April 23rd, 2008
Tropical Fish Secrets food and territory like mad, chasing away any intruders. Also keep an eye on the nitrate levels in the tank and keep them low. I would suggest a minimum tank size of 25 gallons which can house 2-3 specimens; this will allow each specimen a separate territory. As they are not quarrelsome they may be kept with most fish species, however, beware that some individual fish have been known to show aggression towards smaller species. Feeding: Wood is required and, in addition, vegetables (zucchini, cucumbers, etc.) are needed. Sinking pellets as well as algae wafers should also be fed to this fish. The clown pleco will NOT clean your tank of algae for you so do not get this fish if you want an algae eater. Sexing and Breeding: Unknown. The sexes are virtually impossible to distinguish. Comments: The clown pleco has become popular with hobbyists over the last few years, because of low prices and its small size. Unfortunately many people confuse the needs and behavior of this fish with that of many other members of the pleco family. It is a hardy, easy to care for fish. This fish is peaceful, but do NOT buy it as an algae eater. Common Name/s: None Scientific Name: Corydoras leucomelas Origin: Yarinacocha, cutoff lake at right bank of Rio Pacaya, Loreto, Peru (From planet catfish) Maximum Size: 2 Temperature: 25 - 30 C PH: 5.6 - 7 Feeding: Flake food, sinking wafers, and most Live/Frozen. I ve found Bloodworms, Brine Shrimp to be some of their favorites and, what fish wouldn’t turn their nose away from them. Sexing: As with most cory’s the female of a species grows a little fuller and longer in the body than males. (To be updated as soon as I have more info) Breeding: The same as with most cory’s. (To be updated as soon as I have more info) Comments: From what I have noticed from mine they are very peaceful fish and, full of caricature. Well suited for a community tank. Common Name: None. Scientific Name: Corydoras Undulatus Origin: South America Average size: About 2 inches. Care: Need to be kept in groups of 3+, as with all cories. Six or over is optimum. Care is the same as all cories. These are a fairly rare type, so check you don’t have a similar species e.g., corydoras elegans. They like to hide, so provide plenty of cover. Mine like to hide behind the row of plants at the back of the tank. They can be kept with anything that won’t eat them. They are quick little things, so avoid moving them (believe me, playing ‘catch the cory’, even when you’re
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April 20th, 2008
Tropical Fish Secrets slowly become escape and enter the tank. Feed the fry small foods. Comments: A lovely catfish which is kept by both new and experienced fish keepers. It is a common fish and is almost always available. Common Name: Bronze Cory, Albino Cory (for the albino variety) Scientific Name: Corydoras Aeneus Origin: Trinidad (from Planet Catfish) Average size: 3 inches Care: These cute critters couldn’t be easier to look after. All they really need is good water (as with any fish), somewhere to hide and food. Oh yes, and other cories, as they like to be in groups of 6+. Bronze cories also come in albino, and are one of the few readily available albinos on the market. They are very peaceful fish, and will never nip any other fish. They can also be kept in cooler water, providing they are properly acclimatized (as most you find are kept in tropical conditions). Not to fussy about water prams, and are a fairly hardy beginners fish. Feeding: As with most cories, anything. Suggested foods include- flakes, algae pellets/wafers, bloodworm, cucumber, courgette. Just make sure the food actually reaches the bottom. Sexing and Breeding: Sexing- Females are larger than the males, and grow larger as they become full of eggs. There is also a difference in the fins, but this is less reliable as you cannot always see the fins. Breeding- Generally easy to breed. Basically- 1. Condition the cories for about a week with live food until the females are laden with eggs. 2. Do a 20 ish percent water change on the tank with cooler water. 3. Leave them. The cories *should* go into spawning behaviour, which involves the T position. The eggs are laid on the sides of the tank, the floor… Anywhere really. After the fry hatch, feed on MW, BBS, Liquifry, or whatever, until big enough to take flake. Viola! Your own baby cories. For a detailed account, check the profile on other cories. Common Name/s: Clown Pleco Scientific name: Panaque maccus Origin: Orinoco Basin (Venezuela), Rio Las Marinas (Venezuela) and Colombian Llanos. Variants of the species have also been found in Amazon Basin of Brazil. Maximum Size: 5″ (8cm) Care: If you want to see your fish on a daily, weekly, or even monthly basis the clown pleco probably is not for you. The Clown Pleco is found in root structures on the banks and river beds of its habitat. Where, due to its coloration, it is difficult to find. The Clown is a wood eater, so bogwood is a must. It is territorial and will stake a claim to areas at the base of its favorite driftwood or a near by cave, but they do prefer to be kept in groups so a tank large enough for them to have their own territories is best. At feeding times the Clown pleco will defend its
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April 15th, 2008
Tropical Fish Secrets densely planted, as they can and will uproot plants. Feeding: Easy feeders usually, will only feed after lights go off. Variety of bloodworms, krill and other types of meaty food is recommended, though catfish pellets are often accepted as well. I ve actually caught mine eat flakes once in a while. Sexing: No real difference, but said that female banjo cats have a slightly rounder stomach, are larger and tend to be darker in colouration. None of this is fact, just peoples opinions based on their experience. Breeding: It is said that banjo cats breed in groups and will lay between 3000 and 5000 eggs overnight. These eggs will be placed in a place where they feel comfortable, often under flat surfaced rocks (like slate) or underneath plant leaves. Eggs should hatch after approximately 3 days; fry can be fed on usual fry foods like baby brine shrimp and grindal worms. Comments: If you want a aquarium freshwater fish that is out and about and easy to see this is not the fish for you. Being nocturnal fish, they hide in the sand all day long (you re lucky to spot their gills) and will come out for food at night. In the 6 months I ve had mine now, even with moonlight on only I ve only ever seen them swim once. Though these fish do well in community tanks, it s not recommended to put them in with aggressive feeders. Banjo cats themselves are very slow feeders and are not likely to catch enough food when all is eaten within minutes. Feeding should also occur after the lights go off. For anyone who considers getting banjo catfish, I advice you check up on their stomach once every 3 or 4 days (at least for the first weeks) to make sure they get enough food and don t starve to death. Common Name/s: Bristlenose Catfish Scientific Name: Ancistrus dolichopterus Origin: Amazon River, South America Maximum Size: 4.5″ (12cm) Care: Bristelnose catfish are not a strictly nocturnal fish. These algae eaters establish territories around caves, pieces of wood and other hiding places found in tanks. These fish can become territorial and aggressive towards other members of the ancistrus family and rarely towards bottom dwelling fish such as corydoras catfish. They can tolerate a wide range conditions but generally prefer soft, acidic water which matches the conditions they are suited to in the wild. It is thought that these fish rasp on wood, so having a piece or two of bogwood or driftwood would be ideal. Feeding: These fish eat algae which form on the tank glass, decorations and gravel, but their diet must be supplemented with meaty foods such as frozen bloodworms, vegetables such as zucchini and cucumber and sinking pallets. Sexing and Breeding: An easy fish to breed. They mature at around 3″ - 4″ these fish can be easily sexed by the amount of bristles on their nose, males have a lot of bristles whereas the females have small amount. These fish breed in the males cave; orange eggs are laid by the female and protected by the male, who may not be seen for days, until the eggs hatch. Once the eggs have hatched the male will try keep them together in a group, inside his cave, but the fry will
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April 11th, 2008
Common Name is: Asian Stone Catfish, Asian Moth Catfish Scientific Name: Hara jerdoni Origin: Asia (specifically India and Bangladesh) Natural Environment: Slow moving streams with sandy bottoms. Size: under 1/2in or 3.8cm pH: 6-8 Temperature: 68-75 F or 18-24 C Diet: Bloodworms (prefers live, but will take frozen), sinking catfish pellets, algae wafers. Temperament: Extremely reclusive and shy… hides during the day and comes out at night to search for food. Tank Requirements: Although it is very small, the Hara jerdoni requires extremely stable water parameters. IMO, a 10g is a good minimum size for these catfish. They are also very social animals, so they prefer to be in groups. Sand is best for substrate, but other small grained substrates will work just as well. Driftwood is a big plus for these catfish because they love clinging on to the underside during the day. Anostomus Anostomus Striped Anostomus or Striped Headstander Common Name: Bandit Cory Other Common Name: Masked corydoras Scientific Name: Corydoras metae Family: Callichthyidae Adult Size: 2 inches (5 cm) Origin: Colombia Adult Size: 2 inches (5 cm) Social: Peaceful Lifespan: 5 years Tank Level: Bottom dweller Minimum Tank Size: 10 gallon Diet: Omnivore, eats most foods Breeding: Egg layer Care: Easy to Intermediate Temperature: 72-79 F(22-26 C) Common Names: Banjo Catfish, Guitarrita (meaning little guitar ) Scientific Name: Bunocephalus coracoideus Family: Bunocephalinae Origin: Peru (also found in Brazil and Bolivia) Max Size: 15cm / 6 Care: Very easy to look after tropical aquarium freshwater fish, needs a min. of 15G though very inactive. Not too fussed about water parameters. Recommended would be pH between 6.0 & 8.0 with a temperature of around 26C. Peaceful with all tank mates, though will eat fry. Sand bottom is preferred in their aquarium, seeing as they hide throughout the day by burrowing themselves underneath the sand. Not too
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April 8th, 2008
If you find that your tank is being taken over by snails, put a scalded lettuce leaf in the tank. The snails will collect on it. You can then remove it from the tank. If you do this once a week or once a month, you will be able to hold them in check. Tip: Puffer Fish and large Cichlids like to eat snails that you collect. The positive thing that snails bring is that they are a good indicator of the water quality in the tank. If they move around actively on the bottom and eat clear through the algae, you have nothing wrong with the water tropical aquarium freshwater fish in the tank. If they lie there, then there are some toxic substances in the water. If Malyayan snails remain above the surface during the day, it means that the bottom is rotting. If snails die off in a short period of time, it is time to do a chemical analysis of the aquarium water. Types of fish Catfish:
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April 4th, 2008
Replace the fluorescent lights regularly so that they are not subjected to changes in the lighting. Algae There are always some algae present in your tank. As soon as the environment in the tank changes, algae will thrive. Blue-green algae is the oldest form of algae. They form a dense blue-green, violet or brownish-black layer on the bottom. They will also be on the plants, rocks, etc. You can strip them off with your hand or siphon them off. It is important to get it all off the surface because they will continue to thrive as long as there is a trace of it present. Red algae look like dirty-green threads or beards from plants, wood and rocks. They are just as persistent as blue-green algae. The good news is that Simese Flyng Fox enjoy eating this kind of algae. Brown algae and gravel algae grow into a thin brown layer. This is usually caused by not enough light and oxygen. Just add more light and they will go away. The plants will produce enough nutrients once the light is introduced. Green algae will be light green and will float in the aquarium and make it opaque. It will sometimes appear in newly set up aquariums when the fish are overfed. It will vanish in a few days or you can introduce water fleas. Green algae only exists in tanks that are clean and well fertilized so, they are a good sign. The algae can be removed by hand or you can siphon it off. The drawback of them is they create webs around the plants which will decrease the amount of light the plants get. If you are going to remove them by hand, be sure not to pull out the plants. Some fish do like to eat the algae but it will grow faster than the fish can eat. You may need a chemical killer. Follow the directions when you are using these products. The easiest way to prevent algae is to ensure enough tropical aquarium freshwater fish plants in the tank in the beginning. In a sparsely planted tank, algae will grow. Start out with a lot of inexpensive plants and replace them as you go a long. This will ensure that you don t have an algae problem. Snails Snails will eat the leftover food that t the fish refuse to eat. You will rarely have to purchase these because you will find snail eggs usually on the leaves of your plants or they will get in with live food. In warm water tanks, there are three kinds of snails. Ramshorn snails are found in most tanks. They will not damage plants unless they are in large numbers. Cabombia aquatica are sometimes subject to their attacks. Malayan snails live in the bottom of the tank. They only emerge at night. During the day, they will hide in the gravel. They do not eat plants but they will dig in the bottom of the gravel and can cause some rotting at the bottom of the aquarium. The South American will grow almost the size of escargots. They eat fish food and plants. If there is enough food, they will not harm the plants tin the tank. They are rare to be found in pet stores. In rare cases, you might add mud snails. Mud snails or Limnaea stagnalis will feed on plants and may carry some
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March 31st, 2008
Tropical Fish Secrets nicely against green ones and light green against dark green. You should put the larger growing plants at the end that receives more light. Fine-leafed plants require a lot of light. You will be able to remove leaves that are infected with algae without is showing up in the overall look of the tank. You will need to provide you plants with some type of fertilizer. There are a few types of fertilizers- liquid and tablets. The tablets are pressed into the bottom material near the plants. How often you need to fertilize will depend on what product you use. You will also need to change the water when you are fertilizing or your plants will refuse to grow. This is because the fertilizer has different nutrients that are used up at different rates. If you use the same water, the nutrients might be too highly concentrated and will end up dieing. If you thought about your plants when you set up the aquarium, you can use a time-released fertilizer in the bottom of the gravel. You should also put heating cables so that the water flows steadily. If you have done this, you will only need to add a liquid fertilizer periodically. For plants like Crypotocryne, you will have to add iron. Some just add a paper clip to the filter. Iron is definitely necessary when you are dealing with tropical plants. The most important nutrient is carbon dioxide. If there is not enough carbon dioxide in the water, your plants will not survive. A safe way to add carbon dioxide is to use pressurized bottles that are electronically controlled and give off steady amounts of carbon dioxide. Problems with Plants There are some problems that can arise. You should check your plants from time to time. New shoots or bud mean that there is growth. Hole and dents are usually from fish nibbling on them. If you plants lose colour or fray and become transparent that is entirely different. If the plants turn yellow and then glassy, that is an iron deficiency. Just add iron or a complete fertilizer. Yellow leaves with green veins indicate a deficiency in trace elements especially manganese. This could be due to overfeeding. Brown and black discoloration is caused by overfeeding with iron. Some plants are able to draw carbon dioxide out of the water and some can t. That is why you can not have both types of plants in the same tank. If the pH of the water rises above 9 or 10, the water becomes acidic and the fish may die from alkaline toxicity. The most common disease that plants get is called Cryptocoryne rot. It looks like the leaves have holes from nibbling but within a few days; the plants will collapse and rot. It is causes by excess nitrates. The excess nitrate cause toxic compounds and the plants die. This is due to long overdue change in the water, the replacement of an old, worn-out fluorescent tube, and infrequent addition of fertilizer. These can be easily prevented. Keep the environment constant. The nitrate can be kept low by regular water changes. Add a well-balanced fertilizer after the
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March 28th, 2008
Tropical Fish Secrets Swamp plants will adapt to change much easier. The most common plant is Nomaphila stricta. They are able to grow beyond the water surface. These plants will nourish themselves mostly through roots and the leaves. The leaves above the water will be tougher than the leaves under the water. Plants provide food, refuges, territorial borders and spawning grounds. In addition to these, they also improve the water quality and absorb harmful nitrogen compounds. They also keep the bottom of the tank from rotting because they give off oxygen. They might be a bit of work but the benefits that you will receive will far out weigh the effort that they require. When you are selecting your plants, it is important to know what kinds of plants will foster in the environment that you have created. You need to take the same things into consideration for your plants that you would take for your fish. Water is the most important. You should know what plants do well in hard or soft water and what temperature they will thrive best in. When you bring your plants home, they will be in wet paper so that they don t dry out. You will want to place them in a bowl and cover them with newspaper. The newspaper will soak up the water and keep the leaves out of the wet water. You will want to disinfect your plants. You can do this by putting them light purple solution of potassium permanganate or water with 1 teaspoon of alum per quart of water. Leave the plants in the solution for 10 minutes. Remove all the injured, wilted or damaged leaves. Healthy leaves are light in colour and snap off when bent. Dead ones are brown and limp. Take a pair of scissors and trim the roots by one-third to one-half. This will stimulate growth. Be careful not to bruise them. Now you are ready to plant them. Poke a hole in the bottom of the material and place the roots as deep as you can facing downwards. Fill the hole in and place the sand gently around the plant. Now pull up the plant so that the crown of the plant is barely visible. This will hold the plant in place as it grows. You will need to know how your plant will grow to have the best results. For example, Cryptocoryne plants and Valisneria spiralis roots grow straight down and need to be planted in a deep, narrow hole. Acorus genus have creeping roots and should be planted on a slant. Microsorium pteropus and other ferns need to be planted deep enough to show the green root top. You can also tie you these plants to rocks or clay where they will set their roots. Egeria and Cabombia and Nomaphila sprout roots at the stem nodes. Hold them down with stones or glass clamps until they have grown roots. It is important not to crowd the plants. The distance between them will depend on their size. Top rooting plants should be spaced wider than deep rooting plants. In a large tank, it would be helpful to make a diagram of the tank as you see it. This will help you in your planning stages. The largest plants belong in the back and the front should have low ground cover plants. Plants should be arranged in the same kind rather than mixing different types of plants. They should also be planted in clusters or groups. Red and brown plants show up
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March 24th, 2008
Tropical Fish Secrets saturated and does not float. Tree roots are good for fish that want to hide. Fish with suction mouths will hang off the driftwood pieces. Coconuts shells are enjoyable for cave-dwelling fish but remember to boil them in hot water as well. IF you were thinking of flower pots, you will need to soak them for a day in 2 gallons of water and peat. Old clay pots do not need to soak. The best advice I can give you is to fit the decorations of the tank, to the needs of the fish. This will enhance your tank. This is another reason why at the beginning I suggested that you know what kind of fish you want to put in your tank. The behaviour of your fish will dictcate how you arrange your tank. If they are territorial, you may want to build some partitions. In an open aquarium, the big fish will soon terrorize the small fish. If you fish swim in schools, you will want a large area for them to swim and the decorations should be at the back of the aquarium. Scarlares need driftwood to hide behind whereas bottom fish like to dwell among the rocks. Labyrinth fish like floating plants to build their nests in. Remember that the look of the tank will depend on how you decorate it. A dramatic contrast will not only catch the eye of anyone passing by the tank but will also provide an environment for a variety of different fish. Filling the tank with water once you have decorated, you can fill the tank with water. If you want plants, fill the tank one third full before you plant. This will prevent leaves and stems from drying out. Be sure to add fertilizer for your plants and not to pour in the water that it stirs up the gravel. You will want to fill the tank slowly. It is best if you fill it with a bucket or a watering can. You can then control the rate that the water comes in. IF you are going to use the faucet, be sure that you don t do anything else. Tanks can fill quickly. You don t want a big mess on the floor that could have been prevented. So you want to put plants in the aquarium. Where do you start????? Most plants are flowering plants with roots, stems, leaves and blossoms with the expectation of ferns and moss. Plants from still waters are more delicate. Plants from moving water are more robust. Remember that the slightest dehydration will cause them to wither. In order for them to live, they need oxygen continuously. They will produce carbon dioxide. Just a quick reminder from your Grade 9 Science class, they need a phonsynthetic nutrition which consists of energy from sunlight and chlorophyll, they absorb water and minerals and carbon dioxide. They turn them into sugar which is converted to starches and cellulose. If plants have enough sunlight and carbon dioxide, they will produce more oxygen than they need. If it is dark and insufficient lighting, the plants will compete with the fish for oxygen. Water plants such as Egeria Densa can really only live underwater. The roots serve more for holding onto the ground than to absorb nutrients. It is not uncommon that they dispense their roots and just float in the water. They are extremely thin and the nutrients can be absorbed from the water directly by the leaves.
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March 20th, 2008
Tropical Fish Secrets a while. You want to keep in mind that some surfaces will increase the amount of algae and will provide a hiding place for the less aggressive fish and newly hatched fish. You can remove the back wall all together and build a natural backdrop out of rocks and sand. Do not use cement if you are going to do this. Cement is poisonous to the fish. You can use epoxy which will stick eth rocks together. It will look natural and assembled. You can pour the sand over the rocks to make them look more natural. Another option is to buy back walls. They are made of polyurethane and they are quite light. They are glued or taped to the tank until they have soaked up enough water. They are sold in thick sheets so you can shape them the way you want and there is no space between the glass and the sheets. This is good because no fish can get caught between them. Floor covering and rocks The bottom of the tank should no have any calcium. Calcium makes the water harder. You can buy gravel of different coarseness. Finer sand is good for circulation. Coarser gravel allows for more debris and is harder to siphone off. The bottom should be 2 or 3 inches thick. For smaller tanks, you can buy gravel at the pet store. Be sure to rise off the gravel before you put it in the tank. Be sure to rinse the gravel until the water is clear in the bucket. For larger tanks, you will have to go to a builder s supply. This is the cheapest way to get 100 pounds or more of quartz gavel. The disadvantage with quartz gavel is that it is light in colour and it reflects the light. Most fish like dim light. You could mix darker gravel with the quartz gavel. IF you are thinking of adding rocks to your tank, you will want calcium free rocks such as igneous rocks, granite, gabbro or basalt. Most slate is usually safe. Sediment rocks may or not be calcium free. Be sure to check before you introduce it to the aquarium. Limestone, such as marble, is never good for your tank or aquarium. Red and brown lava are great to decorate the bottom of the tank. The look of the aquarium will amaze you if your tank has a black back drop with reddish sand and lava rocks set of with plants and colourful fish. Remember to scrub the rocks thoroughly before you put them in your tank. If you want to put in rocks that you have collected, be sure to test whether they are calcium free or not. How do you know?? IF you drop a bit of hydrochloric acid on the rock and bubbles form, then there is calcium. You will want to arrange the tank with shallowness at the front and deepness at the back. The shallowness will allow people to see into the tank easier. Terraces on the bottom make the tank look better but remember that if you do this with a variety of colours, they will not stay in place long due to the motion of the water. Flagstones work better if you are looking to create this effect. If you want strong and healthy plants, you will have to add fertilizer to the bottom gravel. This is the time to do it. Other decorative Materials You can buy tree roots and driftwood at the pet store. You will want wood that has nothing left on it to rot. The wood should be boiled in water until it becomes
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