What's the next fish you're getting?

[BPSabelhaus]

A couple female platies, when I find some with stripes at least

 

[tinylostwine]

My next fish is a tricky one. It is called Geophagus sp. "Alto Sinu" or sometime known as gold dust geo. There is a lot of conflicting information on this fish with some stating it is a cool water fish that prefers harder water and other tidbits suggesting it is a warm water soft acidic fish. My crude understanding of the history of this fish is that it was imported approx 8 years ago into Canada and all sold fishes are from those originally imported. However the exact catch location seems unclear at least to my self. The name suggest a region near Panama which is rather hard alkaline but just not sure.

I had actually wanted wc winemilleri but good luck finding those - i guess one day i'll find a nice set of winemilleri and replace the spec of gold still floating around.

Last week i picked up a collection of small keyholes - and i gotta say despite the description of timid reclusive fish they are adorable - almost like little kittens - always nudging each other and as bold as any other cichild i've kept at least at feeding time. One of the best purchased i've made in recent years.

 

[TClare]

My next fish is a tricky one. It is called Geophagus sp. "Alto Sinu" or sometime known as gold dust geo. There is a lot of conflicting information on this fish with some stating it is a cool water fish that prefers harder water and other tidbits suggesting it is a warm water soft acidic fish. My crude understanding of the history of this fish is that it was imported approx 8 years ago into Canada and all sold fishes are from those originally imported. However the exact catch location seems unclear at least to my self. The name suggest a region near Panama which is rather hard alkaline but just not sure.

I had actually wanted wc winemilleri but good luck finding those - i guess one day i'll find a nice set of winemilleri and replace the spec of gold still floating around.

Last week i picked up a collection of small keyholes - and i gotta say despite the description of timid reclusive fish they are adorable - almost like little kittens - always nudging each other and as bold as any other cichild i've kept at least at feeding time. One of the best purchased i've made in recent years.

Interesting! I believe the Geophagus Alto Sino come from Colombia, but west of the Andes, not the Amazon region, So I expect water would be neutral or slightly acidic. I love keyhole cichlids, kept them many years ago, but sadly I have never seen them available here.

 

[airfix2]

next fish that i may be getting:
a centerpiece or more ember tetras for my 10 gallon
a few more bronze/albino cories for the 20(i only have 2 at the moment, theyre doing colossally better than panda cories)
a glofish cory for the 20(they're the same species as albinos and bronzes so i can hopefully do it), will name him oppenheimer since i will buy a green one

 

[Lucifer]

Picked up 2 small red devils (2-3 inches) last week. They are alone in a 75G which they will stay for a while until they grow out a bit then I will put them in my 10ft tank which among various central american cichlids I have another red devil growing out (about 6-7 inches).

 

[Fishboy1888]

I have always wanted gobies and they would be a great final addition to my tank. They’re so tough to get though and shipping them in would be expensive

 

[BlueRaccoon]

I plan to buy 12 Corydoras Habrosus in the next couple weeks. This will be my first group of cory cats. I'm very excited to have some 'water puppies' and some movement at the bottom of the tank.

 

[tinylostwine]

Next week i should receive some Leporacanthicus heterodon (4), 18 cory hastatus and 15 hemigrammus blehri; so nothing exotic but still - for the cory i'm increasing my school size from 10 to 28 and for the rummy i'm increasing from 16 to 31; the more the merrier !

 

[Fishfur]

The LFS I go to most often surprised me today when I popped by to get some salt for the grow out brine shrimp tank.

In the section at the back where one usually finds rainbowfish or FW lobsters (and lately a bunch of baby bichirs that I get a kick out of seeing so I always go check it out if I go in the store) I was very surprised to find a tank swarming with red Beckford’s pencil fish with amazing colour.

Talked to Dan, the fishroom manager, who is a very nice guy and discovered they are supposed to be wild caught, not farm bred. They’ve been there a week and are in good shape but he suggested I wait a little longer, as there are lots of them and some just might end up showing some Ich or something. One of the many reasons I like Dan is that he’ll tell me stuff like this.

I intend to get at least a dozen of them and see if I can persuade them to make baby pencilfish!

I’ve only seen the red Beckfords a couple of times. In addition to the usual red fins the upper half of the male’s bodies are a glittering metallic red-copper colour. They’re just gorgeous..

I am of two minds regarding wild caught fish but inbreeding is generally not something I like either. So if I have some success breeding these guys at least the parent fish won’t be closely related.

 

[86 ssinit]

Never see the beckfords pencil fish here. They are for some reason a rarely sold fish. 20yrs ago I bought 3 for $10 at a lps. One jumped that night but the other 2 went into a 30g community were they lived for over 5yrs. Great fish! I hear when they’re around they are very expensive. Yes I would definitely buy a dozen! Hope you do and if so good luck breeding!

 

[Fishfur]

Never see the beckfords pencil fish here. They are for some reason a rarely sold fish. 20yrs ago I bought 3 for $10 at a lps. One jumped that night but the other 2 went into a 30g community were they lived for over 5yrs. Great fish! I hear when they’re around they are very expensive. Yes I would definitely buy a dozen! Hope you do and if so good luck breeding!

Thanks. The price on these guys is surprisingly good so I think I’ll be able to get at least a dozen, maybe a few more and then I guess I’ll find out if I can breed them.

I had the standard coloured Beckfords a long time ago and the males put on quite a show with their sparring.

A pair of sparring males look like they’ve suddenly been plugged in and turned on because they glow so vividly with fiery red colour on body and fins. Their show is mesmerizing to watch.

The two males I got at that time (with 6 females) started sparring minutes after I released them into their tank and at first I thought they were having some sort of seizure til I realized what was going on .

 

[qldmick]

Neon tetra~ Explore the allure of neon tetra fish in my home aquarium! I want to find out how to keep these radiant swimmers happy and healthy from the forum~

Thats a species of Blue Eye (Rainbow Fish),
Red Neon Blue Eye Rainbow Fish, Pseudomugil luminatus.

 

[tinylostwine]

Picked up 6 L. thayeri and wisely placed them in a different aquarium than 4 L. curviceps; 15 h. bleheri to increase the school size to 25. Trying to decide if i want a larger school or if that is enough; and last but least added 18 c. hastatus increasing the school size to 28.

 

[fishywoo]

I think I want to try mini fish one day, like dwarf Rasboras that I've seen another member have, but that will not be for years to come if I do as I have reached my limit currently. This gives me ample time to research and learn more about them. The smallest fish I've ever kept are Bettas so this would be very new to me!
^_^

 

[tinylostwine]

My next fish will be a small group of Cupid; these will go into a 4ftx4ft aquarium with cory hastatus and Apistogrammoides pucallpaensis . I really wanted some wavrini but didn't want to lower the aquarium to blackwater condition at this time. Maybe after a fix a few other issues i'll slowly lower the tds but impatience won out. My only concern is that the Cupid respect the a. pucallpaensis territories; being the smaller fish respect would be prefer to conflict.

 

[TClare]

My next fish will be a small group of Cupid; these will go into a 4ftx4ft aquarium with cory hastatus and Apistogrammoides pucallpaensis . I really wanted some wavrini but didn't want to lower the aquarium to blackwater condition at this time. Maybe after a fix a few other issues i'll slowly lower the tds but impatience won out. My only concern is that the Cupid respect the a. pucallpaensis territories; being the smaller fish respect would be prefer to conflict.

I have always wanted Biotodoma, either species, but they are never for sale here, shop owners say they are too sensitive and most die before being sold. I am sure they are referring to wild caught, tank bred ones should be fine. Not sure how they will get on with the A. pucallpaensis, you'll just have to see...

 

[tinylostwine]

I have always wanted Biotodoma, either species, but they are never for sale here, shop owners say they are too sensitive and most die before being sold. I am sure they are referring to wild caught, tank bred ones should be fine. Not sure how they will get on with the A. pucallpaensis, you'll just have to see...

I don't buy the sensitive story as the ones i ordered are wc and a lot of places (well the specialty stores i deal with) frequently carry cupid and wavrini several times a year though warvini are more seasonal. They are also relatively inexpensive; esp compare to the winemilleri i would like to purchase.

 

[TClare]

I don't buy the sensitive story as the ones i ordered are wc and a lot of places (well the specialty stores i deal with) frequently carry cupid and wavrini several times a year though warvini are more seasonal. They are also relatively inexpensive; esp compare to the winemilleri i would like to purchase.

I have the feeling that fish shipped from Colombia or Peru to Ecuador don't get anywhere the same careful treatment as those destined for Europe or North America. I does seem strange though, I mean we get altum angelfish and wild discus quite regularly, but never Biotodoma...

 

[BlueRaccoon]

After giving a home to some baby Lambchop Rasboras, I have decided to start a species only tank with these fish. I'd love to have a 30 or so. I wasn't looking for these fish, but I'm very glad I received them! This is a picture of the babies in quarantine. They're not babies, lol. But they are very young, lol.

 

[86 ssinit]

I have always wanted Biotodoma, either species, but they are never for sale here, shop owners say they are too sensitive and most die before being sold. I am sure they are referring to wild caught, tank bred ones should be fine. Not sure how they will get on with the A. pucallpaensis, you'll just have to see...

Had to look these up. Never seen these in stores. Ive got to wonder why. At 5” these would be the perfect geos for most people. Wonder why they’re not popular? Look like they have some nice color too. Says they’re peaceful. Not that I go into many stores anymore but when I do I’ll look . These would have to be found at a specialty shop.

 

[tinylostwine]

Had to look these up. Never seen these in stores. Ive got to wonder why. At 5” these would be the perfect geos for most people. Wonder why they’re not popular? Look like they have some nice color too. Says they’re peaceful. Not that I go into many stores anymore but when I do I’ll look . These would have to be found at a specialty shop.

Well as i mentioned before the wavrini are true blackwater so that reduces their popularity; the cupid are easier to keep but not sure the average person goes for them. To be honest I'm extremely happy with the keyholes but they are not that popular either.

 

[TClare]

To be honest I'm extremely happy with the keyholes but they are not that popular either.

I kept keyholes many years ago, I love them. But they are another one that I have never seen for sale here. Well, once I did see them advertised and I ordered some. The fish that arrived were not keyholes but Cichlasoma amazonarum.

 

[qldmick]

Wow this girl was 50% off I had to buy it!

 

[qldmick]

Neon Blue Gobies! They are adorable little freshwater friends. I am adding them to an established 20long, due to their small size I probably won't see them very often. My live food cultures have finally started producing enough that I feel confident getting some of these guys. I have heard they have issues with dried/frozen food.

Why on earth was she 50% off, she is stunningly adorable! She reminds me of a calico cat.

I got an email this morning that all their Goldfish were 50% off for this weekend. I would of never brought her at full price.

 

[BPSabelhaus]

Went in for a nice looking swordtail or platy female.

Left with the start of another livebearer colony (wild type guppy) and a female Betta lol

 

[Marlene327]

Today I added 12 Forktail Rainbows - no pictures, sorry. But they're all very active and have eaten lightly since arriving, and I'm so excited. Can't wait to see all their color develop! I've never added such a group to my tank, but this is what it needed. I like that they mostly swim in the center where I can see them, and they aren't afraid of me and hide when I come to the tank.

 

[BlueRaccoon]

Today I added 12 Forktail Rainbows - no pictures, sorry. But they're all very active and have eaten lightly since arriving, and I'm so excited. Can't wait to see all their color develop! I've never added such a group to my tank, but this is what it needed. I like that they mostly swim in the center where I can see them, and they aren't afraid of me and hide when I come to the tank.

Those are amazing fish! I've been debating on getting them for a long time.

 

[Sewerrat]

Picked up a few pagoda snails

 

[tinylostwine]

Vaguely i am thinking my next major fish will be wild caught discus if i can find them - though might be the spring before they are available. Not heckel as they require super warm temp but more temperate wild caught discus.

 

[Marlene327]

Picked up a few pagoda snails

I've never heard of those! Where do they come from?

 

[PseudotropheusKenobi]

I’m actually torn on my next fish. I’m deciding between F0 Tropheus or F1 predator Haps. I’m considering setting up an 8ft shallow (96x12x12) in my bedroom as a growout for 2 or so years, until I can convince my parents about my 300G 8ft!

I’m leaning more towards the Haps. Mainly because I can share the same food I’m already feeding my Frontosa instead of buying completely seperate foods for Tropheus.

 

[Sewerrat]

I've never heard of those! Where do they come from?

Thailand heard of them but never seen one before in real life then ran into them at big box store bought the few they had hoping they breed.

 

[Sewerrat]

Picked up some yellow guppies 1 male 3 females. assassin snail tank didn't have enough movement.

 

[airfix2]

Picked up some yellow guppies 1 male 3 females. assassin snail tank didn't have enough movement.

cool! fun fact about assassin snails: assassin snails can hunt in packs. this usually happens when they are going after a larger snail; what they do is they all attack the larger snail at once, so it overwhelms them.

 

[MSande0822]

Getting a school of 10 rummynose tetras in a couple days! Would be CPD's if they weren't so expensive lol. I want a school of 10 all at once, and just cannot justify the $11 price tag at my LFS!!! Yet I will readily spend $100 on plants haha

 

[fishywoo]

cool! fun fact about assassin snails: assassin snails can hunt in packs. this usually happens when they are going after a larger snail; what they do is they all attack the larger snail at once, so it overwhelms them.

This I did not know. Who would have thought there's wolves of the snail variety?!

 

[Marlene327]

I just ordered 6 Praecox Rainbows to add with my new Forktail Rainbows. The forktails are a mix of 7 M and 5 F - finally had them all close enough to count. That's a win for me, was hoping it wasn't the other way. Now I hope this next mix of 6 is at least 3 and 3. I also ordered 8 Green Neons, not sure which tank they're going into yet. It may be a bit much for the 40 gallon the rainbows will be in. I have 8 chili rasborras in a 10 gallon and could add there too. About 3 days to decide...

 

[Marlene327]

cool! fun fact about assassin snails: assassin snails can hunt in packs. this usually happens when they are going after a larger snail; what they do is they all attack the larger snail at once, so it overwhelms them.

That's just crazy. I was losing my mystery snails a few years ago, then realized there was 1 assassin in the tank; I thought I'd removed all of them. That one could kill a large snail.

Right now I have 8 assassins in a 10 gallon tank that I can NOT get clear of snails. Even when I see no adults, I get batches of little ones that have hatched out. Dealing with that now, again. They lived on a sponge filter, I could see them, now they're all over. They've got to be laying eggs on the filter. I have 2 in that tank, and when I see them, I rinse it out in salt water. Works til next time.

My assassins are breeding constantly - there's always 2 stuck together. I have a fear of looking in and seeing hundreds of their babies all over - could be soon!

 

[kuhlkid]

Went to the LFS today for the regular batch of RO water and... uh oh. Set eyes on a beautiful batch of glowlight danios (not tetras or one of the Glofish varieties, but celestichthys choprae) for the first time in person, and now I can't get them out of my head. Think I'm going back in the morning...

 

[StarGirl]

Went to the LFS today for the regular batch of RO water and... uh oh. Set eyes on a beautiful batch of glowlight danios (not tetras or one of the Glofish varieties, but celestichthys choprae) for the first time in person, and now I can't get them out of my head. Think I'm going back in the morning...

My lfs just called them Choprae Danios. I had a bunch they are pretty. They are just as crazy as any other danio. Get a bunch.

 

[BlueRaccoon]

Went to the LFS today for the regular batch of RO water and... uh oh. Set eyes on a beautiful batch of glowlight danios (not tetras or one of the Glofish varieties, but celestichthys choprae) for the first time in person, and now I can't get them out of my head. Think I'm going back in the morning...

They are beautiful! I've been afraid to buy them. I worry they won't color up like they look online. Keep us updated!

 

[FishDin]

Went to the LFS today for the regular batch of RO water and... uh oh. Set eyes on a beautiful batch of glowlight danios (not tetras or one of the Glofish varieties, but celestichthys choprae) for the first time in person, and now I can't get them out of my head. Think I'm going back in the morning...

If you can program the spectrum of your light you can really make their red highlights pop, but mine never looked as intense as the online photos, which I never expected. Without the colors, they are nothing special, IMO.

I had a school of 10. Over time they dwindled and when they got down to only 4 left they started chasing and nipping every other fish in the tank. I had to move them. 2 years later, they still live (by themselves) in a separate tank. They keep it cycled for me.

They are very high energy, always moving and sprinting about. At feeding time they go into a frenzy.

 

[kuhlkid]

My lfs just called them Choprae Danios. I had a bunch they are pretty. They are just as crazy as any other danio. Get a bunch.

Good to know about their energy level. I once kept a school of zebras and loved their activity, and my wife was even partial to their look, but I made two serious mistakes; 1) I got longfins, and 2) I got them at Petco. Suffice to say they terrorized each other with those big trailing nipping targets, and their health was never optimal. I'm feeling much more hopeful with a shortfin batch.

They are beautiful! I've been afraid to buy them. I worry they won't color up like they look online. Keep us updated!

Their colors in the store certainly don't match the ones in the hyperlinked image, but I find even their subtle colors very beautiful.

If you can program the spectrum of your light you can really make their red highlights pop, but mine never looked as intense as the online photos, which I never expected. Without the colors, they are nothing special, IMO.

I had a school of 10. Over time they dwindled and when they got down to only 4 left they started chasing and nipping every other fish in the tank. I had to move them. 2 years later, they still live (by themselves) in a separate tank. They keep it cycled for me.

They are very high energy, always moving and sprinting about. At feeding time they go into a frenzy.

Depending on how things go, maybe it'll finally be time to switch out one of my lights with a nice Hygger... Xmas to myself maybe...

I appreciate hearing about their temperament. You don't think they're too rambunctious to cohabitate with tetras do you? The tank is planted and there are many breaks in sight lines. I'm a little hopeful that the presence of a second shoal will encourage more grouping behaviors from my embers, but I don't want to set things up to fail.

 

[fishywoo]

I'm strongly considering getting Malaysian Trumpet Snails for my Goldfish tank instead of adding bladder or pond snails I have in a separate tub. I have extra sand I can add more of, they'll bury themselves during the day and not be a bother to my Goldies, they'll stir the sand for me, and at night they'll eat the diatoms. I've never had them before, I've read once you get them they are there for life, lol. I'm feeling very convinced.

 

[Coradee]

They’ll be active day and night I found, they breed like rabbits, some people like them but tbh I’d never have them again……

 

[kallililly1973]

We also have mts and ramshorn in all our talks as well. Please don’t ask for a “shell” count. I wouldn’t want to sound like I’m exaggerating but probably over a 1000 between 5 tanks.

 

[Fishfur]

I'm strongly considering getting Malaysian Trumpet Snails for my Goldfish tank instead of adding bladder or pond snails I have in a separate tub. I have extra sand I can add more of, they'll bury themselves during the day and not be a bother to my Goldies, they'll stir the sand for me, and at night they'll eat the diatoms. I've never had them before, I've read once you get them they are there for life, lol. I'm feeling very convinced.

If you want to exercise a little control over numbers of MTS then every so often, remove the ones you see climbing the glass at night.

They will be gravid females about to release their latest brood of tiny new snails onto the water tension where they can float to wherever it takes them - I think it’s how they get into HOB filters past intake sponge covers.

So if you do that periodically there won’t be quite so many as if you let nature take its course,

 

[fishywoo]

Thank you all for the warnings and tips!
The fact that the light colored ones look so pretty and that I think they would compliment my pale Carolina Creek substrate is further nudging me in that direction, lol. If I do get them and things go south, I'll remember you guys told me so!
><

 

[Fishfur]

Thank you all for the warnings and tips!
The fact that the light colored ones look so pretty and that I think they would compliment my pale Carolina Creek substrate is further nudging me in that direction, lol. If I do get them and things go south, I'll remember you guys told me so!
><

Things won’t go south but sometimes you may find yourself wishing they were less prolific.

But overall I find them more useful than annoying.

 

[FishDin]

I appreciate hearing about their temperament. You don't think they're too rambunctious to cohabitate with tetras do you? The tank is planted and there are many breaks in sight lines. I'm a little hopeful that the presence of a second shoal will encourage more grouping behaviors from my embers, but I don't want to set things up to fail.

When I had the group of 10 they didn't bother or pay much attention to the other inhabitants. They were always buzzing around, but primarily interacting with each other.