Answered by Amber Hinton & Anthony Ramsey

Obsessed cichlid fry

Q.I have an aquarium full of young cichlid fish. They are completely obsessed with food which they unfortunately learnt from an older fish a while ago.

They are always fed well and even after a good feed they still act as if they haven’t eaten for days. Is there any way to stop them from being so obsessed?

Ross Milloy

A.What you have described is a scene familiar to most cichlid hobbyists. Cichlid fry are voracious eaters and in the wild spend every daylight hour grazing for food. So, the short answer to your question is no, there is no way to stop your cichlid fry from being so obsessed with food. There are, however, a few things you can do to ensure healthy fish and fast growth. Firstly feed small amounts often; 3 to 5 small feeds (consumed in 1 minute) per day is perfect for growing fry. Secondly, use a variety of good quality fish foods. Finally, water change regularly (25-40% weekly): in addition to diluting the dissolved organic wastes produced by so many hungry mouths, young cichlid fry also release a hormone into the water which retards the growth of other fry. Simply put, if you don’t dilute this hormone through water changing your fish become stunted.

Colour enhancing food

Q.Dear Amber,

I am hoping you can help me with a question not many people have been able to answer properly in regards to colour enhancing fish food.

I currently keep a dwarf cichlid tank and have in the past fed my fish with colour enhancing fish food with awesome results! But I was told by my local fish shop that it causes female fish literally to turn into males? I am not biologist but I find I am not sure if this is entirely correct. Surely a female cannot develop male reproductive organs from a fish food. The other thing is that the colour enhancer listed on my food is the same as many other reputable brands such as Hikari and Nutrafin. So what am I supposed to think!

Thank-you in advance,

Kind regards Martin.

A.There is a lot of colour enhancing fish foods out there, and I have heard the rumour that some colour enhancing fish foods contain hormones. It is impossible to answer if a particular food contains hormones without having it analysed. Foods that contain hormones, however, are illegal to import.

The problem with fish foods that contain hormones is that it gives fish full adult male colouration  at an earlier age than they would if allowed to mature naturally. Food with hormones can also make female fish look like males, thus making it hard for a male to recognise a female. This presents a major challenge for sexually dimorphic species such as Aulonocara species.  In addition, with prolonged use I have heard from users of hormone laced food that it can make fish sterile. You must also remember that to retain the colour that hormones can produce fish require ongoing feeding over their lifetime which may have impacts on fish health. There are some great natural colour enhancing foods out there that do not contain hormones and give spectacular results. The main ingredients to look out for are ones like beta-carotene, astaxanthin and spirulina. All are natural colour enhancers, and will give great results on most fish. Always choose a reputable brand. Ask the store where you buy your fish what they feed their fish, do they look good?

Whatever you decide to feed your fish, it is always better to go with a balanced diet with lots of variety. At the end of the day fish are far more enjoyable the way nature intended.

Cichlid Ponds

Q.I saw this picture and am hoping to contact Iain for advice on whether this sort of pond could be established in Sydney ... and what extras would be required to transform a simple (almost zero-maintenance) goldfish pond into a Malawi pond.

I’m hoping you can help.

Guy Freeman

A.Keeping fish other than goldfish in outdoor ponds is easy. In fact, this is the way most ornamental fish aquaculture is carried out throughout the world. The two main things you need to consider above and beyond a goldfish pond are heating, filtration and extra habitats (rocks). It is best to maintain a Malawi biotype pond at around 23-24º C. In Sydney, you will require minimal heating November through to March, however, it can become expensive to heat outdoor ponds using conventional aquarium heaters throughout the cooler months. There are many DIY designs out there that describe converting solar or gas hot water systems into economical pond heaters. Filtration should also be provided to ensure clean and clear water. Depending on the size of your pond, many commercial pond barrel filters are more than adequate, however, for larger ponds or pools > 5000 litres it may be necessary to consider a modified swimming pool filter. Finally, African cichlids need a rocky habitat. It will be essential to create an artificial reef providing a labyrinth of territories and hidey holes. Use limestone rocks if possible, however, any rocks will do. 

“Camel Fish“

Q.Well, here it is, the poor little fish... nicknamed “camel fish” by my brother who was here on Christmas day, armed with his camera to capture this little creature.

Any idea what is wrong with it? It  feeds very well and is the fastest fish in the tank.

Amy Lem

A.Do not worry, it is probably not due to anything you did. Fish with bent or deformed backbones quite often live a normal life and can swim just as fast as their non-deformed counterparts.

There are many factors that could cause your fish to look like this. Firstly, this can be caused by a lack of vitamin C or other essential minerals. Secondly, the fish could have sustained an injury when it was young, causing the backbone to grow with a curve. Thirdly, just like most other animals, some fish may hatch with a birth defect, this can also be one to a genetic problem and inbreeding. It is for this reason bent or deformed fish should never be bred. Finally, if the fish egg is exposed to severe changes in temperature, deformity can also occur, again this is more common in hatchery raised fish.

So, don’t stress too much about your little fish, if he is eating and swimming like the other fish, he should live for just as long as them! 

Making Aquarium Decorations

Q.My son (early twenties) is in the process of setting up his first freshwater tank. My question is; I am a ceramicist and I wish to make the rocks/habitats/sunken wrecks/shells etc for his tank. I know that some of the oxides that I would like to use may not be harmonious to the longevity of the fish! So, which oxides when used on ceramic work (in freshwater tanks) will leach out over time and create a dangerous environment? Red iron oxide seems to be the only one that is on tank decorations that I can see in any of the aquariums that I have visited (maybe manganese as well). This seems very bland (not a lot of contrast-visually not as impactful as others) although it is quite a stable oxide. So (getting back to my question!) would black copper oxide, black iron oxide, copper oxide or manganese remain stable over time or would it leach out and cause damage to the fish/tank? Is there a web page that I could look at to view the answers to these questions about oxides? Would it be possible to seal the constructions with something? (but I don’t really want to use anything that is not organic in origin, i.e. acrylic). I have scoped all over looking for the answer to this, I hope you can help me with my question as I really want to start on the tank decorations!!!

Thanks so much for your time, hoping that you can help.

cheers, Sandra.

A.If your finished ceramic pieces are glazed, fired and deemed ‘dinnerware safe’, then they should be fine in your aquarium. I am no potter or ceramicist, so please test your pieces before you put them in the aquarium. You can do a simple acid test, which involves diluting vinegar to a pH of around 5.5 (this replicates the most acidic aquarium conditions) and soaking a section of the ceramic in the solution for a few weeks. If the glaze is affected, or discoloured, then I would not add these items to the aquarium. Copper based oxides may hold the most risk as copper is highly toxic should it leach back into solution. Iron and manganese based oxides should present a lesser risk provided they are fired fully. There are also many hobbyists constructing realistic decorations using coloured polymer clays which may be worth further investigation.

Check out the web-site:

http://www.potters.org/ 

Unwell Barramundi

Q.I am after some advice please. I have a 4’ tank with a 12” Barramundi and a 7” Archer fish. The Barramundi became lifeless, lost his appetite, seemed to grow a slime over his scales and fins. He turned a very pale silver colour and he just floats around on a 45 degree angle looking down, he also regurgitated a yabby, but nothing has changed with the archer fish.

I treated with malachite green (as directed) one week ago, now he is has regained some colour but sits on the bottom and faces the corner. He has still not eaten, is still lifeless but no slime any more. The pH is fine, hardness is fine, and ammonia is fine.  Archer fish is

still normal.

What can I do?

A.You do not mention what your pH or kH is, or if you use aquarium salt. It is helpful to provide your actual readings. Barramundi are euyhaline, this means that they can inhabit both salt and fresh water. Barramundis move between salt and fresh water at different life cycle stages. Young Barramundi live in salt water, making their way into the freshwater streams and estuaries as they grow.  When they are around 2-3 years old, (sexually mature) they return to salt or brackish water to lay their eggs. Even the fresh water they inhabit contains a certain quantity of dissolved salt. For this reason, it is essential to use an aquarium salt when keeping native fish, especially Barramundi. Ensure that it is a blend of mineral salts only and does not contain any medication. You can purchase digital metres from good aquarium retailers to test salinity levels. For tropical fish use one level teaspoon (five grams) per ten litres, and for native fish double this dose. It is always better to test the salinity to ensure it is accurate. You should also be testing for nitrite and nitrate as these can be toxic to your fish.  Although the Archer is fine I would suggest a lack of salt in the water is the cause of your Barramundis slime problems, loss of appetite and listlessness.  Without salt, fish are not able to build up a sufficient layer of good slime over their scales, this leaves the fish more prone to infection and disease. Do not forget to water change regularly also, Barramundi will not tolerate the acidic conditions caused by accumulating dissolved waste.  Although regular, partial water changes of 30% every 3-4 weeks will keep the aquarium clean, you may need to do this more frequently as your Barramundi increases in size and eats more.

Long term compatibility

Q.We have a 3 1/2 foot fresh water tropical tank with 1 Red Empress 1 Electric Blue, 1 Oscar, 1 pair of Geophagus brasiliensis, 1 clown loach, 2 Pakistani loaches (yet to determine whether a pair), 1 ghost knife, 2 sucking catfish, 1 bristlenose catfish and 2 whiptail catfish.  We know already that we have an unusual selection of fish. They were all “trial and error”. However, we have had them all for six months now and to our delight, they are all getting along perfectly fine.  What we wanted to know is, how do you think they will get along with each other as time goes by? Also, what other fish would you suggest we add?

Thanks

Mick and Em

A.That certainly is an interesting mix of fish for one aquarium! You mention that your aquarium is 3 1/2 foot long, although do not give any other dimensions or the amount of water (litres) in the aquarium. The volume of the aquarium is much more important than the length and will determine how many fish you can keep.

It is also worth remembering that some of the fish you mention will grow very large, especially the Oscar and Brasiliensis, and may end up eating everything except for your loaches and catfish.  Also, the fish you mention come from different regions of the world and therefore have vastly different requirements in terms of diet and husbandry.

In the short term everything may be fine, although as time passes certain fish will begin to suffer as you can not possibly fulfill all of their separate requirements while they are in the same aquarium. Some of the fish you have need a low pH, and some need a high pH. Some are herbivorous, some are carnivores, it is extremely difficult to feed individual fish individual foods when they are all together.

I would suggest you consider picking a theme for your aquarium. For example, choose fish species all from the one region, trying to recreate that habitat in your aquarium.

Good aquarium stores will trade your unwanted fish, usually giving you around 1/3 of the value of the fish as credit to spend in the store, however, call

your local aquarium store and check beforehand. Ensure you research any future additions to ensure they fit with the new theme you create, thus avoiding future problems.