Water Change

I have been busy with work stuff lately, but I did manage to squeeze in a water change last night on the 55 gallon. I'd say I changed about 20% of the water this time. I'll try to test the water by the end of the week.

All of the fish seem to be doing fine, though. My main problem these days is algae. I'm wondering if it is the blue-green variety.

Back to work! More later...

One Daffodil Dead

I found the daffodil yesterday. Unfortunately, it was no longer in the tank! I guess it jumped out when I was cleaning the tank. I was disappointed, because I had only had the fish for a week or so.

The hardest part was telling my three-year old son, who had really taken a liking to what he calls the "wide tails." I considered trying to hide the death from him, but decided that this would be a good learning experience for him -- a way to introduce him on a small scale to one of the facts of life. He took it pretty well, cried a little bit saying he was sad and that the fish must be sad too. He seems to have moved on and now seems focused on the remaining fish and the possibility of providing a new friend for the other "wide tail."

I think I would like to see some baby daffodils in the tank at some point, so I may get some more in the near future. I don't want to disturb the balance in the tank, though. I'll probably wait a bit on that one.

Missing Daffodil

I fed my fish quickly this morning and noticed that one of the daffodils was not out eating the food. I didn't have time to look for it, though. Hope I didn't loose a fish already.

In other news, both n. caudos were out and about this morning. The one in the shell was probably just sleeping at first (because the lights were off before I started to clean the tanks) and then stressed by the activity involved in the water change last night.

Cleaned the 55 Gallon

This was my first cleaning of the tank since adding the new fish. Up until this point all of the fish seem healthy and to be getting along.

The two daffodils don't seem to like each other, but the aquarium is fairly large for the two of them, so they don't seem to be tearing each other apart. I'm betting they are both males. One of them was looking a little like it had a sunken stomach and a few tattered fins when it first arrived in the tank, but after a week it seems to look normal and healthy.

The j. reganis seem to like each other quite a bit. I am betting I have a male and female there and that they have probably paired up. The same holds true for the n. caudopunctatus. Tonight before the cleaning one of them was even hiding in a snail shell with the other close by. After the cleaning was complete, the caudo. in the shell still did not emerge even after all of the other fish had come out from their caves. So, I am hoping that there are eggs in there (and not that I have sick fish on my hands!).

The water before the change was nearly perfect -- pH: 8.0, GH: 7 degrees, ammonia: 0 ppm, nitrite: 0 ppm, temp: 76 degrees. I measured again after the water change and everything remained the same.

I drained about 16 gallons from the tank (using siphon and buckets) and replaced it with water using my Python. While the water filled, I added two teaspoons of stresscoat and two teaspoons of baking soda (to bring up the pH). And that's all for tonight!

A Cichlid Wiki

Though it doesn't use the name wiki anywhere on the site, http://www.cichlids.com/ appears to be one. There is an "edit this page" link on every species page and it bills itself as "a community-project, featuring a wealth of information about cichlids contributed by cichlid-keepers for cichlid-keepers. "

Cool idea and nice work to whoever created the site.

And I found out here that j. regani can reach 15 cm (or about 6 inches) in captivity. So, I'm starting to feel calmer about this fish. Though 6 inches is still pretty large for a 55 gallon.

The new fish have arrived for the 55 Gallon

We just got back from Uncle Ned's Fish Factory with some nice looking fish. We're starting with two Neolamprologus caudopunctatus, two Julidochromis regani kipili, and two Neolamprologus "daffodils." They are all under two inches to start with, so should not put too many demands on the tank and I think they are hardy fish.

So, for the most part I am happy. I wish I had done my research a little more closely on the Julidochromis species before I went, though. I thought most species remained below 6 inches (really my maximum size for a 55 gallon -- and even that is a little large.) But according to the Baensch Atlas, J. regani can get up to 12"!! I am hoping that is a typo. If it isn't, then I am not happy. I'll have to trade them in eventually, I guess. I like to think I can accomodate a fish during it's entire lifespan. But foot long fish are far too big for a 55 gallon.

The Night before adding fish to 55 Gallon

I just did a 90% water change on the aquarium. Before the change the pH read 7.8 and the nitrite and ammonia levels were at 0. After the water change, the pH was the same, and I tested the GH which was 6 degrees GH. I think that is a little on the low side for rift lake cichlids, but I may be able to bring it up with the coral that I have added to the filter. I also added 1 teaspoon of baking power and will add more in the morning if the GH seems too low still.

So, I think all in all the tank is ready for some fish. I plan to head up to Uncle Ned's Fish Factory in Millis, MA around 11:00 AM tomorrow. My son and possibly my wife will join me. Can't wait to finally have a tank going again!!