DAILY OBSERVATIONS

Sitting in front of my African community tank I watched the activity in the tank over my morning coffee. I noticed a couple of Zebras acting peculiar. I have a few different Zebras in my aquarium. My Blueberry OB and my Red Zebra were locking lips, circling each other and then they took turns sucking on each other's sides. These actions can be either and indication of preparing to mate, or aggression. I'm not sure what these two were up to. I have never seen them do that before and I haven't seen them repeat this since. I also looked at them closely and neither of them has any injuries. I'm hoping it's not aggression but I do tend to lean towards them declaring dominance over the females in the tank. I'll have to keep watching and see where this goes.

It seems Bubba my previous tank boss is asserting himself again. He no longer hides in the corner. He is now clearly making use of the entire tank. He is not annoying any of the community fish. They are swimming around him as if he's just another fish. He is displaying his dominant colours. Rambo, who took over the tank when Bubba was out for a few days has lost colour and has been staying in his cave most of the time. I have a feeling he is losing his confidence in owning the tank. I will have to continue to watch this pair as well. I still may have to re-home one of them. They are both Zebras and look similar. That is always a bad thing when there are two dominant Cichlids. When having a community of Cichlids, its a good idea to have all different colours and species. Cichlids will fight with the ones that look like themselves first, seeing them as a threat. This may be my problem.

TODAY'S CICHLID PHOTOS

I took these photos today, trying to get a good variety of shots of the Cichlids in my 75 gallon African community. I will be re-homing a couple as they are just too bossy and aggressive. Then I will decide if I want to add a couple new ones in their stead.

AQUARIUM RE-SEALING PROCESS

Last week I had to deal with the mess of my 40 gallon grow-out tank leaking. Of course it was the middle of the night when hubby was answering a bladder call that he noticed the tank was 2/3's empty.

Today I decided to tackle stripping the sealant and cleaning it up - preparing it for re-sealing. I belong to a couple different aquarium enthusiasts groups where I get wonderful advice on just such a project.

Getting my tools laid out and of course my helper Finn I was ready to begin. My scraper tool, vinegar/water bottle, paper towels, dustpan and whisk completed my
list.

I began by using a blade and scraping all the old sealant off. I also removed the top and bottom frames of the tank and stripped it as clean as I could. Once it was stripped I washed the tank out with vinegar water. I dried it as best as I could and now I'll let it continue to dry completely for a couple days before I re-seal the aquarium.

I glad this is just a grow-out tank and not one of my good display tanks as this is a first time re-sealing an aquarium for me and I am not quite as fussy if I make a mistake or two. As long as the seal is good I'll be happy. I think if it were one of my bigger display tanks then I would look into getting it done professionally or at least get someone who knows more than I do about the process.

DAILY OBSERVATIONS

Today is water-change Monday in my house. I did a little more then just water changes. I began with my 75 gallon African Cichlid community tank. Once the water was changed I put my tank boss (Bubba) back into the community tank. I observed him for a bit. He stayed darkly coloured and hid in the corner. I was crossing my fingers and set off to do the next water-change.

I did a mini water-change on my 55 gallon tank because it was hardly used. Bubba had been occupying that tank for his time-out along with a couple plecos and a bristle nose catfish. It was a nice quick change.

I had been contemplating what to do with my 55 and today decided I would move my 1.5" Red Top Zebra fry into it. There are over 60 in this brood and quickly out-growing my 20 gallon fry tank. It was sitting empty so I figured I may as well put it to use. Besides, I have another couple moms holding and will be needing my smaller tanks soon.

Continuing on with my water-changes I did my brooding tank so it's ready to move the first mom over. I'll be moving her in another week. I like to move them at the 7-10 day mark. I cleaned out the 20 gallon fry grow-out tank and left it empty for now. My next brood won't need to be moved for another couple to three weeks. In that group of fry I have more Red Top Zebras and about a dozen Auratus ( Golden Cichlids).

After completing my five water-changes of the day I went down to check on Bubba. He has coloured up some but now he's sporting a number of bite marks and missing a bunch of scales. As far as I can tell he has not succeeded in de-throning the new tank boss. He's another Red Top Zebra - actually when the two of them are apart it's hard to tell one from the other. Bubba continues to hang around up in the corner licking his wounds. I'm hoping he'll settle but re-homing is certainly still an option. Time will tell.

75 GL RE-SCAPE VIDEO

Usually when removing a fish, whether they are sick or holding it's much easier to catch them with the rocks and decor removed. It seems like a lot of work but I believe it's good to rearrange the aqua-scape just to keep things interesting for the fish. However, if I know there are breeding places dug out, or I'm letting a female spit naturally I do not disturb the scape because I want to avoid causing my fish any stress.

This is a newly arranged scape. I rearranged the decor and rocks after I removed "Bubba" my tank boss. He will be returning to the community today after I complete my water change in this tank. I"m hoping 5 days away has given him time to calm down. If not I will have to consider trading him or re-homing him as he's just not a good fit for my community. I'm leaving it all up to him.

DAILY OBSERVATIONS

This was going to be a great day. My aquariums are all warm and cozy once again. I hadn't fed any of my Cichlids yesterday as the power was out and I needed them to conserve energy and keep the water as clean as possible not knowing how long the outage would last.

Checking my Cichlids this morning all look happy, warm and healthy but starving. It felt so good to feed them and see their perky little selves fighting for food. My fry weathered the outage very well. I'm so thankful my loss was minimal. Next purchase - generator or battery pak.. heck maybe both!

THE LAST 22 HOURS

Yesterday off and on during the day we had disruption in our electrical service. By 5pm our power was off. We were in the midst of a nasty ice storm here in South-Western Ontario.  Many communities in our area were without hydro. This storm left many of us without electricity for hours.

Our hydro went off at 5pm. Not expecting it to last long we got settled with candles and extra blankets. After an hour I started to worry as my aquarium pumps and filters were down as well. The time was passing, the temperature in our home was dropping and my aquariums remained silent. I kept checking the temperature of my tanks and they were steadily dropping. Finally finding it too cold to stay up hubby and I went up to crawl into bed to get warm. The temp in our home was down to 15° Celsius. To figure out Fahrenheit just take the °C temp of 15 + 15 = 30 + 32 for a temp of 62°F. It was getting chilly. We checked the Hydro service provider to see when we could expect it to be back on. We were not reassured as it said "under investigation" meaning they hadn't even determined the source in our area.

We were up talking well passed midnight - hubby falling asleep leaving me up worrying about my cichlids. I went to check on the a number of times through the night always finding the tank temp lower then the time before. I was awake all night worrying fearing they wouldn't survive. Our cell phones were dead so I couldn't call anyone for advice, or go online to ask at the forums that I frequent.

Having not slept all night I stayed in bed and finally fell asleep. Hubby thought he'd run to the Mini Mart and get us coffees but they weren't open. With the power out still at noon, we had to leave the house for an Easter dinner with my son and family who lived in a city out of the storm area. We charged our phones as soon as we got there and began checking on the service.

Finally mid-afternoon we heard our electric service was restored. When we left our home the house was down to 10°C and my tanks were below 60°F. I began to feel better once I knew the power was restored but I knew it would be a long time for the temperature to rise.

I didn't feed the Cichlids as they were hardly moving in the bitter cold water. Conserving their energy and the oxygen they moved very little. When we got home early evening the house temp was back up to normal but the aquariums were still very cold. They were all still well below 70 but on the rise. I am so thankful and relieved to report that my Cichlids did great and are doing well considering what they were through. I did suffer a loss. I had stripped two female Auratus earlier in the week and lost all their in my tumbler. I consider this a minor loss compared to what could have been devastating.

We have suffered 4 major power outages in the last 2 years. Two of them being for 4 days at a time and of course during the coldest months of the year. We have discussed purchasing a generator from time to time but have never gone out to buy one.. well a generator is our next large purchase.

This was not such a Good Friday!

AFRICAN CICHLIDS - TANK BOSS

This is one of my African Cichlds, a Red Top Zebra whom I affectionately call Bubba. He has made it clear that he is the boss of my 75 gallon mixed African Cichlid community. It's gotten so bad that he is commanding half of the tank. He doesn't attack all he has to do is dart towards others and *poof* they are gone!

Bubba my RedTop Zebra Mbuna's time out!

I am cycling my 55 gallon tank while I decide what to put in it, but for now it's empty except for a bristle nose catfish and a pleco. Yesterday I moved Bubba over there. He's in a time out if you like. This will give the other fish in the community some peace and there will be a shift in the hierarchy within the next few days. Once that has happened Bubba will be displaced and hopefully a little calmer. At this point he will be able to return to his community.  In the
community his colours are so bright and red striped but now alone he is dark red/brown and his stripes are barely visible. It's amazing how their colours indicate their mood and aggression levels.

DAILY OBSERVATIONS

This morning I was anxious to check on my babies bouncing around in the tumbler I made. When I looked YIKES! at least half of them were missing. I'm so disappointed in myself. I didn't secure the bottom below their bouncing mesh tight enough and my a Zebra Fry got in there. I caught him/her red handed! I watched as that little sh** wiggle his way back out. He was eating the babies right through their mesh. I could just cry. I only have about a dozen left now. They may not survive the trauma of watching their siblings get eaten. I know I wouldn't!

This week has been a traumatic week for me all around and it's only half done. I better stay off the roads! From my test being high, to giving my South American Cichlids away, to my 40 gallon tank leaking and flooding the main floor of our home to my newest fry getting eaten and then the lights now working in the living room - things surely can't get any worse. I just knocked that whole "Bad things come in threes" saying out of the park. Unless the count has a reset and I'm going for a second run.

I talked to the fellow I gave my SA Cichlids to; he's happy and they are doing great so that made me feel at peace. This is a photo of my "empty" 55 gallon tank.

The 40 gallon tank needs to be stripped and re-sealed. I have had such helpful suggestion from the Cichlid group I joined that I'm feeling better about that too. My babies getting eaten is still hanging over me.. so sad. The light breaker just tripped so it was a quick fix. I guess I shouldn't complain there are worse things that could have happened. I'm not even going to go there.

WATER TESTING FUN

With all the aquariums I have water testing can take me a long time. I have enough test tubes to do 4 at a time but it's a pain with the tubes and not tipping them over or worse breaking one.

Thinking about this I decided to make myself a remedy for just that problem. I made a Cichlid Water Testing Board. It's wonderful and a little quirky too I suppose. We had some hardwood floor boards left over from when we redid our family room. The piece I chose was perfect. 18" a good size for what I had in mind. I measure off the length and then marked where I was going to drill the holes. Once the holes were done I lightly sanded them using a pencil wrapped piece of sand paper. That was it.

I have a wood burning kit so I thought I would decorate it a little just to make it special. I'm not finished with it yet but I am using it and it's awesome. I can test 3 of my aquariums at one time - no spills, toppled tubes or broken tubes.

RUDE AWAKENING

This morning when my hubby answered the call of the "bladder" I heard him swear!! Jumping out of bed I knew something was wrong. My 40 gallon grow-out tank was 2/3's empty.. OH CRAP!

We found the tank water in the dining room, on the table, all over my laptop, the cordless phone, my Persian carpet, the hardwood floor, my bar stools not to mention the bubbles in the ceiling and the water rings around the pot lights! Hubby got working in the dinning room while I worked on saving my fry and switching tanks.

What a terrible, nasty way to wake up.  We got things cleaned up as good as it was going to get at 4am and both climbed back into bed just before the alarm came on.

Moral of this event... take careful consideration when purchasing a used tank. It's not the previous owners fault in anyway. I need to mention that. I've had that tank up and running for months without a problem. Just a little peeved and needed to vent.

MY LITTLE WIGGLERS

Today I was trying to figure out what I was going to do to free up a tank. I needed to put a Cichlid in isolation. In my small 10 gallon tank I had a mom brooding. To free up the tank I decided I'd strip her and return her to the community tank freeing up her tank. I already have 3 tanks of fry so stripping her I put her fry in a floating nursery box. They'll stay there for a good couple weeks before they can join in the youngest fry tank which are also M. Auratus fry.

She's a Golden Cichlid. She's held before and had 17 fry. This time I stripped her of 30. They are just little wigglers right now. In fact there are 3-5 eggs that haven't hatched yet. I'll give them another day or so but I'll remove them if they don't hatch soon. I saw one hatch today so I'm hoping the others will also. 

NEW 75 GALLON TANK UP AND RUNNING

It took me most of the day to get my 60 gallon tank disassembled and set the 75 up. I used most of the water from the 60 so it was already cycled. After I had the hard-scape set up I added the substrate. I used 50 lbs. of pool filter silica sand. Washing the sand took me about an hour. Once the sand was in, I began filling the tank. I had all these pails filled with water from the 60. I left the Cichlids in that tank while I set up the new one. I used the same hard-scape rocks for the new tank plus a few I collected earlier today. After the tank was full I hooked up my HOT filters, heater, pump and let it run a bit while I vented the Cichlids.

I only vented the bigger ones as I can see them better. It seems I have a few more females than I initially thought. Eventually I'd like to have only males in my tank. My females are breeding too often. I have too many fry growing out and no tanks left for isolation or brooding. If the females spawn they will have them in the community tank. Just hours after having the Cichlids in their new home there were a couple males already doing their shaky dance.

I'm finished and I'm so happy! The Cichlids are happy too. Now it's time to relax! Oh, I have to thank my hubby for cutting the tank lids for me. Its a snug fit but it looks great. Hubby has always made my tank lids from 1/4" plexi-glass. I ran down to the hardware store and bought a couple little knobs that I glued on.

Here's the big reveal!!

NEW TANK SET UP IN PROGRESS

My 60 gallon long (excuse the reflection)

Today I am setting up my new tank. I'm moving my community from their present home 60 gallon long into a brand new 75 gallon. I'm excited and can't wait to get started. I'm waiting for the pool filter silica sand to arrive at the hardware store. It's on it way they told me. Should be here in an hour. Then the big job of washing the sand starts.

I also ran down to the town restaurant and picked up another 4-5 gallon pails. I want to vent the Cichlids that are big enough, and then I'll need the pails to hold the fish while I do the turn-over. I also stopped and a farm outside of town and picked up a few more rocks. I got some really nice ones. They'll look great, lots of colour - until the algae covers them.

The 60 gallon looks bigger from this angle. It's so narrow. I'm looking forward to the added depth. I also much prefer the height of the 75 as well. I find the 24" of the 60 gallon makes it hard for me to reach to the bottom. My entire new setup will be way better. Can't wait to post the finished product!

DAILY OBSERVATIONS

This has been a busy day. I began by going to an appointment. I didn't get back until just before noon. I did my water change in my 60 gallon tank still having issues with my nitrite levels. Today my nitrite level was "0"!  After a water change I love to watch my Cichlids. They act energized and are very bright in colour. Often there is some aggression and breeding following a water change. To encourage breeding I replace the water with water that is a degree or two cooler. This seems to promote breeding in my tank.

This is my poor fish with no tail.

As I was being entertained by the Cichlid's antics I noticed one being chased mercilessly. I've seen this one hang out at the back often hiding under my hang-on-tank filters. Today I realized his tail is gone. Gone completely. Chewed off. It took me a bit to catch him but I got him. Then I wasn't sure where to put him.  All my tanks are being used. I have a grow-out tank full of fry that are about 2 months old - the fry are a good 1". I decided I'd put him in with them. I don't think he's thinking much about hurting anything and the fry just seem curious. I don't know if he'll regrow his tail or if it's a lost cause. I just want to give him a chance to heal.

Tiger Oscar still looking a little sore

Next I moved my paired of Convicts to their own 20 gallon tank so they can breed in peace. I moved the smaller Convict that was a little beaten up back to his community. Everything looks good and peaceful now. The two larger Convicts were harassing my Tiger Oscar even though he's quite a bit bigger than they are.

After the move was done and I finished up with the tank, I fed them. Not sure why, but my Tiger Oscar ate well and looked ok except for a few minor bite marks and then he started puking.. I mean heaving. I've never seen that before. The Green Terrors and Jack Dempseys seemed to appreciate it. I'll keep an eye on him to make sure it's nothing serious.

A day in the life of a Cichlid aquarist.....

Juvenile Jack Dempsey

Juvenile Green Terror

Juvenile Red Devil

CONVICT CICHLIDS PAIRING OFF

In my American Cichlid tank I have 4 convicts. 2 I raised from babies and now I can see they are both male. The other two I purchased as juveniles and wasn't quite sure what they were at that point. Three months later I can tell. I have 3 males and 1 female. (bad ratio). One of my smaller males was being attacked and looked pretty war-warn. I moved him into my 20gl isolation tank. He's looking better every day I'm happy to report.

Watching them this morning it's clear that the two larger convicts have paired off. The other smaller male is a good hider so he's fine so far. I have decided today, I'm going to move the paired off couple into the 20gl so they can do their thing and I'll return the two young males back to their community. I won't put the breeding pair back into the community so I'm I'll either, sell, trade, or give them away. First I will let them have a brood. I have't had convicts breed for me yet so I'm looking forward to this experience.

DAILY OBSERVATIONS

Even with my high nitrite issue my Cichlids are still breeding. That leads me to believe they happy and healthy and like their home. I don't think they would be breeding if they were suffering from the results of high nitrites. High nitrites can cause breathing problems along with a host of other side effects.

My M. Auratus (Golden Cichlids) are breeding well. I have two females holding right now. One bred yesterday and the other bread on Saturday. I will be moving them both into a brooding tank together. I believe they will be fine together because they are very close in spawn dates and are the same species. I have heard if you do this sometimes they will pick each other's fry up. I guess I'll find out.

The last fry they had are now about 5 weeks old and growing well. It was each of their first brood so they only had 17 between them. One female kept swallowing her fry when I fed the community. So I quickly stripped her before she lost them all. I saved 2. The other female - I stripped of 16 but lost one. I have 17 healthy Golden fry left. Now I have 3 tanks of fry. Each brood is at a different size and age. I'd like to put some together but the tanks are small and the fry are many. Another dilemma.

M.Auratus - Female holding 

When I move this community over to their new digs I am going to vent the Cichlids and then begin selling off the females or segregating them as the are breeding too well and too often.

I will be changing this community over to my new 75 gallon tank this week. Hopefully before the weekend. I've ordered pool filter silica sand from the hardware store and was told it could be in on Tuesday but if not Friday for sure. Of course I want it in yesterday! Patience is a virtue to be cultivated I'll tell you.

DAILY OBSERVATIONS

Watching my 3 fry tanks full of lovely young Cichlids I begin to wonder what I'm going to do with them all. I plan on introducing them to my community as they get big enough. Once they are I'll begin choosing some of my larger females and sell them. Eventually my display tank will hold males only - that's the plan.

Checking in on my American Cichlids I noticed one of my Black Convicts isn't looking too good. He's a little frayed and sticks to hiding spots. Someone is beating on him. My mom that just spit a few days ago is still recuperating but I needed her tank to isolate this Convict so I moved her back into her community. She's in great health and was so happy to be back , she was flying around the tank with Bubba in tow. Between them there's a really love for each other.

I moved the Convict into the isolation tank and added API Melafix. It's only been about 16 hours and he's all ready looking better. He's not eating but he's moving around and I can see him watching me when I sit by his tank. Convicts have great expression in their eyes. I think he's going to be okay.

WATER TEST DILEMMA STILL PERISISTS

I'm still doing my daily water tests but my nitrites don't seem to change. All other tests have clearly passed. I know it was my fault by over-feeding that cause my nitrites to rocket. The entire past week I have been only feeding once a day in the mornings. Yesterday one of my little purple/yellow tails was eaten and they are a good 1.5" I don't think I'm over feeding them. I'm going to lower my temperature a little to calm them down. I've never lost a fish to that before. Injuries on occasion but it's been months since I've lost a Cichlid. I'm sad about it.

I'll continue with the water changes this week and keep testing but by the weekend I'll be moving this community into their new home. I'll feel so much better when they finally get there. I'm really excited about designing the aquascape. I have ideas and more room to play with as well. Looking forward to my substrate coming in. Once it's here I can start. Just waiting impatiently...

DAILY OBSERVATIONS

Today was a good day. My nitrite test is still not right. I have done 20% water changes everyday this week and it hasn't changed at all. The ammonia test was too high as well but within a day it was back to normal. I couldn't understand why the nitrite test was giving me so much trouble. I used Seachem Safe to neutralize the nitrite and ammonia.

I went online and did some digging. There really wasn't much more I could do than what I had been doing. Then I came across an article that said these levels can be neutralized and still show up on your test as high because they are still in the water just not harmful anymore. I don't know if that is true or not as I didn't find it again anywhere else.

Watching my Cichlids today I am pretty sure the water parameters are to their liking as my M. Auratus pair were mating today. I also noticed a couple other pairs doing mating dances, shivering and shaking it for all they are worth. I think the best witness to what's really going on with the water, tank and it's harmony is clearly demonstrated by how the fish are acting. Mine are looking pretty frisky right now. That in itself gives me a sense of relief.

NEW TANK + NEW STAND

The 60 gallon tank holding my African Malawi Cichlid community has been driving me crazy with all the scratches across the front glass. I see them every time I look at the Cichlids. I finally went out and bought me a replacement tank. This new tank is 75 gallons.

I was trying to decide what type of stand I would use for it. I gathered some great advice and suggestion from a Cichlid Forum. I can't say enough of how wonderful, kind and helpful the aquarists and Cichlid Fan community is giving me great suggestions and solid advice through their years of experience and willingness to share their knowledge to anyone who asks. I thank you my friends out there.

So back to my stand... We decided on building our own to ensure we are satisfied in it's strength holding such an enormous weight. Today my hubby built the stand for my tank. It's not quite finished with the cosmetics but the structure is made and is solid and will meet my needs perfectly. The top will be a 3/4" sheet of plywood. Hubby plans on closing it in and making doors from tongue and groove pine board. It's going to not only be strong by nice looking as well.

I have more pool filter silica sand ordered. I'm hoping it will be in on Tuesday but I may have to wait until Friday. I'm excited to get everything set up and have the fish moved over. Just waiting for sand now...

MY 60 GALLON AQUARIUM

AFRICAN CICHLID COMMUNITY

This is my 60 gallon African Cichlid community. In this tank there are just under 50 Cichlids. I will have to make some changes as I have three different broods of fry in grow-out tanks. I plan on selling off some of my larger Cichlids as I plan on introducing some of my fry when they are big enough. Right now I have everything from 1" - 6" Cichlids in this community. I do not have an aggression problem. I do have a hierarchy that the fish know even better then I do. Bubba my tank Ruler is pretty docile as long as everyone tows the line. 

You can see the base I have my aquarium on. My hubby structurally re-enforced it using 2x4's. Under the tank is a 3/4" plywood board. The top of the mantle measures 44"x15" and the plywood measures slightly larger 49"x19" leaving about a 3" overhang. It's good and sturdy and have no worries of it not being strong enough.  

My 55 gallon American Cichlid aquarium is home to 13 Cichlids. The tank is on a stand that I purchased with the aquarium as a set. It has been specifically designed to hold the weight and size but honestly I feel more secure in the one my hubby built me than the purchased one. These are my two large tanks.   

I have, in my sewing/fish room a 40, 30 and 20 gallon fry grow-out tanks. I also have 2 - 10 gallon tanks I use as brooding and isolation tanks. Finally in the basement I have 60 gallon tank that is home to my pond fish. They only spend the winters in it and it's not on display. It's just an old scratched up tank that a friend gave me that serves it's purpose.

WATER TEST ISSUES

Day3 - before the test begins

This morning up early again and having my coffee as I write this update. Today I do another water change and then test the water again. The first test that failed was the ammonia test. Thanks to SAFE by Seachem the ammonia level is perfect after one use. The other fail was my nitrite test. It's slowly lowering but I know these levels take time to build up which in turn suggests that they will also need time to level out properly again. The problem is I'm not a very patient person. 

I picked up my new tank last night. I'm going to be painting the back flat black, clean it out good and then move my bad testing tank over to the new one. The tests were in now way connected to the purchase of a new tank. That's just silly. The 60 gallon tank my Cichlid community is in right now was given to me. Until I had it set up and running I didn't noticed how terribly scratched the front of the glass was. I thought I would be able to put up with it but nope! It's driving me crazy! - hence the new tank.

DAILY OBSERVATIONS - WATER TEST ISSUES

I was up earlier than normal this morning because I was worrying about my Cichlids. Yesterday their water test failed in two areas. Ammonia and Nitrite. I did what I could to bring those levels down and will now do a water change again but I am thankful to say all my Cichlids look good. Just like worrying about your dang kids... thought I was passed that.

After the water change I added Safe by Seachem to the water. It's a great product that removes chlorine, chloramine and ammonia. It also detoxifies Nitrite and Nitrates. I re-tested the water and already the levels are going down. I'll repeat the process tomorrow and probably for a few more days - at least until all my test are within acceptable parameters.

As for my other tanks, everything thing looks good. The fry and growing and their water tested perfect. My brooding mom is doing great and finally facing the fact that her fry are too big for her mouth. She still trys to pick them up but she can't get them all in. I plan on getting a couple more fish to add to my South American Cichlid tank. Maybe I'll get around to it this weekend. 

FIRST DAY FREE (CICHLID FRY)

This is the first day that Stella has left her fry out. I don't think they fit in her mouth anymore. She did great and has mothered another good sized brood.

WATER TEST RESULTS

I use the Fresh Water Master Test Kit for my water tests. It's a super handy kit, with clear concise directions and comes with everything you need to preform the proper tests. I'm not sure why but there are 5 test and it only comes with 4 test tubes. I also added a syringe to fill the test tubes with. It's neat, clean and accurate.

After I do my water changes I then do my water tests. Today was the first time one of my tests wasn't good. I test 5 different parameters which are PH levels, high and low, ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrates. My 60 gallon aquarium failed 2 of those tests - Nitrite and Ammonia levels are way too high.

These two tests are related. Nitrites slowly build up for a few different reasons. You may have too many fish, your filtration system isn't handling the load put on it, simply over feeding or you may have destroyed beneficial bacteria through too aggressive a water change or too much cleaning. An increase in nitrite happens when waste from fish, plants and foods break down and release ammonia. This ammonia is deadly to fish and must be converted into nitrite by healthy bacteria.
Nitrite is also harmful to fish so it must be converted into Nitrate which isn't quite as harmful and can help algae and even plants grow. Too much isn't good if it isn't getting used up quick enough.

I did everything I could to rectify this issue. I even put the dirty filters back in, added salt, Safe and StressZyme to increase good bacteria. Now I'll be doing 20% water changes daily for the next week or more depending on how my test turn out.

Right now my Cichlids look great, active and healthy but I'm still worried.

WEEKLY WATER CHANGE

I had a busy day of changing water in 4 of my tanks. I began with my fry tank as it was going to be the most work because I was not only changing their water but moving them to a bigger tank. First I scooped out most of the water pouring it directly into the larger grow-out tank where they will stay now until they are either sold or traded. I moved their decor and set it up much the same as how it was in the other tank. They are going from a 20 gallon to a 40. There are 67x1" fry in this group so they are outgrowing their tank quickly. Once the tank was ready, it was catch time. What a crazy job that can be. I netted a few at a time, counting as I moved them. Yup 67 healthy fry + a bristle nose catfish as their custodian.

Next I took a gallon out of my tiny fry's tank and freshened it up a bit. This tank is perfect for them and they will be able to stay here until grown. It's a 10 gallon tank but there are only 17 tiny fry so they will have room to grow.

My 55 was next where my South American Cichlids reside. I love this tank. The fish are happy and get along really well. It's a peaceful tank to watch. I traded my three Parrot fish for African Cichlids leaving me room for a couple more South American Cichlids. I'm thinking I'd like to get a couple Green Terrors. I'll have to look and see what would be the best fit. I have 8 fish in this tank right now. A couple more will round it out nicely.

Finally my 60 was left. I really believe the bigger the tank the less work a water change is. I siphoned off about 20% of the water, replaced the filters, treated the new water and filled it back up. Looks great and took maybe an hour.

It's always a good feeling when that's accomplished and you know your fish are in a happy and healthy environment. My water tests are done the next morning.

M.AURATUS FRY

Let me introduce you to my Auratus fry. They were spawned on Feb 3rd that makes them about 6 weeks old now. Yes they have grown. They were teeny and now they are just tiny. They are eating well and all 17 are growing.

STELLA AND HER FRY

Today Stella my wonder mom, African Malawi Cichlid spit her fry out for a bit while she ate. She's really amazing. Her last brood was 69 fry. They are all doing really well. I just hope she doesn't have that many this time. In a week or so I'll remove her from the brooding tank and let her regain her strength in my isolation tank.

TRADING CICHLIDS

In my South American Cichlid tank I had 3 Blood Parrots. I'm not sure why I got them. I'm not a big fan of them.  They are a hybrid created in Taiwan sometime in the mid 80's.

I guess when I got them I thought they looked interesting. Watching them swim and struggle to eat I began to feel sorry for them. They got along well with the other fish in my tank - that was no problem. I just read more about them and learned how they came into being.

These fish look strange but may be it's because they have a few anatomical deformities. Their mouths are shaped like a little beak, some have a funny swim among other deformities. They are not easy to breed because often the males are sterile. They can be bred with Convicts and then they are called Jelly Beans. Not kidding. The females lay their eggs but when they aren't fertilized they get eaten.

I put an add in Kijiji and had quite a few calls for them. It was not hard to find
people who really like them. I traded them for a bunch of African Cichlids. Now I have some room for a couple more fish in my South American tank. I'm looking at Green Terrors or something like that. I  have an Oscar, 2 Convicts, 2 Firemouths, and 2 Angel Fish. They are in a 55 gallon tank so I have room to introduce a couple more suitable tank mates to them.

MY 55 GALLON

This week I moved my South American Community to a larger tank. Having moved my 55 African Cichlid community to my 60 gallon the tank they had been in just needed a good cleaning and new setup for my South American group. They are looking good. I'm actually selling or willing to trade my 3 Parrot fish.

55G SOUTH AMERICAN CICHLID TANK

I moved my African Cichlid community to my 60 gallon aquarium leaving my 55 gallon tank empty. Time to move my South American group to a larger tank. They have been in a 40 gallon tank for quite sometime without any problems but with my 55 sitting empty it was time to give them more.

I emptied the tank, substrate and all. I used pool filter silica sand. It's really pretty, a little coarser than Cichlid sand - so my filters don't suck it up and start grinding. After having it filled and ready I let it acclimate for a few hours, did my water tests and waited for the temp to reach the appropriate level.

I began siphoning water from the 40 they were in. I had already removed all the decor, stones and plants setting them in the 55 they are moving into. These fish are much easier to catch than their African counterparts. I kept them in a pail, double checking the temperature and then set them free. They took to the new tank like a fish to water Ha! I watched them for a little as they explored their new home.  Later I went up to finish cleaning out the 40 and found a little yellow loach still in there that I had missed. I scooped him up and added him to the new tank as well then went back and finished with the tank. It won't be empty for long. My fry are growing and will soon need more room as well. It's like musical tanks around here.

After all that work I poured myself a coffee and sat down in front of the 55 to watch them as I relaxed. I have 3 parrot fish that I really want to trade or sell, 2 convicts, 2 fire mouth, 2 angels and a tiger Oscar. I also have 2 plecos and a bristle nosed catfish, plus the little yellow loach in this tank. I'm watching them and can't find the oscar. Looking for him I found him hiding behind some driftwood. Looking closer I could see a tail fin sticking out of his mouth. EEK! He ate the loach. Poor little guy. Guess I'm not overfeeding them eh? I really wish I would have gotten a picture of his face.. it was actually pretty funny.

DAILY OBSERVATIONS

Last night after supper I was watching my African Cichlid community in their new digs. They are looking quite happy. So happy in fact that my pair of M. Auratus are breeding again after only being in their new home less than 24 hours. How awesome is that?

They are showing interest in breeding but just going through the motions in this video. I hope I'll catch the actual breeding event but this is a peek at what the mating dance is like.

I am disappointed in one aspect of the new tank. I had it given to me by a friend who had a saltwater coral reef setup in there. Once I had it cleaned and ready, setup and fish in.. I noticed the front of the tank is full of tiny scratches. I didn't notice before but since the back is painted black they have really popped out and are so noticeable. It drives me crazy!! I'm going to have to replace it soon or I'll have to be committed. That's what happens with perfectionists. Little things like this drive us nuts. Hubby made me the stand and I have everything else so it's just a matter of buying a new tank. That's probably the most inexpensive part of all but with buying a new tank comes all the work involved. To my mind it will be worth it.

I do have another purpose for this tank so it won't go to waste. It will hold my pond fish over the winter months. They are quickly outgrowing the tank they are in right now. By next fall, they will need the room anyway so I would have had to do something to accommodate them.

MY LITTLE BROODS

I have 3 brooding tanks on the go right now. Two are small 10 gallon tanks. One is for brooding moms - where Stella is holding coming up on two weeks now. Her pouch isn't quite as large or full as her last brood which is a good thing. Her last brood was 69, 67 are doing great just lost 2.

The other 10 gallon tank has the brood from my two M. Auratus. It was both of their first broods. Between them I have 17 healthy fry.  I had kept them in a floating fry pen in my 20 gallon tank with my 6 week old fry. Yesterday when I did their water change I set up the 10 gallon for the new batch and released them. They are so pretty and little but doing quite well. When I feed them I sit and watch and watch. It is really amazing how quickly they grow. Ah.. the joy of parenting!

NEW 60 SETUP AND LOOKING GOOD

DAILY OBSERVATIONS

I was excited to see how my African Cichlid community was doing this morning. The tank looks really beautiful. I definitely need to add some more Cichlids. It's looking a little empty - until I walk up to the tank. Then all my Cichlids come rushing out of their hiding spots looking for food.

I knew there would be some agression issues because over the last month I have been noticing a slightly smaller male challenging Bubba for his title of dominant male of the community. So moving them into a new home where they would start on even footing I figured there would be some displays of aggression.

I must say the younger fellow (now known as Rambo) got a few good knocks in but it's clear that he has stepped back and is allowing Bubba to continue as King. Both males have scales missing, clear bite marks and seem to have withdrawn to their chosen corners for the time being. I'm hoping this will settle now that Bubba has re-established his dominance. Bubba is still displaying his bright colours while Rambo is quite dark now.