M. carlae, or not (I'll leave that discussion fo everyone else here who is more qualified and experienced than I) these are beautiful fish. I have never given thought to such a thing before, but what would be involved with importing them through US customs? Is such a thing even possible among hobbyi...

I am humbled. I wish that there was a way to show you this fish as I am able to see her. I am sure at this point that it would confirm your opinion. I can no longer argue that she is not c. ambiacus. I am convinced that she most likely is. Thank you, Gentleman. I have enjoyed the discussion and the ...

Thanks, Mats. That's actually the one that conviced me (mostly) that she's probably not c. ambiacus. There are other pictures on the c. ambiacus page that do come closer, but still not cigar. I'm trying to get a better picture of her that shows that the dark coloration at the base of her dorsal fin ...

I can't get the picture you sent to display. Can you post a link where I can see it, please? I do agree with Ian's reasoning concerning why she's not likely C-143, or delphax, but, at least based on what I've been able to see in the Cat-eLog listings, I don't see the c.ambiacus, either. If you go to...

Here's a little better representation of her color and markings. The "dorsal splotch"does only go higher up her dorsal fin; in this picture you can see it as a dark line behind, and darkening of the leading edge ray. It is a little more visible on the fish "in person." I do see m...

Thanks, Mats. I feel a little less stupid now. This is my mystery corydoras. My original thought was that she was a delphax, but the markings around her head don't match. What the pictures don't show is a very faint metalic green tint around her gill covers. I went through every cory with a picture ...

I finally have a picture of my shy mystery cory! Still not the greatest, but better than simply trying to describe her. Just one problem: how in h@## do I upload pictures?!

My original thought was delphax; in fact that's how I originally listed her when I added her to the "My Cats" section of this site, but the dark bars on her head don't quite match, so I kept looking. There are a couple of pictures on the Cat-eLog page for C-143 that are exactly my fish. I ...

I have 6 corys in my tank and all are doing well, I think. My C-143 seems a bit shy and I've only ever seen her eat once. I'm hoping that, if I can find a couple, having some conspecific tankmates might be a good thing for her. The first week I had her, she vanished anytime someone approached the ta...

I have a single Corydoras sp C-143 that I adopted after her previous keeper tore down her tanks and dropped all of her corys off at the LFS. She really a pretty special little fish, but I'd sure like to find a couple of mates for her. Are Matien and I really the only two keepers of this fish in the ...

So far, none of my cats have seen fit to breed, but suddenly today, I have 25, or so, new platies and another platy and a dalmation lyretail molly getting ready to give birth. How heavy of a new load will all these babies cause for my bio-filtration? I know that they will add to the strain as they g...

The way my pitbulls clean up on any form of algea, there could be worse problems. :wink: The notion that CO2 fluctuations caused it is new to me (like so much else here); thank you. Two reactors is a great idea. I could simply change reactors when I do water changes, which, right now is every week, ...

Sounds like this system will do all I need, for the time being: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3747+8981&pcatid=8981 My 18 gallon tank isn't big enough to justify more, and it looks like they've made it fairly idiot-proof. Panaque's thoughts on tank size will take ...

My tank is 18 gallons, so a yeast reactor should go the job nicely, thank you. Even if I use the most expensive glass diffuser that I can find, my whole system will still be well under the $30.00 that the simplest commercially available system costs. MatsP mentioned using expired fire extinguishers....

Happy Birthday, Shane!

I have had the idea in my head, for a while now, that I could make my own CO2 system, using a bottle, and airline gangvalve and an airstone, or bubble wand. I have seen all manner of expensive professionally built systems offered for sale, but I think that I can build one at least as effective as th...

Wow. I (obviously) had no idea. The obvious simple solution is simple: agressive water changes with no further addition of any form of salt. It also puts paid to any question of which type of salt is better, since the point is rendered moot.

Thanks, Shane.

I have seen several different books, web sites, et cetera recommend adding varying levels of salt to tanks, usually either 1 Tsp/gallon, or 1 Tbs/5 gallons (depending on who's doing the writing). I have seen Aquarium salt for sale at every LFS in town and one even has cups with perforated lids in ev...

Thank you, Bas. One of the reasons why I am finding myself more and more addicted to this site is the immense level of knowledge among the members and their willingness to share it without talking down to those of us at the "dumb look" end of the learning curve. Your explanation of fish cr...

chrisinha wrote:I know right? Too bad my husband doesn't fall for that

Teach him to read and get him some books (sorry ), something that can explain to him the simple rule that a larger volume of water will always be more stable, both chemically and in temperature.

Our manic menagerie includes 2 horses, 4 goats, 4 dogs (that just became 6; if it breathes, my better half will rescue it), 4 cats, 4 chickens, 2 pheasants, 2 geese, and a quail, in addition to a hundred, or so, comets in a stock tank (for mosquito control) and two small aquaria. Here's a thought: W...

The two biggest factors in having tanks too small (after $$$, of course) are WAF (Wife Acceptance Factor, not intentionally sexist; it carries over from the Stereo sales industry) and AS (Available Space). Right now my issues are $$$ and AS, not to mantion a mother-in-law who could inspire a whole n...

MatsP commented that you're not the only one who's overcrowded a tank. Mea culpa, too. Sometimes it's just better to be lucky than good. I also have a trio of minnows (mine are amerald shiners) and, if any one is giving any thought to chrisinha's, don't hesitate! They're wonderful little guys whose ...

The more I hear about these guys, the more i am convinced that they will be great centerpieces for a fish room! A bit more research is in order, but it sounds like discus, pacu, or angels, would be a good mix to share a tank with them. What are some of the bigger peaceful fish thatcome from the same...

Sounds like the minimum tank size for Sun cats is around 150 gallons. The other issue is that they prefer the company of their own species, but the LFS only had one. Sounds like a species tank for another time.

How fast do they grow?

Thanks

I was at the LFS today and saw a fish I had never heard of before. They had a small (roughly 3-inch) fish labeled "Catfish, Sun." My first impression was that he (she?) was beautiful, but looked to me like it would get quite large. It also looked like it was more of a predator than a scave...

I think the perfect fish for your tank would be the Pitbull Pleco/Parotocinclus Jumbo. They stay small, are active at all times of day (after they acclimate to the tank). They are also the best algea eaters I've ever seen. They'll even clean the algea off the live plants without damaging the plants....

Where I am now is not too far from you. The power failure issue is more a matter of paranoia on my part than any known actual likelihood. I'm in the Tri-Cities, for now, but once my father-in-law has been cleared to come home from Seattle (following his liver transplant) we are looking forward to ge...

Thanks, Larry! Lots of fantastic ideas here. I agree that there is no such thing as "over-filtration" and a canister in addition to a sump sounds like a great way to go. One other thing I've thought of doing is to hook it all up with a big UPS, so it all stays running, even if the power fa...

I think the "Black Lancer" would love eating your Tetras and Rasboras at night if it can wait that long. Wow, I got the opposite impression from the Cat-eLog and CotM pages. I'll have to do some more rading and learning before I commit b bringing one of these guys home. One more reason to...