Priscacara Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 Hi , my shellies just dont seem to be getting used to me at all even after about 5 or 6 weeks in their new home. From forums and further research I think the are N. meeli, pics from a previous post are still in my album here on the forums. I have 5 of them, about 5 shells each to choose from, tank is 50 litre, ph 8.3, gh 320 ppm, no nitrite, nitrates or ammonia, temp 26C . Lighting I rarely use as it is a well lit are during the day, I sometimes use the built in light if I have visitors and its overcast, there is no direct sunlight at any time as I dont want them cooking. The shellies were a lot more active and swam around a lot more when I still had the starter goldfish in the tank, removed him into a pond with other goldfish even though he seemed happy enough in the shelly tank. This was 3 or 4 weeks back and since then they have been timid and hang out near the shells bolting in when someone approaches (natural behaviour to an extent I guess), I know they swim around a lot, hassle each other a bit and do excavation work on the sand base as I videoed them while I was out. I was wondering if there would be any suitable dither fish that could be suggested for them or plants, the fish would be prefferable though. I'm also getting a bit of algae build up on the sides of the tank which I clean off during water changes but again would like an algae eater to munch on it if there is anything suitable. I usually keep/kept bristlenose in my community tanks to help with algae but in this case I dont know their tollerance for high ph and hardness. Any suggestions appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Priscacara Posted April 28, 2009 Author Share Posted April 28, 2009 Although I got no replies to my queries I did get some views so thought I'd let those that looked know what I ended up trying. As far as algae eaters, none of the lfs could come up with anything except bristlenose but given the hardness of the water they werent really appropriate. I got 3 potted annubias and a couple of grass like plants unpotted and put them into the tank, the results have been promising so far. I also have the lights on for 10 hours and think this has helped also, the fish now stay out unless there are sudden movements and last night 3 of them even came over to have a good look at me and although wary didnt seem to be overly stressed about it. The plants will also help a little with taking up some of the nutrients causing the algae, fingers crossed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcloughlin2 Posted April 29, 2009 Share Posted April 29, 2009 Bristlenose will be fine in there. They have been bred in captivity in such a range of environments they have no idea what they really require. As long as it is water they'll thrive. In a tank your size I'd opt for two bristlenose, perhaps even a male/female pair. You wouldn't want to get anymore then two as they do grow to a decent size and will require a cave each. In a 50L but two caves is easily accomodated. I think you will find if something isn't going to survive it will be your plants. Never tried keeping anubia in hard water but I know hair grass does not last long unless the water is soft and the lighting very strong. After talking with some planted tank enthusiast he recommends only trying hair grass in a CO2 setup. Regarding dither fish, perhaps some Cyprichromis leptosoma 'Malasa' would be a good option. They are from Lake Tanganyika, grow relatively small, won't eat your shellies or their own fry for that matter and are usually very outgoing. Your only draw back is they usually do better in larger schools but you could still put 4-6 of them in you tank. Go for two males and the rest females. Also a little side note - there is nothing you can do to completely make shellies feel secure. I used to breed Neolamprologus multifasciatus, had hundreds of shells on the bottom of the tank, had hundreds of them all breeding and everytime I walked past the tank they hid in their shells but if i waited 30sec-1min they did eventuate out so I could watch them. By the way, call me fussy but I'd be much more inclined to reply to your posts if they were easier to read. Try using paragraphs or spacing between the lines as if it is all clumped together it makes reading a pain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Priscacara Posted April 29, 2009 Author Share Posted April 29, 2009 Thanks for the reply, I'll do some investigating on availablity. I didnt think to paragraph as it was all the same topic but I get your drift and try to make things easier to read :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Priscacara Posted April 29, 2009 Author Share Posted April 29, 2009 A quick pic of the tank as it is now, you can just see 1 of the N. meeki above the urchin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 Two Problems I can see straight off shellies like to live and breed in shell. Bristlenose will live and breed in shells. If the bristlenose breed and the young get into your shells they wont share them with the shellies Most shellies also like to dig. I haven't kept meeki, so I dont know about them specifically but if the dig you plants will end up tossed around the tank Josh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Priscacara Posted April 30, 2009 Author Share Posted April 30, 2009 Tx for the reply Josh, always appreciate feedback. Te plants I knew might not last very long and might be a temporary solution at best. The meeki do like to dig so I expect to find the grass like plants floating around, the annubias are in small teracota pots ad may stay in locations for a bit longer. I figured they would provide a bit of movement, extra cover and a bit of a distraction screen to seperate the fish a little. Also the excess nutrients causing the algae would decrease as they plants will use some of them. In the end though if they get to be a prolem I'll put in fake ones and let them rearrange to their hearts content :-). I checked with the lfs for Cyprichromis leptosoma 'Malasa' and almost had to pick myself off the floor, they are around $80 to $100 each for 4 to 5cm fish so not an option, they do look good though. The fish are already a little less timid so something I've done has helped a little so I get to see the little guys a bit more now. Thanks again for the contributions Mc ad Josh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philjo1 Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 Priscacara Have a check in the classified section on here. You can pick up the cyp's a lot cheaper. I have seen 4cm advertised for as low as $9 each. Others around $18 - $20 each Cheers Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Priscacara Posted May 1, 2009 Author Share Posted May 1, 2009 Thanks Phil, I'll check them out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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