos, Simon and River, are doing great. They’ve been eating really well, although they miss a lot of the food if they don’t speci

I can’t believe I did not see this journal. I ran out of reactions half way through so I am ORD for the day. 
GBR are earth eaters. They get that name because their normal feeding behavior is sifting through sand and dirt for food. They also forage off the substrate and plants. Mikrogeophagus means small earth eater 🤗
I hand fed the babies and taught them to eat from my fingers so they now skim food floating in the top. They are slow eaters and I would not put to many fast eaters that clean food from the bottom with them. 

Edited April 7, 2023 by Guppysnail

[Elodie Rose]

Thank you! I didn’t know that. They are so beautiful, and doing great eating. The Endlers mouths are too small to compete for food, they’re still growing out. 💜

[Guppysnail]

I’m so delighted you love the little GBR. They are such a delight and so SMART. They learn so fast. I’m glad they have a good loving home with you. Sharing the joy in my hobby with friends brings an added level of fullness to my hobby. 

Edited April 7, 2023 by Guppysnail

[Elodie Rose]

They are very clever little things!

I noticed Simon being a bit of a bully, so I added a few fake plants to give her cover, and switched out a bowl with a proper cave. I think they’re pretty, but feel embarrassed about posting photos, the colors are kind of garish. But from across the room it’s very cheerful. 

***

The blackworm culture arrived and went into a pickle jar with a pothos growing out of the top. I did add a few to the Blue-gold 5, because of the snail waste problem in the sand. My attempt to get Malaysian snails to turn the sand over ended with bladder snails.

So, so, so many bladder snails. Some of them are kind of cute, but what a truly ugly name. Maybe I’ll refer to them as pond snails, I think that’s an alternate. I also hate the word ‘scuds,’ so when I start THAT culture, I decided to call them side-swimmers.  Not to anybody else, just for me. 

***

On 3/6 I received a starter culture of vinegar eels, and on 4/6 I checked on it. Teeming with itty bitty white nematodes. I think that’s the correct word. The day I started that jar I didn’t have any apples, but I had several plums that had gotten wrinkled, but not yet rotten… so that jar got plums instead. So my “mother culture” is the Plum Jar, which was refreshed with a little more vinegar and water, and some apple slices. So I set up a few other cultures, stored under the sink in the utility room. Labeled very well, openings covered with paper towels and rubber bands. 

***

Zoe and Wash do not have eggs yet. I tried to separate them yesterday using the middle of a plastic coke 2-liter, and returned to find she’d escaped it and was swimming around. I gave them a few vibra bites each. Maybe I do need a filter in there, but I really don’t want to disrupt the surface of the water. I’m afraid if I separate them, she’ll become egg bound and maybe die. But a couple days reconditioning would definitely not hurt. Her poor, poor fins and tail. Ngl, it hurt my heart to see the state of her. If I removed her, I’d treat her with salt and catappa water, which is what the breeder has set up, so I guess I’ll leave them alone for now. 

***

Added some pothos cuttings to the tub-pond starter. I’ve been adding things to it throughout the days, snails, cucumber for the snails, the shiner, vibra bites for the shiner, sprigs of hornwort and anacharis. Some catappa leaves in the process of being broken down. Possibly green water, possibly just algae water. I let the dog out quite a few times a day, and it’s right there. 

***

I mail have overpopulated the Jacaranda tank. 

***

Pickle Jar C became a pickle jar aquarium yesterday, with a few floating plants and a few guppies, and some blackworms just as a backup (they were super hard to find and there was NO way I was picking out leeches, so also expensive). I don’T want to “put all my eggs in one basket.”

So I put a few into the Jar C experiment in carpeting a pickle jar, a few into the Blue-gold 5, and most of them into the Pothos pickle jar. I’m not sure what they’ve been eating exactly, so I’m waiting a bit before feeding them to any fish. But they’re very clean and seem utterly harmless. I’m going to let them recover from shipping and getting tossed into an old jar, and not stir them up until, probably Sunday. Supposedly an entire culture can be started from a single worm. 

***

Newborn fry food - Sera micron, Aquarium Co-op’s fry food, egg yolk is a possibility

Fry food - live vinegar eels, frozen baby brine, the Co-op food

Growing out, growing up, conditioning - frozen baby brine / bloodworms / emerald entree / brine shrimp, live blackworms

I don’’t know how big the side-swimmers are, exactly.

The micro worm potato needs to be checked. I might go do that before we lose the light. I think vinegar eels -are- micro worms though, so I’m not sure I want to keep a culture that smalls bad and requires regular refreshing.

Still, diversify, diversify. I’m super broke now, so the expansion phase is over, or -should- be, lol. I need to concentrate on making sure that everything that I have remains healthy, in clean water, and well fed, whether I have the spoons or money to go to club swaps or buy things online. 

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Wash’s old 2.5 is currently occupied by a pair of Amano shrimp and some young golden guppies. The green air pump makes an audible whirring sound, so I tried to switch it out with another one, which ALSO made that sounds, so that didn’t work. Some black mesh over the sponge filter might help with the noise, though. That tank really should be called Gallifrey, since that’s the current home of my Tardis.

The Tardis is the ONLY piece of fishkeeping equipment that I have kept with me through the years, since the last time I kept fish. It’s -really- hard to keep fish when moving every 2 years. But I have a freedom with NaNno tanks that I’ve never had before, and I’m learning about ecosystems this time, and balance. I think often of the things I learned at Drepung Loseling while I’m watching or tending the fish.  

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Oh I guess the Hygger on the 10 gallon Jacaranda tank died. Grrrrrr. It has the light that was included with the 20 (not using it becuase I’m trying to see whether the indirect sunlight of the window is enough for the plants).

Gotta go watch some reactors lose their ever loving minds over Voiceplay’s new song, Valhalla Calling, lol. Love it.