Stella

WHY do you want more flow? what size is he tank and what sort of stocking do you have?

You know how snails will often go for rides on each other? I thought this was a bit rude: He stayed there for ages! This is a handy little snail identifyer guide: http://www.niwa.co.nz/__data/assets/pdf ... llusca.pdf Based roughly on the quickguide, I think this is a Glyptophysa (native) riding a Pseudosuccinea (exotic). A more detailed key, for the truly geeky, is here: http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-B ... dy-d4.html

I thought it would be good to give an update on this. I salted the tank for a while but it seemed to have no effect. He kept looking the same for a very long time but slowly the head mucus left and his body colour paled. He seems to be perfectly fine now. I took some photos last night and the fine pores still seem slightly bulbous, but possibly not as much as in the first photo. (of course the mucus and colouring accentuated it). I also got some photos of the girl and the same small pores are bulbous like his, so maybe this is just how they look. Can't see this with the naked eye, and it is only possible on the camera because these are pretty big bullies. Original: Latest: He is SO fat! I think he is 10cm body length (ie excluding tail)

This table is useful: http://www.doc.govt.nz/publications/par ... ification/ Also check the abstract here: http://yearofthemountains.org.nz/upload ... SFC206.pdf I think it is page 42-ish. More detail and some pictures, though bear in mind it is about sorting dead fish mostly. Though 6cm fish might start looking quite different from whitebait.

4 running. Thankfully 3 need minimal maintenance.

Yes, it's no.

Yeah, I emailed ERMA (they misted the incursion linked above) as a random enquiry. Will let you know what they say. On that incursion they said the status was unclear, and it probably still is, but I wouldn't risk another white's tree frog drama. Especially since they were imported. Sorry this must suck. I imagine they were interesting critters.

Nope, minimal flow is best. Flow from the filter is plenty. Banded kokopu habitat is pools in slow small streams with lots of forest cover. Low light = no plants They like rocks or wood to hide in. Do a search of the archives for banded kokopu

Banded kokopu are probably the easiest and least threatened. Giant kokopu get a bit bigger than is realistic for most aquaria, and shortjaw kokopu have their own ways of being tricky. And both of them are more threatened. Bandeds don't play too nicely with others, so aiming for a single focal fish is probably best. Two might be ok, but it depends. I think a good plan is to get a little kokopu and some inanga (say five or so). The inanga fill up the midwater space so the tank doesn't look empty. Inanga only live a few years, so by the time the kokopu is a good size the inanga would have died off naturally. Smelt can be used similarly. Bullies would be fine long-term, kokopu tend to ignore them as they hang out in different areas.

I seriously suggest you destroy them yourself before MAF comes knocking.

Hmmm, that is probably highly illegal.... Certainly importing them would be illegal. Second incident from the bottom lists triops, MAF seized them. http://www.ermanz.govt.nz/no/compliance ... s0405.html

Fairly impressive photo! Yeah, copepods, very common, very harmless

My name is Stella and I used to be a fishaholic but have managed to cut back and keep it under control this year. :lol:

ooh, very interesting, thanks Supasi!

The ground area with that is good. You may find the depth annoying. Stick your arm in and see how far down you can reach the back bottom. If it doesn't come with a stand, think about how tall the top of the tank will be once it is on a stand. Now imagine it is the middle of winter and the water is 12 degrees.... It may be just fine but it can also be a pain. There are no native algae eaters, so unless you can learn to live with algae all of your algae removal is by hand. (I only really clean the front and side glass, the rocks and back wall are a lovely mottled brown ) Cannister filters are great, and Eheim make really good ones (if at the expensive end). No matter what, make sure you get the shop people to show you how they go together. Some (like Eheim) are easy, some are just so frustratingly illogical.

All of them ...with the possible exception of a 2m eel The other dimensions of your tank matter quite a bit too. Large ground area is important for most natives. What are you interested in? What can you find locally? If there a focus species you want? What habitat types do you like?

Wow, interesting Ira! I guess it makes sense that they would work in the same way. The native species is Lepidurus apus

Hi Peter, Yes, the Karori tank is a shocker. :evil: I would LOVE to get my hands on it and 'redecorate'!! The physical structure is actually VERY well designed. The tank itself faces the bush away from the sun (and annoying reflections). The information panelling on the back and sides probably insulate it. And if you peer into the grille underneath there is a KICKASS chiller, which, being positioned in the shade near the ground, is ideal for efficiency. The size/shape of the tank and the spray bar is also great. But yes, the decor is AWFUL. The fish are unhealthy and poorly fed (I saw a well-eaten dead one) There are not enough hiding places. There is no 'vision' behind it: no depiction of habitat, no thought into fish assemblage. It is just a random pile of fish. And... wait for it.... FRUIT SALAD GRAVEL!!!! With the streams running through the sanctuary it would be easy to model the tank on them, and then people could relate the natural streams to what they see in the tank. A freshwater ecologist friend has tried talking to them before about it, and showed them pictures of my tanks, but clearly nothing has changed. When my book is done I shall go down there and try to talk to them about it. It is a shame because the structure is so awesome but the interior is a huge letdown.

LOL I have never seen them before. A friend of mine was on a mission to find some, so I have done a bit of reading and asking about them. I understand that they used to be quite widespread but are coming rarer and rarer. They live in ephemeral (ie temporary) ponds and used to be quite common in small farm ponds that dried over summer. Of course people are getting better and better at draining wetlands, so like anything else that lives in these places, tadpole shrimp are becoming rarer. All mentions I have heard of them in the Manawatu/Hawkes Bay/Wairarapa were from 20 years ago. Apparently there are some good populations in the South Island somewhere. My aquatics lecturer, Russell Death, is interested in these guys. If anyone knows of a population that existed near the Manawatu in more recent times he would love to know. He thinks they are likely locally extinct.

Isn't it Callitriche stagnalis ie starwort'? Perhaps slightly leggy in the low light.

maybe 8) 8) 8)

mysis shrimp?

Thank you, Jennifer Donna has pm'ed me with a couch offer, and claims to be the closest to Hagley Park, which is fairly critical for me. I can deal with couches A tour of local tanks could be fun! I really don't know much about tropical fish, but it is always great getting to put faces to names, and getting to see what people are doing Doing a spotlighting trip in the evening of Saturday 20th or Sunday 21st could work. I want to keep the following weekend for pestering science-y contacts after the conference. It may be possible to do something that weekend, but it would need to be bit of a spontaneous thing planned towards the end of that week. Presumably someone knows some good spots.... :bounce:

hmmm, might be bit of a squeeze as my hand-luggage may already be chokka with BOOKS 8) (if the timing works out insanely well)

hmmm, they are actually pretty skittish fish. I had one and several bullies in a 60x30x30 tank and they wound up pretty shredded from running into things. Their behaviours are less interesting too. And the temperature fluctuates a lot. 60cm tanks are ok for a few young natives, but quite restrictive on horizontal area as they get bigger.