Silver dollars at Fish Story Aquarium and Rescue

[thebiggerthebetter]

Thanks for responding and quickly. I apologize that I did not watch the whole video before and thus, did not see the side views. Will need closer pictures but they look look like Metynnis altidorsalis, to be confirmed. Lucky you. I am looking for two females.
I am not SD teacher, as I am just learning myself. But I do have a thing for SDs and have been studying them . But you are the one with the amazing big tanks, big fish of all kinds, and the one many of us look up to. Thanks for what you do (must be your passion) and mostly thank you for sharing with everybody!

I appreciate it. I'll try to get better photos. Now that the trio calmed down they look a little bit different from the other two, they have a dark spot and some pale vertical striation...

Like your modesty and positivity. I didn't say a teacher. I said "my" SD teacher. You are teaching me, personally, right here in this thread. I am eternally grateful to all my teachers.

If I didn't share my fishy endeavors, I'd deprive myself of a ton of knowledge I learn in feedback and interaction (not to mention the pleasure). Everyone of us with some experience knows something we don't know.

I'm interested in how you get these fish? Do you rescue them from public aquariums, local fishkeepers, or do you buy them? How does one find you out?

Most of the rare fish we buy and raise, of course. 99.9% of rescues are very common fish sold at almost any LFS. Every now and then we get to rescue something special, like Louie the SA lungfish.

We are known from MFK, Planet Catfish, by word of mouth, LFS, peers, and by the local Craigslist ad which I keep reposting every 45 days for 13 years now. 90% come through Craigslist classifieds, praise the Lord for the benefactor Craig and his free platform.

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

Here are the photos from today, poor quality but the best I could do quick and dirty. I think only two of the new trio are spotted, IDK if this is mood-dependent or not, seems to be always present, just faint sometimes, other times obvious. Does this simply mean they are still young? IDK what you can make out about the other 3.

 

[FJB]

Hi again,
I believe I see 5 silver dollars and some barbs.
The spotted SDs are two female Metynnis lippincotianus (one of several species of spotted Metynnis). The larger one is a female and looks adult; I can't quite make out the smaller one from the photos, but it could be a male. The black spots all over are always there but can become very faint. In the smaller one, the single larger black humeral spot, just above the larger and longish orange spot are characteristic of this species. They are present in females too but less and not frequently seen.
The other 3 fish are Metynnis altidorsalis (not a true spotted silver dollar). they can be seen better in the next photo.



It seems you have 1 male (inside rectangle) and 2 female M. altidorsalis, and they look like young adults (the two on the right, on the foreground. The one behind is one of the spotted). Lucky you! I would love to get 1-2 female altidoralis, to play with my single male, seen below in all glory; his name is Jesus.





Thanks for sharing!

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

Thank you so much! Great job, not sparing the effort to download a couple photos, edit, and reupload. You've got a huge heart! Thank you! I am glad to have the species ID on these guys by you. Sorry, I meant "IDK about the other 3" in my prior post, not "4". I have corrected it. Yes, 5 SDs altogether in this 240 gal tank. The bigger SDs, red hooks and wide bar, reside in 1800 gal.

I think I can see how you used the shape of the anal fin, you had told me before about, to sex them too.

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

Caught one of the biggest Florida palm roaches in the fish house. Enjoyed by two silver dollars:

 

[FJB]

That is sooo cool !
there is quite a bit of meat in one of those roaches. How big is that fish? 9-10 inches? The roach was probably at least 2 inches.
Cheers!

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

You got a good eye! The sizes are about right.

 

[arowfanaticII]

I think I will get some!

 

[MultipleTankSyndrome]

Caught one of the biggest Florida palm roaches in the fish house. Enjoyed by two silver dollars:

Take that, roach! Pet 1, pest 0!

In all seriousness, this video inspired me to try feeding big insects to my future pink tail chalceus. If the smaller mouthed, more herbivorous silver dollars liked that roach so much, a wider mouthed carnivorous chalceus would surely love any roaches or similar that I can catch.

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

Night feeding in 1800 gal, bigger SDs: