djsurfs

YIKES! haven't been in the fishroom for ages but saw the article in Stuffs... glad those quick-thinking guys were there & you are relatively OK. Best wishes for a quick recovery!

hey thanks, I got a perky that needed re-homing and ya after some more reading, they can adapt to other "things" as their hos, chose a differnent ty[e of coral, or be happy enough without one...... cheers

Ho-hum... what to do?......... :tears: it has been quite depressing since the day my last seahorse (Lele) died. I have never had any other fish. I am embarassed to say I've been neglecting the tank.... It was in perfect balance (what is the word? biotope?) with the amount of food & waste from the seahorse feeding the non-photosynthetic corals (or perhaps being filter feeders,were they also getting nutrient from frequent waterchanges?) My suncoral grew from a mere 3polyps to a beautiful mass of them, but has been dying off and now shrunk back to a mere dozen or so polyps; the candycane also multiplied from 1 to 8 beautiful torches, but is looking very hungry now... So, either I flick these off for someone else to nurture back to their former beauty, or I try adding a fish or 2 to get things back in balance. I'm not sure what to try though... a clown? would a suncoral keep it happy as I don't have an anemone? (and don't have any special lighting or $ for more reefy stuff- or many fish for that matter!) Or a chromis? or 2? a cleaner shrimp? It is just a small 70 litre tank, but well established as it ran for years with the coral, liverock , shrimp, snails & seahorse. I just don't know... any suggestions appreciated!

hmmm, sorry I don't have much useful advice on this one! very odd... it seems as if their equalibrium is lost!? My SH's have hung upsidedown quite often and happily, but that is just when they are hunting and wanting to check every nook & cranny! You boy does look awfully skinny, but that is great he is taking food from you so if handfeeding is what it takes, keep up the good work *if he will eat it, a mash of shrimp with added fishoil & spirulina could help fatten him up I would normally say a FW dip would not go astray for itching/signs of external parasites, but in this case I think it could add too much stress. OH! hey, I just remembered, if you are putting brineshrimp in the tank, you could very well be introducing ******* (oh crap i just forgot the name,*little microscopic jellyfish*) that can cause irritation. LOL, edit to add: that would be Hydroids stinging from the hydroids could be very irritating Also, scratching can also indicate discomfort due to ammo/nitrIte spikes... So, meth blue would be quite good to ease the dicomfort of either

looks great! :bounce: do you use special lighting for the plants?

hmmm, the adjacent pics of bigeye & roughy look so similar on this page --> http://www.seafriends.org.nz/issues/res/gi/special.htm My memory still thinks more diamond shape, but my memory is not photographic, lol, more like a sieve... :-? I will definitely go for another snork when the weather calms down again, pay better attention to details,hopefully photograph, and report back! Thanks for the help

Wow, those are some great pics. thanks for the link! :bounce: but nope, not the bigeye... my best comparison would be with the Sweeps, except I know sweeps are Much larger than my mysteryfish ( & they are shiny red) AND don't waste too much effort. like I said, observation/memory could throw us off, so I will have a better more accurate descript & hopefully a pic next time errrr I was more focused on crayfish at the time, lol! ( I alwasy find these fish when I am looking for crays!) PS, just looked at a different pic,more side-on view of bigeye & hubby thinks they DO look like them, so ?????? sorry! will confirm later thanks again

umm, I would just say "normal" sized eyes... LOL, i guess I should go snorkelling again & hone my observation skills or take a camera! too bad it's gone onshore today.... Cheers

I have been Googling away, but no luck so far as I don't have a name so am just sifting thru oodles of pics.... and I bet one of you knows the answer When I go snorkelling and usually in rocky areas especially around the mouths of small caves, I often see schools of small fish, about the size of the old 50¢ pieces but are quite umm... diamond-shaped and a very shiny flashy red hue... any ideas?

OK, so I forgot to put foil around the edges & it got a little brown.... but Mmmmmmmmmmmm it was so good. WAS being the operative word... I will have to keep SC milk in the pantry from now on ( that could be dangerous!) It is so much better than the evap milk versions! Also, I started buying whole nutmeg nuts at BinnInn last year, and just freshly grate it when needed. Do try it; the flavour & aroma is amazing and was so good in this pie. Jennifer, THANKS for the recipe! * humming it to the tune of thanks for the memories..... :lol: *

Thanks such a neat area you are in,will hafta take you up on that sometime! And thanks Preach & Stella, great info! it IS amazing. I was pretty high up in the Russell Forest where I saw those fish...

I roasted my pumpkin yesterday. will make any excuse to go to town today...MUST get that sweetened condensed milk!! *lightbulb* need to do WCs and need more phospads and filterfloss anyway. Tada!

I couldn't find a link last night.... Thanks Zev! recently went for a bushwalk and saw a big kokopu in some pools... we headed home wading along the creek but then had to get back on track because there was a set of falls much too daunting to go down & were wondering how the fish get up there. So, now wondering why does most of the whitebaiting go on down near the sea? do the fish go downstream to spawn? or do eggs or fry just get washed downstream or is there a big migration/ spawning Paarrrrrrrrty? and then only the fittest/smartest/luckiest survive & make it back upstream? do these fish go out to sea part of their life, like salmon? I guess I need to go find Stella's book! it is available now?

Did you see the spiel on whitebait/Banded Kokopu habitat? I hope it can be found online! i want to watch it again. it was amazing how the fry can scale pohutukawa roots to get further upstream, or in this case, ropes that have been placed to mimic roots where natural habitat has been disrupted by culverts... reminds me of "salmon ladders"

That is so funny! all the recipes I have ever used call for evaporated milk, and also sugar of course; I imagine the ones using sweetenedcondensed will be richer and less watery. ( which is even better when you counter in the drool factorage :lol: haha ) I have already put SC on the shopping list! :bounce: lol, "Pour can of pumpkin pie mix into premade pie crust then bake." sacrilege! why even bother baking? just buy a pie I don't even like the pumpkin from a tin any more; fresh buttercup is best!

Good on you DonnaM and congrats! Hopefully the coverage will bring more awareness & support to your good work. It was fun seeing Milo in the limelight too

Ooooooooo! thanks for the secret recipe! never seen one using sweetened condensed milk; can't wait to try it. yummmmm

you people are killing me with all this baking & foodfest! *drools* what are you using to make corn tortillas?! no better good nuttycorny taste than a fresh corn tortilla. mmmm. LOL, have you tried finding corn syrup?!

LOL, ditto that pic!! *tries not to drool on keyboard* mmmmm, avocado and salsa..... yer killin me! ahhhhh mannnnnnnnnn I am suffering fishing withdrawals this year! the old hooded BBQ is the only way I've ever smoked fish... I'm usually too impatient after a days fishing/ cleaning so instead of brining the kahawai, I just slather on a thick marinade/mixture of brown sugar,soy sauce, chili, garlic & ginger; then smoke it as slowly as I can bear to wait (depends how hungry I am! :lol: ) foil works wonders to contain mess, & I keep meaning to try out an old bisuit tin to contain the chips ...

Nice find! LOL, Scottie sure is right about the stink factor though... ooooooh, you live in such a beautiful area; the rock formations & waterfalls are gorgeous! Hey, are these snails only found in Northland? I've found dozens, but only seen a live one once! it was trying to cross the road...

Thanks all It's nice knowing there are people out there that understand. *sigh* am trying to Not look at the tank...haven't decided what to do with the whole coldwater setup now... trying right now to just focus on the troppo tank instead & my beautiful last little seahorse, Lele.

Thanks guys.... I woke up and went to look in their tank as I always do... can't believe I lost them.... *sigh*

I don't know if this is the right section to ask..... but what is the best way to preserve dead fish? would vodka be just as good as formalin? I just can't bear to lay them out to dry & shrivel up... or bury them... They were completely healthy and still look it, except they are dead. went to feed this AM... Poof! gone. I added some seaweed last night, but not gathered from my usual source.... I guess there was something wrong with it?.... in hindsight it felt a bit slimier than normal... what a mistake. I am SO sorry. RIP Viv & Henry

Oh gosh, I am soooo sorry! It was quite an unusual, strange and difficult case. Having positive bouyancy ANd concurrent oedema. ( which usually makes them go negatively bouyant) It does sound like he may have burst something during birthing... Good on ya for trying, and for having the bravery to investigate & take that sample. It would be interesting to know more... My sincere condolences

Oh dear, having sick pets is never easy... Hang in there! Best wishes to Bud & all his helpers