Where, o' Where, Are You Tonight?

[MuddyWaters]

Anyone of a certain age ever watch Hee Haw? Remember the song that was the title of this post?

Anyway, Does anyone else sit and look for hours to find the new fish they bought after they're in the tank? Man, I do. Where are the 3 otos? I can find 2 at once, but never the 3. Drives me nuts.

Also, I can find 4 hatchet fish, but not the 5 I bought. There is no dead fish in the tank- they're big enough to see. The only thing I can think is that one of them managed to jump out and one of the cats got him.

My Royal Farlowella does me the favor of plopping himself on the front glass or on a plant in plain view a couple of times a day. He has some manners and common decency. He understands my heart can't take it! The otos are just downright selfish. I guess I'll just have to watch to see if the tank looks cleaner over the next week or so LOL.

On a serious note, though, (confession time) I bought 3 of them last week from one LFS. Two died overnight. One was left, but I couldn't ever see him. The ember tetras and spotted raphael I bought from them are thriving. Something was up with that tank of otos.

So, I went to another LFS this week- the same one I bought the oto that's in my 15 gallon from (he's thriving). I got 3 more. So, I'm anxious to make sure I see them- I can't stand the idea that it's my tank that killed them (my parameters are very good and my other fish are healthy).

I read somewhere to wait 4 months to get otos, but I thought it was because they need a good supply of algae, etc. to eat. Well, I've got a good supply- I'm trying to find the balance with lighting & CO2, etc. right now and I have not hit the sweet spot yet.

Here's the kicker. Earlier today I saw 3 at one time. There should be 4 alive in the tank. Later i found one dead. OMG - I am assuming it's the last of the 3 I bought at the first store, but I can't tell.

Patience is a difficult thing for me and I'm starting to fear that lack of patience might be causing these fish to suffer, but I don't know. Like I said, the parameters are fine- not sure what bacteria, etc. are floating around in there, but the other fish are thriving very well.

Right now, as far as I know, the 3 new otos are thriving, but they just won't make themselves easily visible so I can be sure. BTW- I do have lots of hardscape and plants in this 75 gallon tank, so they could easily never be seen for days and be just fine.

Well, right now my Farlowella - "Willy the Whip" is sitting on a rock, waving his tail at me. Hopefully he will not get his Cadillac coffin for a long time

 

[Back in the fold]

For all the answers call BR-549 and ask for Junior .

 

[lottabubbles]

i try to get in a head count every day. right now it seems easy enough at feeding time. have 19 fish in the 125 gal and i should be able to count that high for a few more years. i get in a lot of aquarium viewing time, because every time a commercial comes on the tv i watch the fish and that is a lot nowadays.
on a funny note, back a few years ago a Great Barrier Reef program was on the big screen tv and i looked over and every fish in the aquarium was over this end watching the tv.

 

[MuddyWaters]

i try to get in a head count every day. right now it seems easy enough at feeding time. have 19 fish in the 125 gal and i should be able to count that high for a few more years. i get in a lot of aquarium viewing time, because every time a commercial comes on the tv i watch the fish and that is a lot nowadays.
on a funny note, back a few years ago a Great Barrier Reef program was on the big screen tv and i looked over and every fish in the aquarium was over this end watching the tv.

It's difficult for me to get a headcount. I like to do that, but there is just a LOT of hardscape and plants. Plus my embers and green fire tetra run around like crazy and not always in a shoal - they usually have a solid group, but the break off a lot and go off doing whatever by themselves.

Even with my 15 gallon, I would go days and not see shrimp or fish I had in there and just assume they were dead, only to have them pop up. It's nice go get that relief- hopefully I'll see 3 of the otos at once again- I've been sitting in front of the tank all evening- seeing 2 pretty frequently, but not all 3 together...LOL

Maybe I need to put an aquarium channel on the TV, they might follow the lead of your fish!

 

[Back in the fold]

Sometimes there is nothing more frustrating than trying to count fish . I have over a dozen Aplocheilus lineatus Golden Wonder killifish in each of two twenty highs . All are very similar in appearance but I see individuals now . That’s one benefit to looking at them so much . They don’t like light so I don’t light their aquariums and there is a lot of glare on the glass from a room window and that makes it hard to see them . I lay on the floor and look up . That works because they are surface fish . About an hour after feeding time they settle down and are perfectly motionless and that’s when I count them . That probably couldn’t happen if there were other fish of different species in with them . I’m glad I didn’t name them or I’d be in a rubber room by now .

 

[Lcc86]

I have a dozen pygmy cories and am never able to count more than about 9 or 10 at once. They'll come out and I start counting but then they'll start moving, one darts over here, another over there and before I know it I'm double-counting! I often thing maybe I lost a couple as I can never count all 12 but they're so small they could be anywhere. If only they would stay in once place for us for just a minute...

 

[jaylach]

i try to get in a head count every day. right now it seems easy enough at feeding time. have 19 fish in the 125 gal and i should be able to count that high for a few more years. i get in a lot of aquarium viewing time, because every time a commercial comes on the tv i watch the fish and that is a lot nowadays.
on a funny note, back a few years ago a Great Barrier Reef program was on the big screen tv and i looked over and every fish in the aquarium was over this end watching the tv.

I find myself constantly looking over to see my if my rope fish is out and about which, with my new lighting, he usually is now. Same thing and result with my Smile Dwarf Cichlids. With the old light everything was mostly in hiding but with the new all are out and about. So ya, I look a lot to see what is out and visible.

LOL! As to where I am personally, which I thought this was going to be about, I'm not sure... Reality tells me that I', sitting on my couch watching a replay of an NFL game and typing this post but the fantasy in which I prefer to exist says that may not actually be true. Sometimes I wish that reality would quit interfering with my fantasy of a perfect world.

 

[Back in the fold]

@jaylach You hit the nail right square on the head ! I too wish that reality would quit interfering with my fantasy of a perfect world . If ever there were something that should be on a bumper sticker or T-shirt , that’s it !

 

[Aqua67]

I am always trying to count my aquarium inhabitants also. The shrimp, I’ll never see them all at once. The ember tetras, 16 of them, have to add some food and then take a photo to get a count. Rarely ever see more than 14 at a time. My other tank with 10 neons, I will never see all of them at once either, so many plants and so many places to hide.

Every morning (like right now), I grab a cup of coffee and go watch the lights come on in my shrimp tanks. I am enjoying my little perfect world right now complete with dogs at my feet. I’m topping off tanks with RO water this morning and reading posts on this board. I hope everyone has a good day today.