Afrikan

Has your friend tested ph, hardness etc?

Hmmm hubbys birthday month, I feel a trip coming on... :lol: We will be there! And awesome stuff guys with getting it well under way

Love the shot of the Blue Boy Frenchy, have always had a soft spot for blue discus And those plants are lush! Really nice 8)

Very nice Matt 8)

:lol: May pay to leave her a while, I have noticed with my females, that the more advanced into their holding they tend to end up rather a bit slower and easier to catch. Just leave her for now and keep an eye.. if she is hard to catch at this stage then yep you don't want to stress her out

My females have always been good netting them while they are holding. I make the progress quick and make sure she is in a good area of the tank before attempting to catch her, saves on the stress factor. I think you would be best going with how you feel I much prefer seperating my females. If you are not there alot it might be better to seperate her to give you peace of mind

I usually take my females out and put them in their own nursery tank, nothing too big, I have small AR 320s (Aqua Ones) with a few limestone rocks and corner filter running. I don't like the idea of females stressing while holding a brood. In some cases they can find a quiet spot amongst the rocks yet in some other cases at times they can't if there is too much going on in the tank. I will strip a female if she is holding for too long, yet most of my females after being put in their own little nursery spit in good time. Just keep a close eye on her

Yeap Suri's are partial mouthbrooders so chances are either one of the parents (if there has infact been some breeding going on) has eggs or fry in their mouth. Does the fish seem to have a slight bulge under the jaw line, like a crop? And does it make almost like a swilling action with it's mouth occasionally? Might pay to keep a close eye When breeding they will lay on a smooth rock or surface normally, either one of the parents will hold the eggs, not necessarily the female. He/she will scoop the fertilized eggs up.. and they hatch around 3-4 days later in the mouth. After hatching the fry stay very close to ma and pa and take shelter in their mouths if there is any sign of danger. Suris normally make excellent parents

Bala sharks do munch plants if they desire and feel like a snack, I have seen them in a planted tank before but as they got older and larger the plants became targets. Bala sharks are well known to be majorly food orientated :lol: They have been known to reach up to over 30cm in Aquariums also. I have seen a Clown Knife kept in a very large tank with a few robust plants. They also get very large and require alot of space.

Ok now that is the best thing I have seen in recent times!!! :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: I am so rapt for you! A big WOOHOO!!! They are just gorgeous

Do you have backing on your tank? Sometimes fish can feel vunerable if there is clear glass on 4 sides of the tank.. A pic could help to maybe What colour is your substrate also? Sounds to me that your clown loach was possibly trying to blend in through feeling vunerable... I would check your tank parameters also ie temp etc to make sure everything is fine, better to be safe than sorry

Well eggs that colour would have sounded promising or at least hopeful if you still had them 8)

You and me both then on needing a better camera Frenchy :lol: Thanks for the full tank shots, love the tank! Discus are awesome to 8)

What colour are the eggs? Do they look fertile, or can you not get a good enough look?

Good one Nimbo Freak Good luck with mum and her little crew

I have seen the one you are speaking of tukituki, is it the one they have just written down as just "Gold Pleco" on the front of the tank? I do note tho that there is no wood or anything in the tank when we were there. Pretty sure the fish has also been there for a wee while now. Have mentioned a few things but no change :roll: The ones that came from the same lot from wholesaler would work out to be around the $170 mark.. so $130 is a reasonable price considering. Do take note tho that it did look to me like it needed a good feed up and definately they require a good source of wood. If you are wanting to join the Hawkes Bay Aquarium Society then flick me a PM and I will put you onto the right contact

Yeah they are a different species to the Krib and I don't think they are available here Dixon, would be awesome if they are or were

They are on a wholesale list at the moment. There are a few of us keepers on this forum that have them also. My lot bred recently and I have some young ones growing on. They are a awesome fish and well worth keeping

Awesome 8) The Empress, thanks for sharing and look forward to more pics down the track Great to have another African fan to Mekhaela

Welcome to the forums TE... and very nice pics

Welcome Dorygirl

If you wanted another non lake species to think about then there is always the Lionhead aka Blockhead or Buffalo Cichlid and scientific name Steatocranus casuarius. Another idea if you wanted to do non lake biotype... http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1353

Very nice Frenchy And the Rams are real little stunners to

Red Jewels are not highly aggressive unless they are spawning, generally speaking.. when spawning tho look out.. like alot of cichlids :lol: I have a firemouth who is hell on wheels... he is trouble with a capital T. His attitude is rank, yet too much of a hard case to part with him.

I haven't seen Lelu on the lists for a long time now. Last time they came in tho... the stock was absolutely stunning a rich lemon yellow.. and lovely condition. They retailed tho for around $45-$50 each if I remember rightly.