That Fish Bug!
October 14, 2009
Oh, my goodness! I see you’ve been bitten by the fish bug, too! I loved the pics of your aquariums and reading your adventures raising Angelfish. It sounds like you’re learning well and are quickly finding out the addictive power of the phrase, “Just one more tank….” (haha)

A quick note on cycling: once you have _established bacteria colonies_ in your filters, you can quickly cycle new tanks in the house by squeezing some of that filter media into the new tank (before adding fish) and letting the new filter suck it all in. This colonizes your filter media and gets you jump-started so you won’t go through so much of the new cycling headache/heartache.

Also–there is far less need to change filter media than those selling you the media make you think. The important thing is the _bacteria:_ not what it’s growing on. Some rinsing in old tank water to remove detritus is usually all that’s necessary unless/until the media seems to be falling apart.

You’re like me: anxious to fill that new tank with fish! I had to smile.

Also like me–there’s a bit of a tendency to overload the tank. I counted about 34 fish listed in your 40 gallon–not counting fry. With much respect, I offer the counsel that even with live plants, that may be far too many fish…. The rule of thumb is not 1 gallon per fish, but 1 gallon per *body inch* of fish: meaning, don’t count fins, but measuring from nose to the end of the body (beginning of the caudal fin). Most of the Tetras you listed reach about 2″ in length as adults. Adult size should be considered when stocking the tank as well (or…. you can always buy another tank! or trade back in–it sounds like you have a terrific local fish store there).

Also, some fish, like plecos, goldfish, and Oscars, are considered “messy” fish due to their high waste output, and “count” as more than 1 gallon per “fish inch.” An Oscar, for example, rates as taking up 50-75 gallons of “tank space” even though they are 12″ fish.

That said, you sound on top of your game with waterchanges and testing, and fish care in general–and live plants can and do help with the fish load. Frequent waterchanges can also do the trick. But overloading does make the fishkeeping more difficult overall, in case you miss a change or a water test.

I’m raising Betta fish at my house. My first fry are entering a show this weekend, and my second set are a week old–they look a lot like the Angel fry when they begin to be freeswimming, only, much smaller.

I just wanted to share my thumbs-up.
Your tanks are beautiful, and it was fun to read through your adventures!
Linda

Thanks for your comments Linda,
WE are actually pretty careful with our tank population.  Right now, the original community aquarium has a pair of Angelfish (Boris and Media Luna) that spawn every few weeks, 6 Rams, 7 Cardinal Tetras, 5 False Emperor Tetras and 4 Black Phantom Tetras.  The grow out 40 gallon aquarium has about 60 angelfish fry, 9 rummy nose tetras, 1 platy and 1 cory cat.  Another 29 gallon aquarium has a pair of Angelfish (Lefty and Digitalis) that spawn less frequently since we let them raise their own fry for about 6 weeks.

Terrific!
I must have read further back (earlier on in the blog) or added fish up incorrectly. My apologies. I think where I was reading and adding was with the first tank during the initial cycling period or right after, possibly.
I can tell you are excellent and caring fishkeepers – and what amazing luck to buy 4 grown Angels and have 2 pair!
Enjoy! Very nice to meet you!!
I just meant that, it is soooooo easy to fall in love and bring them home!
Aren’t they wonderful?!
Linda

September 20, 2009
Two days ago, Boris and Media Luna spawned again.  The eggs were laid on the leaf of a new plant I purchased two weeks ago at Pasadena Tropical Imports.  Today the eggs hatched.

Boris (rear) and Media Luna Spawn Again

This newest spawning seems precarious.  The other fish in the aquarium swim close and are not chased away as when the spawning site is more secluded.  The location is also close to the filter return site and that may result in the small fry being carried away in the stream.

Boris and Media Luna (front) Spawn again

I took 10 Fry to Tropical Imports today and traded them for frozen bloodworms.

Ten Fry taken to Tropical Imports

I am catching the 7 week old fry that Lefty and Digitalis spawned on August 1.  The fry have been living with the parents for seven weeks and they are ready to go to the grow out tank since it looks like Digitalis is filling with eggs.  I have captured 20 + 18 + 11 for a total of 49 Fry.

Update
October 2, 2009
Boris and Media Luna’s spawn was moved into the nursery aquarium, and there was a tremendous mortality rate.  Only one youngster is alive.  This is now four spawns in a row that have nearly all  died.  This is quite confusing.  Lefty and Digitalis also spawned, but the eggs grew fungus and there were no hatchlings.  Yesterday, Boris and Media Luna spawned again.

August 8, 2009
Today I gave the largest fledgling Angelfish that was laid on March 31 to Daryl next door.  This Angelfish is now four months old and looking quite graceful.  I also caught 12 Angelfish from the grow out aquarium and traded them for two packs of frozen baby brine shrimps at Tropical Imports.

The latest spawning from Boris and Media Luna has had a high mortality rate.  Many of the fry are dying in the small plastic container floating in the 10 gallon nursery tank.  I am currently moving all the fry from the nursery aquarium to the grow out tank so I can try to save the couple of remaining youngest fry.  I have moved 25 and then 13 and then 12 and then 5 for a total of 55.  I was not trying to catch the largest fry, but moving all I caught.  It seems the smallest fry that were just moved are being picked on by the larger fledgling fry.  I may try to take 10 more of the largest to Tropical Imports tomorrow.

240-13+55= 282.  There should be 282 fry in the grow out tank, but I really think it is more likely there are half that number.

Meanwhile, Lefty and Digitalis spawned several days ago and the fry became free swimming two days ago.  There are about 60 or more young fry currently swimming with the parents.  The fry raised with the parents seem to grow so much faster.

Update:  August 10, 2009
Boris and Media Luna spawned yesterday.  I need to get all the fry out of the nursery aquarium and clean it.  Then I can move the fry in the floating box, less than 20, to the nursery aquarium and prepare for the newest fry.

I caught 15 of the largest fledgelings from the grow out aquarium and am taking them to Tropical Imports today.  that will leave 267 (considerably less) remaining in the grow out aquarium.

I then moved the final 25 fry from the nursery aquarium into the grow out tank.

FInally, I cleaned out the nursery aquarium and moved 18 fry from Boris and Media Luna’s spawning of two weeks ago.  They are about the same size as Lefty and Digitalis’ week younger fry.

July 22, 2009
We took some photos of Lefty and Digitalis and the Fry this afternoon.  We planned to start moving the fry because the fry are beginning to pick at their parents.  The fins are getting ragged.  We also caught 11 of the largest Anglefish from the 50 gallon aquarium (which we now believe is a 40 gallon aquarium) and sold them to Tropical Imports.  We got credit towards some food.

Lefty (top), Digitalis and Fry

After catching the 11 fish, there should have been 132 remaining if none died and vanished.  I then added 36 fry from Lefty’s latest brood, bringing the total in the 50 gallon aquarium to 168.  One of the new transfers did not look well and may have been injured in the netting process.

Lefty (top), Digitalis and Fry

Tomorrow I may try to transfer the remaining fry from Lefty’s tank and the largest fry from the nursery aquarium.

Lefty and Fry

update
July 24, 2009
Yesterday, Boris and Media Luna spawned again on the heater.  I knew this was coming as they got territorial the night before and chased everyone away.  They also were cleaning the heater and the filter intake pipe.  I shot some photos today.  Boris is in the shot with the eggs.  I expect them to hatch tonight or tomorrow morning.  It is very warm in LA right now.

Boris with yesterday's spawn

I also captured 16 more fry that were in Lefty and Digitalis’ tank.  The young fry are picking at the parents and the fins are beginning to look ragged.  The fry are definitely large enough to move to the grow out aquarium.  Total should be 184 if there have been no casualties.  I caught the final (I think) 9 fry and moved them as well, bringing the total to 193-1.  The 1 was a casualty.  One fish in the aquarium got squashed between the glass wall and the plastic tank.

Update:  More fry moved and Boris and Media Luna spawn again.
July 26, 2009
Today I moved 8 fry from the nursery aquarium to the grow out aquarium.  These were the biggest fry I could catch.  I need to make room in the nursery aquarium because Boris and Media Luna spawned again a few days ago.  The fry hatched yesterday.  I also noticed that there is at least one fry remaining in the tank with Lefty and Digitalis, but I was unable to catch it and haven’t even seen it again since noticing it this morning.

Later in the day I caught the remaining young fry in Lefty’s aquarium.  There should be 201 fry from various generations and parents in the grow out tank now.

3 July 2009, 8:14 PM
We got home from shopping today and noticed that Boris and Media Luna were in the process of laying eggs on the uppermost Amazon Swordling. There was evidence last night that this might happen. All fish were being chased from the right side of the aquarium, and Boris was moving sideways through the water. Breeding tubes were showing. Just one week ago the wrigglers were removed with a turkey baster.

Media Luna (on right) and Boris Spawn

I am not sure if I have the room to try to raise this batch of fry. Time will tell. Media Luna is reflected in the glass in some of the photos.

Media Luna (on right) and Boris Spawn

Update on three recent spawning
6 July 2009, 10:20 AM
Yesterday, Boris and Media Luna moved their freshly hatched wrigglers to a lower leaf.  This coincided with the addition of 7 Algae eaters, Otocinclus species, that I added to the community aquarium.  I still haven’t decided what to do about this spawning.

Lefty and Digitalis have swimming fry in the aquarium.  They are growing, but the numbers may be declining.  Signs of a predator lurking in the aquarium, perhaps?

Boris and Media Luna’s previous spawn are doing well in the nursery aquarium.  They are growing.  They are about three weeks old now.

Update on three recent spawnings
12 July 2009, 2:08 PM
First off, this is the first addition to the website from the brand new fast computer.  We expect to be able to make many more postings each day now.  Several days ago, possibly Thursday, I moved many of Boris and Media Luna’s latest fry with a turkey baster.  I left about 30 fry in the tank with them.  They had been moving the fry at least twice a day.  From the leaf, to the glass, back to the leaf and back to the glass.  I placed the wrigglers in a plastic box that attaches to the side of the nursery aquarium.  The fry have been swimming for two days now and they are eating well.  They are significantly smaller than the previous batch of fry from the same parents, and I am a bit nervous to release the younger siblings into the same 10 gallon aquarium.  I think I will do it tonight as I fear the small box, that can’t hold more than 2 cups of water, is far too small for the growing fry.  The parents tried protecting the swimming fry for about a day.  I watched the last 6 fry get eaten by the Cardinal Tetras when the parents were distracted.

Boris and Media Luna’s older fry are starting to look like cichlids, but not like angelfish yet.  They are about a month old.

Lefty and Digitalis are surrounded by their fry in their own aquarium.

The Aquaria Saga Continues
23 June 2009. 3:49 PM
I just returned from Tropical Imports. I sold 10 3 month old Angelfish for $10 store credit. I used the money to buy a larger net (for catching fry from the 29 gallon aquarium) and more brine shrimp eggs. I took a photo of the 10 fledglings before leaving the house. There are now 120 fry in the 50 gallon aquarium.

10 three month old fledgling Angelfish bagged to go to Tropical Imports

I want to try to move all the fry from the 29 gallon tank into the 50 gallon tank. Lefty’s mate, who I’m thinking of calling Digitalis, seems to be filling with eggs.

Digitalis (left) and Lefty with Fry

The fry seem to be picking at the parents. Lefty has a slime coating that I’ve never noticed before.I captured 20 fry and there only seems to be 4 left in the aquarium with the parents. When I captured 30 fry last week, it seemed there were many more than 24 siblings still with parents. could there be hydra or other predators feeding on the fry? I took some photos to show the relative size before the move.

Lefty with some Fry

The latest spawn from Boris and Media Luna in the 40 gallon community aquarium hatched and were moved to another leaf. They hatched sometime yesterday. I will try removing some with a turkey baster today. The nursery aquarium is prepared.

Update:
25 June 2009, 11:34 AM
I removed fry to a smaller floating plastic container in the nursery aquarium two days ago. Today I removed another turkey baster full, leaving just a few fry with the very protective parents. I also managed to remove three additional youngsters from Lefty’s aquarium. I know there were at least four left two days ago, and yesterday there were still four, but today I could only account for three. Either there is one small fry still hiding, or there may be one or more predators lurking in the plants. Perhaps a dragonfly larva or more was introduced with mosquito larvae. Perhaps something came in on the plants. There is evidence that something has been eating the fry in that aquarium, but no concrete proof. It is odd that I only removed 53 fry to the 50 gallon aquarium, which now contains 143 fry from three spawings from 2 sets of parents.

Update:
29 June 2009, 5:43 PM
The fry that were moved into the nursery aquarium are now free swimming and eating newly hatched brine shrimp nauplii.  Meanwhile, Lefty and Digitalis laid eggs and they hatched while I was in Mendocino.  The wrigglers were moved from a leaf on the left to the spotted sword plant, and then back.  I need to buy a new air pump so I can shut off the filter when the fry begin to swim.