Sam Chicklets Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 I don't know what I'm going to do with them all. You could post them in the free plant thread under planted aquarium. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shai Posted December 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2006 You could post them in the free plant thread under planted aquarium. Yeah, I did that awhile back, no takers. Alas, Delta, my remaining panda cory, died on December 12. He didn't show any outward signs of disease like Dash did, so I suppose it's possible he died from the stress of being alone, but, when I checked the rest of the fish to see if anyone else had died or was looking ill, I noticed one of the neons showing signs of NTD. I removed that tetra right away and performed a 25% water change. The remaining fish appear to be fine but I wonder if it's too late. I've read that NTD can jump species so I wonder if both Dash and Delta were the first victims even though none of the neons showed any signs until now. I'll have to keep an eye on them. Either way, when I can eventually start working on stocking again, I probably won't buy more pandas, but will opt for a different (hardier by reputation) cory instead (such as peppered, but I'll have to research). This experience with the twins was a little too disheartening. I'm starting to think my 55g is cursed... : ( Water parameters have all tested consistently fine, so I'm hoping this was just a large bout of bad luck that is over now. Well, the tannins from the driftwood are clearing out and all of my plants continue to sprout new leaves, so at least I have that going for me. Still have yet to find any Brazilian micro sword anywhere... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Chicklets Posted December 16, 2006 Report Share Posted December 16, 2006 (such as peppered, but I'll have to research). The ones at Walmart here in Fort Sask have survived their conditions and unknowlegable staff for over 6 weeks now even in the African tank. I bought two today as they have looked healthy for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Chicklets Posted December 16, 2006 Report Share Posted December 16, 2006 (such as peppered, but I'll have to research). The ones at Walmart here in Fort Sask have survived their conditions and unknowlegable staff for over 6 weeks now even in the African tank. I bought two today as they have looked healthy for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted December 16, 2006 Report Share Posted December 16, 2006 (such as peppered, but I'll have to research). The ones at Walmart here in Fort Sask have survived their conditions and unknowlegable staff for over 6 weeks now even in the African tank. I bought two today as they have looked healthy for a while. Shai, I have had my best luck with corys when kept in shoals of at least 6. Once they settle in, they seem to be indistructable (note that my shoal was totally unaffected by my recent tank meltdown). I 55 gallon is a great size for a group of corys and I think that you will find their behaviour much more enjoyable in a group. Kevin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Chicklets Posted December 16, 2006 Report Share Posted December 16, 2006 (edited) Strange somehow there is a duplicate post, must have been high priority LOL Edited December 16, 2006 by Sam Chicklets Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shai Posted December 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2006 (edited) I have had my best luck with corys when kept in shoals of at least 6. Yes, I'm aware I needed to increase my stock. These pandas came from my 10g so I did not originally have room to keep that many. They were happy in the 10g but once I put them into the 55g things went downhill before I had the opportunity to get additional fish. Pandas by reputation are sensitive cories though, moreso than other types, and technically speaking they prefer softer water than what we have in Calgary so perhaps this was inevitable. I've been doing some reading and think I might try bronze cories...they can grow to 7cm though (whereas pandas average 5cm), so I think I would reduce the numbers in my stocking plan from 7 to 5 and see how it goes. If I feel I need to add a couple of more then I'll look into getting that cannister filter too. Peppered cories get to 8cm so I think bronze might be a better choice considering the other fish that will be in the tank. Otherwise, I suppose I could also try bandit cories, they look almost identical to pandas... If my neons all end up with NTD (hope they don't...) I'm going to get glowlights instead. Revised stocking plan: 1 betta 2 rams 12 neon tetras/glowlights 12 harlequin rasboras 8 dwarf rainbowfish 5 bronze/panda cories 3 otocinclus 6 shrimp Current stock is in my sig. Here's hoping nothing else goes wrong... Edited December 17, 2006 by Shai Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shai Posted December 31, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 31, 2006 (edited) I hope everyone had a great holiday! All the best for the new year, too. : ) I think I'm past the worst in my 55g. No one else has come up looking ill recently. *whew!* So now I'm looking forward to starting on the stocking again. I did some rearranging to the aquascaping: I'm not quite sure that I'm satisfied with the placement of the driftwood on the right, but I'm also not sure what else I can do with it. I'll be getting another amazon sword to put in that corner, maybe that will help. I have two small Vallisneria spiralis (Tape grass (Val)) in the tank. If you look carefully in the picture, you'll see one on the left and the other on the right. The research I've done says these plants grow like crazy, but I guess mine are still acclimatizing to the tank and haven't taken off yet, because I haven't seen much change since I got them in early December. I'm not sure if I should get more, like more mature ones? I'm looking to fill in the back of the tank with something tall to hide the equipment and break up the bubble wall just a bit. Can anyone make any recommendations for other plants that would fill in the back of the tank well, but not become a tank buster? This is a low-light, low-tech setup, although in the future I can look at upgrading (ie, adding CO2, etc). Edited April 16, 2007 by Shai Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shai Posted January 19, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2007 I've had to take the betta out. He just wasn't coping well with the tank and the current. : ( Poor guy. Removal of the betta means I've lost my centerpiece fish... I was thinking I'd get a gourami to replace it, possibly a flame gourami or something similar and colorful. Granted, I realize not having the betta now opens up other possibilities but since I was originally planning around the betta, I'm not really aware of what else is out there. Suggestions? The stock is currently sitting at: 12 neon tetras 3 otocinclus 6 malaysian rainbow shrimp The rest of the plan is posted just a few posts up, so I won't repeat. ^^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Chicklets Posted January 19, 2007 Report Share Posted January 19, 2007 There are a lot of choices you could go with. Some of the angels make spectacular centerpiece fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shai Posted January 20, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2007 (edited) There are a lot of choices you could go with. Some of the angels make spectacular centerpiece fish. This is true, but I've heard angels will snack on smaller fish, such as tetras? New pic...! It looks a lot brighter in person, as much of the tannins have been filtered out now. I've added two more amazon swords plus some dwarf sagittaria (as I could not find Brazilian microsword anywhere). The tape grass I had in here before seemed to be having a hard time establishing so I moved it to my ten gallon as a temporary measure (which seems to be working). Future plans include incorporating a cory sandbox on the left in that open area. I think I'll be buying some more sagittaria as well. Next fish addition to the tank will be the harlequin rasboras, which I'll be looking at in a couple of weeks. I'm kind of torn about the new centerpiece fish... I saw a dwarf gourami at the LFS the other day that looked very nice, with orange, red, and blue on it, and was thinking a trio would be good, but then I would have to drop the rams. But then the LFS had a very nice pair of rams, and they're just so pretty that I don't want to take them off the list! I still have to do more research, so I'm not sure what kind of larger gourami might work for my preferences. : ) And, if anyone's interested, here's a pic of my 10g with the tape grass in it: Edited April 16, 2007 by Shai Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Chicklets Posted January 21, 2007 Report Share Posted January 21, 2007 This is true, but I've heard angels will snack on smaller fish, such as tetras? I've never heard that one before I've kept angels with glowlights and neons no problem. And, if anyone's interested, here's a pic of my 10g with the tape grass in it That is a nice looking little tank, I bet the Betta is happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shai Posted February 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 3, 2007 (edited) I've never heard that one before I've kept angels with glowlights and neons no problem. I've only ever come across it as anecdotal evidence on another board I visit. I suppose, like with any other fish, it depends on the personality of the angel(s) and circumstances in the tank. Such as: My two angels managed to fatally injure my helpless baby mollie and make a meal out of three new neon tetras in a span of twelve hours.... These semingly docile fish should not be trusted with small fish as they have a true cichlid appetite. ... And if you buy a small one, it usually grows up as a peaceful fish. Don’t leave them with any fry or neon tetras, as they will see them as food. ... I caught my 4" angel try to eat a black neon once I'll keep them in mind though, I might worry about the centerpiece fish later on, just explore ideas for now and work on getting the schools established. I've been half-considering a flame gourami (4.5") but I'm not so sure... Do gouramis have issues with current? I added six harlequin rasboras this past Sunday, one male and five females. Nice fish! They won't sit still long enough to get a good photo though. : ( The next six will come in a week or two provided everything works out in the meantime. I lost one of the otos last week (for the second time, I just don't think I can support three of them) but the remaining two are looking good. Haven't found a suitable dish for the cory sandbox yet... I've been really sick this week so I haven't had an opportunity to go out and look for one. I still need to build up more plants in the tank too but I'm not sure what else I can put in there that will fill out well without having to spend a bunch of money upgrading lights and tackling CO2. Eventually I'll have to look at DIY light setups from Home Depot, I really have no inclination to break the bank buying higher wattage hoods from an LFS. : ) I updated the pic of the 55g from my last post. This one is much better, less orange. I turned off the bubble wall to get a cleaner shot. The orange blobs are the harlequins. : ) (I almost like the tank better without the bubble wall. I only really bought it to help interrupt the betta's reflection, but since I had to take him out, I don't really need it anymore, but not sure if I want to get rid of it. I've heard bubble walls can lower the amount of dissolved CO2 in the water though, too much surface agitation.) That is a nice looking little tank, I bet the Betta is happy. I hope so! He was looking lonely so I got him some cherry barbs for company, everybody's getting along well. I'm really liking the crypts in that tank too, I'm thinking I'd like to swap out most (or all) of the anubiases for more of them. The tape grass is spawning baby plants already too, might be getting time to put them back in the 55g! Edited February 3, 2007 by Shai Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Chicklets Posted February 3, 2007 Report Share Posted February 3, 2007 The only time I've seen agression from angels is when they are spawning, and that only happens if you get a pair that mate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snaggle Posted February 3, 2007 Report Share Posted February 3, 2007 Both of the are looking great, keep the updates comming. Brad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.