Samba2641

Thanks for that, I spose its a bit late to pick them up today so I'll leave it til Sun/Mon.

Hi guys, My lfs have special ordered me some Port Hoplos, they arrived today and I'm wondering whether I should pick them up asap or leave them until next week sometime so that they don't get the stress of being acclimatized in quick succession? Everything seems healthy there whenever I visit, but there is obviously still the risk posed by the relatively frequent addition of other stock. Cheers, Sam

@F15hguy: thanks for that! @GrahamC: That sounds like a terrible joke somehow I'll pm you.

Thanks for that, have asked if they're interested in shipping. Would like to have a male or two to give breeding a go down the road.

Hi guys, I had a bit of a tank meltdown a few weeks ago after I introduced a Whiptail to my 180L tank with (apparently) to little time in the quarantine tank. All of my beloved Apistos died in about 24hrs followed by the whiptail, the only that was wrong that I could see was the last male had some fin rot (even cracked out the microscope and played at dissection). Monster the port hoplo catfish is now all alone and misses hanging out with whatever she finds so I'm thinking of restocking options. Its a 180L partially planted tank with sand substrate. The filter is an Aquis 1000. I am definitely trying to get some more hoplos, maybe 4? Is there a particular m:f ration I should be going for? As far as other fish go I'm open to suggestions, perhaps a school of something? -Not looking for any more expensive fish just now, as much as I loved my apistos still have to balance life as a student... Also, is anyone travelling from Auckland to Wellington who could pick me up some hoplos? Or has anyone had experience with shipping fish from hollywood fish farm? -they don't do live fish guarantee which is fair enough, I'm just wondering whether its worth the risk for the hoplos... Thanks for reading ! Sam

Thank you!!!

Thanks for such a detailed reply!! I'm guessing the species will depend greatly on what the lfs has in stock when I'm ready to get them, though I do love the look of A. trifaschiata! Is there any particular male:female ratio that works best? I have been drooling over whiptail catfish lately so may have to get one as a tank mate if further research suggests that they would be compatible. Cheers!

Hi all, I'm thinking about starting up another tank of around 200L and was researching fish to put in it and came across the dwarf cichlids and would like some things clarified if I may? The tank will almost definitely have a sand substrate with a fair bit of planting. What are the species available in NZ and do they have different requirements when it comes to water parameters/tank setup/tank mates etc? Any other tips or details about them would be much appreciated. Cheers, Sam

Thanks:)!!!

That's the plan if I can afford one with a stand:) I think what will happen is that if I do find an affordable 200L I'll make up a proper display tank and if I can't I'll make up a 100L Siamese fighter sorority tank.

Hi all! I've been busy lately setting up the Siamese fighters for breeding and now I'm thinking the living room needs a new display tank. I am tossing up whether to get a 100 or 200L tank and was wondering if anyone had some suggestions for stocking for either/both sizes. It will be sand substrate with a decent level of planting. At this point I'm liking the idea of a centerpiece of one or a small group and one/two other species to add a little interest. -pretty things are nice but character is a must:) Alternately I could go for a more heavily planted Siamese sorority and something on the bottom that won't clash with the girls. Cheers, Sam :thup:

They are gorgeous! Keen to see how they go down the track.

Hi, I plan to start breeding as soon as i find a new crowntail male-my only one got on the wrong side of a female despite being separated...I do have a spare crowntail female if you're interested. What do you plan to breed?

Frustrating creatures:) one of mine had a pectoral fin almost completely missing which is only just almost grown back....

Thanks:)! I have to say I always thought the comments about them being pigs when it comes to food were exaggerations, my lovely little things think its fun to jump into each others compartments when the lid is off and its food time and they think I'm taking too long to get to them...

Thanks! There should be only one male, if my sexing skills are worth anything I think it was the male who got into the compartment of a smaller female and killed her...I kinda hope so otherwise I'm tasked with the nigh impossible task of finding a male crowntail near Wellington...fun fun... They are about 3 cms including the tails.

Which ones if I may be so bold? I still haven't quite worked out the way to identify good points from bad... They must be about 8 months by now, I'm feeding them the pellets suggested by you and they're getting bigger by the day. That could be good, or bad depending on whether the murder victim of a few weeks ago was female or male:) Cross that bridge if and when I come to it though... Cheers:)

Hi again:) I've been waiting for my wee crowntails to grow some more but my flatmate brought home the fancy camera again and I couldn't resist showing you all some pics. apologies for the dirty glass, didn't realize till after the pics had been taken... I've noticed that there seems to be a trade-off between clarity of colour and clarity of body shape in the photos taken...maybe its us though, any tips for future photo-shoots? They aren't anything on Adriennes gorgeous fish but hey:) no. 1 no. 2 no. 2 (again:)) no.3 -the only one without an ovipositor. no. 4 -worst photo ever:) Cheers, Sam

They were 5-6 months old when I got them so must be getting close to 8ish now. They were rather small for their age though which I'm theorizing could have been a factor.

I'm assuming that aggression increases as they age? -they were all in together when they were smaller and no-one was damaged too badly... If it was the male that was the aggressor would that bode badly for future breeding attempts or are they better when given the amount of space necessary for breeding? Thanks!

Hey, So the ich infection is over and all the fish are finally looking better. This morning one of the larger ones had gotten into another compartment and the occupant was dead on the bottom looking like it had had its belly ripped open.... I think (with my limited skills in gender determination) that the survivor is the male, has anyone seen this before? Was it murder or something else? Sorry, no pics as my camera cant focus close enough to be of any use... Thanks in advance, Sam

I'm not sure yet, I've been snooping around the forum and like the idea of a series of joined 'cups' in a communal tank... I've been resorting to the :cofn: that we got for free at the beginning of the semester Cheers

Their ventral fins are quite thin and small, it could be that they got damaged when their fins were...

Thats what I suspected, a little frustrating as no. 4 is the smallest...but also has the nicest colouration (when healthy:) ). Cheers!

Hey, At one point or another I've been certain that I've seen an ovipositor on all of them:) The guy who sold them to me said they were around 5 months, their fins were quite torn up when I got them... I was away for the week last week and before I left they were looking gorgeous, a few of them were displaying vertical colour banding and they are fed on bloodworm's. A few of them are learning to leap out of the water to snatch their food. I was caught unawares by the ich and have 'Wunder Methylene Blue' coming in the post, should arrive by Thurs and until then I've got the temp up to 28C, have added the salt and am doing daily 20% water changes. Thanks for your help! Sam