New Project

[Second Hand Pat]

Indian Almond Leaves.

[LizStreithorst]

Oh. I'll substitute oak leaves. I put them in a lot of my tanks.

[coralbandit]

NICE with the IAL ! I use oak and maple also just for cover ..
One of my buddies just found for himself that the dark rams were less aggressive and more calm after he added Alder cones ?
I just tossed some into one of my mixed race tanks hoping to reduce the tension and see if this pair gets past eating their fry !
They have wigglers in the corner now just like last time ..Third try for these two ..

[Second Hand Pat]

Remember the line from one of the Star Trek movies "there be whales here"...well I can say "there be ram fry here". I see them collected in a corner of the tank. Not sure how many, I can see about a dozen but not sure how many are under the leave and I am not looking but happy with the success so far.

NICE with the IAL ! I use oak and maple also just for cover ..
One of my buddies just found for himself that the dark rams were less aggressive and more calm after he added Alder cones ?
I just tossed some into one of my mixed race tanks hoping to reduce the tension and see if this pair gets past eating their fry !
They have wigglers in the corner now just like last time ..Third try for these two ..

I will be harvesting some oaks this winter. I have plenty of live oaks on the property.

Question for you Tom, I will be cooking up some of the tiny BBS intended for the fry tomorrow. How do you filter yours?
Pat

[coralbandit]

NICE on the fry !
I hatch my BBS in a 2l bottle .I use rigid air line like the tube in old UG filters to keep the air at bottom of bottle .No holes or leaking connections .
I remove air and let shrimp settle. I use another rigid line with silicone airline to syphon them into a sieve I got from Brine Shrimp Direct . They are like $5 and that is where I get my eggs anyways .They work great .
To keep them flowing efficiently I rinse them after every use and keep them submerged in clean tap water[large dip and pour ].
I suppose you could use a net or coffee filter also. I am a stickler about using all BBS when you harvest and hatch 3 batches a day to feed properly 3 times a day .
The longer you keep hatched BBS the bigger they grow and less nutritional they are as they have used their egg sac that was meant for the fry ..
I rinse them in the sieve with tap water and then pour then into a small bowl with tap water and used a meat injector to feed ..
https://www.brineshrimpdirect.com/si...temia-hatching
https://www.amazon.com/Injector-Syri...8666377&sr=8-9
I found my meat injector at grocery store.Cut off tip[2 holes] and squeezed with pliers and it is the best thing ever !
Sounds like they should be swimming in a day or so , so get hatching !
Good luck !

[Second Hand Pat]

I do something similar Tom with regular BBS. I also harvest the BBS and then keep it cold so the egg yolk is not used up. The BBS for the fry is smaller so hoping I can filter them in the coffee filter I currently use.

The little things under mom is the fry.

[coralbandit]

NICE ! They are scattered so that means [IMO] they are close to swimming and feeding tomorrow at some point should be perfect !

[Second Hand Pat]

NICE ! They are scattered so that means [IMO] they are close to swimming and feeding tomorrow at some point should be perfect !

I think I am flunking ram fry school Tom. Was hoping to see them go free swimming but they didn't. Seems to be less fry then before. I might be feeding to much and not changing enough water.
Pat

[LizStreithorst]

Pat, we both know that with Discus one of the most dangerous time after when the fry first wiggle is when they first start to free swim. I wouldn't expect rams to be any different. Heck, you're way ahead of where I am with my rams

[Second Hand Pat]

Pat, we both know that with Discus one of the most dangerous time after when the fry first wiggle is when they first start to free swim. I wouldn't expect rams to be any different. Heck, you're way ahead of where I am with my rams

Very true Liz and every spawn is a learning experience. I am crossing all my body parts for your success Liz
Pat

[LizStreithorst]

Just wait...I bet that Steve beats both of us.

[Second Hand Pat]

Just wait...I bet that Steve beats both of us.

That's ok. Would like us all to be successful
Pat

[Second Hand Pat]

So pretty sure the fry all passed. The pair quit acting broody so I did a huge water change and wiped the tank down. Then I feed the pair a small amount of live blackworms. In a day or so I will be adding some spare java fern with algae growing on. Liz mentioned the micro-flora and that might be in some of the java fern etc.
Pat

[coralbandit]

You guys are going to get there as long as you keep trying IMO .
You guys weren't discus masters right away were you ?
My discus hard time me in-between begging for food and laughing at me while driving their fry around !
Maybe they keep some this time ?? I know I could always ask for help and I am sure you would all have great advice . But even with the best advice I have given you it comes down to same thing for both us .
Patience and practice ...My discus will get if I don't loose it with them and suspect ,well actually believe your rams will work for you .
They are testing you ..
I know my fish test me ...
Steve has un fair advantage IMO ..His fish lines are more established IMO ..
The blacks are tough tough IMO and I am not familiar with Tristans rams or how long he has been breeding the line ..
I think some of the stability of the fish comes from its lineage ..

[Second Hand Pat]

Thanks for chiming in Tom. I am hoping that more attention to water quality and careful feeding will help with maintaining the fry. You indicate that the dark rams are tough. Do you mean that the fry are more delicate then more established strains of rams? I was really impressed with the attention the parents were giving to the fry so I know that parents are ready. I just need to maintain my side of the partnership.
Pat