Foxjxa Posted August 4, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 4, 2011 From now on I'll be posting updates, including pictures, on the 5000L tank and Te Manawa's other live exhibits here: http://te-awa.blogspot.com/ :spop: Thanks to everyone who's come along to see it all, it's wonderful to hear your feedback! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishkeepa Posted August 10, 2011 Report Share Posted August 10, 2011 Here are a few photos me and my girlfriend took on our latest weekely (avoid study) trip to Te Manawa. The tank is looking great. We were there just after feeding so all the kokopu were out and active. Unfortunately our camera isnt the greatest so we could only get photos of the bullies and one of the Koura which came out and put on a nice display for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted August 10, 2011 Report Share Posted August 10, 2011 Wow, some excellent photos there! :nfs: Great hearing that people are using it as a way to procrastinate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anthony law Posted August 10, 2011 Report Share Posted August 10, 2011 niceeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee :nfs: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted August 10, 2011 Report Share Posted August 10, 2011 *cough* photo of the month! *cough* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AquaLife Posted August 10, 2011 Report Share Posted August 10, 2011 Totally blown away, Simply superb. Is it true that native tank need to be below 16/18 deg cel? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishkeepa Posted August 10, 2011 Report Share Posted August 10, 2011 *cough* photo of the month! *cough* Which one Stella? And would you kindly help me identify the species Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supasi Posted August 11, 2011 Report Share Posted August 11, 2011 Totally blown away, Simply superb. Is it true that native tank need to be below 16/18 deg cel? Correct. 18 degrees is the most upper range to keep any of the natives. At these temps it will stress the fish. Cooler the better. Aim for around 14-15. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted August 11, 2011 Report Share Posted August 11, 2011 Ok, let's see.... with explanations so people can learn: redfin female (diagonal stripes on the face = redfin, no red = female) probably a common (tapered head and dark 'cat whiskers' under the eye) possibly a common male (whiskers under eye and male due to coloured stripe on outer edge of first dorsal) Redfin (diagonal stripes on face, can't see enough to be sure of sex) possibly a common male (whiskers, tapered head and coloured dorsal stripe) possibly common male (as above) dunno, random brown splots (neither splotches nor spots!) suggest Cran's Male something. (he is feeling defensive/territorial and has gone black to show it. No idea what species) Cran's male. (splots on face, orange dorsal stripe, blunt head). I know this dude, he is super cute and a show off probably a common. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxjxa Posted August 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 11, 2011 Cran's male. (splots on face, orange dorsal stripe, blunt head). I know this dude, he is super cute and a show off He needs a name! I bet the out of focus dude behind him is a shortjaw too, I can never get them to sit still! The koura you've photographed is also the smallest male in the tank, currently known as "Righty", he shed his skin just last week and came out sporting that neat new pattern of his. Absolutely awesome pics. :thup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted August 16, 2011 Report Share Posted August 16, 2011 I had a look at the tank today (ok, I admit it: I pulled over one of the leather ottomans and sat watching it for ages) and WOW the fish look amazing! I think all the kokopu were out and active, and the giant kokopu look like they are on steroids - I think they have trebled in volume since we put them in When the ice has melted I should check how well my latest collection of wood is going and bring down the sunk pieces. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BURN Posted September 27, 2011 Report Share Posted September 27, 2011 Any up dates on this beautiful tank. Hows the plants etc all going. Whats they all looking like now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chopper Posted September 28, 2011 Report Share Posted September 28, 2011 I would have killed/eaten the trout instead of let it go! Regardless of laws you must have ya morals! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxjxa Posted May 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2012 Wow, and just like that it's almost been a year already... WARNING, lots of pictures and some blabber ahead!! Here's what the tank's looking like now. Please excuse the water clarity, this was taken a few minutes after feeding time. One of the large male Common bullys that Fishkeepa took a photo of several months ago. He's now one of several large Common boys with a stable territory - he regularly patrols almost 1/4 of the tank! Same male Common bully, (believe it or not!) with one of several female red-fins who also hang out in the 'sandy area'. In reality he is a pale cream sort of colour and is the lightest male Common in the tank. One of the newer additions to the tank, this little red-fin boy survived without water changes or food for a couple of months before being re-discovered in a tank up at Massey. He's since put on some weight and has his own little area he likes to hang out in near some ladies. I call him 'Slim', seeing as he's still slightly thinner than most of the other red-fins. Lefty the Koura. The three crawlies added last year have been getting along just fine. More than fine, actually. This lady got together with Righty, who was then the only male in the tank, and mated! It was all very exciting until the eggs hatched and the fish ate all the babies before anyone saw them, (I assume). There's also now a fourth Koura, Scrappy, who is about half the size of the other three yet has been living with them for a couple of months without incident. Not the best photo, but I think it's important for everyone to see how much some banded kokopu like to eat. He's called Rocky and was the fish fish to get a name when him and another kokopu tried to eat the same inanga(!!!) and he came away with a cut lip, (If you squint you might be able to see it on his upper lip in the photo). Our two Shortjaws. A little girl has decided to called them "Floppy" and "Grey". I'm thinking Grey is the bigger one. These two seem to be able to eat as much as they want and never get fat. The little one is only now about the same size as the bigger one was when we added them, (~17cm), they don't seem to grow very fast. The three Giant Kokopu have undoubtedly grown the most. Around 22cm in length at the moment, I don't think I could touch any of my fingers together around their middles. They're probably the stars of the tank, next to the Koura, and are easy enough to tell apart that they all have names - Scarface, Antony and Andre. Here's a full shot of Antony, 'the fat one'. Close up of another Giant Kokopu, Andre. That's probably enough photos for now. :slfg: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativelover Posted May 27, 2012 Report Share Posted May 27, 2012 any inanga in the tank ? p.s more pics are welcome it looks amazing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted May 27, 2012 Report Share Posted May 27, 2012 man those kokopu are looking fat. I'll agree that they, in my case giant kokopu, can sure grow. Homer (waddled as when caught he had 2/3 of his tail missing) was about 90 - 100mm when caught about 7 months ago, managed to catch him by accident the other day when trying to move a few of the bullies so gave him a measure - now a beefy 170mm The tank is looking nice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twinkles Posted May 27, 2012 Report Share Posted May 27, 2012 it's looking great :bounce: The koura has nice colours and patterns, very different from mine. Ditto for more pics, would love to see more of the bandeds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxjxa Posted May 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 27, 2012 Thanks guys, I'll post some more when I'm in at work on Tuesday. nativelover - There are actually a few inanga in the tank at the moment, but I don't think they will be staying, unfortunately. The kokopu have never so much as looked at a bully funny, but seem to like the inanga a little too much... :tears: To be fair, the banded/giants have been housed with bullys since they were first caught and did not see inanga again until they were big enough to eat them. Some of the bullys seem to take advance of their 'safe' status and I've seen a few steal food right out of the kokopu's mouths!! blueether - Rocky is the fattest / most disproportionate fish in the tank. He's ridiculous. Gotta love them giants though. Since adding the fish we haven't scooped any out to actually measure them, thankfully most of them are nice enough to pose close to the acrylic when we've got a ruler so we can get a good estimate. twinkles - Lefty is a pretty koura, I think her tail patterns become more distinct each time she sheds. The newest cray, Scrappy, has gorgeous markings too but is really hard to get in front of the camera. The bandeds are SO hard to photograph! With any luck I'll get a nice-ish one on Tuesday to show off, otherwise you'll be stuck with one of the mediocre snaps we use to monitor their growth. As a point of interest, apart from Rocky (the most active of the bandeds), our banded kokopu like to hide in shaded areas or under rocks every now and then. When they come out from hiding they are a dark purple-black in colour with few bands visible at the end of the tail, but after spending some time out and about in brighter lighting they mellow to a lighter purple-brown with more bands. Has anyone else noticed their bandeds changing colour like this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativelover Posted May 28, 2012 Report Share Posted May 28, 2012 aww ok one last question what are you feeding them ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Posted May 28, 2012 Report Share Posted May 28, 2012 Oh wow that is such a beautiful tank !drool: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted May 28, 2012 Report Share Posted May 28, 2012 aww ok one last question what are you feeding them ? Steriods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted May 28, 2012 Report Share Posted May 28, 2012 I wish my substrate and driftwood would stay as cyano free as that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxjxa Posted May 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 28, 2012 Steriods. :slfg: They are fed on frozen bloodworms, brine shrimp, mealworms, crickets, waxworms, earthworms, peas, courgette, locusts, pink shrimp, mysis shrimp, carrot, sweet corn and a bit of ox-heart on occasion. There's also several pre-made frozen food mixes we feed, like tropical tucker, cichlid tucker, goldfish fish dinners, community fish dinners, etc. Each day they'll get a mix of some of the above and we're always looking to try new food. This is ignoring random buckets of live food/bugs caught from local streams or ponds, of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxjxa Posted May 31, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2012 Sorry for the delay, I was off work Tuesday. Here are some more pictures... Got another picture of Rocky the banded today. Looking as obese as ever. D: Compare that to this guy, one of the other banded kokopu. I spent about 10 minutes trying to get this shot for you, twinkles!! The bandeds just don't like staying still for me. Gotta love the shortjaws. :love: Here's a shot of the reclusive Stella the Koura, named after Stella the human. Scarface the giant is in the foreground here. And I'll finish it off with my favourite female red-fin. So pretty! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Posted May 31, 2012 Report Share Posted May 31, 2012 :love: !drool: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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