Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/5/84; site cvl.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!umcp-cs!cvl!westling From: westling@cvl.UUCP (Mark Westling) Newsgroups: net.pets Subject: Re: Tropical Fish, several questions. Message-ID: <413@cvl.UUCP> Date: Thu, 9-May-85 12:45:45 EDT Article-I.D.: cvl.413 Posted: Thu May 9 12:45:45 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 11-May-85 08:33:28 EDT References: <532@mnetor.UUCP> Reply-To: westling@cvl.UUCP (Mark Westling) Organization: Computer Vision Lab, U. of Maryland, College Park Lines: 73 Keywords: tropical fish I hope this helps: 1. Whether to add salt to your present tank is a tough question because neons and Corydoras catfish do best in soft water while mollies and platies require about one teaspoon per gallon, as you say. If you can't move one group to another tank or trade them back to a pet store for a more compatible species, then I would try adding only a quarter to a half teaspoon of salt per gallon, and reduce the amount if the neons lose color or seem weak. Remember that when the water evaporates from your tank the salt will remain, so you will need to siphon out some water before you add any more salt. In any case it's a good idea to change about 25% of the water every week or two to remove organic wastes. 2. A one-gallon bowl is rather small for pregnant livebearers, since the mother won't have to look far to find her young. I would suggest at least a five-gallon tank to save a good percentage of fry. If you don't have the facilities for another tank, try a low round-sided bowl which will have a larger surface area than the popular flat-sided drum bowl. Surface area is important because livebearer fry usually go immediately to the top. For this reason make sure that most of the plants are floating. Bushy plants like water wisteria and water sprite are good, and while cabomba looks great, it's not the easiest plant to keep alive. 3. Heating small tanks/jars is a BIG problem. If the water is too shallow for a heater, you can put the heater in a tall jar full of water and set the jar in one corner of the tank. Of course, this won't work on a container smaller than a gallon or two. I keep bettas in quart jars. Between adjacent jars I connect a siphon made out of 18 inches of 3/8" flexible plastic tubing (from a hardware store). The jars are connected in a ring, with one jar containing a heater. One of the siphons leaving the heater jar was made into a lift tube by feeding an air line into it about an inch above the bottom, and resting the other end just above the surface of the next jar. The circulation is pretty good, though you may have to use multiple siphons or larger tubing to keep the water levels even. My only problem is that algae grows rapidly inside the clear tubing so it must be cleaned often. I recomend Dan Sea submersible heaters. They're not the cheapest, but they give you great peace of mind, especially after you've had a cheap heater cook a tank full of fry. 4. Most people use siphons to clean gravel since regular water changes are important, a fact you won't see in the older aquarium books. The air- powered vacuum cleaner isn't a bad idea, but there's no reason to save existing water (except maybe in saltwater tanks?). For practical information and a range of articles from beginner to expert, look for "Freshwater and Marine Aquarium" magazine at your local pet stores. This magazine really puts "Tropical Fish Hobbyist" to shame. ( Last month the Potomac Valley Aquarium Society took a poll of its members, and exactly one person said he prefered TFH over FAMA. The rest of us thought the margin should have been greater.) You can also find discount mailorder ads in FAMA, which I've found to offer around a 30% discount from the local shops. Now a question to spark more discussion. Let's assume you successfully breed and raise mollies, then platies, swordtails, and so on, then decide you want to try an egglaying species. What would other people on the net suggest as a beginner's egglayer? I've seen books that say bettas are easy, and though I'm raising a lot of them now I remember the days back when I couldn't. Danios or barbs? I've never tried them, but I've read that they are almost a traditional first egglayer. How about rift lake cichlids (no kidding), such as zebras? Now that the novelty has worn off, I think everyone is almost embarrased to admit how easy it is to breed many of these species. Many killifish could be included, the only problem being availability. In fact, my first egglayer was Aphyosemion gardneri. Any other ideas? -- -- Mark Westling ARPA: westling@cvl CSNET: westling@cvl UUCP: ...!{seismo,allegra}!rlgvax!cvl!westling