Heather Wheeler, Indianola, IA, November 11, 2005
Hi there, I’m the activity coordinator at Deerfield Retirement Community. I’m trying to find a “fish place” that will set up a nice aquarium for our residents to enjoy and for the “fish place” to maintain. If this is a service that you provide, I would love to learn more about it. If this is something that you don’t offer and know a company that does can you please pass their information on to me. Thanks for your time,

A:  I’m giving your request to a couple people that provide this service.  They work for me but perform maintenance on their own.  One or both will probably call you today.  LA

Jey Stehens, November 12, 2005
Just want to thank you for your site and to let you know it has provided me tremendous info on aquatic plants.  I thought I was pretty smart when it came to plant knowledge but I learn something new every time I read through your site.  I do, however, have a questions about apono ulvaceous.  I purchased a good number of apono bulbs and it seems that a good  number of them are ulvaceous.  The others, I have no idea.  I’ve never had problems with growing them before but it seems now I’ve lost my touch.  I do use CO₂ injection and use a 110w compact fluorescent light strip.  I’ve had the bulbs for a month now and maybe 2 of the lot are 8 to 10 inches tall with sparse leaves.  I’ve noticed the leaves breaking off at the bulb.  Now, when it comes to snipping the flower spikes, should I clip it at the base of the bulb?  And will this perhaps stunt the growth?  That’s what I’ve been doing and these guys just don’t seem to be happy.  Any and all info will be appreciated. Again, thanks for your site!

A:  Every Aponogeton ulvaceous bulb I ever planted started growing instantly and very fast -- becoming show plants within one month.  I give them no extra light or fertilizers.  I try to stunt them as much as possible because I do not want 50 show plants for sale on the same exact day.  You may have undulatus (due to similarity in spelling) or possibly old bulbs.  Boivinianus are similar but much slower.  And some boivinianus never get off the pot.  As for nipping the spikes, I just pinch them off close to the bulb (usually) with my thumbnail.  As long as you stop them from going to seed, they keep growing.  Ulvaceous bulbs cost way more than most other aponogeton bulbs.  When we get the mixed packs of Aponogeton bulbs, we never find ulvaceous, boivinianus, or fenestralis (madagascar) bulbs in the 500 or 1,000 packs.  In fact, about 25% are dwarf lilies which grow incredibly slow.  LA

Kevin Holthaus, Jacksonville, FL, November 12, 2005
My daughter intends to do a science project on snail motility. I expect the best choice would be land snails, though freshwater ones may work. We live in Jacksonville , FL. Don’t need to be real big, or edible, and certainly don’t need the ones requiring USDA shipping approval unless that’s easy to accomplish. If this isn’t an item you carry, do you know where we might look? Closer to JAX the better of course. Thanks in advance, 

A:  You’ll have problems finding land snails this year.  You’ll find the mystery snails the most common.  Most fish stores keep them in stock or can easily order them for you.  LA

A:  Sounds like a pet, but he’d probably want to hibernate anyway.  Do you have a sheltered area with soft sandy soil?  He’ll want to burrow down two or three feet.  Is he fat enough to live on his reserves?  If not, you just added one more pet to your collection.  Box turtles are entertaining critters.  LA

Adrian Baldwin, North Dakota State U., November 13, 2005
I’m interested in getting a butterfly fish or a stone fish.  Wondering if you guys sell them at all???  And if so would you ship? Thanks for your time.

A:  We currently stock both those fish.  The cost of shipping exceeds the retail price of both species.  We rarely ship fish.  Your local fish store in Fargo should be able to round up both these species for you.  LA

A:  We don’t sell many collared lizards, so I never made a Fact Sheet on them.  A quick search for collared lizards yielded several excellent web sites on collared lizards.  LA

Kathy Merrill, Oregon, November 14, 2005
HELLO from the state of OREGON!!!  My name is Kathy and I am very interested in a cute little fish you seem to carry. I came across your website in the wee hours of the morning and fell in love with your Tateurndina Ocalticaudas or “Peacock Gudgeons.“  I did several searches trying to find someone that actually gives a price list but your site had several wonderful pics of these little guys.  I am having a difficult time even finding these fish for sale IN the U.S. or maybe I’m just “search challenged?”  Anyway, I would LOVE to know how much these little guys go for, do you ship? How much would shipping be and what kind of a guarantee you would give?  I have been into fishkeeping for many years, taking a break after a certain point to raise my kids.  Not too long back into it.  However I do have a 125 gal. with Discus, a 55 gal. with Mbuna Cichlids, a 10 gal. quarantine tank, and have a nice 35 gal. sitting empty now fully cycled that would be a perfect home for these guys?  Please respond and let me know any info on these guys. If you don’t ship is there another online store closer to me that carries them or breeds them?  Any help you can give me would be much appreciated!!

A:  If any of your local fish stores get fish out of Florida, they should be able to get peacock gudgeons for you.  We have 25 coming next Thursday from Segrest Farms.  We sell them for $6.  Your freight would probably run about ten times that with no guarantee.  But we really rarely ship fish.  LA