aec34
Member
š Iāll not show this to the ringleader of my embers who was pecking about on the substrate earlier.
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The Nymph's Spring (EA900)
- Thread starter shangman
- Start date
I thought it was a very interesting place, the bit I LOVED was the wall at the back left which was just full of fascinating fish of all types all mixed up together. All very healthy and lots of top choices. A lot of gobies which is always lovely to see, a few lovely unusual nano fish. It's definitely going in my rotation of shops now, and will check there when I get another tank cos I'm sooooo stocked up now lol. I don't think they were low stocked, but it's quite all over the place, but tbh I quite like that, feels like you might discover some treasure (I definitely felt I did). I think worth a visit, and I liked chatting to Lee while he caught the fish for me about his breeding SA fish escapades.
They had the coral pencils and they were BEAUTIFUL irl but omg that price... especially compared to the marginatus which were only Ā£3.50 and still very lovely. They also had one-line pencils and Beckford's, great selection.
You've gotta keep them, they've got enormous spirit and personality in buckets, lots of interesting behaviour. The tank is even more captivating now they live in it!
When I saw them I instantly knew I'd have to have them, didn't expect such nice big fat ones š so much for my self control!
If it was a fight the pencils would decimate, they're very happy to barge any fish they consider in their way, they're like Londoners among tourists š even the apistos!
Luckily the tetras seem to really enjoy the pencils and are much more confident with them about, all the schooling fish like to go about in groups together which is very cute.
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I'm very glad you did all that spouting! š It was you that really put the seed of keeping them in my head, and I'm so glad you did. They have so much personality, I can totally see why you'd keep them alone in a tank, they're so watchable and funny.
I bet they look incredible in natural sunlight, I'm so taken by that irridescence and of course that's always best in sunlight. I would love to keep a tank in natural sun one day, hopefully sooner rather than later, though atm in our house all the windows are taken up by giant houseplants and that's a war with the parents I can't win!! Hopefully we will be expanding the house in the next few years and a fabulous natural tank can take pride of place.
I really need to breed mine before they get too old. Canāt be having people paying 12-15quid for them ha.
Glad you like the marginatus, pencil fish are great. As youāve noticed already, more cichlid like than tetra.
Cheers
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They were Ā£17 there š± Great healthy specimens but omg. Could've asked for a deal but I think even then it'd be a bit much! I knew I wanted around 12 pencils so that took them off the list for now, along with you saying that they're demon fish lmao. You definitely should breed them! You'll have a rush of people wanting them I'm sure. I think I will try to keep them in a few years maybe, now I know how fab the pencils are. Mine have already started breeding in the foliage, will be fascinating to see if any fry manage to make an appearance.
They are much more cichlid like, they've got the full package - beauty, brains and funny. š Also very happy that so far all my worries about them have been unfounded, the only "problem" is how greedy they are!
Starting to really get somewhere...
Ignore the clingfilm š Sadly my buces at the bottom have pinholes all over them š I think it's time to do a pH pen CO2 test thing and make sure it's all balanced well, especially now the plant mass is becoming so much more substantial. I'm also planning to increase the light from 75 to 90, the floating plants block out a lot of light to the rest of the tank, and I think they'll like the extra light and maybe flower for me š
Ignore the clingfilm š Sadly my buces at the bottom have pinholes all over them š I think it's time to do a pH pen CO2 test thing and make sure it's all balanced well, especially now the plant mass is becoming so much more substantial. I'm also planning to increase the light from 75 to 90, the floating plants block out a lot of light to the rest of the tank, and I think they'll like the extra light and maybe flower for me š
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The pencils and the tetra are definitely a great combo!
They really are, the way the pencils red fins match the tetras is fabulous. And after a week of keeping them, the tetras are DEFINITELY much more active and confident with the pencils around - they used to swim away when I came near, but now they follow the pencils lead and ignore me, or even come up to the front. The pencils have realised I mean tasty food times and are always happy to see me, and now the tetras are too. Huzzah! The tetras also school and play with eachother a lot more. My cardinals were always beautiful but I can appreciate them a lot more now! And very happy that they seem less afraid and more content š
Listen guys
I'm afraid I have something to confess...
Very bad of me I know .... but I couldn't resist....
Last week when I bought the pencils, I may or may not have bought a little group of something else...
Actual footage of me at the shop:
Usually I would've had the strength to resist, but I went with my gang of fishy friends who were all like "GO ON GET THEM THEY'RE LOVELY" and "I'M GETTING SOME š" and "I KEEP THEM AND THEY'RE A VERY LOW BIOLOAD!!". And I simply couldn't resist any longer.
So say hello to the itty bitty fishy committee...
NO REGRETS! But also no more fish I promise š
I'm afraid I have something to confess...
Very bad of me I know .... but I couldn't resist....
Last week when I bought the pencils, I may or may not have bought a little group of something else...
Actual footage of me at the shop:
Usually I would've had the strength to resist, but I went with my gang of fishy friends who were all like "GO ON GET THEM THEY'RE LOVELY" and "I'M GETTING SOME š" and "I KEEP THEM AND THEY'RE A VERY LOW BIOLOAD!!". And I simply couldn't resist any longer.
So say hello to the itty bitty fishy committee...
NO REGRETS! But also no more fish I promise š
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I LOVE IT šš
They are adorable!! Are they babies still? They look so tiny š¤Æ
Edit: Also what are they lmao
This meme is tooooooooooo accurate š It's me every week on Seriouslyfish.com... Actually, time to go make that meme...
They are babies š lil Dicrossus Filamentosus. I'm hoping to keep them all but if not have some friends with groups too to make sure the ratios are good when they're older. The females stay rather small, and the males are bigger but they're more long and thin, a big perfect of them is glorious fins. I bought the 2 biggest and 3 smallest in hopes that comes out right, with the apisto babies that would've worked well.
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My Aeschynomene fluitans flowers for the first time! Very exciting. It's a weird plant, I have 2 sprigs of it - one grows VERY fast but the leaves drop quite quickly too, the other is much slower in growth but has healthier leaves. Not sure why they're different, I'm hoping it'll drop less leaves in Spring/Summer.
I bought Master Apisto in late November, where he was only as big as my female (about 4cm), orange with nice but not extravangant fins. He's grown A LOT in the past few months, and now his fins and colours are fabulous, about 7.5cm long. He's a very sweet apisto, I really love the male macmasteri apistos all of mine have been gentle handsome giants. The ladies are a lot more mean!!
In the tetra photo you can see my two types of cardinals - the giant turquoise-y ones I got from a UKAPS user who was shutting down his tanks, and the small wild ones who are much more blue and still have some growing to do. You can see the colour difference in the background of the master Apisto photo too, in the two tones of blue blurs.
I bought Master Apisto in late November, where he was only as big as my female (about 4cm), orange with nice but not extravangant fins. He's grown A LOT in the past few months, and now his fins and colours are fabulous, about 7.5cm long. He's a very sweet apisto, I really love the male macmasteri apistos all of mine have been gentle handsome giants. The ladies are a lot more mean!!
In the tetra photo you can see my two types of cardinals - the giant turquoise-y ones I got from a UKAPS user who was shutting down his tanks, and the small wild ones who are much more blue and still have some growing to do. You can see the colour difference in the background of the master Apisto photo too, in the two tones of blue blurs.
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At first I thought this was a rubbish picture - given that I've managed to focus in on the algae and dirt on the glass, and you can see the scratches - but idk... that lil pencil on the left really captures a bit of the cheekiness of my marginatus. They won't stop photobombing !!!
That would be amazing tbh š they give me flashbacks to raising my baby apistos and how tiny and charming they were. I want l watched one move a leaf a few days ago and it was AMAZING - apparently dicrossus spend a lot of time flipping leaves searching for tasty treats, so I've added some new chestnut and beech leaves in.
It was SO fascinating raising those 38 baby apistos and their dynamics growing up together. I wish there was a small schooling cichlid that would stay like that forever! It's so much work to get them through the first stage but man it is worth it every few years I think.
When I one day get a bigger tank I'd like to keep a nice group of bolivian rams, they look like they could be quite similar and apparently they like to be in a group.
Badis and Darios stay very small don't they? They are fish I would love to keep one day, they look v cute!! I think they don't like to be in groups though, another tiny angry lil fishy š
Biotoecus? Like a tiny geophagus which is supposedly very peaceful. Not 100 percent sure about the schooling though.
Welp.... that's another beauty for THE LIST ! Never heard of them before, they are very sweet.
The schooling of the apistos was so beautiful. One morning I got up and went straight to look in the tank, and was very worried as I saw zero fish in it. Then suddenly one apisto swam from the back around the hardscape and to the front to stare at me, and all the rest of them followed in a long line unti they were all in the front watching me together. Just so intelligent and charming. They would go about in small groups like little gangs of teenagers it was fabulous.
Some of my buces are looking shocking, and not all plants are doing well so I've decided to start fiddling with co2 and ferts again.
Lowered the pressure from 50 psi to 35
Upped the co2 to 8-9 bubbles per second to get the drop checker lime green, fish seem fine.
Adjusted the flow so it goes out more and doesn't just hit the wood.
I've been using the instructions from my aquarium plant food for my ferts, alternating about 30ml a day of macro and micro, with added iron. So I guess will up this? š Not sure on this yet, @Courtneybst had suggested a way to do it with all ferts combined in a super recipe so I will try that!
The tank is looking great but not all the plants are happy, and it's really annoying! I don't think it's just the flow of the wood, otherwise all my buces on the wood would look amazing and they don't. Lmk if you have any suggestions.
Lowered the pressure from 50 psi to 35
Upped the co2 to 8-9 bubbles per second to get the drop checker lime green, fish seem fine.
Adjusted the flow so it goes out more and doesn't just hit the wood.
I've been using the instructions from my aquarium plant food for my ferts, alternating about 30ml a day of macro and micro, with added iron. So I guess will up this? š Not sure on this yet, @Courtneybst had suggested a way to do it with all ferts combined in a super recipe so I will try that!
The tank is looking great but not all the plants are happy, and it's really annoying! I don't think it's just the flow of the wood, otherwise all my buces on the wood would look amazing and they don't. Lmk if you have any suggestions.
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