My 20 gal amazonian biotope project

[Koglin]

Now time for an update:

I've decided on an Oxbow Lake Amazon Biotope with some added tannins (not going to go full blackwater though). After having read through suggestions, for stocking I was thinking:

x10 Pygmaeus Corydoras (bottom/mid)
x6 Carnegiella Strigata (top level) (marbled hatchetfish)
x2 Dicrossus Maculatus (mid/bottom) - still unsure of this one, I can get a pair from my main LFS and they have them available, but it is hard to find more detailed care instruction for them. If not them, I would like to find a different centerpiece or just increase one of the school sizes since 2 of these accounts for around 5 inches.

Going off the care guides available online I've searched through (as well as advisement from my LFS guy) this would put my stocking inches somewhere between 20-23.

Since it is softer water for these guys, I was looking at keeping water parameter ranges around: Ph: 6.5-7.0, <20ppm Na at all times, around 4°dkh Gh & 2-3°dkh Kh, with a temp. range of 77-80° fahrenheit. To help maintain this, over the weekend I got a 4 stage RO/DI system that does 50gpd (works awesome so far, driftwood will have to come next check). May add peat moss to the filtration, depends on how hard of a time I have managing the water softly with the ground litters I'm looking at (also listed below).

For plants:

I read a lot into the suggestions here, and in other oxbow lake sources I could find. Some plants I omitted due to care needs or natural origins, and this list will change - but at the moment these are what I was looking at:

Foreground (very little off, dotted along the main sandy/leaf litter swim zone):
Echinodorus tenellus

Midground (very little of):
Echinodorus xingu

Background:
(Some) vallisneria along the back wall
Myriophyllum
Anacharis elodea
Cabomba furcata
*Hydrocotyle leucocephala (still reading more into, if chosen it will be a background and floating plant, will replace either myriophyllum or anacharis elodea)

Floating:
Phyllanthus Fluitans
Salvinia minima
Amazon frogbit (with the stems tied off to suction cups, would have to try and keep focused on 1 side of the tank)
* Hydrocotyle leucocephala - if chosen will prob. replace amazon frogbit

At the moment, I'm still reading into multiple types of echinodorus(i), so those will change as I learn more (theres a lot of them I like).

Driftwood I am leaning towards getting some nice long pieces, and coupling it with the current giant hunk of mopani thats in my 10 gallon (I call it Mt. Tanksuvias).

Ground litter thoughts (not all native):

Leaves (will buy a bunch, and gradually change them out as they break down):

Guava
Catappa
Mangrove
Jackfruit
Magnolia

Other ground litter:

Couple tiny pieces of driftwood to simulate roots winding through the substrate (if I can find anything suitable)

Acorn tops (? Have seen this a couple times, there are types of oak trees in south america so I'm interested)

Still all evolving, if anyone has any suggestions on this post please advise! Especially regarding centerpiece fish that would do well in softer water (also needs to be friendly enough for a community). Really digging the dicrossus maculatus though - just need to find more info. on them before I decide anything.

OH - and the tank. It's still cycling, today's readings were: 77° F, Ph 7.1, Am.: .25ppm, Ni.: .25ppm, Na.: 5ppm, Kh: 3°dkh, Gh 8°dkh.

Another big thing I get to sort out, is adjusting my RO/DI water (fun fun), have a friend coming over in a couple days that has been in the hobby for a long time that says he has a few ideas I could try so we'll see how that goes.

That's all for now though, and since this is a slow-moving project: Happy Halloween if I'm not back with another post before then! ^.^

Also thanks to @Lajos_Detari for the article links. They were a big help for understanding more about creating biotopes and led to a lot of other information about oxbow lakes specifically.

Thanks to @Retired Viking as well for suggesting a pen. I found a few cool ones I wanted, and my girlfriend caught me looking at them and told me to back off it since my bday is coming up soon so we'll see what happens.

 

[Retired Viking]

You are welcome. another thing I am researching and just bought a bottle of is "Fritz dark water almond leaf extract" I have not tried it yet but it claims to provide a natural source of tannins. I picked that up with a packet of Indian Almond leaves advertised as (Betta Catappa Leaf) at Petco.

 

[Lajos_Detari]

You are welcome!

I like Dicrossus Maculatus. They are interesting and their tails are unique. It will be a good choice as they don't grow big.
Or you can also consider Dicrossus filamentosu but more rare.

I guess if you can get 3-4 of them will be even more interesting.
When you select the fish, choose 1 that is bigger with more colour and oval/spade tail (male) and 2 smaller with less colour and round tail(female) for higher chances of male and females.

" While the male Dicrossus filamentosus develop a clearly lyretail (forked) caudal fin, the males of D. maculatus grow an oval to slightly lanced (spaded) tail-fin, bluish with a dense pattern of vertical bands. The female’s is round and transparent, without any design."

Breeding Dicrossus maculatus - Fish Care

Background I have kept and bred Dicrossus filamentosus, but I never saw (except in pictures) Dicrossus maculatus until 3 years ago. You can imagine my excitement when I saw it available in a wholesaler’s list. I immediately ordered 12 fish. After almost 30 years a legend became a reality...

nippyfish.net

Will Checkerboard cichlids suit my set-up?

www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk

Dicrossus maculatus ID confirmation & sexing help

Kinda new at this Dicrossus sp thing, but I am absolutely in love with these little buggers. I got five, what I believe to be Dicrossus maculatus, from a fish club friend. He thinks he got them from an online vendor listed as wild Dicrossus. I believe them to be maculatus. No other...

www.apistogramma.com

Dicrossus maculatus (Spadetailed Checkerboard Cichlid) — Seriously Fish

www.seriouslyfish.com

 

[Koglin]

You are welcome!

I like Dicrossus Maculatus. They are interesting and their tails are unique. It will be a good choice as they don't grow big.
Or you can also consider Dicrossus filamentosu but more rare.

I guess if you can get 3-4 of them will be even more interesting.
When you select the fish, choose 1 that is bigger with more colour and oval/spade tail (male) and 2 smaller with less colour and round tail(female) for higher chances of male and females.

" While the male Dicrossus filamentosus develop a clearly lyretail (forked) caudal fin, the males of D. maculatus grow an oval to slightly lanced (spaded) tail-fin, bluish with a dense pattern of vertical bands. The female’s is round and transparent, without any design."

Breeding Dicrossus maculatus - Fish Care

Background I have kept and bred Dicrossus filamentosus, but I never saw (except in pictures) Dicrossus maculatus until 3 years ago. You can imagine my excitement when I saw it available in a wholesaler’s list. I immediately ordered 12 fish. After almost 30 years a legend became a reality...

nippyfish.net

Will Checkerboard cichlids suit my set-up?

www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk

Dicrossus maculatus ID confirmation & sexing help

Kinda new at this Dicrossus sp thing, but I am absolutely in love with these little buggers. I got five, what I believe to be Dicrossus maculatus, from a fish club friend. He thinks he got them from an online vendor listed as wild Dicrossus. I believe them to be maculatus. No other...

www.apistogramma.com

Dicrossus maculatus (Spadetailed Checkerboard Cichlid) — Seriously Fish

www.seriouslyfish.com

Oh man I'm loving it! Thanks so much for the info. link's about them, when I was looking I kept finding bland care sheets that had somewhat contradicting info.

After a bit of looking around, it turns out the filamentosus are cheaper near me. I read they're better in groups of 5 or more, or as a pair.. really like them as another option to the mac's.

Helps a lot, thanks again xD

 

[Fishmanic]

Be sure you enter that 20 gallon biotope in the January tank of the month contest which will feature tanks sized at 17 to 30 US gallons.

 

[Lajos_Detari]

Oh man I'm loving it! Thanks so much for the info. link's about them, when I was looking I kept finding bland care sheets that had somewhat contradicting info.

After a bit of looking around, it turns out the filamentosus are cheaper near me. I read they're better in groups of 5 or more, or as a pair.. really like them as another option to the mac's.

Helps a lot, thanks again xD

I was trying to find a youtube video made by a Japanese TV channel.
I saw it once and they were absolutely beautiful.
But I couldn't find the video now. Probably need more time to search.

Filamentosus tail is more beautiful I think.

Recently, one of my LFS was selling the wild caught Dicrossus Maculatus at less than USD 5 each. They had a big group for selections. I was thinking of getting 5-6 of them.
But too bad, I already have two tanks running and I don't want to start any more new tank.

 

[Koglin]

This post is just for me to edit over time to help me keep track, this is the final list I'm debating through. If anyone reads through, anything marked with an * may not work - or has additional considerations needed

20 Gal. Amazonian Oxbow Lake Biotope

Desired parameters and internal setup:
pH: 6.8-7.0
0/0/<20ppm Na
Kh: 3-4°dkh
Gh:4-5°dkh
76-78° F

High lighting for floating plants to create medium lighting internally – 11/13 L.S.
Low surface agitation
Moderate internal current
Fish foods:
Regular - micropellets, flakes (both geared for omnivores), algae wafer(?)*crushed.
Special - frozen/live brine shrimp (juvenile for fat - adult for protein depending on stocking age), mosquito larvae (during possible months), mini bloodworms (rare treat on occasion, dependant on lfs)

Plant supplements: seachem root tabs, seachem flourish, co2(?)*debating

Remineralization: *TBD

Fish:
Carnegiella Strigata $3.99-$4.99 aqua imports
L: 1.25”, Ph 6.5-7.2, 0,0,<30Na, 76-82° F, Gh <4°dkh, Kh <4°dkh. Food: frozen/live shrimp, mini bloodworms, mosquito larvae, flakes

*1 Dicrossus Filamentosus (maybe maculatus) $9.99-$13.99 aqua imports
L: 2.5”, Ph 4.5-6.8, 0/0/<30Na, 77-82° F, Gh <5°dkh, Kh <5°dkh. Food: frozen/live shrimp, mini bloodworms, mosquito larvae, flake, algae wafers (bits), leaf litter biofilm *Important: high-end pH is below high-end desired pH, research alternative

*2 Alternative: Dicrossus Maculatus: L: 2.5, pH 6-7.5, 0/0/<30Na, 76-82°, Gh <5°dkh, Kh <4°dkh. Food: frozen/live brine shrimp, blood worms, daphnia, flakes, micropellets

*3

Pygmaeus Corydoras $34.99/x10, $3.49/x1, $20.99/x6 aquaimports
L: .75”, Ph 6-7.5, 0,0,<30Na, 77-82° F, Gh 4-16°dkh, Kh 2-8°dkh. Food: frozen/live shrimp, mini bloodworms, flake, micropellets, algae wafers (bits), leaf litter biofilm

Plants:
Floating:
Phyllanthus Fluitans (red root floater) $11.49 small cup, aquaticarts.com
Care lvl: Easy, low-high light, 70-82° F, pH 6.5-7.5, column feeder, *Important: low surface agitation required

Salvinia Minima $5.95 small cup, aquaticarts.com
Care lvl: Easy, moderate-high light, 65-89° F, pH 6.5-8.0, column feeder, *Important: low surface agitation required

Driftwood Moss:
Vesicularia montagnei (Christmas tree moss) $5.99 golfball/13.99 lg cup, buceplant.com
Care lvl: Med., low-high (higher=faster growth), 65-77° F, pH 5-7.5, column feeder, *Important, needs moderate current flow. **Important: temp range on high end for desired parameters, research alternative

Background:

*Pothos - research more

Vallisneria americana (tall grass) $5.99 for x1 bunch, or $17.99 for x4 bunches, buceplant.com
Care lvl: Easy, med-high light, 63-82° F, pH 6.5-8.5, substrate feeder, co2 not req. but recommended

Myriophyllum elatinoides $9.95 dustinsfishtanks.com
Care lvl: Easy, med-high light, 72-84° F, pH 6-7, feed on sub and column(?), co2 not req but recommended, *Important, plant pH on high end for desired parameters- may conflict with tank, research alternatives

Mid & Foreground:
Echinodorus schlueteri $7.95 per plant, aquaticarts.com
Care lvl: Easy, med-high light, 72-83° F, pH 6.5-7.5, sub & column feeder (?)

Echinodorus parviflorus $4.99 per pot, buceplant.com
Care lvl: Easy, med light, 72-82° F, pH 6.5-7.5, sub feeder, co2 not re but recommended

Echinodorus Xinguensis (grass) $6.99 per plant, buceplant.com
Care lvl: Easy, med light, 72-82° F, pH 6.5-7.6

Ground litter:
Catappa leaf x10 for $6.99 flipaquatics.com
Anti-parasitic, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties, and thus keep the water free from pathogens. Lowers ph.

Guava leaf x60 for $12.99 amazon.com
Contains vitamins B2, E and K, fiber, calcium, folate, iron, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, High vitamin C content. Antibacterial

Jackfruit leaf x24 for $15.00 tanninaquatics.com
Lowers ph, similar properties to guava/catappa

Magnolia leaf x4 quarts for $6.99 lllreptile.com
Ph stability (Maybe*?), promotes tank health, has some sugars and may cause temporary bacterial bloom on end of leaf

Tree root replicate to run through substrate (small driftwood sides), x1 or x2 pieces

Dried oak twig pack for added litter

Long mopani/Malaysian driftwood pieces

 

[Lajos_Detari]

Actually it's better to avoid frozen and live food if you want to prevent disease and infection. They can bring internal parasites or even external parasites. Bloodworms can cause allergy to some people. There are people who have breathing problem(allergic reaction) after using bloodworm. Even the dust from the dried bloodworm is not safe.
You can read this from some Discus forums as there are people who feedbacked about this issue. Even the manufacturer Hikari put a warning of allergy on their frozen bloodworm packaging.
In my opinion, the risks are more than the benefits when you use live food.

If you need high protein and high fats fish food, here are my recommendations.
Any food with 50% of Protein is good enough for fish growth(based on Discus fish diet).

1)Dr Bassleer Biofish food Regular (M size for your small fish). Protein - 54%, Fats - 16%.

Dr. Bassleer Biofish Food regular M

www.aquaristikshop.com

2)New Life Spectrum - Grow formula.
Protein - about 50%.
But not all fish will take this brand because the food is harder to chew.

Our range of premium fish food | New Life Spectrum Premium Fish Food for Colour and Vitality

nlspectrum.co.uk

3)Discusfood - Day by Day Granulate
Protein : 57%, Fats : 15%

Granulate für Diskusfische - Discusfood

www.discusfood.com

4)Look for other brands of Discus food such as Hikari as most of them have higher Protein.

Hikari info : Hikari Tropical DISCUS Bio-Gold

www.hikari.info

 

[Koglin]

Actually it's better to avoid frozen and live food if you want to prevent disease and infection. They can bring internal parasites or even external parasites. Bloodworms can cause allergy to some people. There are people who have breathing problem(allergic reaction) after using bloodworm. Even the dust from the dried bloodworm is not safe.
You can read this from some Discus forums as there are people who feedbacked about this issue. Even the manufacturer Hikari put a warning of allergy on their frozen bloodworm packaging.
In my opinion, the risks are more than the benefits when you use live food.

If you need high protein and high fats fish food, here are my recommendations.
Any food with 50% of Protein is good enough for fish growth(based on Discus fish diet).

1)Dr Bassleer Biofish food Regular (M size for your small fish). Protein - 54%, Fats - 16%.

Dr. Bassleer Biofish Food regular M

www.aquaristikshop.com

2)New Life Spectrum - Grow formula.
Protein - about 50%.
But not all fish will take this brand because the food is harder to chew.

Our range of premium fish food | New Life Spectrum Premium Fish Food for Colour and Vitality

nlspectrum.co.uk

3)Discusfood - Day by Day Granulate
Protein : 57%, Fats : 15%

Granulate für Diskusfische - Discusfood

www.discusfood.com

4)Look for other brands of Discus food such as Hikari as most of them have higher Protein.

Hikari info : Hikari Tropical DISCUS Bio-Gold

www.hikari.info

Brilliant! Seriously @Lajos_Detari, I cannot thank you enough for your suggestions.

My main aquarium experience stems from a roommate, 4 years ago, who got a 55 gallon and just went awol throwing fish etc. into it. Oddly, I ended up developing a passion for it by helping him do his maintenance and discern solutions as he did. I learned a lot, & started fantasizing about tanks while reading a lot about aquascaping and stocking. Took me a while, but I finally have my own tanks. Thanks to this forum, I've done everything as appropriately as I could learn to, and have never had any issues except a tiny bit of grass hair algae that was gone 4 days later.

With this biotope, I really wanted to challenge myself and do things correctly, I love learning about aquatic life, and you have been pretty essential, so.. Thank you! ^.^

How long have you had tanks? Would love to see pics

 

[CassCats]

Yay checkerboards! Excellent choice in cichlids! They're one thats really caught my eye of the whole SA cichlid group, theyre under-rated

 

[Lajos_Detari]

Brilliant! Seriously @Lajos_Detari, I cannot thank you enough for your suggestions.

My main aquarium experience stems from a roommate, 4 years ago, who got a 55 gallon and just went awol throwing fish etc. into it. Oddly, I ended up developing a passion for it by helping him do his maintenance and discern solutions as he did. I learned a lot, & started fantasizing about tanks while reading a lot about aquascaping and stocking. Took me a while, but I finally have my own tanks. Thanks to this forum, I've done everything as appropriately as I could learn to, and have never had any issues except a tiny bit of grass hair algae that was gone 4 days later.

With this biotope, I really wanted to challenge myself and do things correctly, I love learning about aquatic life, and you have been pretty essential, so.. Thank you! ^.^

How long have you had tanks? Would love to see pics

Hi Koglin,
Actually my experience in fish keeping isn't very long.
I used to keep fish when I was a teenager but I stopped this hobby for long time until 5 years ago.
I am still learning from others.
I tried to read as much as possible from the internets and books. Some books written by the fish breeders are quite good.
I kept many species of fish from South America, Africa, Asia, Central America and Australia in the past as the fish here are cheap.
But now I am only keeping two tanks.

My first tank is for a pair of Red Melon(female) and Blue Tiger(male) Discus in a bare tank. Discus requires much food with high Protein when they are young. It's easier to clean with bare tank.

My second tank has shrimps (Fire Red, Super Blue and Tiger shrimps), Mosquito Rasboras, Bamboo shrimp, Red Lizard Whiptail Pleco, Twig catfish, Starlight Pleco and Panda Loaches.
I don't really maintain it well due to my busy schedules.
Anyway, I attached some photos of my Discus fish. I had given away some of my Discus as I only keep a pair now.

I bought the Discus for about USD10 for each 2 inch Discus and about USD20 for each 2.5-3 inch Discus.
For Dicrossus Maculatus(wild caught), I saw one LFS selling at USD4.50 each.
Some fish like Neon Tetras, common Guppies are sold for less than USD 1 each.
The fish here are cheap but I have to ensure that they don't carry any disease.

The biggest challenge in fish keeping is in dealing with diseases especially parasitic infection such as gill flukes.
It's almost impossible to eradicate from your tank if the gill flukes get into your tank.
And they will keep killing your fish when they are high in numbers.

Whenever you buy new fish, observe them carefully before buying.
Do not buy the fish if it has symptoms like fish scratching against objects/tank glass, sunken belly, fish staying/lying at the bottom and inactive, white spot on the bodies/fins/tail, clamped fins(though sometimes this can be caused by poor water quality), fish breathing very fast(provided its not caused by overcrowding in tank where most fish will have this symptom at the same time), etc.
I listed only a few types of diseases which I think are the more dangerous ones.
There are many other diseases which you can find from the internets

If possible, observe them for 20-30mins before buying.
In fact, there were a few times when I observed the fish a few days as I kept going back to the fish store a few days continuously just to observe the fish.
Also, observe other fish in the same tank. Since most diseases are contagious, if you see any fish with the symptoms, most probably other fish will be infected also.

Lastly, if you can quarantine your fish in a bare tank for 3-4 weeks before moving them to your main tank, it will be even better.
It's easier to treat disease in a bare tank. Medications can kill the plants and the plants can absorb the medication and making it less effective.
But if you don't have extra tank, make sure that you observe them carefully for the first 3-4 weeks for any diseases.
Wild caught fish may carry gill flukes and internal parasites with them.
You will have to treat them if you buy wild caught fish.
.

 

[Koglin]

Hi Koglin,
Actually my experience in fish keeping isn't very long.
I used to keep fish when I was a teenager but I stopped this hobby for long time until 5 years ago.
I am still learning from others.
I tried to read as much as possible from the internets and books. Some books written by the fish breeders are quite good.
I kept many species of fish from South America, Africa, Asia, Central America and Australia in the past as the fish here are cheap.
But now I am only keeping two tanks.

My first tank is for a pair of Red Melon(female) and Blue Tiger(male) Discus in a bare tank. Discus requires much food with high Protein when they are young. It's easier to clean with bare tank.

My second tank has shrimps (Fire Red, Super Blue and Tiger shrimps), Mosquito Rasboras, Bamboo shrimp, Red Lizard Whiptail Pleco, Twig catfish, Starlight Pleco and Panda Loaches.
I don't really maintain it well due to my busy schedules.
Anyway, I attached some photos of my Discus fish. I had given away some of my Discus as I only keep a pair now.

I bought the Discus for about USD10 for each 2 inch Discus and about USD20 for each 2.5-3 inch Discus.
For Dicrossus Maculatus(wild caught), I saw one LFS selling at USD4.50 each.
Some fish like Neon Tetras, common Guppies are sold for less than USD 1 each.
The fish here are cheap but I have to ensure that they don't carry any disease.

The biggest challenge in fish keeping is in dealing with diseases especially parasitic infection such as gill flukes.
It's almost impossible to eradicate from your tank if the gill flukes get into your tank.
And they will keep killing your fish when they are high in numbers.

Whenever you buy new fish, observe them carefully before buying.
Do not buy the fish if it has symptoms like fish scratching against objects/tank glass, sunken belly, fish staying/lying at the bottom and inactive, white spot on the bodies/fins/tail, clamped fins(though sometimes this can be caused by poor water quality), fish breathing very fast(provided its not caused by overcrowding in tank where most fish will have this symptom at the same time), etc.
I listed only a few types of diseases which I think are the more dangerous ones.
There are many other diseases which you can find from the internets

If possible, observe them for 20-30mins before buying.
In fact, there were a few times when I observed the fish a few days as I kept going back to the fish store a few days continuously just to observe the fish.
Also, observe other fish in the same tank. Since most diseases are contagious, if you see any fish with the symptoms, most probably other fish will be infected also.

Lastly, if you can quarantine your fish in a bare tank for 3-4 weeks before moving them to your main tank, it will be even better.
It's easier to treat disease in a bare tank. Medications can kill the plants and the plants can absorb the medication and making it less effective.
But if you don't have extra tank, make sure that you observe them carefully for the first 3-4 weeks for any diseases.
Wild caught fish may carry gill flukes and internal parasites with them.
You will have to treat them if you buy wild caught fish.
.

Went to a new lfs I hadn't been to before yesterday to grab a couple plants for my smaller tank, and got stuck staring at the discus tank for a good while. They were gorgeous, hadn't really looked at them before your post and seeing them. Also found a great spot for a wide plant variety, they even carried most all the plants I want (and can get the other 2 they're missing through them).

Good advice too about observing fish, I feel like they get annoyed asking me if I need help over and over ha. Wish I had a spare tank that was bare bottom for quarantining, I do have a work around but it's not very roomy, maybe that will become the direction of my 10 gallon.

Was surprising how much time I spent reading food labels and comparing protein/fat contents, especially of species specific foods (was pretty informative really). Lotta of varying differences, wrote a few things down for flakes/pellet options that focus of different content lvl's, really big thanks for the food advice.

I like your discus too, very pretty'

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Brilliant! Seriously @Lajos_Detari, I cannot thank you enough for your suggestions.

My main aquarium experience stems from a roommate, 4 years ago, who got a 55 gallon and just went awol throwing fish etc. into it. Oddly, I ended up developing a passion for it by helping him do his maintenance and discern solutions as he did. I learned a lot, & started fantasizing about tanks while reading a lot about aquascaping and stocking. Took me a while, but I finally have my own tanks. Thanks to this forum, I've done everything as appropriately as I could learn to, and have never had any issues except a tiny bit of grass hair algae that was gone 4 days later.

With this biotope, I really wanted to challenge myself and do things correctly, I love learning about aquatic life, and you have been pretty essential, so.. Thank you! ^.^

How long have you had tanks? Would love to see pics

You've really thrown yourself into planning this so carefully, it's awesome to see! I can't wait to see the tank itself and how it grows in and evolves. I'd never heard of those cichlids, they're so beautiful!

I loved the story about your uncle Clyde too, sounds like he was a wonderful man

 

[Lajos_Detari]

Went to a new lfs I hadn't been to before yesterday to grab a couple plants for my smaller tank, and got stuck staring at the discus tank for a good while. They were gorgeous, hadn't really looked at them before your post and seeing them. Also found a great spot for a wide plant variety, they even carried most all the plants I want (and can get the other 2 they're missing through them).

Good advice too about observing fish, I feel like they get annoyed asking me if I need help over and over ha. Wish I had a spare tank that was bare bottom for quarantining, I do have a work around but it's not very roomy, maybe that will become the direction of my 10 gallon.

Was surprising how much time I spent reading food labels and comparing protein/fat contents, especially of species specific foods (was pretty informative really). Lotta of varying differences, wrote a few things down for flakes/pellet options that focus of different content lvl's, really big thanks for the food advice.

I like your discus too, very pretty'

You're welcome and thank you.

Yes, Discus is called the king of freshwater aquarium.
After I started keeping Discus, I seem to have less interest with other fish.

Neverthess, other South American and African Cichlids are still beautiful anf interesting to keep.
The fish which you mentioned Dicrossus Filamentosus (Checkerboard Cichlid) is also an interesting and unique fish.
There are too many beautiful and interesting fish around.
Nowadays I also like shrimps very much. Their grazing behaviour is very enjoyable to watch. The way they climb the driftwood, swim and jump are interesting to watch.

By the way, don't forget to rinse your plants and quarantine them if possible. They can also carry parasites with them.

 

[Lajos_Detari]

I found some of these websites/info about fish food which are quite useful and interesting.
The attached files are taken from Dr Bassleer website.

New Life Spectrum website:

Learn More About New Life Spectrum — New Life Spectrum®: Fish Food

www.feedspectrum.com

Welcome to New Life Spectrum Premium Fish Food for Colour and Vitality

nlspectrum.co.uk