55g Himalayan Foothills Paludarium

[WhistlingBadger]

Thai Micro crabs lack the color, & are aquatic, but they seem cool, & wouldn't bother anyone...

they are sold out here, but I've seen them for sale from several sources...

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Red Claw crabs should work...

Red Claw Crab Care Guide: Not a Freshwater Crab (Despite What the Store Says)

Red Claw Crabs are sold as freshwater animals — but they're brackish and need land access too. Here's the setup they actually need to thrive long-term.

aquariumstoredepot.com

I think my water is way too soft, and they don't really live in my region/biotope (inland foothill streams). One to keep in mind if I ever do a Hainan Island biotope, though...

 

[MuddyWaters]

@MuddyWaters Love the new PFP. That's a serious bluegill! They don't get that big around here.

I had a vivid dream last night that I opened up the HOB filter and lo and behold, all four of my frogs were happily chilling out in there! Sadly, my tank doesn't have a Hang on Back filter, so no real help there. Later I had a very similar dream that I lifted up a broad leaf in the land area and all four frogs were huddled under it, acting like they were waking up from a nap. But again, no broad-leafed plants in the land area at the moment.

Perhaps my subconscious is trying to let me know that I'm picking up some extremely subtle clues that the frogs are still in there. Or perhaps my sleeping brain is indulging in some serious wishful thinking. I believe both can happen; time will tell which is right.

But enough about frogs for the moment. I need to do a quick video of the tank. It is looking rather wonderful, if I may say so, frogs or no frogs. Fish and plants looking bright and happy. Anybody want to see?

yes please!

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Quick video of a post-water change fruit fly feast.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Got a pair of scarlet badis. Wow, are they tiny. I hope they'll be able to find enough to eat. Here they are in QT.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Put in about a dozen fruit flies last night. During tank maintenance today? Not a sign of them. I still suspect those toads might have just found a nice hiding place and gone nocturnal...

 

[Seisage]

Ah man, I really hope your frogs turn up at some point! Firebellies are really cool little guys. I can't have them, unfortunately, but I really wish I could. It is really strange that nothing has turned up of them... I agree, I feel like four frogs is a lot to decompose in such a short time, and they'd really have to be tucked away for you to not find them. The land area of your tank looks relatively small compared to the water section, so if they were dead and stuck somewhere you couldn't find, it'd probably be in the water, and then I'd expect you would have noticed a bit of an ammonia spike or water fouling, even with a good BB colony and live plants. I mean, it's four whole frogs.

I'd probably advise against the green paddy frogs. They seem extremely uncommon in the hobby, so unless you find a private breeder who happens to have some, they'd probably be wild-caught. From all that I've heard about herps... unlike fish, where WC specimens are generally in better health than mass-produced captive ones, WC reptiles and amphibians are usually pretty disease/parasite-ridden and tend not to thrive long-term. Also, some sources mentioned they can grow up to 8cm. I think they'd be fine in a 55g, but I'd worry about them eating some of the smaller fish—as you mentioned, Ranidae frogs are more voracious and have larger mouths. If it were me and I was wanting to try new frogs, I think I'd just get more fire-bellied.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Ah man, I really hope your frogs turn up at some point! Firebellies are really cool little guys. I can't have them, unfortunately, but I really wish I could. It is really strange that nothing has turned up of them... I agree, I feel like four frogs is a lot to decompose in such a short time, and they'd really have to be tucked away for you to not find them. The land area of your tank looks relatively small compared to the water section, so if they were dead and stuck somewhere you couldn't find, it'd probably be in the water, and then I'd expect you would have noticed a bit of an ammonia spike or water fouling, even with a good BB colony and live plants. I mean, it's four whole frogs.

I'd probably advise against the green paddy frogs. They seem extremely uncommon in the hobby, so unless you find a private breeder who happens to have some, they'd probably be wild-caught. From all that I've heard about herps... unlike fish, where WC specimens are generally in better health than mass-produced captive ones, WC reptiles and amphibians are usually pretty disease/parasite-ridden and tend not to thrive long-term. Also, some sources mentioned they can grow up to 8cm. I think they'd be fine in a 55g, but I'd worry about them eating some of the smaller fish—as you mentioned, Ranidae frogs are more voracious and have larger mouths. If it were me and I was wanting to try new frogs, I think I'd just get more fire-bellied.

Well, they are really tiny, only about an inch long, but still, it's hard to believe I wouldn't have found at least one or at least smelled something off. And those fruit flies are going somewhere!

The land area is small, but there are tons of little nooks and crannies where they could get out of sight semi-permanently if they wanted to, and I'll never find them without tearing the tank apart. We're hoping to move to a different house soon, and if I end up tearing down the tank, I plan on doing the land area VERY carefully!

Thanks for the tip on the paddy frogs. I doubt predation would be a problem for anybody except the choprae danios, and those things are FAST. I suppose one could catch a badis once I get them in. I'm more worried that they would not have enough room, being leapers. The fire bellies were active, but walking doesn't take as much room as jumping. The main thing I like about the paddy frogs is they're cheap, but the supplier for them I found (Big Apple Herps) did not impress me with their answers to my questions, so I think I'll hold off. I agree that getting more fire bellies is the way to go, but not until I get some idea of what happened to the originals!

 

[Seisage]

Well, they are really tiny, only about an inch long, but still, it's hard to believe I wouldn't have found at least one or at least smelled something off. And those fruit flies are going somewhere!

The land area is small, but there are tons of little nooks and crannies where they could get out of sight semi-permanently if they wanted to, and I'll never find them without tearing the tank apart. We're hoping to move to a different house soon, and if I end up tearing down the tank, I plan on doing the land area VERY carefully!

Thanks for the tip on the paddy frogs. I doubt predation would be a problem for anybody except the choprae danios, and those things are FAST. I suppose one could catch a badis once I get them in. I'm more worried that they would not have enough room, being leapers. The fire bellies were active, but walking doesn't take as much room as jumping. The main thing I like about the paddy frogs is they're cheap, but the supplier for them I found (Big Apple Herps) did not impress me with their answers to my questions, so I think I'll hold off. I agree that getting more fire bellies is the way to go, but not until I get some idea of what happened to the originals!

Yes, hopefully you'll be able to find something if/when you move! Do isopods eat bone? I've never heard of them doing so. I guess if you don't find live frogs, maybe look for tiny little skeletons? Of course, it'd be much nicer to find out that they were just really well hidden.

Good sense to steer clear of Big Apple Herps. I've been doing a lot of research into getting some tree frogs and have seen numerous instances of people in that hobby warning against the large distributors. They're mostly wholesalers and drop-shippers and don't care much about the health or quality of the animals they sell. Of course, people have gotten lucky before and have received healthy animals, but I've heard too many stories of animals in poor health and condition with parasites, neurological issues, etc., not to mention there seems to be a much higher rate of DOAs. Other distributors I've heard to steer clear of are Backwater Reptiles, Underground Reptiles, Snakes At Sunset, and American Reptile Distributors. If you do end up getting new animals and your previous breeder contact falls through for whatever reason, I have only heard good things about Josh's Frogs. They're a very reputable breeder and seller that works with hobbyists and conservation programs.

 

[Beastije]

I am a bit worried about your badis. I recently got five hysginon ones and they are slow eaters. Most of the other fish i have with them (clown killifish, least rasboras, pygmy corydoras) eat faster than they notice. They spend a lot of time picking at the substrate, so i feed microworms and hope they work for them. Also they will chase each other and chase other fish quite viciously. I have them in a tank with no flow and they like to hide in bush plants, moss thickets and even a sava pod was in use.
Also super tiny, am i right

 

[WhistlingBadger]

I am a bit worried about your badis. I recently got five hysginon ones and they are slow eaters. Most of the other fish i have with them (clown killifish, least rasboras, pygmy corydoras) eat faster than they notice. They spend a lot of time picking at the substrate, so i feed microworms and hope they work for them. Also they will chase each other and chase other fish quite viciously. I have them in a tank with no flow and they like to hide in bush plants, moss thickets and even a sava pod was in use.
Also super tiny, am i right

Yeah, I am having second thoughts about them after watching them in quarantine. They are indeed very tiny, and very slow, even reluctant feeders. I'm afraid that between the loaches and the barbs, they would seldom find anything to eat. We're thinking about setting up a nano tank just for them. They are really fun to watch, doing this swim-freeze-look around thing. They don't feed; they hunt.

 

[Beastije]

Yeah, I am having second thoughts about them after watching them in quarantine. They are indeed very tiny, and very slow, even reluctant feeders. I'm afraid that between the loaches and the barbs, they would seldom find anything to eat. We're thinking about setting up a nano tank just for them. They are really fun to watch, doing this swim-freeze-look around thing. They don't feed; they hunt.

Since I feed microworms, mine spend most of my time upside down, mouth pointed to the ground, watching, watching, watching and then darting in
They are a brand of special something. not sure what though

 

[WhistlingBadger]

The Badgerling found some neon-green moss growing in a desert water hole yesterday, so we brought some home to put in the waterfall.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Aaaaand the two middle shelves just fell off. Sheesh. I am having the worst trouble getting things to stick on this waterfall! It's almost enough to discourage a guy.

 

[Magnum Man]

The trials and tribulations of creating a world… I’m still perfecting light… I like the new Nicrew lights, but I can’t figure out how to fully program them… not helping is the complicated directions, and the print is so small on the directions it just looks like dots… right now I have 2 of my old lights mounted a couple feet behind my tanks… one comes on a half hour before I get up, for dimmer 1st morning light… the other stays on for a couple hours after I go to bed… mounting these a couple feet behind my tanks makes the tanks pretty dim, most light forced to come through the backgrounds, then when my alarm goes off I turn the Nicrews on, so I can watch the fish for a half hour before I have to leave… the dimmer background light doesn’t wake us up, or keep us from falling asleep but does allow some viewing, and allows the fish to wind down
It’s not easy creating out little worlds…

 

[WhistlingBadger]

I'm thinking about epoxying the waterfall shelves on...I wonder if the fumes would harm the critters.