15g first occupants!

[Fishy_Dan]

Thought I'd share a couple of pictures of the first occupants of my newly set up 15 gallon planted tank. 10 trignostigma espei (lampchop rasbora). They seem quite happy hanging out under the cover of the salvinia and generally exploring their new surroundings.

I tried to give them a little snack (flake) but they showed no interest. Hopefully have a better appetite tomorrow!

 

[Retired Viking]

Great looking tank, since the fish are new I would suggest that you keep the lights down low to help relax then as they become familiar with their new surroundings.

 

[Essjay]

I'm pretty sure those are Trigonostigma hengeli, not T espei However the care is the same for both species so it doesn't matter which you have.
When I got my espei they were labelled as hengeli. But looking at images on Seriously Fish and Fishbase, I realised mine were labelled wrongly and it looks like your shop has done the same. It's the orange strip that gives it away - hengeli have a clearly defined bright orange band over the black while espeis have a orangey hue over a much bigger part of the body.


I found that mine huddled in the back corner until I got some floating plants. They stayed under the plants, coming further in to the tank as the plants covered more and more of the surface.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I agree that those are t.hengeli, they're beautiful! But even more impressive is the tank, what a stunning scape! I hope you keep updating the thread with photos as the tank matures, it's absolutely gorgeous!

 

[Fishy_Dan]

Hmm, I think you are right. Looking at seriously fish they do appear to be hengeli! Will see if the colour changes as they settle.

They seem quite happy and are noticably move adventurous as time goes by. They have yet to show any interest in food, though. They've only been in about 30 hours so I'm not overly worried, is it normal?

 

[Fishy_Dan]

I agree that those are t.hengeli, they're beautiful! But even more impressive is the tank, what a stunning scape! I hope you keep updating the thread with photos as the tank matures, it's absolutely gorgeous!

Thank you. I spent qutie a lot of time thinking about and editing the scape before I got the fish. I added a black background this afternoon. I'm still getting used to it, but the colours look brighter certainly. I'll post some more pictures for sure!

 

[Essjay]

They have yet to show any interest in food, though.

What type of food have you been giving them?

It's possible it's different from the food the shop used so they haven't realised it is food yet. My espeis don't feed from the surface, they wait till it's sinking and eat mid water.

 

[Fishy_Dan]

What type of food have you been giving them?

It's possible it's different from the food the shop used so they haven't realised it is food yet. My espeis don't feed from the surface, they wait till it's sinking and eat mid water.

Just tetra branded flake so far. I've been turning off the filter when adding flakes, which means it sits on the surface longer. Maybe I'll leave it on next time.

A few of them have had a little nip at the flakes but no more than a bite that I've seen.

 

[itiwhetu]

Can I suggest grind the flake food up for these guys and mix it into the tank on the water flow of the filter they will feed easier then

 

[Fishy_Dan]

Can I suggest grind the flake food up for these guys and mix it into the tank on the water flow of the filter they will feed easier then

Crumbling up the flakes along with them getting more at home seems to have worked today, thanks.

 

[Fishy_Dan]

Picture with the black background

 

[AilyNC]

Plants are going great! Tank looks gorgeous

 

[Fishy_Dan]

Added 5 amano shrimp today. Funny little guys! They started tucking in to the algae straight away.

I'm a bit cocerned about the T. hengeli though, they are so timid and skittish! Whenever I go near the tank they dart around. Could adding the shrimp have upset them? One is hiding behind a rock in a corner as well. Definetly different behaviour from when they were schooling gracefully yesterday. Hmmm

Edit: I tested the water to be sure and ammonia and nitrite both still zero.

 

[Retired Viking]

I just added some more salvinia to my tetra tank, I have noticed as the floating plants thin out my tetra are more jumpy. Many small fish hide under floating plants out of fear for birds.

 

[Fishmanic]

Awesome tank with great plants , fish, and driftwood.

You should enter that tank in our December Tank of the Month contest which will feature tanks sized at 16 gallons and smaller.