Hazara

Not a silly question... I fed em on land because they didn't go into the water much... I believe at the beginning I had to wave them (the bloodworm) around a little to make the newts interested... After a while they learned when was feeding time and would scamper straight to the bloodworm as it defrosted!

LOL - Back on topic - I had a pair of these fellers a few years ago - however as they got older they looked more like Chinese, but just about every website I checked had different photos. Mine definately preferred land over water, I kept them on round gravel with a small fern & overturned shells etc for cover. Favourite foods were aphid dusted with reptile growth vitamins and, of course BLOODWORM!! Just maker sure there are no escape holes anywhere.. I mean it they can fit through just about any hole and can climb straight up glass. Enjoy, they are fascinating little monsters and don't panic if you see them malting - and they don't need help getting undressed!

Thanks guys! Almost nothing scares these guys off the spirulina tabs (except for my grumpy BN ). I use an old Finepix camera - s5000 model. Great cameras for people who want control over settings and cant afford dslr. I was able to take this one a little easier because the spirulina came down in the front of the tank. LOL my photos certainly arent magazine quality - but thanks for the encouragement! Here's a bad one of my cory - the colour balance was set to auto on the camera - oops. And you can see the algae on the glass!

Okay I can't see a specific area here for posting fishie photos, and the members tanks forum is no comment (and I like comments) so I'll post here untill I get banned by the mods or advised otherwise (And now I've learnt the forum rules of "cough" 640 x 480) Some of you might have guessed by now I like macro photos! These are the only non-South American fish in the tank. I've always had a soft spot for loaches... and knife fish, and archer fish, and bumble bee gobies ¿¿, and catfish, and (fill in fish type here)

Definately light can be a prob - can you take a pic of the algae? I had an algae explosion and cutting a few hours/day off my automatic lights fixed it, I'm slowly creeping back up the light now the sun is higher and not getting the angle to hit the tank. Go Kerikeri - I went to school there 20 years ago... really miss the place - would love to go back. Used to fish off the Stone Store jetty, and the Mosquito fish and crayfish I caught locally were some of my first wet pets, (apart from eels that is).

@Evil - 1k posts!! well done! @ Fishboi, I use an "I wish I could afford a pro camera but all I got was this" type! You just make do with what you have and try to learn it the best you can! These were taken with a 3 year old Fuji Finepix s5000, with a diy macro adapter. @ljtan55 - as for the flash, I use a very high shutter speed and angle the camera so the flash bounce misses and my homemade macro adapter allows me to use full zoom and gives a really narrow angle so I can avoid reflection better. The first photo neons are so glowy because I hadn't cleaned the glass of my 21 month old's smudges - he loves that tank! @ Keri Anne - did I read Napier/Hastings??? My bro used to live there - he's now in Ireland but back there soon. Lovely part of N.Z and that national Aquarium!!!! If I was local I'd have a year pass! @ everyone else - thanks for compliments - really makes my day as I was not too pleased with these photos! thanks again!

Jeez peeps, I'm blushing :oops: :oops: Fishies aren't the easiest things to snap - luckily I had some spare time and they were enjoying the rice to much to care about the camera flash going off! p.s. that parsley has been knocked all around the tank, but doesn't seem to have been nibbled at all.

Thanks fishboi, when I have the time I like to take a few snaps.. Yep the plant is parsley, I read on the home made food thread that it was worth a try... I blanched it, and it has had a lot of interest but no-one seems to be eating it yet.

The links are to the 800x600 versions of the photos, I didn't realise the forum software resampled to 640px. One of my pencils at the bottom of the tank (quite rare for them) - I found a food they really love - crushed cooked long-grain rice! http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y32/hazara/pencil.jpg One of the kuhlies - apart from my "imaginary" adult BN that only gets seen once a month or so - these are the hardest guys to photograph! http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y32/hazara/kulie_1.jpg A couple of the Corys as well, they love the rice too! http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y32/hazara/cory_closeup.jpg A cheeky photo of a kuhlie! Anyone want to guess the plant he's playing in?? http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y32/hazara/cheeky_Kulie.jpg And a boring photo of my baby BN.... but I like them. Trying to convince myself I can afford some OTO's next. Problem is I have to buy em all at once. http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y32/hazara/baby_bm.jpg

Any updates? I just found this thread and looked into hypertufa... it looks so simple even I should have limited success with it!!! Would be able to make some really cool features for my amazon bowfromt tank with it and it has a lot of other possibilities as well! The only issue I can see is the concrete which would soften(?) the water. But I have no idea by how much. I love the idea of making little peat caves and then blasting the peat out. From http://www.efildoog-nz.com/hypertufa.htm How to make your Hypertufa tub: You will need the following:- Materials and Tool list: 1. For a square or oblong tub you will need two cartons, one of them with smaller overall dimensions by at least 5 or 6 cm. Place the smaller carton inside the larger. There should be a gap of 5 or 6 cm between the walls on all sides. These cartons are your moulds. For round containers try different size plastic bags, old plastic basins, or buckets. 2. Concrete blocks, bricks or short lengths of heavy timber to fit flush against the outsides of the outer carton for support. This stops the sides bowing out under the weight of the material. For the inside of the container use any spare sand, soil, potting mix (anything bulky) to stop the inside carton caving in. Fill up the inside carton progressively as the walls are built up. If you are using plastic bags for moulds, place 4cm wide adhesive packaging tape around the outside to prevent bowing. 3. Pieces of broom handle, branch or 25mm plastic pipe about 5cm long are used for drainage holes. These can be carefully removed later on. One or two holes are sufficient for small pots, but for larger tubs and troughs at least 4 drainage holes are needed. 4. The ingredients in proportion by volume - 2 parts peat, 1 part sharp river sand, moderately fine, but not beach sand (because of salt and it is too fine) 1 part cement. 5. Tools - Plastic Sheet 1.5 x 1.5 metres, Wheelbarrow (optional), Trowel or spade, Rubber gloves, Tamping stick, 50 x 50mm about .5 metre long, Wire brush, Old hearth brush, Water container or hose. Well now we have it altogether, let's start! INSTRUCTIONS Lay the piece of plastic sheet on the garage floor. Place the large carton in the middle of it. Place the concrete blocks against the outside of carton. Mix the ingredients in the wheelbarrow or on the floor. Quantity depends on the size of the envisaged container (use your judgement). After mixing the dry ingredients thoroughly add sufficient water to make a sticky stiff mix - not runny but about mud-pie consistency, if you can remember back that far. Now stand the drainage plugs upright on the bottom of the carton and place a layer of the mix on the base and tamp it down giving special attention to the corners and around the drainage plugs. Aim for a thickness of 5cm for small to medium size tubs. Take your smaller carton and place it on the layer of mix in the bottom of the larger carton. Make sure it is equally spaced on all sides. Then one quarter fill it with sand or whatever you have. This will stop the inside bowing in and the carton floating up. Now fill up the wall space between the cartons. Use the tamping stick to work it into the corners as you go to get the air bubbles out. Make sure you tamp the outside walls well. Keep building up the sides with mix, adding sand to the inside carton for support until you have reached the desired height. Leave it and don't come back for at least 24 hours. Finishing: Next morning dash out and have a look at your handiwork. Yuck! Wet cartons. But that's just what you want. First, scoop out the sand from the inside carton. Then CAREFULLY peel off the inside wet cardboard and discard. Now the outside. Remove the concrete blocks and carefully finish peeling away the outside carton but don't worry about the bottom. DON'T TRY TO MOVE OR TIP THE CONTAINER AT THIS STAGE - YOU WILL LOSE THE LOT ! Now the tricky bit. You will notice that the walls are rather smooth, in fact just like dark wet boxed concrete. This is not on. We want the walls to look aged and weather worn. This is what we do. Using a wire brush or a special scraper (see below) we very carefully roughen the sides, top and inside rim. I prefer to round off the corners and edges as well. Don't worry about a few nicks and scratches and small holes. These help to give it a natural look. You may wish to carefully scratch in your own design or special texture. Having shaped the outside to your requirements, gently give it a good brush with a hearth brush. The container should be left for at least a week to allow it to cure and set hard. Give it a light sprinkling with water initially 3 hours after moulding and therafter every couple of days to assist the curing process. It is most unwise to lift it until it's entirely set, but if you have to shift it only do so by sliding or dragging it across the floor by means of the plastic sheeting. The mix left over can be used for stands for the containers. Either press it into pottles or plant pots or roll it into flattened balls. Using builders' adhesive these can be attached to the container base as feet at a later stage. SO, THERE WE HAVE IT !

Well, I'll let ya know in 3 months then :lol:

Cheers for that : Your reply just came in time as they were leaving here and heading home (out of town). They are off to Stanmore critter kingdom with orders to buy a baby bristle! I like the bristle noses, just wish there were a little less timid as they grow older.. I have a full grown male who doesn't even come out for his spirulina tabs now. And when he does all the other fish give him a wide berth!

Hi all, just was wondering what algae eaters can handle cooler temps.... My inlaws have goldfish tank that gets a lot of sun, and although it isn't heated I wouldnt think the temp gets bleow 15 deg. So what can I get that will help keep the algae off the plants & glass. I was thinking of Borneo suckers or some bristlenose. Any advice will be greatly appreciated!

I have a small tree trunk that I scored from the river mouth... I soaked it in cold water for a couple of weeks then hot water for an hour or so. After about 2 weeks in the tank it sprouted small mushrooms (brownish things) with caps. They lasted a week or so then everything settled down okay. Leaches heaps of tannis which is great for my setup!

Whenever we have a stirfy, from the frozen veggies pack I grab the zucchini as it comes out... bristlenose's love it anyway! That's great because I hate it!! :evil:

HI there, with my experience (not much) it seems to depend on their age... I've got a grumpy old bugger who only comes out in the evenings to play tennis with the smaller corys. The young one is always visible, and never stops moving.

Where's the best room on the forum to upload photos like that?? Here's my Obviously male hoplo, just look at his wings. I'll put em up here but I didn't see any rooms specifically for photos. These 2 photos are a good 6 months old, but you can definately see the reddened leading edge with the knob. I have only had this one hoplo but I'm sure He's a He. The second is more his natural colours. Anyone in CHCH wanna breed?

Hi Caper.. http://www.fishtanksandponds.net/live-s ... lo_cat.htm Mines quite a bit "stockier" than the ones on this site. A great fish with personality. Mine used to let me catch him & tickle his belly. The photo in my avatar is my clown knife. Not particularly recommended for tankmates :lol:

I should have introduced my tank as well... oops 15 or so neons, 1x hoplo (male needs a mate), 1 x Bristlenose (male needs a mate) 3 x bronze corys, 1 x blk neon (more to come soon), 2 x glowlights (picking up 10 more from a trademe auction tomorrow), 4 x comma/rocket pencils, 3 x lg kuhli's (I know, out of character but they're harmless) and about 5 blk widow tetras. The pencils spawn once a month or so, but unfortunately right in front of the intake pipe. and the forum seems to have reduced my photos from 800 x 600, I'm guessing the limit is 640 x 480???

Can I play as well? The brownish stuff on the leaves, also seems to be gumming up my older, non trimmed java moss. and closer.. Any ideas on amazon community fish that would clear this up??? I do have a big old grumpy bristlenose but he ain't interested in it. I guess a Chinese algae eater would, but would prefer not to mix. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

Hi Robert... I don't know if this is too late to be of any help but.... I get my gravel from Birdlings Flats (by lake Ellesmeree). Comes in just about any grade you can imagine. Also a good source for driftwood, but Waikuku beach by the Ashley mouth is great after a good storm. Just don't get any wood that is soft like pine. I have a couple of root/trunk pieces that were well weathered in the ocean. All I did was soak em in a tub for a week or so in freshwater and chuck em in. Haven't had any probs yet. After a year or so they're still solid. They do leach a bit of tanin, but that suits my setup fine, and the bi-weekly 30-50% water change takes care of it.

Hi forum! I am Kyle. I have kept many fish and a few reps/amphibs over the years. At the mo I have an approx 150l "amazon style" bowfront, mainly populated with tetras and a large hoplo who even survived with my favourite fish, a clown knife which grew to 35+cm however he died a couple of weeks after my in-line heater failure (bloody thing got the tank up to 37deg before I noticed.) We were pretty devistated with that so we now have only small fish that we don't attach to too much. I bred axolotols for a few years, and have had a few specialty fish, including archerfish, fresh water puffers and even a couple of elvers/eels. Hopefully I can be of some help on the forums.