Aquila

Man, they must pay him a pretty decent salary at TVNZ if he's out buying all those different fish that Havoc ends up eating every time!

Mine is pretty fussy...he will only eat bloodworms. I've repeatedly tried to feed him frozen brineshrimp, pellets, flakes but NADA! He will suck in the brineshrimp, but then he spits them out everytime. He's like one of those prissy cats you see in the commercial!

Why did he need to be rescued? You never explained the story!

I don't disagree with killing unhealthy guppies...i was just saying that the word culling doesn't JUST mean to kill them. With guppies, yes there are no ways to prevent them from breeding unless u keep them with the same sex only or keep them by themselves. I agree with you that greater care should be taken in trying to propagate good lines but unfortunately there will always be the common aquariumists that keep 2 females to 1 male in their aquarium (like they are advised to do) and this will cause the perpetual breeding of average guppies. In regards to dogs, 'culling' these days does not mean killing the puppies (unless they are seriously sick)...except if u are are some dodgy farmer who just doesn't want puppies and is too cheap to have his dog spayed. Breeders cull their champion lines by only breeding from the best individuals and then spaying/neutering the remainder and selling them as pets. You have to face the fact....unless you bought the leading breeding pair of animals off a breeder, you are ALWAYS getting the culled individuals. Otherwise they wouldn't have sold the pet to you and kept it as a breeder. The only thing you can do about it is hope that the animals has at least 90% of the great genes its parents had and then try to improve on that through your own breeding.

Also 'culling' doesn't always mean 'kill'. Sure with bent backs this is the best choice (or for instance in a group of birds who test positive for bird flu) but more broadly/accurately 'culling' just means to remove from the gene pool you are using to breed the line.

Well good! Maybe they'll decide to research whether those shrimp should be allowed in the future! I want some too I'm more concerned about the val becoming illegal. I don't really know what my plants are called but i only got them from other fish keepers and the pet store so I really don't want be fined for having something that is banned yet i didn't knowingly go out and try to import it! That's what i think is a bit silly about these situations. The plants WAS legal and now isn't legal....but its already largely present in NZ!!! The average Joe won't be regularly checking MAF websites and trying to ID the plants that he just bought at a pet shop because he thought they looked nice! Punish the people knowingly importing the stuff not the general public. If MAF showed up at my door i'd happily let any of my plants be confiscated if their legality was recently changed...but it'd be pretty low if they fined me thousands of dollars! If you want to irradiate a species that has been decided to be a threat to NZ, you need to have public support...make them aware and WANT to help...not scare them into hiding their aquarium pics because they're afraid of getting in trouble!

The cases are suppose to come with a tube yes. Everyone i've seen has but double check when u are buying to be sure. When my friend's camera got flooded, she also got a replacement because it was covered under warranty and they found a default in the case which caused the flooding. As long as you are meticulous with sealing it well then you will be fine. You can even check the casing before you dive by pushing the unit slowly under water in a sink or barrel. If u see ANY water leak in, then you're seal is not good. After the dive I would recommend placing the whole unit in some freshwater and let it soak for >30min, then letting it dry properly before actually opening it and taking the camera out. I don't know if i'd worry about any filters at this point yet. I would first get used to taking photos underwater. Its a bit trickier to hold yourself steady, the fish are fast, and usually there is not enough light. You CAN get great photos without them especially if its in more shallow water (<20M) so if u wanna save some money for now i'd skip it.

Wow..unds like a lot of work! Well worth the result though, looks good Poor shrimpies Maybe the NZ FW one can be acclimated slowly to a warmer temp....

What bushy plant is that phoenix? (the one taking up most of the tank) Are there no Ghost shrimps available in NZ? I used to have a couple in Canada....they are clear like the one in the pic SamH provided but they are FW and tropical. Great for a community tank. Would love to get my hands on some again if they are around.

Each camera model has its own underwater case. Sometimes they have a couple cameras for each case model but there aren't really any short cuts. I would suggest googling ...."Sony _____ underwater housing" and it'll come up with a specific case model number which you can then look up on ebay/trademe and such. That is the cheapest option i believe compared to buying straight from the store. I have a Canon PowerShot S1IS and bought its housing for about $250 CA over 7 years ago. It works well but it takes some practice to get really good shots. You have to really learn when to use and not use the flash! To get even better shots, you really need an external flash or two...but that would cost extra, and isn't necessarily compatible with your camera model so i would just skip it for now. You have to make sure that the o-ring on your case is always water tight, ANY debris such as a hair or a few grains of sand can cause a leak which will flood the case and your camera in seconds! I have never had any problems, but my friend's camera flooded from just snorkelling! I always give the o-ring (and the groove it sits in) a good clean and apply the provided silicone gel each time i am going to use it. I also use a few of those little moisture absorbing packets by placing them within the case where there is room after the camera goes in. Sometimes the warm humid air that gets trapped inside the case when u are on land will condensate when u hit the cool water so this prevents the lens from fogging up. Lastly, its good to always use separate memory cards for your diving. That way if your camera case does flood, you won't lose ALL your vacation shots! Anyways, if u wanna check out any of the shots i've managed to take with a relatively amateur camera and case you can add me on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id= ... ef=profile Very jealous (and excited for you) of your trip!!

Hahaha similar thing happened to me. I was helping a dive centre in the Seychelles as an extra pair of eyes if there was a bigger group diving. The instructor had his hands full with some guy who used his BCD as a submarine (inflating it and deflating it) every time he wanted to adjust his depth...instead of being neutrally buoyant and using his lungs! His wife also panicked and shot up to the surface dangerously fast but he didn't notice because he was too busy trying to ride a sea turtle :roll: When he did finally notice he also tried to shoot up quickly but luckily the instructor grabbed him by the fin and held him down... Meanwhile, I had been with another group which consisted of a elderly couple who decided to end the dive early after being kicked in the face several times by the guy above, and also a single guy who they buddied up to me because there was an odd number. So my 'buddy' spent the entire time with his nose in his camera taking pictures of everything and everything he could ...racing around and breathing heavily. Nobody ever outlasted me or the instructor on air so I knew it was only a matter of time before he would run out. I followed closely behind and sure enough, at one point he turned his head around his eyes as wide as saucers ...to which I had my alternate reg ready and shoved it right into his hand. Haha. He was very embarrased afterwards on the boat but kept thanking me in German.

Hehe..well i didn't 'take' it but helped TA it u mean right? I'm sure we've crossed paths before ...the bio department is only so big at Vic. Ouch! Well with any luck aim will get a bit better soon! All the best, Milena

I dive too! Rescue Diver ~2000, >100 dives (forgot) PADI I have several....Blue Hole in Belize, the Cenotes in Mexico, and the Seychelles. In New Zealand I've only dove at Goat Island and spots around Welly so far. There is a cool spot on the south coast (Island Bay) right outside the Vic marine/ecol lab where there is a swim through and the walls are complete covered with critters.

Is the regular concentration of Rock salt about 1 tablespoon per 20L? Also, the aquarium came with some 'stress salt'. Is this the same as rock/sea/aquarium salt? It looks the same but this batch does have a bit more medicinal smell. Could be due to storing it with other stuff though. I've never heard of it. Anyone?

So I got a new 220L yesterday and with it came 2 fish. A Rosy barb that looks and behaves normally and a Scissortail that has a strange lump behind its chin, acts pretty skittish and hasn't eaten yet. I know 'lumps' can be pretty hard to diagnose but I've attached a pic to help (sorry its the best i could get). Its less like a lump and really more of a flap-like chunk. As far as I can tell, his mouth underneath is intact. Yesterday the chunk looked a bit red, but today its just white. Does anyone recommend any specific treatment? I don't want to stress him out in a hospital tank anymore then he already is if you don't think it'll help... Cheers, Milena

That's great news!!! Woot

Awesomest background I have ever seen!!!

There is also a Rose Tail (RT).

Where online did u get the substrate? Was it expensive?

Just get a boy from the pet store and you'll be away laughing! Also, having marbles for substrate will definitely help eggs and fry survive!

Chocolate or cream cheese!!!

Yeah...personally i would never rely on a phone or anything like that to take good pics. They always look so terrible. Just get a proper camera as a future gift and he'll thank you later

Well if it isn't fin rot, you definitely have to keep an eye out that it doesn't develop! Sounds like he's doing good so far

I'll start making a tunnel in the east wing of the complex Oh and dogs love me, I've got this all worked out!

The customer is always right They may only give you credit...but who cares! Go back the next day and hope to get a diff staff when you are buying the new one.