Xiphophorus montezumae

[fish48]

one of my X montezumae

 

[Wills]

Awesome fish had a trio a few years ago

 

[Colin_T]

I would like unusual livebearers in Australia. All we get are basic guppies, platies swords and mollies. We don't even get sailfin mollies anymore.

 

[connorlindeman]

I would like unusual livebearers in Australia. All we get are basic guppies, platies swords and mollies. We don't even get sailfin mollies anymore.

When do you think youll get another tank? You are in an apartment so you could get one...

 

[Colin_T]

No pets allowed where I live. Plus I was looking at tanks for sale in shops around here. They are seriously overpriced now. $120.00 for a 2ft tank Like wtf is that about. And $400.00 for a LED light unit for it. I used to sell 4ft tanks for less than $100.00 and light units were $80-100.00.

Even plants and fish are hideously overpriced. A small Amazon sword plant goes for $10-20 and it's bare rooted (not in a pot). Cuttings are $5-10 a bunch and there are 3 cuttings in a bunch. No roots on the cuttings, just 6-8 inch long cuttings from hydroponically grown plants.

And fish, omg. Neon tetras going for $4-5.00 each. And the big chain stores are doing what they do in the US and UK, refusing to buy anything from customers even if we get the fish and plants from them. That's just bs.

I'm thinking about writing to the government about it and saying if a shop sells you a fish, they have some responsibility in the fish if you can no longer care for it or don't want it, and they have to buy them back. Otherwise people are going to dump them in the river.

There are a number of non chain stores around but I haven't been to them since covid started. They might be worth looking at because some of the staff might still know me and give me a discount, and they usually buy fish and plants from customers. But again, no pets and no fish tanks in the house. However, I have been looking at aquaculture ponds and found some nice ones that would fit out the back. I could get 3 ponds in but the ponds are only about 3ft in diameter and 2 ft high. It doesn't really give me much to work with.

I did buy some plants from the hardware last Monday after I was at the dentist. They had a couple of water plants there (grown out of water) and I grabbed them. They were $12.00 each but are in pots and have roots. They also have more than a few leaves. I bought some blueberry plants and a replacement Wollemi pine. Hopefully this one survives but it has the same brown tips to the leaves as the last one I bought and that killed my others. Right now the plants are still in boxes (no lid on the boxes) on the floor in the kitchen. I woke up this morning and looked across at the sun shining through the leaves. It was like being outside in the garden again.

 

[connorlindeman]

No pets allowed where I live. Plus I was looking at tanks for sale in shops around here. They are seriously overpriced now. $120.00 for a 2ft tank Like wtf is that about. And $400.00 for a LED light unit for it. I used to sell 4ft tanks for less than $100.00 and light units were $80-100.00.

Even plants and fish are hideously overpriced. A small Amazon sword plant goes for $10-20 and it's bare rooted (not in a pot). Cuttings are $5-10 a bunch and there are 3 cuttings in a bunch. No roots on the cuttings, just 6-8 inch long cuttings from hydroponically grown plants.

And fish, omg. Neon tetras going for $4-5.00 each. And the big chain stores are doing what they do in the US and UK, refusing to buy anything from customers even if we get the fish and plants from them. That's just bs.

I'm thinking about writing to the government about it and saying if a shop sells you a fish, they have some responsibility in the fish if you can no longer care for it or don't want it, and they have to buy them back. Otherwise people are going to dump them in the river.

There are a number of non chain stores around but I haven't been to them since covid started. They might be worth looking at because some of the staff might still know me and give me a discount, and they usually buy fish and plants from customers. But again, no pets and no fish tanks in the house. However, I have been looking at aquaculture ponds and found some nice ones that would fit out the back. I could get 3 ponds in but the ponds are only about 3ft in diameter and 2 ft high. It doesn't really give me much to work with.

I did buy some plants from the hardware last Monday after I was at the dentist. They had a couple of water plants there (grown out of water) and I grabbed them. They were $12.00 each but are in pots and have roots. They also have more than a few leaves. I bought some blueberry plants and a replacement Wollemi pine. Hopefully this one survives but it has the same brown tips to the leaves as the last one I bought and that killed my others. Right now the plants are still in boxes (no lid on the boxes) on the floor in the kitchen. I woke up this morning and looked across at the sun shining through the leaves. It was like being outside in the garden again.

Wow thats crazy!
My fish store has an amazing selection but they just take donations, they wont buy from costumers.
If you get the pond at least you can experience the joy of having fish again
Are there any native fish you could catch yourself? Or is that illegal?

 

[Colin_T]

The drawback to ponds here is the neighbours out the back (where the ponds would be) tend to blow and spray things over the fence every month when mowing their lawn and are working in the garden, and that concerns me because there is asbestos around here in the soil and I don't want chemicals coming over the fence.

There are fish I could collect but most of the interesting ones are hundreds or thousands of kilometers away (450km south or 3000km north). If I want other stuff I would have to go east and that is 3000km across the country, then up and down the coast for another 3000km. Basic round trip of about 20,000km once I stop off at various sites along the way. And I don't have a vehicle for that.

I was hoping to travel around Australia before I die and have been looking for vans but they went up in price when covid started. In 2016 Hyundai iload vans went for $30,000 new and came with a 5 year warranty. Now they are $50,000 new or $49,000 secondhand. And the secondhand ones have 150,000km on the clock and no warranty. It's utterly ridiculous the way vehicles have gone up in price over the last 2 years.

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Many years back I used to keep monties. I actually had three different strains over time. The Rascon strain was the hardest to find and the last oone I got. I lost them before they ever began to spawn and they were my last group. However, they are an interesting livebearer. For one they are voracious fry eaters. Even with massive amounts of plant cover the juvies will eventually be eating the new borns even if the adults cannot. They will also stop spawning at times. This is not usual for most live bearers.

I do not know about these days, but when I got mine they could not be found in shops, I needed to get them from breeders who had them. If you can fine them and can keep them, I would tell you to do so.

 

[Colin_T]

Many years back I used to keep monties. I actually had three different strains over time. The Rascon strain was the hardest to find and the last oone I got. I lost them before they ever began to spawn and they were my last group. However, they are an interesting livebearer. For one they are voracious fry eaters. Even with massive amounts of plant cover the juvies will eventually be eating the new borns even if the adults cannot. They will also stop spawning at times. This is not usual for most live bearers.

I do not know about these days, but when I got mine they could not be found in shops, I needed to get them from breeders who had them. If you can fine them and can keep them, I would tell you to do so.

look at the length of the tail filament on that fish, it's longer than the fish

 

[TwoTankAmin]

@ Collin_T

Why do you think I kept them? DOH!

 

[emeraldking]

I would like unusual livebearers in Australia. All we get are basic guppies, platies swords and mollies. We don't even get sailfin mollies anymore.

That's a pity that they don't get rare livebearers in. And weird that no sailfins are available in Australia.

look at the length of the tail filament on that fish, it's longer than the fish

That's what the Montezumae swordtails are known for...