My FIRST Sandbase & shell dweller cichlid tank...
- Thread starter ctxmonitor
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I am trying to catch a few shot of the fish, but having a hard time. Maybe its my camera, not focusing fast enough.
dinhz r krazy, i don't know if plant will substain the nipping and torture... hehe.. Maybe some anubias will work.. I put that in mind..
Cichlid-man, yea, don't u hate it when they made it too short...
That rock in the tank is quite useful. That rock actually help buffer the water to a high ph for the shellies. I don't need to add baking soda or anything.
dinhz r krazy, i don't know if plant will substain the nipping and torture... hehe.. Maybe some anubias will work.. I put that in mind..
Cichlid-man, yea, don't u hate it when they made it too short...
That rock in the tank is quite useful. That rock actually help buffer the water to a high ph for the shellies. I don't need to add baking soda or anything.
Well it kinda looks like a display of sea shells and, as bobHe suggests, the fish will redecorate to suit themselves so it won't look like that for long! I'm not so sure whether some of those shells (particularly the cowries) are entirely suitable, you might double check in case there's a risk of the shellies getting stuck in them. From a practical point of view you're going to have a 'mare trying to syphon up around that lot to keep the lovely white substrate clean.
I'm not overly fond of the pseudo-saltwater look, but that's a personal preference. Lots of you North Americans seem to love it, is there something of the frustrated salty in you? More rocks would definitely be a good idea, I would steer clear of plants unless you go plastic.
You shouldn't be relying on that piece of rock alone to buffer your water, is that crushed coral substrate? What's your pH, KH and GH?
So where have the fish taken residence, brevis on the left and multies on the right or are they still sorting themselves out?
Good luck with it!
I'm not overly fond of the pseudo-saltwater look, but that's a personal preference. Lots of you North Americans seem to love it, is there something of the frustrated salty in you? More rocks would definitely be a good idea, I would steer clear of plants unless you go plastic.
You shouldn't be relying on that piece of rock alone to buffer your water, is that crushed coral substrate? What's your pH, KH and GH?
So where have the fish taken residence, brevis on the left and multies on the right or are they still sorting themselves out?
Good luck with it!
Taffyfish, I don't think the sand is crush coral. I brought it from lfs and its say ultra reef sand.
Yea, I know that I should rely soley on the rock to buffer the water. I add some salt and baking during WC. So it wouldn't cause major change in water during WC.
The fish is still sorting themself out on who own who.. heheh.. But most of the shellies seem to be liking the left side more. They hang out there..
The multis seem to have a head start though. One multi seem to like the yellow shell next to the white clam shell in the back and marking that his terrority. The other multi seem to take refugee on the rock where there is a few hole.
I was surpise that he/she like to stay in a cave better then a shell. Or maybe he is just confuse and hanging around...
Here is a close up of the community.
Yea, I know that I should rely soley on the rock to buffer the water. I add some salt and baking during WC. So it wouldn't cause major change in water during WC.
The fish is still sorting themself out on who own who.. heheh.. But most of the shellies seem to be liking the left side more. They hang out there..
The multis seem to have a head start though. One multi seem to like the yellow shell next to the white clam shell in the back and marking that his terrority. The other multi seem to take refugee on the rock where there is a few hole.
I was surpise that he/she like to stay in a cave better then a shell. Or maybe he is just confuse and hanging around...
Here is a close up of the community.
Take care if those multies start to dig and undermine the rock, you'll be amazed at how much sand these little guys can move in a few hours. You should place some eggcrate on the bottom glass of the tank and place the rock on top of that then backfill with sand.
I would also remove that dark brown cowrie just for safety's sake. Let the redecoration begin, lol
I would also remove that dark brown cowrie just for safety's sake. Let the redecoration begin, lol
TaffyFish, I wouldn't worry about the dark brown cowrie shell. Maybe you couldn't see it from the pic, but the size of the opening is way too small to even fit through. I used a layer of crush coral on the bottom. I hope that substrate will be able to remain down there..
I don't really know how much strengh these little shellies have...
Ok, I have put up some fish shots.. Not the best.. And the Multis are damn fast and won't stay put... Unlike the brevis...
I don't really know how much strengh these little shellies have...
Ok, I have put up some fish shots.. Not the best.. And the Multis are damn fast and won't stay put... Unlike the brevis...
For a fish that's not much over an inch in length, these guys are real diggers. A single mother with one shell and one fry excavated a crater the size of a dinner plate around her shell the first day. It's not like they 'pick up the shell and drag it', they are engineers - they excavate sand to get the shell to move.