2018-02-24

LIVEBEARERS in General - PLATIES in Particular

Two red wag platies (Xiphophorus Maculatus)
Two red wag platies (Xiphophorus maculatus) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Livebearers are a very common fish in many smaller community tanks up to 20 - 25 gallons. They are relatively passive and provide much interest because they bear live fry that is often large enough to live on their own immediately, assuming they can find a suitable place to hide right away. If they are not, they are rapidly eaten by the rest of the aquarium occupants, including their mother.

There are essentially four types of livebearers found in the small aquarium; guppies, platies, swordtails, and mollies.

Guppies have evolved quite rapidly and been bred for a number of color variations and fin shapes. They are extremely popular and are often the first fish a novice aquarist may keep. Swordtails and platies share the same genus - Xiphophorus, so are very closely related. The swordtails are more streamlined in general and are interesting because of the "sword" that often extends from the tail fin. Often they are more active and aggressive than platies. The platy is usually much stockier, taller and shorter and comes in just as many colors as the swordtails. Mollies can become quite large in comparison with the other three and also is actually a brackish water fish. Believe it or not, mollies have even been used to start a saltwater aquarium and show a little problem with adjusting to such drastic water differences.

Any livebearer species seems to have very energetic males. Because of this, any livebearers should be purchased in trios, two females to every male. The males need to be diverted otherwise they can wear a female down with constant attention. Luckily it is quite easy to differentiate a male from a female, the females have a fixed triangular fin at the base of the body, males have a gonopodium instead. This a special movable sword-shaped fin near the anus of the male. It is normally held parallel to the body. It is a movable appendage that rotates forward and forms an open tube to pass sperm packets to the female. Even a brand new fish keeper can identify between the sexes with a little careful observation in the pet store.

Livebearers females, especially guppies, can store the sperm packets passed to them by a male and become pregnant at a much later date. So even if a male has been there only briefly, it is not a surprise that suddenly a female is pregnant without any apparent cause. Another thing that can happen often found in swordtails, is that when there is a tank full of swordtails where there are no males present the dominant female may suddenly appear to change sexes and become a male.

Platies are the fish I generally use in a community aquarium, guppies seem to be a lot more fragile than they used to be. Probably as a result of the tremendous inbreeding that has occurred to define and create new combinations of colors and fins. The guppy is not the most sturdy fish to add to a new aquarium. Guppies are best added, if they are to be kept, well after the initial maturation of the biological filter is fully completed. There are much better fish to initiate a new fish tank, guppies are certainly not the best.



Swordtails are very active and swim continually. They are usually one of the larger fish and their constant swimming can cause havoc for much smaller fish. There is no doubt that if you plan on keeping the larger community fish like gouramis and angels the fast swimming swords can take care of themselves in most cases. Platies seem to be a bit more placid in an aquarium with small tetras and danios but are also large enough to take care of themselves with barbs and sharks. So even though the swords and the guppies may seem to have the flash, the platies do offer as many color varieties and seem to fit well with almost any small community aquarium.

    By Stephen Pond
    http://www.noviceaquarist.com

    Dedicated to providing information required for the successful novice aquarist. Keep tropical fish alive and thriving in your first aquarium through the critical first six weeks and beyond. Visit my website for detailed information for the novice aquarist on all aspects of the beginning aquarium.

    Article Source: EzineArticles



2018-02-23

Callichthyidae Fish Care and Aquariums - ARMORED CATFISH - Corydoras

Vaginamouth
Photo  by Furryscaly 
Catfish Armored with Barbels

Coming from Trinidad and South America are the Mail and Armored Catfish. These catfish are well respected even by larger fish. The catfish have partly covered bony plates, which double and its back and head has a covering. The mail and armor catfish have fatty moveable fins, which the adipose surround a hefty backbone. The dorsal fins are near the backbone. These catfish have two sets of barbel at the base of its mouth.

Another group of catfish includes the Genus Corydoras. 

This group of fish is relatives to the Callichthyidae. If you are searching for tank catfish, hit the shop and buy a couple of these good buddies. The hardy fish have a curious nature, as well as amusing features. These catfish are ideal as well since they will clean up the neighborhood without a problem, thus eliminating pollutant build up.

If you are purchasing the mail or armored catfish for breeding, you will need a tank solely for housing these fish.

How to dress the tank
Armor and mail catfish tend to enjoy housing in murky colored waters where fine gravel rests at the bottom of the aquarium. Cryptocoryne is ideal to provide a hiding place for these fish, yet you should keep plant volume to a minimal. Stones are nice hiding spots for the mail and armored catfish, yet you must arrange them as arches, or related formations.

How do I decide on water temperature?
Catfish are not friendly to overheated waters. Therefore, the water temperature should be around 72 degrees Fahrenheit. You should also avoid over illuminating the tank. The water should have moderate alkalinity, hardness, or neutral conditions. As the fish mature, you will need another aquarium to manage conditions and segregated arrangements. During spawning, you should fill another tank up to fifteen gallons of water. You will know when spawning time has arrived at the shifting colors. Look for light rosy tints.

How do they mate?
The fish will naturally mate in pairs. Sometimes however when the fish are placed in separate tanks, spawning will not occur. If this happens, you want to reduce the water temperature to around 62 degrees Fahrenheit. In addition, you will need to add clean water to the tank. The fish will lay eggs the size of 2 mm and up to 400 eggs. After the eggs are hatched, you want to add methylene blue to the tank, so that the fry can prepare peacefully for deliverance. Fry fish from mail or armored fish tend to rot, so the water should be tainted a bluish shade, which is the purpose of methylene. Once the fry comes to the world, you want to feed them Micro worms, and later feed the fish saltwater shrimp.



Bronze Corydoras, otherwise known as Corydoras Aeneus come from Venezuela and Trinidad waters. The fish grow 2 ½ inches in size. This particular breed is not a favorite fish added to the tank water. The greenish sides of the fish offset a pink colored frame. While the fish is one of the harder fish to adapt to the tank water, it does make a good communal tank fish. Bronze Cory will not assault, mistreat, or interfere with the life of other fish.

Favorite dishes:
The Bronze enjoys Tubifex and white worms, yet he will eat dried dishes as well.

Water conditions
Alkalinity water is fine as long as the water condition is neutral. Hard water will suffice as long as you keep the volume in moderation. NaC1 or saltwater is not the Bronze Cory's preferred choice and these fish will let you know quick, therefore stay clear of this water condition.

    Sven Hylten-Cavallius - Article Source: GoArticles



2018-02-22

Fact Sheet: KISSING GOURAMI - Helostoma temminckii

(Original Title: The Kissing Gourami)

Kissing Fish
Photo by Catchpenny

Scientific Name: Helostoma temminckii (green), Helostoma Rudolfi (pink)
Natural Location: Green variation originated from Thailand, pink variation from Java
Temperature: 72-82°F (22-28°C)
PH: 6.5-8.5pH


Size: 4-6 inches (10-15cm) They can grow up to 12 inches in the wild.

Diet: Omnivores, they enjoy vegetable matter and small invertebrates as well as readily accepting flakes
Swimming Level: Middle dweller

Breeding Type: Egg layers, eggs float and will adhere to floating plants

Ease of keeping: Beginner to intermediate
Tank Size: 30-gallon minimum

Profile: Kissing Gourami have the classic Gourami shape, narrow but the deep oval-shaped body, the dorsal and anal fin are equal in size and length. These fish are usually bought for their unusual 'kissing' action, this is not actually a sign of affection but rather a test of strength. Originally both the green and pink variations were considered the same species but have now been reclassified as two separate types.

The Kissing Gourami is one of the larger Gourami species so it does need adequate space. It is usually peaceful enough to be kept in a community tank with similar sized or larger fish but occasionally they can be territorial so care should be taken when choosing tank mates. They may also occasionally latch on to larger fish and damage the slime coat.

Males and females look identical and can't be distinguished until courting and spawning. Unlike most other Anabantoids they don't guard or care for their eggs or young. Eggs usually hatch within 24 hours of scattering and the resulting fry become free swimming in a further two days time.



Comments:

They enjoy eating algae and prefer a well-planted tank. Sturdy plants like Java fern are best as they can easily uproot or destroy sensitive plants as they graze.

    By Kelly Starrs

    I'm a breeder and importer of Show Quality Halfmoon Bettas as well as an avid keeper of a number of community tank fish. I am always happy to help with any general tropical fish or betta related questions, you can find me on my betta forum!

    Article Source: EzineArticles


2018-02-21

Asagi KOI

Asagi KOI




2018-02-19

Bring More Puff to Your Aquarium With Freshwater PUFFER FISH

Tetraodon nigroviridis 1.jpg
Photo: Wikipedia (CC)
Are you planning to keep a freshwater PUFFER FISH in your aquarium? Well, before you buy a puffer, make sure that you know everything about it. This type of fish is not your typical freshwater specimen because it requires extra care and attention.

To get you started, here is a concise guide to freshwater puffer fish and what you need to do to keep it healthy and happy.

Know Your Puffer
A lot of pet shops often mislabel their fish. In fact, some store owners are really not familiar when it comes to puffers. They do not know how to distinguish freshwater varieties from brackish or marine species. It is your responsibility to do the preliminary research. You have to know the different freshwater species of puffer fish including their habitat requirements, diet, behavior, and proper care.
Basically, there are at least 40 species of freshwater puffers. However, only a few of them can be found commercially. To make things simpler, it is advisable to narrow down your options to the common puffer fish available in stores and pet shops.

1. Carinotetraodon Travancoricus
This specie is generally known as the Dwarf puffer fish. In some stores, it is labeled as BB puffer or Pea puffer. As the name implies, it is a small puffer fish that grows to about 22 millimeters or less than one inch. It normally has a yellowish color with spots of green and black.
The Dwarf puffer requires a tank that can filled with at least 10 gallons of water. You can make this puffer fish happy if its tank has a sandy substrate with well designed hiding places such as vegetation or big rocks. Like most puffer fish, the Dwarf can become extremely territorial. However, it can coexist with its own kind and could live peacefully with other tank mates.

Dwarf puffers love to feed on small bits of snails, shrimps, and blood worms. Feeding should be twice a day and adults must be given a regular diet of shelled foods so that their beaks will not grow too big.

2. Monotrete Turgidus
Another cute little puffer fish is the turgidus or commonly known as Brown puffer. This is a very personable fish but it is less active than the Dwarf species. It prefers to lurk and hide at the bottom of the tank and will only show itself when it is feeding time.
The Brown puffer grows to about six inches. Its back is greenish with black spots. The belly side is usually brown to grayish with no remarkable spots. This puffer fish thrives well in a 20-gallon tank with water pH level of about 6.0 at 80 degrees Fahrenheit. It prefers sandy or pebbly substrate with lots of vegetation and rocks where it can hide during the day. You have to take note that a Brown puffer is a terrible territorial fish. It is very aggressive and will probably eat other tank mates if given the chance.

You can feed this puffer fish with blood worms, chunks of fish meat, shrimps, and krill. As it grows older, you have to feed it with crab legs, clams, or mollusks.

3. Tetraodon Lineatus
Although the lineatus is rarely kept by hobbyists, you may want to try keeping this kind of puffer fish if you love to face big challenges. This specie is generally known as the Nile puffer or Fahaka. It has distinct yellowish lines on its body and can grow so big that a standard tank may not be enough for it. An adult Fahaka is about 18 inches long so you need a wider tank that can be filled with at least 150 gallons of water.

The Fahaka puffer is endemic to Africa, more specifically in the Nile River and its tributaries. However, you could find this fish in some exotic pet shops. This freshwater puffer fish will look marvelous in your aquarium but remember that it requires extra attention and maintenance.

The Fahaka lineatus is known for its extreme aggressiveness and territorial behavior. It will hunt its tank mates and eat them. You can feed this puffer with crustaceans. It also loves snails, shrimps, fish fillet, blood worms, wrigglers, and feeder insects. To make sure that its beak will not grow too big, you should give your Fahaka a regular diet of crab legs, clams, and other shelled feeds.
Additional Tips When Keeping Freshwater Puffer Fish


As stated earlier, some stores often mislabel their freshwater puffers. So you have to watch out for the Green Spotted Puffer (GSP), a brackish-water fish but commonly labeled as freshwater specie. The GSP has distinct green spots on its body. A full-grown adult is about 6 inches long. Because it thrives in brackish water, it will die if you put it in a freshwater tank. If you already have a GSP, make sure to increase the level of water salinity in your tank.

When introducing your puffer fish to its new environment, make sure that it is properly acclimatized. Keep the fish in its plastic bag and allow it to float in the tank for about 15 to 20 minutes to level the water temperature. If you will not do this, your puffer fish could die from shock.

Lastly, do not induce your puffer fish to inflate itself. This is stressful and hazardous for your fish. A puffer inflates its body as a form of defensive action especially when it feels threatened. This action brings considerable amount of stress to your fish which could be harmful. But don't worry because almost all puffer fish will inflate themselves if they want to. Fish enthusiasts usually call it "practice puffing" and it is delightful to see. Be sure to keep your digital camera ready so that you can take good photos when your puffer practices its puffing ability.

Keeping freshwater puffer fish is a good hobby. But always remember that you have to take good care of your puffer to keep it healthy and happy. You have to give ample space and clean habitat for your fish. Most importantly, feed your puffer fish with nutritious and delectable seafood.





2018-02-18

Tips on Catalina Or Blue-Banded Goby Care

Blue-Banded Gobies - Photo: Wikimedia
The blue-banded goby or Lythrypnus dalli is a member the family Gobiidae. These intensely colorful fish are native to the Eastern Pacific Ocean and the coastline of California. It is, in fact, often referred to as the Catalina goby.

Collectively gobies constitute one of the largest groupings of fish on the planet. The group is comprised of 267 assorted genera and 2,100 individual species. There are even freshwater gobies but all but about 200 are saltwater varieties. Of those, gobies most commonly live a demersal existence inhabiting tropical and sub-tropical reef eco-systems.

Saltwater faring gobies are renowned for their near symbiotic relationships with crustaceans, sponges, and sea urchins. Of the entire spectrum of bottom-dwelling creatures you can add to a reef tank, it is the goby that is most likely to end up becoming the center of attention.

The blue-banded goby is a small fish only reaching a length of 2-2.5 inches when fully grown. They are cylindrical bodied species with bright reddish-orange coloring and rather unique looking neon blue vertical banding starting at their heads and working its way back to their mid-body.

Like other gobies, you will never see the Catalina goby stray too far from its sanctuary. In a reef tank, you will often see them sunning themselves on rocks or hiding under the friendly protection of a sea urchin.

Gobies are exceedingly docile creatures. They make excellent additions to any reef tank provided their tank mates are equally mild-mannered. Unlike many bottom dwellers, the blue-banded goby exhibits no territorial behavior toward members of its own species. You can add as many to your reef tank as you please as long as there are enough hiding places and food to accommodate a thriving, bottom-dwelling community.

These are a short-lived creature. They generally only live about 18 months. Warmer water temperatures seem to expedite their expiration date. If it is conducive to the other members of the reef, it is recommended that the water temperature is kept between 68-72°F.

These are a carnivorous species. They will remain quite hardy throughout the remainder of their limited lifespan if fed vitamin enriched brine shrimp, or a similar commercially raised live crustacean. They will also eat frozen marine food formulated for carnivores. They have even been known to develop a taste for marine flake food.



Spawning Blue-Banded Goby
Unlike much marine fish, gobies frequently spawn in captivity. Although they have similar color palettes, you will find that you can distinguish between male and female blue-banded gobies with a little practice. If you look closely you will see that some of them have slightly longer dorsal fins than others. These are the males of the species. Determining the sexes is not essential to the prorogation of the species. Gobies are bi-gendered. If there are no males present in a group of gobies a hormonal surge will be triggered in the most dominant female until she undergoes the transformation into a male.

Females will instinctively deposit their eggs in an empty shell or any of the various other hiding places you provide for them. The male will then guard the eggs until they hatch. Fry can be fed liquid or powdered marine food developed hatchlings. When they grow a little bigger they can be fed newly hatched brine shrimp.

    By Stephen J Broy
    The hottest new trend in saltwater aquarium ownership is pet jellyfish. Jellyfish can't be kept in a traditional saltwater tank setup. They need specially designed Jellyfish Fish Tank Aquariums to remain alive and healthy. Jellyfish tanks don't require the constant upkeep normally associated with saltwater aquariums. Moon Jellies are the most popular jellyfish for home aquariums because of their exotic beauty and ease of care. Find out more about Moon Jellyfish and other Pet Jellies. Jellyfish are among the most interesting creatures in the aquatic kingdom.
    Article Source: EzineArticles


2018-02-17

Freshwater AQUARIUM PLANTS - Aquatic Botanical Biodiversity

Planted Tank 02
Photo  by The Wandering Angel 
Aquatic plants do carry the other half of the marine ecosystem and are good additions to aquariums simply because they make the marine life equation complete. But there are good signs lately which indicate that these plants are now used for more than just equating the animal-plant balance in an aquatic community. If you are interested in purchasing freshwater aquarium plants for your aquarium, then you might find this information quite useful.

Floaters

Floaters are a common choice in aquariums because they add that style and elegance aside from the balance that they provide in the entire aquarium. Floaters, as the name suggests, thrive at the surface of the aquarium with their roots "floating" in the water, and are, by technical name, floating plants. One good example of a floater is the Fairy Moss.

Rhizomes

These plants are commonly described as having thick stems that stretch out inside the fish tank horizontally, with the leaves sprouting evenly at the stem. They are made to "run" over the substrate, much like how a normal plant grows on land. The Anubias and the African Fern are the commonly used rhizomes for aquariums. Aquarists start growing these plants by attaching them to the driftwood, and they spread along the substrate all by themselves.

Rosettes

These plants are characterized as looking like crowns, with roots that grow underneath them. These kinds of plants are very ornamental for a freshwater aquarium plant because they present a shortened stem axis that tends to spread over its leaves beautifully. The downside is that they tend to need a good amount of maintenance and care. Some good examples of Rosettes are the Amazon Sword and the Sagittaria.

Stems

They are called this way because of their general appearance, which basically looks like a stem that is firmly rooted in the substrate. The leaves that can come in paired and multiple varieties are found at the stem's nodes


Other Notable Aquatic Plants

The Java moss may well be considered as one of the most common aquatic plants. This is because it has a high tolerance rate for varying water pH levels, and can grow relatively fast, which makes it the ideal plant for beginners.

The Water Wisteria is a plant that can also grow quite quickly. It is a good plant to use in aquariums because aside from its aesthetic function as a plant, it also helps to keep the algae levels of the aquarium low. Be careful of the water nutrient sucking capability of this plant, though.

Cryptocoryne Becketti is a plant that can pose a challenge to the more experienced hobbyist. It is an amphibious plant, meaning it can grow well regardless if it is on land or underwater (but for its underwater survivability purposes, we shall still call this an aquatic plant). Like Rosettes, it's a very good ornamental plant, as it gives a dazzling array of different colors, but it only works for those who are able to raise it well.


    Sandra Gaffney is a freshwater aquarium expert.