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lahlumdi
09-03-2009, 06:53 PM
As if I have nothing better to do all day than stare at my fish tank... I am enamored with these fish I have chosen. I've had the fish about 3 weeks. Having a 55 gallon is new for me.

Peppered Cories - These guys remain my favorite fish of all. I love watching them scurry all over the tank. Most of all, I get a kick out of their social behavior. They are so cozy with each other... swimming in tandem up and down the sides of the tank or grazing on missed food on the bottom.

Zebra Danios - I got some pretty young ones, and they are already getting bigger. They are hard to spot in this big tank, in part because they are small and in part because they dart around so fast. But I love to see their flurry of activity. I have never known such a fast fish. Someone described them as hyperactive. Good description. Keeps my eyes busy looking for them.

Platies - It is almost as if they come rushing to me wagging their tails when I arrive. These guys recognize me... I guess as the feeder. But even if I have no food, they still hover near me. And I just adore the bright red color and how it contrasts with my plants. I have the Red WAGs. I have FINALLY figured out how to tell the males from the females. I have one male who is lazy and another one who thinks he is God's gift to the female platies in the tank... whether they are pregnant already or not. Very interesting drama. And I find their ever so small darker noses adorable.

Serpae Tetra (or as the LFS puts it - Long finned Red Minor Tetras) - These are the beautiful bullies in my tank. They nipped at the cories when they were not adjusting well, and they nip on occasion at the danios. Two of them have these AMAZING fins that just swirl around them as they dance through the aquarium. I could not see their fins like that at the store. But when they began to relax at my place, it was like sails unfurled. (See pics)

And then there's the Balloon Molly. Well this beautiful creature I expected to be fragile and a bit alone in my tank. I think of it as a she... I guess because her eyes are outlined in black as if she is wearing eye liner. So I shall call it a she. What gorgeous fins! What a lovely upturned mouth. I would expect her to be a top eater because she has a mouth like a Betta. But this girl LOVES to eat! She will gobble hungrily at the top and then explore down below with the Cories for every last bite after everyone else has lost all interest in eating. The mottled orange with the dark eyes and fins make this girl a beaut!

So that's it. I usually post when I have trouble. But I have been enjoying these guys so much, I just had to wax eloquent a bit.

I am going to try to add some pics.

Honey Badger 1
09-03-2009, 06:57 PM
you have lovely fish, i am glad you are enjoying them :ssmile:

Crispy
09-03-2009, 07:05 PM
Nice post. I'm glad you have fish you really love... I feel the same way about mine. Thanks for sharing pics too!

Deleted User
09-03-2009, 07:05 PM
Your fish are beautiful and your post is really nice!!! I feel a lot the same way about the fish and am new to keeping them as well thumbs2:

Northernguy
09-03-2009, 07:10 PM
That was a great post! lol
Great description! lolthumbs2:

XsquaredequalsX
09-03-2009, 07:21 PM
:19: So glad you love your fish!!

I have some Red Wag Platies too - they really do recognize their people!! Such fun fish! thumbs2:

bushwhacker
09-03-2009, 08:00 PM
you can sex your mollie the same way as your platies, male anal fin is a spike females are triangular

lahlumdi
09-03-2009, 09:07 PM
Hey, Thanks for the advice, bushwacker. Well, then, it looks like I have a male!

octoxpuss
09-03-2009, 09:12 PM
Also u can tell by the dorsal fin Males have a high riaesed dorasal fin while the females is smaller and more roundish IMO.

bushwhacker
09-04-2009, 01:25 AM
your welcome lahlumdi.. good to see ya made it back from germany and got the tank ya wanted.. welcome home

Mith
09-04-2009, 01:34 AM
A male fish wearing eye liner... you're not in California are ya? LOL

I really enjoyed your thread, thanks for posting it! thumbs2:

rich311k
09-04-2009, 01:35 AM
I am glad you are having such a good time. Your fish look great.

bushwhacker
09-04-2009, 03:46 AM
A male fish wearing eye liner... you're not in California are ya? LOL

I really enjoyed your thread, thanks for posting it! thumbs2:

shes in texas mith i hope none a them rednecks see that

bushwhacker
09-04-2009, 03:55 AM
Also u can tell by the dorsal fin Males have a high riaesed dorasal fin while the females is smaller and more roundish IMO.


this works great in mature fish, in younger ones you may not see it but the anal fins differentiate earlier and is always a marker for the sex:ssmile:

lahlumdi
09-04-2009, 04:41 PM
A male fish wearing eye liner... you're not in California are ya? LOL

I really enjoyed your thread, thanks for posting it! thumbs2:

Ha! When I wrote the post, I almost said... or it could be a male in drag! But yeah... here in San Antonio that's not exactly our kind of talk, ya'll!