Maui Moments

We had the wonderful privilege to spend one week in Maui during Spring Break in March.  It was quite beautiful, as these photos should indicate.

 

New Aquarium Blog and First Snow in Vancouver

I've been feeling a bit schizophrenic lately, bouncing back and forth between my new interest in fish and aquariums, and my usual favourites of gardens, plants, arts & crafts, 3D art, and recipes (Hmmm, come to think of it, I may have been schizophrenic for some time now...).

Anyhow, I've decided to launch a separate blog to continue my postings about my newbie aquarium experiences and observations, which is called Hooked on Fish. That way, people who find my fish stories interesting won't be bored with my flower photos or 3D art, and likewise I won't bother my regular readers (ha ha, who am I kidding?) with too many boring photos of my aquariums.

So my posting rate may go down accordingly (or at least that will be my excuse). It may have something to do with my work hours lately, too, and the activities surrounding the holidays and preparation for it.

I missed a great photo opp this morning, we just received our first snow in Burnaby, BC this morning. Nice blanket, within a couple of hours, completely covered the roads, sidewalks, lawn, garden, making it all a beautiful white. But then it turned back to our usual rain, and in less than an hour, looked wet and slushy again. So next time, I'll be ready with the camera, to take a quick photo. In the meantime, I have my photos of snow scenes from previous winters to amuse me.
The clipart today is courtesy of Microsoft.

Aquarium Joys : Shrimp Rediscovered and Snail Romance

The two aquariums have provided much joy, and little glimpses into a mysterious world. I cleaned the sponge filter in my secondary fish tank yesterday, and as soon as I pulled off the bottom of the filter, the little shrimp fell out with the water. This time, I didn't put him back right away, I found a clear shallow container, and placed him in for observation.

I took some photos but they are all a dismal failure. I need to read the manual on my digital camera, to change the focussing mode, currently it is trying to get all spots in focus. I need to make it a single-spot focus, but couldn't figure out how to do it. So as a result, the camera kept focussing on the container, and refusing to notice the shrimp moving around inside.

Here are my attempts, anyhow:



He's very small, only a couple of millimeters long. So hard to make out much detail, but his colour is greyish, almost clear. When he swims, he usually ends up swimming on his back. When he lands on the bottom of the container, he curls up his tail, and runs along on his legs. No noticeable claws or any interesting colouration. I tried to search for any clue of what this could be, and likely it is some sort of "feeder shrimp". That is, shrimp which is commonly fed to fish. That would explain his appearance in my tank, and he likely caught a ride with one of the plants I purchased.

The snails also continue to provide lots of amusement. The two ramshorn snails have been getting friendly quite a few times lately. The two clutches of about a dozen tiny eggs each on the back of the filter, seem to have disappeared, so I suspect they have hatched. Two more sets of eggs arrived on the inside of the glass. I spotted the first one, and my son spotted the second one tonight. We also have noticed a number of small snails, of the pointy-shelled type.

In the main aquarium, the bumblebee (Clithon corona) snails have also been quite amorous lately, so that would be really sweet if we ended up with more of them. From my reading, it sounds unlikely that the larvae will survive in the freshwater (they may require more brackish or salty conditions), and if they did, they would surely be eaten by the fish. I don't want to move them to the secondary tank at this point, since I enjoy the challenge of searching for them in the main tank.

In the main aquarium, the pleco has taken to hiding under one of the plants, and rarely comes out, at least during the day. I miss seeing him, and wish I hadn't scared him that time, when he was hanging on the filter. The goldfish seem to be bigger every day. And hungry. I've started feeding them peas (frozen baby peas, thawed, them squeezed out of the skin). This seems to help the two fantail goldfish, who often become "floaty" after eating the goldfish flakes. I have been pushing the flakes under water instead of on the surface, so they will moisten more, and avoid having them gulping air on the surface. But still seem to have problems with their swim bladder many days, after the morning feeding. I feel sorry for them, trying to swim down, and floating back up.

Lots of fun. I'm so thankful for this element in my life, to add cheer and excitement. My 7 year old son enjoys the snails, too, and is an enthusiastic volunteer in helping me sweep the tank with the net (we have a fine-mesh shrimp net) to pull out bits of plant matter and goldfish excrement. Always something to do, or to see!

Aquarium Surprises : Snails and Crustacean Curly-Tails

I have two Bumblebee snails (Clithon corona, more commonly called "Horned nerite" snails; ours were named "Stripe" and "Buzz" by my son) in my aquarium, which are a delight to look for. They are pretty exclusively algae eaters, so very welcome also.

Over the last while, I've managed to acquire 3 more snails, which must have come with the aquatic plants I purchased. One of them is a very small dark pointy spiral shelled one, I think it will be difficult to identify him.

The other two are much more distinctive, and seem to be Planorbis (Ramshorn) snails. Both are a purplish brown, with dark-spotted brown shells. Mine are too small to make a decent photo, so I instead show this one (see right), which is borrowed from a Spanish-language aquarium forum. (Si usted entiende español, usted puede querer visitar este Web site.)

All 3 have been transferred to the secondary aquarium in the kitchen, which is holding my two remaining neon tetras, until I am sure about their plant-eating capabilities. So far, they have spent all their time, from what I can see, on the glass, or the gravel, and have shown no interest in eating the plants. So they seem to be happy eating algae. Which is good, since tonight I found the two Planorbis together at the edge of the tank, doing some interesting maneuvers. Hmmm, I may have more snails on the way at some point...

Early this evening, when I was cleaning the main aquarium, and rinsing/squeezing out the sponge in my filter, I noticed some movement in the bottom of the wastewater bucket. It looked like a small fly, not much larger than a mosquito, running along the bottom. Seemed strange, but I continued with the cleaning. A few minutes later, I could still see this creature running around the bucket, so I knew it couldn't be a fly! I netted it, and put it into a smaller container to take a look. I was surprised to see what looked like a small shrimp or some sort of crustacean. Greyish, almost colourless. The tail was tucked under, and it was zipping around quite quickly. I added this also to our secondary aquarium. If it's something I'll want to keep, it will have much more chance surviving with the neon tetras than with those hungry goldfish!

Tonight, I took out a flashlight, and tried to look for this little creature. Sadly, I could find no sign of him. So either he's crawled up into the filter, or I was just unlucky in my searching. Now I wish I had kept him aside longer, to get a better look, and if possible, identify him a bit better. But it is a pretty neat thought, that I managed to acquire something this interesting, and quite unintentionally. I hope it survives for a while, at least until I can get a better look.

Aquarium Additions : Shark and Platys

About a week ago, I was looking at the fish in Walmart (okay, I'm definitely hooked now!!), and saw a Shark Catfish (also referred to as Columbian Shark or White-Tipped Shark) which I had to have, especially for only $4. It really looks like a shark (and even swims like a shark), except for its big whiskers.

I have been trying to read up first, before making any purchases, but I knew I wouldn't be back to the store for some time, so I picked one up. When I got home, I read about how it can grow to 24" long (wow! I guess I'll be hoping he doesn't live that long), and therefore is not suitable for anything less than 100 gallon aquarium. Also, the young are okay with fresh water, but as they grow, they prefer brackish (somewhat salty) water, which the other fish may not tolerate.

I had been planning to buy some platy next, since they are live bearers, easy to care for, and the coral platy caught my eye in one store, with its red colour and black tail. But then I had picked up the 3 swordtails instead. The one female had suddenly gone skinny (I had wondered if she had given birth), and died not too long after. But then the male also showed signs of getting skinny (so couldn't be giving birth, in his case!), so I've isolated him in a small holding tank. But there he's stayed for almost 2 weeks now, not getting better, but not dying either, and occasionally showing interest in eating. But that only left one female swordtail in my 60 gallon aquarium, and room for some platys.

Today was a difficult day at work, and being a bit stuck at home all week since my son was sick and home from school, the kids and I went to the Mall for dinner and to pass the evening. I found the platys were on sale 3 for $7 (reg $4.88), so couldn't resist picking up a male and two females. It took me quite a while to spot a few females, since there were mostly males in the tank.

I ended up with a pair of what the sales clerk referred to as "Mickey Mouse platy". I didn't realize what he meant until I let them out into the aquarium tonight (see image left). What a lovely Mickey Mouse image on their tails! My sister, Rose, will appreciate this. She's a Disney and in particular, Mickey Mouse, fanatic.


The other female (image right) is a pretty mix of colours, sort of goldish silver, with a black swath along her side. Pretty neat.

My lone female swordtail, Comet, has pretty similar colouration and size and shape to the Mickey Mouse platys (see photo left). Except she has that lovely upturned snout, with the black marking (doesn't show in this image) which looks like a little moustache.

I love how the swordtail and the platys eat, just nibbling politely at the food (I've been feeding them all flakes, which I crush in my hand first). The goldfish, on the other hand, are aggressive, with their big extendible mouths, gulping very loudly at the surface of the water. In the morning, I can ever hear them gulping loudly at the water's surface before I get out of bed to feed them.

The shark catfish is an interesting fellow, since he doesn't spend his time on the bottom like a typical catfish. Instead, he swims up and down and around the tank. Even when he feeds, he will feed from the middle of the tank or even at the surface of the water. And also in a relaxed manner, not like those goldfish, which bump and push at each other as they fight over the food. I guess if I were to start an aquarium now, I would probably not start with the goldfish. But I have to admit, they have nice colours, and are entertaining to watch. They have taught my swordtail girl to also push her nose against the glass when I pass by (although not as violently as they do, opening & closing their mouths, as if to tell me they are STILL hungry).

Before I introduced the platys to the aquarium, I decided to finally pick up a nitrite test kit from the pet store, and tested my 60 gallon tank. The level was 0.1 (where 0.3 is still safe), so that is reassuring. It must be a good sign that I'm doing something right (I think all the live plants really help for water quality). I was beginning to feel bad with losing the two swordtails.

I still have the two neon tetras in another smaller aquarium, which I've set up in the kitchen in case one of the live bearers has babies, and I can actually get to them before the goldfish - which, I have a feeling, will be a quick race. I think that tank will work fine for that, if and when that time comes (which I hope will be soon).

Aquarium Challenges : Trouble in the Tank

I guess it's been about 2 months now since I started the aquarium, and we've had a few challenges recently... After the third neon tetra was eaten by the goldfish, I have removed the other 2 to a separate tank, set up in the kitchen. This was also my emergency aquarium in case the second swordtail (my daughter has named her Comet because of her black tail) had babies, which we believe the orange one (Crystal) did. But still waiting for that event, if it will come at all.

Although Crystal acted fairly normal, she stayed skinny. I began to suspect something was wrong. Then a couple of days ago, she seemed to lose interest in eating, was at times along the bottom of the aquarium, or right in the thick of the plants, which is where she died.

The male swordtail has worried me today, he is hiding behind one of the plants, which is not his usual behaviour. So I'll keep an eye on that.

The goldfish seem always to be hungry. The little faces pressed against the glass as I pass by, began to be a bit disturbing rather than charming. My husband reported that the fish in the dentist's office seemed almost disinterested when they were fed. In contrast, some of mine (the 3 white & orange "feeder" goldfish) would break into fights, bumping & chasing each other. So I increased the size of the feedings and increased from 1 or 2 times to 3 times per day. But after a few days, the water turned cloudy (since a greenish colour, apparently an algae outbreak). So I cut back on the feedings again, and kept the light off (I had been leaving it on during the day, mainly for the benefit of my aquarium plants), and cleaned the filter more often, and within a few more days, it cleared up. But I've kept them on the reduced feedings (usually only in the morning) ever since.

On a brighter note, the aquarium plants seem to be doing fairly well, and one of them is showing visible new growth. The pleco has stopped hiding under the filter (ever since the time I had to push him off, in order to clean it), choosing to instead hide under the plants where he is invisible. Occasionally he comes out during a feeding, which is a real treat to watch.

PS. The photo is not mine, it is a Microsoft clip art, but seemed relevant to the topic. ;-)

Aquarium Non-Event : Missed Swordtail Births

Over the last couple of days, I've come to the conclusion that my daughter's swordtail probably gave birth, and we missed it, and the babies were enjoyed by our hungry goldfish.

On Friday evening, I noticed that she was acting a bit strange, following behind and below the goldfish, near the bottom. Like she was cowering or trying to hide behind them. I was also concerned that when she tried to eat the food flakes, they seemed to come back out of her mouth, as if she couldn't swallow them.

On Saturday morning, she was very skinny, as if half her stomach was missing, and seemed to be again hiding from the other fish, and not even making much attempts to eat. I was concerned enough to move her into a small tank, and drop in some food for her, in case she was not able to compete with the others for enough food. But my reading on the 'net indicated that these signs may point to a female who has given birth.

Sure enough, by the evening, she was acting fairly normally, so I introduced her back into the aquarium again. Since then, I've noticed that when the other swordtails swallow the flakes, some portion often comes back out again, so this seems normal. A few days later, our orange female swordtail is still quite skinny, but otherwise seems fine:

Now I'm looking for signs from the other female swordtail. I read that before giving birth, there is often a dark spot in the anal area, and even some chance of seeing the eyes of the babies inside. Or perhaps I'll note some change in behaviour, and attempts to hide from the other fish.

I am thinking to get a second smaller tank set up, for the offspring, if I am able to retrieve any before they are devoured. (Wow, not much chance of that, since the goldfish are always hungry, and very quick!) That, or a birthing apparatus. We'll see.

A few more photos... My mom gave me two cool lava rocks which she found. I boiled and set them in the tank, and they not only look good, but they hold down the plants (which get otherwise dislodged from the gravel too easily:

I was also excited to get a photo of my pleco in "action" tonight, feeding along the bottom. He looks even more cool, when he has his fins stretched out like this:

I got a photo of his underside a couple of days ago, this guy looks quite amazing from every angle:

Aquarium Addition : Pleco

Yesterday we added two more plants to the aquarium, as well as a Pleco which my son picked out, and has named him Spotty. The sign on the tank said Bronze Catfish, but when we went to purchase him, we found out is was a Pleco, which is also a type of catfish. Looked too cool for the $3.88 price, and sure enough he was quite a bit more, but they cut me a deal for $6. Apparently an algae eater, it likes to hide, and hang from the side of the aquarium. It may be a while before I can get any good photos of him, but here's an initial attempt, with him reflected against the glass:

Here's the tank today, with the new plants (the reddish one in front and the large green bunch behind it):

The next addition I'm considering, if all goes well, are some platys, which are live bearers. We saw some coral platys the other night, which were a brilliant red colour, with a touch of black on the tail. We keep seeing glass catfish, which are ultra-cool looking fish, but I read that they are a bit more difficult to keep, and want to be in a small school of 5 or more. So I don't think we're at this level. I don't even have a heated tank, nor do I perform any monitoring of water quality.
I finally got a half-decent shot of the 5 neon tetras:

And a grainy closeup:

Here are a few shots of the goldfish again, first of Bubbles (isn't her form beautiful, even if her colours are not so attractive?):

And finally, the little unnamed black/orange one:

Aquarium Experiment: Early Beginnings

I still think of it as an experiment, since it started quite casually and rather unexpectedly, to me at least. When we released our turtle in August (see post), I ended up with a tank and pump, and a whim to pick up some 99 cent pond goldfish at the nearby garden centre. Less than 2 months later, I have collected 12 fish, 2 snail, 4 varieties of plants, visiting pet stores (I can always talk the kids into that), and boiling a large pot of driftwood on the stove. I think I'm just a little hooked.

If you're like I was less than 6 months ago, you'll want to click away, since I was not in the least bit interested in captive fish or aquariums. Fish tanks were something that you expected in the dentist's office, and that's about it.

[Fish always seemed so oblivious, so remote... I had never even imagined that within days the fish would be poking their little faces against the glass when they see me pass by, hoping that I will stop to feed them.]

Anyhow, at the start we already had the tank and pump, in which I had left a little of the "turtle water", so the pump would be already primed with some beneficial bacteria. I bought a bag of epoxy-coated gravel from WalMart, and added tap water which had been allowed to sit for a few days, to allow the chlorine to evaporate. In mid-September, the kids and I went to pick out our 99 cent goldfish, but found that they were all sold out, so ended up picking 2 fancy fantail $2.99 goldfish. I added some floating plants from a local ditch, which the fish promptly devoured. Here was the tank then:

...with the two fantail goldfish. The silver one is "Bubbles", picked by my daughter. The orange one is "Autumn", picked by my son:

Here is the tank today (I apologize for the poor quality photos, but click any for a larger view):

We have a total of 12 fish today, despite the common advice to "cycle" the tank for 4 to 6 weeks before adding more fish. I guess the 60+ gallon tank, and live plants, helps a lot. Especially since I haven't done any special testing or conditioning or anything of the water. I use only tap water, set out for a few days, and I've been replacing only a small portion once or twice a week.

After the 2 fantail goldfish, I stumbled across 39 cent goldfish in a pet store. They looked pretty much like the other $2.99+ fish, but they were referred to as "feeder" fish (i.e. bought to feed to other fish!). I was told half of them may not survive past one week, so instead of buying 3, I bought 5, and we resisted naming them, just in case. But a couple of weeks later, we probably should put some names to them, now.

One of my favourites is this dark black / orange one:

There's also this one, white with reddish back:

One with three bars of orange on a white body:

One almost completely white on one side:

...with just a spot and fin marking of orange on the other side:

And finally this one which appeared black when I picked him, but looks a lot more silver / chocolate:

Here's the 7 goldfish together:

Then there's two algae-eating Bumblebee snails, which I had bought for my son while we had the turtle (although we kept them in a smaller container, they would have disappeared in the turtle's murky water). The smaller one is "Stripe":

The larger one is "Buzz":

Today we added to the mix 5 neon tetras (since they were on a 5 for $5 sale). I don't know if the goldfish will eat them. There seemed to be a few times today they chased them, but the tetras are pretty quick. So we'll see.

I've bought 4 different clumps of plants, and added a rock (possibly petrified wood) I found a while back on the beach, but boiled before adding it. I am really keen on buying some more plants. I am told I need better lighting for many of the plants. We'll see. It's just an experiment at this point, I tell myself. ;-)

ASIDE: The practical side of me does a quick reality check, on how much I am spending, in the $5-at-a-time increments. So far, here's how it adds up:

$40 Tank (which would have been over $200 new)
$40 Filter
$15 gravel
$5 net
--------
$100 tank set up

$6 Fancy goldfish x 2
$2 Feeder goldfish x 5
$5 Neon tetras x 5
$18 4 clumps of plants (many turned out to be multiple plants)
$6 Bumblebee snails x 2
---------
$37

So still under $150 for the experiment to date. Which is still under the price of the tank, if we had bought a new one. So I think I can still call it "casual". ;-)