I figured starting a new topic devoted to these fish would be useful in case anyone conducts a search about them.
I have a trio of SAEs that I call the Three Stooges and I love them. I had a serious algae problem in the planted tank they were in before I moved them to their current home. Scrubbing the front glass and cleaning off the leaves repeatedly, along with regular water changes, didn't get rid of the problem. I knew the primary problem was light and there was no simple way to reduce the intensity of the light since the plants benefitted from it. Within a week, the three of them had the tank cleaned up very well and the driftwood centerpiece didn't have a speck of algae on it.
They also didn't attack their tankmates, the Neon and Black Neon Tetras. At first, the crankier Black Neons would dart at the SAEs like they usually do with the other fish. But the SAEs weren't fazed by it, they'd dart back at the fish and then resume eating algae and scavenging. After a while, the Black Neons actively swam around with the SAEs and it was a hoot watching the SAEs working on the glass with the Black Neons playing around with them. If you have real SAEs, you know how they move around, do little loop-de-loops, shimmy up the glass and dive down.
As for the kinds of algae they eat, they ate whatever was growing in the tank. They're also omnivorous and actively eat the flake food I feed my other fish. They scavenge uneaten food off of the gravel and that's actually where they prefer to eat. They won't go to the surface to eat, they eat the food as it's falling and will pick it off of the plants, gravel and decorations.
Some people have expressed confusion about identifying them with certainty when going by the black stripe and body coloration. The two biggest clues that they're the real thing is that the primary black stripe along their side extends into their tails and their fins are TRANSPARENT with no coloring or markings. Above the primary black stripe, their scales are not solidly colored, they're flecked with black. The scales below the black stripe can show the same flecked quality. Mine have silver/white bellies but they can appear gold, depending upon how the light hits them. So you have to observe them carefully for a while.
Now that I've seen and have the real thing, I can easily tell when I'm looking at a false SAE.
These guys are FAST, too, and netting them is not easy. The pet store had to use two nets to net just my three out of a small tank that had what looked to be at least 25 of them. I had to take everything out of their previous tank and remove some water to net mine so I could move them. Even then, it was difficult and they'd zoom upwards, breaking the water surface. I just about had a heart attack every time the water plinked and had to quickly check to the tank to be sure they were still in there and hadn't jumped out of the tank. I was only able to net them because they got tired. I was pretty frazzled, too, by the time I'd gotten all three of them moved.
They love their spacious new tank that's heavily planted and I moved the driftwood centerpiece from the previous tank to their current one so they'd have something familiar. One of them has claimed a hole in the driftwood and will hide there sometimes. They do have individual personalities to some extent. One of them is the leader and was the first to show himself, settle in, and actively start working on the tank. Another one tends to follow the lead of the first one and go where he goes. The third one who hides out in the driftwood hole sometimes is the shy one of the trio and most easily startled.
So I can tell who's who by now most of the time. The leader's always out front doing his thing and obsessively working. The second one's sometimes not seen right away but will show up to join the first one and they gallivant about. When I check the driftwood hole and see a head or tail peeking out, I know who that is.
But it still tickles me to see all three of them hanging out together, working and doing their little acrobatics. They remind me of cories in the way that they'll be touchy-feely with each other. I love my Three Stooges and am totally attached to them. I have no desire to have a false SAE that would lose interest in eating algae and become aggressive with age.
I'd love to hear the stories other SAE keepers have.
I have a trio of SAEs that I call the Three Stooges and I love them. I had a serious algae problem in the planted tank they were in before I moved them to their current home. Scrubbing the front glass and cleaning off the leaves repeatedly, along with regular water changes, didn't get rid of the problem. I knew the primary problem was light and there was no simple way to reduce the intensity of the light since the plants benefitted from it. Within a week, the three of them had the tank cleaned up very well and the driftwood centerpiece didn't have a speck of algae on it.
They also didn't attack their tankmates, the Neon and Black Neon Tetras. At first, the crankier Black Neons would dart at the SAEs like they usually do with the other fish. But the SAEs weren't fazed by it, they'd dart back at the fish and then resume eating algae and scavenging. After a while, the Black Neons actively swam around with the SAEs and it was a hoot watching the SAEs working on the glass with the Black Neons playing around with them. If you have real SAEs, you know how they move around, do little loop-de-loops, shimmy up the glass and dive down.
As for the kinds of algae they eat, they ate whatever was growing in the tank. They're also omnivorous and actively eat the flake food I feed my other fish. They scavenge uneaten food off of the gravel and that's actually where they prefer to eat. They won't go to the surface to eat, they eat the food as it's falling and will pick it off of the plants, gravel and decorations.
Some people have expressed confusion about identifying them with certainty when going by the black stripe and body coloration. The two biggest clues that they're the real thing is that the primary black stripe along their side extends into their tails and their fins are TRANSPARENT with no coloring or markings. Above the primary black stripe, their scales are not solidly colored, they're flecked with black. The scales below the black stripe can show the same flecked quality. Mine have silver/white bellies but they can appear gold, depending upon how the light hits them. So you have to observe them carefully for a while.
Now that I've seen and have the real thing, I can easily tell when I'm looking at a false SAE.
These guys are FAST, too, and netting them is not easy. The pet store had to use two nets to net just my three out of a small tank that had what looked to be at least 25 of them. I had to take everything out of their previous tank and remove some water to net mine so I could move them. Even then, it was difficult and they'd zoom upwards, breaking the water surface. I just about had a heart attack every time the water plinked and had to quickly check to the tank to be sure they were still in there and hadn't jumped out of the tank. I was only able to net them because they got tired. I was pretty frazzled, too, by the time I'd gotten all three of them moved.
They love their spacious new tank that's heavily planted and I moved the driftwood centerpiece from the previous tank to their current one so they'd have something familiar. One of them has claimed a hole in the driftwood and will hide there sometimes. They do have individual personalities to some extent. One of them is the leader and was the first to show himself, settle in, and actively start working on the tank. Another one tends to follow the lead of the first one and go where he goes. The third one who hides out in the driftwood hole sometimes is the shy one of the trio and most easily startled.
So I can tell who's who by now most of the time. The leader's always out front doing his thing and obsessively working. The second one's sometimes not seen right away but will show up to join the first one and they gallivant about. When I check the driftwood hole and see a head or tail peeking out, I know who that is.
But it still tickles me to see all three of them hanging out together, working and doing their little acrobatics. They remind me of cories in the way that they'll be touchy-feely with each other. I love my Three Stooges and am totally attached to them. I have no desire to have a false SAE that would lose interest in eating algae and become aggressive with age.
I'd love to hear the stories other SAE keepers have.