M@.

:rotf: they're probaly in the 'Pets For Sale' section of the classifieds, depending on the newspaper

yes - from wiki: "Ancistrus [bristle nose] is a genus of freshwater fish in the family Loricariidae [sucker mouthed catfish] of order Siluriformes [catfish]. Fish of this genus are commonly known as the bushynose or bristlenose plecos." I would associate this more with Chinese algae eaters and hillstram loaches respectively. Although both are common names for anything that sucks onto stuff and eats algae

haha, shows how much I know then! Nice thread though, been interested as I want to set up a smaller NZ marine at some stage (probably years way in fact though, oh well)

What were you hoping to get? The vets in Miramar has some pretty cool salt water fish. Im not too clued up on the salties, but they seem to get a bit of different stuff through

Wow, that was speedy! makes you wonder what is going to happen tho the fish now though :dead%fish said he had Inanga in that tank as well as the bullies

pretty standard. Some places will give you a bit of a discount if you get more than five or so

Catching too many natives for a TROPICAL tank that you get overcrowded and try to sell them on trademe! http://www.trademe.co.nz/pets-animals/fish/fish/cold-water-fish/auction-584028355.htm what the hell! (Not sure if TM links are ok, Mods feel free to delete, just felt compelled to share)

I have my NZ native tank in my office :thup:

I would say you definately need a few more minnows, or give away the one you have. I have a sucker in a tank that size, all good, so long as there is plenty of hiding spots and foraging areas. Just have to watch the stocking levels if you get more minnows aswell.

Wow. You are an expert, that makes total sense!

na, just a cold house first thing in the morning :yaw2: the landlord just installed a heat pump so hopefully wont get that cold this year!

Hi! I have 2 in one of my tanks (unheated). They were in it over last winter - stayed active and seemed happy enough. It got down to about 12 degrees at its coldest from memory Mine are http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaufortia_kweichowensis as apposed to the (Pseudo/)Gastromyzon types that seem more readily avaliable, not that I think it would make much difference.

:iag: I actualy saw this just the other day pretty mesmerising!

haha, fortunately not! they look like variations of these: http://www.fnzas.org.nz/fishroom/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=36163 except one which is kind of gold and orange

Thanks! Ill let you know how I get on. I'll aim for three I think

so not as easy as all that then aye? :gigl: good to know!

Thanks Blueether, good info! - Just had another look through your native tank thread very cool! I was thinking (hoping) I wouldn't have to go quite that big, considering I wasn't really thinking of getting more fish... but those bigger guys just need the U-turn room aye! :nilly: Might have to wait till I move and just get the biggest one for the space I also thought the Bandeds could get a bit aggressive in groups? :smot: there is a Banded that lives in a 'puddle' near my house - he's about 200mm long and the thing he is in comes from nowhere, goes to nowhere and is only about 600L x 300W x 200deep at its deepest point!

if possible I was thinking a rest of their lives kinda thing

haha, so I hear, but first time so trying to help my chances. Was going to condition males and females separately then take them out once they had spawned. Hoping this will get me a decent schoal quickly (only have 5 currently), rather than the fry getting picked off in a community setup

I am thinking about setting up a spawning/grow-out tank for mountain minnows (not very ambitious I know, but will be my first attempt at breeding) basically just with a carpet of dwarf hairgrass. (kind of like an iwagumi) Even though it is going to be a fry tank, I want it to look nice and it will be 'on display' so.... to my question! I was thinking about putting some shrimp in as a bit of a cleanup crew. Will they be ok with the fry/eggs? or are they likely to eat them? maybe they would be ok once they are at the free-swimming stage?

Hi all! I have a small 20L tank with a Koura and a Banded Kokopu. They are only little at the moment - 60mm and 50mm respectively - but will obviously outgrow this tank fairly soon. I am going to up size the tank in a couple of weeks, and wanted to get one that these guys could grow to full size in. What size would you recommend? I prefer more length over depth and height if that makes a difference? Also, would a pair of redfin bullies be ok with the Koura? (haven’t got any atm, but if the new tank is big enough it could be cool to find some!) Thanks!

probably more important than the distance is the 'head' of the pump - the maximum height the pump has the pressure/power to pump to. for pond pumps they tend to call it depth or height so guessing form the info you have given you could probably get away with a 2500LPH pump, as the ones on trademe look like they can pump up to 2.3m

Hi Aaron In theory I think you should be able to find them, but I am having the same problems - found them in the first place I looked in Whangarei, but have tried about 10 different likely spots around Wellington and haven't seen one! I have read that the further south you go the lower the maximum altitude they can be found at, implying that they dont like the cold so much, which might impact their numbers in general as you go down the country. lots of knowledgable people on here though, so hopefuly someone can help you out

Haha thanks!

:bounce: So this is getting repetitive, but surely someone out there must know a spot for shrimp in welly? I've been out hunting all over the show and havent come across any yet Im thinking that most places I have been looking arent esturine enough (flow stright into the sea rather than an esturary) so think around Porirua harbour might be the most likely spot for my next foray...