Greetings

[Skry]

Hello Everyone,
 
I am rather new to the hobby (Set up first tank April 19th), but am having a lot of fun with it.
 
By way of introduction, I am a Computer Scientist(Masters)/Physicist(Undergrad) with a desire to dabble in just about any and all of the sciences.  My wife's degrees are both in biology with a focus on entomology.
 
I am currently running 2 display tanks (my 20 gallon community and a 5 gallon hex) as well as a 5 gallon quarantine/plant storage tank.
 
All of the tanks feature live plants (though nothing terribly exciting).
 
The 20 gallon currently has:
Neon Tetra - 7
Peppered Cory - 4
Ghost Shrimp - approx. 4
 
The 5 gallon hex has:
Betta (male) - 1
Ghost Shrimp - approx. 3
 
The quarantine tank has:
Otos - 3
A side-hanging breeder box with 2 Neon Tetra fry (These are kind of a surprise/interesting story),
and as I just discovered tonight, a bunch of little Copepods.  I've been trying to get a picture of those through my wife's Dissecting Scope, but the little guy just won't hold still.
 
Looking forward to getting to know the community here,
~Skry

 

[Ninjouzata]

to TFF, Skry! Hope you enjoy it here.
 
Sounds like some lovely tank set ups, do you have any pictures?
Please do tell the story of the neon tetra fry Will they and the otos be moved eventually?

 

[Mamashack]

Wewlcome to TFF Skry! We love pictures if you have any!

 

[Skry]

I'll try and get some pictures up later tonight.
 
As far as the fry go,  I went away on my first vacation since setting up my tanks about a week and a half ago.  My mother-in-law stayed in our house to watch our oldest son and take care of the pets.  When I got home, I was sitting with my oldest son, when he pointed to the quaranteen tank and said "There's fish in there!"
 
I started to correct him (knowing that I didn't have anything in quarantine at the time) but when I glanced over I saw two tiny fish playing in the filter return.  Sure enough I had two little neon fry that were at least a couple of days past their yolk sacs.  Needless to say I was rather surprised to see new baby fish in a tank that had been empty when I left.
 
As near as I can figure, my neons must have laid some eggs under the leaves on one of the plants I shifted over to that tank while I was messing with my aquascaping before going on vacation, and it must have been dark enough in that corner of the tank for at least these two fry to survive.  Anyway, I slipped out the next day to grab a breeder box, found a nice small one that slips over the side and cycles water from the tank using an air pump, and have been feeding them egg yolk since.
 
They've been growing quite well and seem pretty happy. I've got some dwarf hairgrass floating in the box and had some java moss in the bottom untill it got a bit to eggy and I had to throw it out.
 
The otos will be moved into the main tank in another week and a half or so, and I'll put the baby neons into the main quaranteen tank until they are big enough to play in the main tank.  They don't have any of their color yet.  I've found several articles on the breeding, and from what I've read they reach maturity around 6-8 months or so?  I'm not sure when they start to get their color though, I haven't been able to find any good articles on their growth/maturation.
 
I'm still trying to decide what I want for top water in my 20 gallon.  After the otos hit the main tank I'll still have a bit of free bio load.  Enough for a couple of larger fish or a few small ones.  I'd concidered Dwarf Gourami, but their genetics seem rather poor.  I could go for guppies or endlers, or a small school of something else.  If anyone has any good ideas I'm open to suggestions.
 
Tomorrow should be fun though.  I have a coworker who had several tanks in storage he was looking to get rid of, so I should be picking up some free equipment.  A 55, 20-long, 30, and a corner ~45.  I'm not sure if/when I'll be able to set them up, but I'm not one to turn down free tanks.
 
~Skry

 

[Ninjouzata]

What a lovely story! The egg yolk can be quite messy so be sure to keep up maintenance on that. You can also try some fry foods like hikari first bites.
Unfortunately I don't know anything about their growth or breeding. Good luck with them! Be sure to post pics of them if/when you can.
 
I'd get a few more peppered cories as they prefer groups of 6+ for your 20, and for the top..perhaps honey gourami? They are small (1.5-2") and quite peaceful. They are not affected by DG disease as far as I'm aware.
 
OoOo very exciting and nice of your coworker! Those should be fun to fill when/if you get to set them up.

 

[Skry]

I vacuum the egg out every day with a turkey-baster-esque device and sprinkle some fresh egg in.  I tried hanging it in some gauze to start but that didn't seem to work well, so I just sprinkle a little in each night and then churn it up several times a day.  They love the current and then zip around eating while it settles back out.  They are growing very well and seem quite happy as far as I can tell.
 
I do want more Peppered Cory, but as I've been adding fish in stages, I didn't want to put in too many at once.  I think I missed some Cory eggs (found some remnants on the glass when I got home from my trip) so I'm a little sad about that.
 
I'll have to look at the Honey Gourami.
 
I'm hoping to do a flowing-stream tank at some point.  I really want some Hillstream Loaches, but don't want to get them until I can get a specialized tank.  I have some ideas about a custom design for a loop-hexagonal tank (just not sure how to fabricate it at this point).
 
In the vein of long-away projects, my wife wants to breed Anderson's Salamanders.  So that will probably happen at some point.
Either way, we've probably got a move coming in the next year or two, so I don't want to set up anything bigger than a 20 gallon.

 

[Ninjouzata]

I bet that's fun to watch And yeah it is best not to add too many fish at once, I just meant when possible in case you didn't already know. Sorry you missed the eggs!
 
Hillstream loaches seem really neat, I'd also love to have a specialized tank for them.
 
Do you think your wife or you may post that project here? Would love to see it.
That's very understandable, moving can't be fun (I luckily havn't had to) with fish to worry over.