ArcticLancer
Fish Fanatic
Hey guys!
It's been a while alright. First there was leaving school and going home (No internet), and then there was coming back to the new apartment (Moving in + no internet at the beginning). And then there was me just being lazy and not stopping by.
Anyway, recent problems, or perhaps complications have brought me back because, quite simply, I'm stuck. After randomly saving the surviving babies of assorted platy fry (T'was a well looked after 10g set up which would yield random survivors), I had amassed 5 babies. The day we were going home, I found 2 more (Which I was expecting, to be honest). While home, I saved another 3, which brought the total to 10 fry.
As they were extracted, they were homed together in a 1 gallon tank, which was also well maintained.
Now, after 2 5 hour long car rides, all my fish had still been in perfect shape - Almost. When we got here, a single adult had developed a case of fungus (No biggie, she's since over it). It's beyond this point that I get confused.
See, instead of putting my adults back into the 10 gallon, I decided to put the fry in so they would finally have some breathing space. 2 days later, I found one dead at the top of the water. I felt bad, but figured it was probably just the stress of the trips finally getting to the poor fish. The next night, I found another dead at the bottom. I was slightly paniced, but wasn't sure what to do - after all, the tank was fine. I'd had fish living in it for months now, and ammonia and nitrite levels were zero all the time. So, we decided to leave them alone and take action if we found any other dead.
So, here I am, 1 week later. Another random death that I cannot for the life of me figure out the cause. My one sudden thought was snails. Annoyingly, before leaving school, I had purchased 2 plants which came fully loaded with some unwanted guests. At the time, and up until a week ago, they weren't bad, only being 3 or 4 small snails around, however now there are no fewer than 20 visible at all times, with a few reaching the 1cm mark. I noticed a lot of akward crud at the top of my plants and wondered if it was some effect of the snails, and causing the death of the fry (I have witnessed them nipping at plants and algae, and know they have eaten at this part).
ANYWAY, I know I've written a novel here, but if you remember me, you know I'm pretty thorough. I'll try and get a few pictures of the 'growth' at the plant top, and anything else on request. Ideas and hypothesis are welcome. Thank you!
PS - Any easy ways to deal with snails? I've heard of an upside-down saucer with a veggie on the bottom to gather the snails, then you remove it and take them with it, but I figured this would do nothing if they'd left eggs around.
Update -
Wouldn't you know that I got check on the tank not 5 minutes after writing this, and finding another one dead at the bottom. I'm completely baffled.
I did an emergency rehome, so the 6 survivors are sharing a 1/2 gallon tank for the night at least. Still no idea what's causing it. Help?
It's been a while alright. First there was leaving school and going home (No internet), and then there was coming back to the new apartment (Moving in + no internet at the beginning). And then there was me just being lazy and not stopping by.
Anyway, recent problems, or perhaps complications have brought me back because, quite simply, I'm stuck. After randomly saving the surviving babies of assorted platy fry (T'was a well looked after 10g set up which would yield random survivors), I had amassed 5 babies. The day we were going home, I found 2 more (Which I was expecting, to be honest). While home, I saved another 3, which brought the total to 10 fry.
As they were extracted, they were homed together in a 1 gallon tank, which was also well maintained.
Now, after 2 5 hour long car rides, all my fish had still been in perfect shape - Almost. When we got here, a single adult had developed a case of fungus (No biggie, she's since over it). It's beyond this point that I get confused.
See, instead of putting my adults back into the 10 gallon, I decided to put the fry in so they would finally have some breathing space. 2 days later, I found one dead at the top of the water. I felt bad, but figured it was probably just the stress of the trips finally getting to the poor fish. The next night, I found another dead at the bottom. I was slightly paniced, but wasn't sure what to do - after all, the tank was fine. I'd had fish living in it for months now, and ammonia and nitrite levels were zero all the time. So, we decided to leave them alone and take action if we found any other dead.
So, here I am, 1 week later. Another random death that I cannot for the life of me figure out the cause. My one sudden thought was snails. Annoyingly, before leaving school, I had purchased 2 plants which came fully loaded with some unwanted guests. At the time, and up until a week ago, they weren't bad, only being 3 or 4 small snails around, however now there are no fewer than 20 visible at all times, with a few reaching the 1cm mark. I noticed a lot of akward crud at the top of my plants and wondered if it was some effect of the snails, and causing the death of the fry (I have witnessed them nipping at plants and algae, and know they have eaten at this part).
ANYWAY, I know I've written a novel here, but if you remember me, you know I'm pretty thorough. I'll try and get a few pictures of the 'growth' at the plant top, and anything else on request. Ideas and hypothesis are welcome. Thank you!
PS - Any easy ways to deal with snails? I've heard of an upside-down saucer with a veggie on the bottom to gather the snails, then you remove it and take them with it, but I figured this would do nothing if they'd left eggs around.
Update -
Wouldn't you know that I got check on the tank not 5 minutes after writing this, and finding another one dead at the bottom. I'm completely baffled.
I did an emergency rehome, so the 6 survivors are sharing a 1/2 gallon tank for the night at least. Still no idea what's causing it. Help?
