Adventures of the 35G

Chesherca

With loaches, both I'd say! But I wouldn't worry too much about it right now, you may not be see them in their full glory until you rebuild their shoal. I can't wait for that. . . 's gonna be a happy day in squirmville! In my tank log, you can see some pics of Becoming when the 29g was first started - long before it grew into the 55. There was a LOT of open space in that tank, comparatively. . . but they were always out and open. I'm sure they'll come around as their numbers are increased. :D

jentralala

I've read for loaches that they're more secure if they have multiple places nearby that they can 'duck' into. I have the leaves that I see them moving around in a lot, I think they've become so enamored with them they refuse to leave. Kind of like kids and a ball pit -___- They've seemed shyer after I upgraded to a 'whiter' light, they seemed more active when I had a red hued light.
With the amount of plants in your tank JDM I'm surprised that there's even any open area haha, it looks so full! I'm surprised that they're so skittish. I think you're on the right track with crypts though, they do offer a lot of shelter when a get clumps of them. They're also prrreeeeettttyyyyy.

JDM

Yah, there isn't much real cover on the bottom. I tried putting the live oak leaves that I got while in Florida but they are small and sit flat and the sand covers them. Didn't really do what I wanted.

I do have a cave under the big driftwood that I thought they'd use, but they only grub around in there for food occasionally. The shrimp really like it though, they are always hiding out in there.

Jeff.

jentralala

What about Indian Almond Leaves? They're really big and pretty tough, although I'm not sure if cories are too big for them. I have a thick layer of leaves so my loaches squirm around in between the layers, but they're very slim. (My mom calls the little ones my worms, and the bigger ones my snakes, hahaha)

How are your shrimp faring JDM? I'm thinking about adding a few to my tank but I'm not sure if they'd have enough places to hide.

JDM

Being in Canada, our selection of leaves is a little smaller. Oak is our best bet, maple second..... not sure what would be next. I've never seen anything at the store other than plastic or some silk... which are nice but need to be cleaned I understand.

When we had four shrimp, we only ever saw three at one time once. Now with a supposed 10, we see three or four regularly so I think they are doing fine. I have driftwood that is all cracked so the are tons of crevasses that they tend to hang out in. They don't typically stay on the plants other than to clean some of the leaves off. I'd be happy if they reproduced .... not sure they will.

If you get them large initially, the fish probably won't get them, those suckers are fast.

Jeff.

jentralala

You should be able to buy them off of eBay, unless Canada doesn't allow them in? I'm not sure why they wouldn't but hey, weirder things have happened.

I think shrimp are so cute, but I also picture them and moss hand in hand. Do yours pay special attention to any particular plants?

On another note, I was at the LFS today, which kind of ****** me off. They had DYED frogs. They were green and pink. WTH. They also had a tank full of random plecos, one of which I think was a Clown Pleco (which I really, really want. SO CUTE). I used to buy from that shop regularly but seeing those frogs has really made me not want to give them my money anymore. I'm really considering going back and getting the pleco, but...I don't know. I'm afraid my water is too soft for it anyways.
I was hoping to pick up more Harlequins today but the other LFS didn't have any in stock, which was a bummer.

Chesherca

Oh those poor, poor lil' frogs! I really wish people would stop doing that. *sigh* The dyed animals make me feel so sad. I've seen the dyed frogs in images, really glad to have never seen them IRL. The tattooed fish were horrible enough. . . I love my little greyish brownish speckled froglings!

I REALLY want shrimp. . . I *might* be brave enough to try putting some in the big tank. . . if they were big enough, in all that space, *maybe* they'd survive! My rams have prolly never seen a shrimp IRL. Perhaps they wouldn't realize they were food? Heh. Unlikely!

Have you put the IAL in your tank yet, Jen? Wondering how you like them? They're SO much 'stronger' than Oak leaves. . .

jentralala

I have no idea how those poor guys were even dyed. They looked so sad, I'd never even heard of them. When the owner was telling me about his new stock, he said 'colored frogs', which, I assumed meant an array of NATURAL color variations (I don't know much about frogs...or their colors) but then when I saw them I was just appalled. They looked so sad.

I really want to get my hands on some cherry shrimps, or some 'brown' shrimp. They're so fascinating.

Yup! And you were right, those leaves are HUGE! I really do like them, they're so tough. I haven't seen any water discoloration yet, but eventually I'm hoping to create a blackwater setup if I can figure out how to keep the ph stable and do water changes on it. The leaves look so pretty though, I love that reddish tinge that they have.

Chesherca

I think this was the first place I heard of them . . . it's really SAD!

Glad you like the leaves :) Those are considered SMALL by IAL standards. I think they're HUGE, lol! Surprised they aren't coloring your water though. My water went really dark with seven of them, I think - in the 55. Maybe just luck of the draw. . .

JDM

Dyed frogs.... no thanks.

The shrimp seem to prefer smaller leafed plants.... but that may just be a proximity thing as the swords are out in the middle and the shrimp stay near the drift wood at the ends. Dwarf hygros, little crypts, pennyworts, go, and the vals. I guess any green that has a bit of algae on it. I love watching them riding the Duckweed around. Some times they pull the Duckweed down and they really slowly sink, sort of like parachuting but it's a bit of a gauntlet, even though the fish don't bother the it certainly attracts their attention and the shrimp alway take off before getting to the bottom as a result.

Yah, fun to watch.

Jeff