insecurity
Aquarium Advice Activist
Alright, so the tank seems to be doing pretty good. It sucks that I lost all but two of the zebra danios. I had texted my sister the other day and told her and her reply was "Good- they're ugly!"
In my eyes, ugly they are not.
Swordtail is loving life, as always, and the guppy is well- a guppy. Not much to say about him save the fact that he eats like a champ and is starting to get bigger.
Talking about the danios- I've been closely monitoring the behaviour of the remaining two. I've noticed them chasing each other around, or at times just chilling with the Guppy. Based on their sizes, I would say one of them is an adult, and the other and the other is relatively new, as its under half an inch long.
That being said, over the weekend, and into today, I've noted some strange behaviour from the older danio. First of all, I think it's a she. Secondly, it's been hiding behind the driftwood and in the taller artifical plants in the back.
I've also noted that it hasn't been coming out for flakes at 10 in the morning. However, over the weekend, while I worked the 12 hour shifts, I had put some lettuce on a veggie-clip in the tank, and when I came home, I saw that this danio was out in plain view chomping away on the lettuce.
As well, for the little I've seen it eat over the past 3 days, she's gotten considerbly bigger, which is leading me to believe that she's pregnant.
Having a pregnant danio now poses a bit of a problem. I don't yet have another tank for breeder fish, and at the same time, I'm not too sure if I'm interested in raising baby danios.
So there's my first set of questions: Is my zebra danio pregnant? Should I let nature run its course, and have the swordtail and most likely the guppy eat the eggs and fry- or should I 'rescue' them?
I've had the tank running onto 2 months now, fully cycled, and I've never had an algae problem or outbreak. Actually, I don't think I have algae. I can amount this to my firm cleaning schedule that happens every Monday, which involves a partial water change, and a scrub down of the glass. As well, my testing schedule is a pre and post water change test on Mondays, a test on Wednesday and another test on Friday. By this schedule, I figure I can monitor the benefits of the PWC, and adjust the following week by doing a smaller or larger PWC, if required.
My impressions of the Aqueon Bowfront 36 gallon tank is impressive. I like its large size, and its small footprint. I'm currently running the Aqueon Quietflow 30 filter it came with, and it is doing just fine. At most, it sounds like a slow, steady stream, which is very relaxing. I now find it easier to sleep in the living room than I do in my bedroom. Although I like the Quietflow, and it's minimal noise, I think by this time next year, I want to be running either an internal filter, or a canister filter on this tank- which will result in a no-noise setup (save the air pump) and a filter that is easier to maintain. (Taking the lid off and on the Quietflow is a chore.)
Getting back onto algae for a moment- although I don't have a problem or have any (visible) algae, I feel the need to get a pleco. Taking into considerations, I don't know much about plecos, so I'd like your opinions on this.
And finally, lets talk new additions to the tank. I defintely want to add at least one to two other species to the tank. If I get a pleco, that covers one- but what others should I be looking at? For a while, loved the look of the Black Skirt Tetras, which I often see mislabeled at LFS' as 'Black Tetras' or 'Common Tetras', but further research into their behaviours has me thinking otherwise, as they can be quite nippy- sometimes to the point that they may be considered a semi-aggressive.
My attention has turned back to livebearers, similar to my Guppy and Swordtail, and has me looking at platies. I like their varying colorations and the plethora of sub-species, but I just can't choose.
I know this post is quite long, and in some cases, not very informative, or to the point, and I apologize for that.
In my eyes, ugly they are not.
Swordtail is loving life, as always, and the guppy is well- a guppy. Not much to say about him save the fact that he eats like a champ and is starting to get bigger.
Talking about the danios- I've been closely monitoring the behaviour of the remaining two. I've noticed them chasing each other around, or at times just chilling with the Guppy. Based on their sizes, I would say one of them is an adult, and the other and the other is relatively new, as its under half an inch long.
That being said, over the weekend, and into today, I've noted some strange behaviour from the older danio. First of all, I think it's a she. Secondly, it's been hiding behind the driftwood and in the taller artifical plants in the back.
I've also noted that it hasn't been coming out for flakes at 10 in the morning. However, over the weekend, while I worked the 12 hour shifts, I had put some lettuce on a veggie-clip in the tank, and when I came home, I saw that this danio was out in plain view chomping away on the lettuce.
As well, for the little I've seen it eat over the past 3 days, she's gotten considerbly bigger, which is leading me to believe that she's pregnant.
Having a pregnant danio now poses a bit of a problem. I don't yet have another tank for breeder fish, and at the same time, I'm not too sure if I'm interested in raising baby danios.
So there's my first set of questions: Is my zebra danio pregnant? Should I let nature run its course, and have the swordtail and most likely the guppy eat the eggs and fry- or should I 'rescue' them?
I've had the tank running onto 2 months now, fully cycled, and I've never had an algae problem or outbreak. Actually, I don't think I have algae. I can amount this to my firm cleaning schedule that happens every Monday, which involves a partial water change, and a scrub down of the glass. As well, my testing schedule is a pre and post water change test on Mondays, a test on Wednesday and another test on Friday. By this schedule, I figure I can monitor the benefits of the PWC, and adjust the following week by doing a smaller or larger PWC, if required.
My impressions of the Aqueon Bowfront 36 gallon tank is impressive. I like its large size, and its small footprint. I'm currently running the Aqueon Quietflow 30 filter it came with, and it is doing just fine. At most, it sounds like a slow, steady stream, which is very relaxing. I now find it easier to sleep in the living room than I do in my bedroom. Although I like the Quietflow, and it's minimal noise, I think by this time next year, I want to be running either an internal filter, or a canister filter on this tank- which will result in a no-noise setup (save the air pump) and a filter that is easier to maintain. (Taking the lid off and on the Quietflow is a chore.)
Getting back onto algae for a moment- although I don't have a problem or have any (visible) algae, I feel the need to get a pleco. Taking into considerations, I don't know much about plecos, so I'd like your opinions on this.
And finally, lets talk new additions to the tank. I defintely want to add at least one to two other species to the tank. If I get a pleco, that covers one- but what others should I be looking at? For a while, loved the look of the Black Skirt Tetras, which I often see mislabeled at LFS' as 'Black Tetras' or 'Common Tetras', but further research into their behaviours has me thinking otherwise, as they can be quite nippy- sometimes to the point that they may be considered a semi-aggressive.
My attention has turned back to livebearers, similar to my Guppy and Swordtail, and has me looking at platies. I like their varying colorations and the plethora of sub-species, but I just can't choose.
I know this post is quite long, and in some cases, not very informative, or to the point, and I apologize for that.
i used to have loads and i loved them! platies are sweet, but could crossbreed with the swordtail, but yeah the colours would work out. mollies are nice, and could suit your tank. sunburts or calico ones especially 
