Bye Bye 5 x 60, hello 200

[Deleted member 149562]

Not brilliant images but when sat on the floor waiting ages, they are better than nothing.....the two seriously shy Fire Red Apisto juveniles...

 

[Deleted member 149562]

@GaryE

Granted the photo's above are horrible...the Apisto's are about 1 inch long, so very small youngsters.

Trying to figure out if the striped one is the male or female.....any ideas please, or are they too small/young to distinquish yet?

Thank you in advance.

 

[GaryE]

I see 2 males, most likely. I'd say 80% likely. Look at the pectoral fins for black edges, and a yellow tone to the body (in time) to spot a female. The problem with the highly linebred versions of the fish is the females can carry some fin colour, which no wild one does. It confuses the issues, especially with a faraway photo.

I'm a snob who only kept wild type agas.

 

[Deleted member 149562]

I see 2 males, most likely. I'd say 80% likely. Look at the pectoral fins for black edges, and a yellow tone to the body (in time) to spot a female. The problem with the highly linebred versions of the fish is the females can carry some fin colour, which no wild one does. It confuses the issues, especially with a faraway photo.

I'm a snob who only kept wild type agas.

I truly hope they aren't both little boys.....cos that will be a problem later on when they start squabbling

But we shall wait and see what comes once they get larger and start maturing...the one with the stripe is definitely the more shy of the two

 

[Deleted member 149562]

Just to add confuzzlement all round...the Apisto with the stripe, no longer has a stripe. They both look absolutely identical in colouration now.

So its going to be a wait and see game as to what orientation they actually are.

Everyone else is absolutely fine. The Neon Tetras have split into two groups...one swims at the rear of the aquarium, the other clusters to the front right side of the aquarium. The Cories are enjoying life in the fast lane....ie they scoot into the filter flow and do some mid water level surfing from right to left before swimming back to the filter and doing it again - normal Cory silliness really.

Still 42 fish...feeding well, colouring up beautifully and enjoying life...and that is all that matters. The new floaters arrived as planned yesterday - hornwort, elodea densa and egeria najas. Lovely cuttings of plants, now floating and already shooting well. I also got a few bulbs from Proshrimp delivered and they are doing well in the rear of the 53 to offer extra shelter for the new fish once they grow up.

 

[Deleted member 149562]

A little update

All fish are doing well....

Lost two of the Cories over the weekend but I had anticipated that since both were very tiny compared to the other 8 and didn't really have the same level of get up and go to them. I always anticipate losses with new fish cos sometimes it is inevitable and at other times you just get the feeling that one or two might be a bit "off" or not really responding strongly and that was the case with the two tiniest Cories.

The 30 Neons are going brilliantly....including one oddity who is a vastly quicker swimmer than the rest despite missing something essential, their tail. He/she arrived minus a tail but it isn't affecting them in any way. Always bombing around without a care, eats like a horse...I suspect it was hatched tail less since it seems not to notice that it hasn't got one. Obviously any issues with it will be noted and dealt with but as of now, its swimming remarkably well and otherwise very healthy.

The two Apisto are getting braver and exploring more....the one with the "here again/gone again" stripe is the shy one, but they are getting there slowly. They tend to hang out in one or both caves most of the time.

All fish are growing well, eating well and very active. Great colours and body condition...even the tail free Tetra.

I have only lost the two very tiny and obviously runty Cories, then to me that is not a bad average from 42 fish imho, given that they were all an inch or less when they arrived 10 days ago.