More tank pics, updated

J. H. · May 3, 2019

That pothos is gorgeous. Any comments, besides what's on your thread? How much of it has grown underwater? Is any of it emergent?
That listing thing your O is doing is familiar. I've had fish do that if I put in water without dechlorinator in during a WC. Maybe he's being grumpy. IDK.

FINWIN · May 3, 2019

J. H. said:
That pothos is gorgeous. Any comments, besides what's on your thread? How much of it has grown underwater? Is any of it emergent?
That listing thing your O is doing is familiar. I've had fish do that if I put in water without dechlorinator in during a WC. Maybe he's being grumpy. IDK.

The pothos originally was a plant at my office cube that had grown to about 18 feet. I snipped the trailer vines and tossed them into my 225 back in November when I was cycling. Added ammonia to feed and after 2 weeks got roots. It's remained in the water since. Periodically I'll snip off a weak piece or leaf which helps the vine grow new shoots. The shoots that grow in water have small round leaves that grow in clumps. They also are 'crisper' and easier to snap. As long as the roots are healthy and getting nutrients from the water the plant will thrive. But if the roots are compromised or damaged they won't last too long in the water. The pieces I have in span the tank. I recently tossed in a couple of fresh pieces and wrapped them around. Since the tank is established now I wasn't concerned with ammonia. Nitrates stay at 0-~5, Ammonia 0, Nitrites 0.

Brick is cranky with water changes now. He loved them up until he got to around 7 inches. I have no idea what the difference is. I use both pond stress coat and api water conditioner each change. But the minute I finish he pops up like there's no problem. He does like to stick his head against the python hook where the clean water comes out. Or he'll pop it with his mouth...you can hear it in the next room.

Have a separate pothos thread called "Pothos in your tank, easy peasy" it explains the original setup.

FINWIN · May 5, 2019

Update...

There is a new entry. BP named Tango. Will post pics soon.

I'll be making another trip to the LFS to find that last fish. Traffic slowed me down yesterday and I barely got there before closing. So I'm going back.

FINWIN · May 5, 2019

Went to my 'favorite' LFS. I fell in love with some fish I saw. First, I saw these albino cherry geos, both small and large. They were gorgeous. Their bodies were a transculent pearl color covered with sparkling white dots. Fins were edged in red, and their faces and sides had a red blush. I would have gotten one BUT...they need low ph, no higher than 6.7 or so. %^&*!!

They also had HUGE bristlenose, called "bushwhackers". They were butter yellow in color, around 9 inches with thick curly bristles that looked like a shrub and well over 1 inch wide heads. COOLEST BRISTLENOSE EVUH. I would have gotten one but they were $100 bucks each. Went over pros and cons with one of the owners about green terrors and jack dempseys. They tend to be hit or miss with O's and I've had enough drama with fights and tank swapping.

So here's the lick: the new entries are TANGO, a light orange BP ~5 inches. He has those "double dot" pupils. New hanging buddy for Boss.

And another Syno catfish, this one a Synodontis Eupterus or "high featherfin squeaker" if you will. His name is CASH. Also around 5 inches, about the same size as Rex when I got him. Rex is an Synodontis Ocellifer and will also have a new hanging buddy. Their contrast in fins and body shape should look well.

Pics coming soon.

FINWIN · May 6, 2019

Pics up...

Meet Tango. He's got a very bright/light orange color, reminds me of a tropical drink. He'll make a nice contrast to Boss' deep tomato color. You'll notice his gills are somewhat red. I suspect this is from ammonia...he came from a crowded tank with a jack dempsey (who seemed squirrelly) surrounded by parrots. Tango is around 5 inches, the same size Boss was when I got him and the others. Tango will get plenty of clean water daily and hopefully the red gills will clear. He shows no discomfort at all and is eating well. I selected him because he was the only parrot who swam with his fins up and erect. The others appeared to be in submissive behavior or affected by the crowding / water conditions. During quarantine I double dose on Stress Coat and Prime.

FINWIN · May 6, 2019

LOL I wonder who this reminds me of??? Surely not other parrots of mine...

FINWIN · May 6, 2019

Fake lily pads up top has a calming effect without costing space in smaller qt tanks. Makes a great light doppler effect too.

FINWIN · May 6, 2019

It took Tango two hours to settle down in quarantine. He zipped around the tank like a loon for quite some time before calming. I placed some fake lily pads on the surface to give a sheltered / doppled light effect without costing any floor space. A screen of plants for privacy and a large open area for swimming. I also placed two airstones like a 'tunnel' he could play in (he later moved one to the corner, lol). His new buddy is Cash, a Synodontis Eupterus. He's around 5 inches and was the largest one in the tank. This was a must considering the size of my O's mouth. You'll see Cash squeezed behind the filter, natch. He's a huge eater already...his tummy was bulging like a ball last night. I'll try to get a better pic of him showing his super tall topfin. You can also see Tango's 'double dot' eyes in the corner pic with the catfish.

FINWIN · May 6, 2019

And in other news...

Kong continues to display his nonstop decorating. The parrots all love the overhanging vines and rearrange them. The small green plant in the front corner he has never moved.

The suction cup is near the water line. Kong pulled the vine from it and shaped it this way. He also shoved the pothos piece over in the corner where you see it floating. My fish seem to have a thing about suction cups...