148.6L (39.2 gallon) aquarium journal

[elephantnose3334]

The two silvertip tetra fry are doing okay in the saver box. I only took a pic of the larger fry today, as the second fry hides more often because it's smaller. I am continuing to feed the adults live blackworms for the next couple days for conditioning and breeding.

 

[Colin_T]

You can feed them raw or cooked prawn too. That was one of the main foods I used to feed my fish. Buy a couple of hundred grams of raw or cooked prawn from a shop (I bought them from Woolworth). Keep them in the freezer and take one out each day and defrost it. Use a pair of scissors to cut the prawn into little bits. Offer a few bits at a time. (Cut a few bits and offer it, then cut a few bits and offer it). When the fish are full, stop feeding and remove uneaten food. The remaining prawn can go in the fridge until tomorrow. Wash the scissors with warm soapy water and rinse well.

 

[elephantnose3334]

You can feed them raw or cooked prawn too. That was one of the main foods I used to feed my fish. Buy a couple of hundred grams of raw or cooked prawn from a shop (I bought them from Woolworth). Keep them in the freezer and take one out each day and defrost it. Use a pair of scissors to cut the prawn into little bits. Offer a few bits at a time. (Cut a few bits and offer it, then cut a few bits and offer it). When the fish are full, stop feeding and remove uneaten food. The remaining prawn can go in the fridge until tomorrow. Wash the scissors with warm soapy water and rinse well.

I didn't know you could feed them prawn. Does it help with the breeding process too like some live foods? Will the prawn get defrosted first before giving them to fish? (I don't want to risk introducing diseases from raw prawn...)

 

[Colin_T]

I found prawn was one of the best foods to get fish breeding, the best being live mozzie larvae, but prawn was the best dead food for most fish.

You can buy cooked prawn, which will be free of diseases or you can buy raw prawn and cook it. The main disease transmitted to fish from prawn is Microsporidian, which causes the muscle tissue to turn white or cream and the fish die slowly over a period of a month. If you have live shrimp in the tank then use cooked prawn so you don't transmit anything to them.

I kept the prawn frozen while I was cutting little bits off it and the tiny bits defrost very quickly, as soon as they hit the water. I cut them into really small bits (1-2mm long). It's easy to cut them with scissors, you just start at one end of the piece of prawn and use the scissors to carefully cut little bits off. If the bits are too big you can wipe them off the scissors blade and cut them a second time. With a bit of practice you can make it really fine and little fish like the tetras can take it.

 

[elephantnose3334]

Today's tank pics. The fry are doing okay, especially the bigger one.

 

[elephantnose3334]

I finally got some API test strips to conduct weekly tests on the tank to record parameters, especially pH and gH. I tried testing the water and these are the results (photos are a bit bad because of lighting): The silvertip tetras are a bit skittish when I come close to them and/or when I begin maintaining the tank. I also got a fluffy brownish-red plant today to provide as much shelter as possible for them.

 

[MattW]

Looking good! Seems to be a Cabomba plant from what I can tell. Temperamental IME. They either work or don't, so hopefully it works for you

 

[Colin_T]

red milfoil coz you can't get Cabomba in Australia.

put the test strip next to the bottle so we know what we are looking at.

 

[MattW]

red milfoil coz you can't get Cabomba in Australia.

put the test strip next to the bottle so we know what we are looking at.

Never knew that. Are there any other plant species banned? I assume all the common invasive ones are. Also, do individual states/territories have their own rules? Or are there country-wide bans?