A:  Mystery snails crawl up and out of the water to lay their eggs.  Occasionally one will crack its shell.  Much of its prognosis depends upon how bad the crack was.  If its insides are coming out, you need to isolate it from your fish which like to taste potential food.  One solution is to wipe the water off its wet shell and apply a duct tape patch.  Looks a bit weird, but the patch should hold it together.  LA

A:  We don't have any in stock.  And we don't ship.  LA

A:  Hellbenders are impressive salamanders.  Although I'm starting to like the name "snot otter" better.  I haven't been to Tennessee for nearly as long as I haven't seen hellbenders.  This may call for a road trip this spring.  LA

A:  I've heard that apochcrypha before but it was a different continent.  Their opercula are constructed to aid land travel.  But I've kept them in paludariums before and never saw one get out of the water.  LA

A:  The grass shrimp are a fairly close relative of the ghost shrimp, but I've never owned or even seen one.  That means I have no clue how they'd fare in freshwater aquaria.  They'd probably do great in brackish water (two teaspoons of salt per gallon).  I'd try 10 to 20 in your two gallon aquaria and see what happens.  LA

A:  Consider it done.  Just do mine like this:

And add the link.  LA

 

A:  Your pics were too blurry to tell much.  But many fry look alike anyway.  Lots of killifish eggs can withstand partial drying -- some for months.  How long ago did you buy the bulbs?  What kind of bulbs?  How long before you saw the fry?  Do you have any brothers or sisters that would enjoy putting some baby fish in your tank?  LA

A:  Got it this time.  Much clearer pics this time.  They are goldfish.  Goldfish fry have a very long intestinal tract.  If you feed them newly hatched baby brine shrimp, you'll notice his long gut turning orange.  LA

A:  Merry Christmas to you, too.  Get the zig-zag eel.  They're the easiest of the spiny eels to care for.  Zig-zags will eat flakes unlike most spiny eels.  Corys, white mountain fish, and guppies also make good choices.  The dwarf puffers not so much.  There's a whole page on our site about each of these.  I'd go with hoplo cats instead.  Banjos like to stay out of sight all the time.  LA

LA

A:  Thanks.  I'll add your report to my Datnioides page.  LA

A:  Weighing in at one-eighth of a ton, I have a built in anchor.  You little people need to be very careful when fishing for carp.  LA
PS  How do you put those little germs on a hook?

A:  You'll be fine whether you pick door #1 or door #2.  But beware of tossing them all in at the same time.  You'll need to pre-cycle your tank or add one of the bacteria starters.  You need to be conservative when starting smaller tanks.  Many newcomers to the hobby try to add too many fish too fast.  Then they get discouraged and put their tanks in their next yard sale.  You can get some real bargains if you keep your eyes open.  LA

A:  You can add a male or female leopard gecko.  Just don't try to keep two mature males together.  LA

A:  Sorry.  I've never bred dragon gobies or known anyone who has.  LA

LA
Female in spawning mode.

LA
Three-inch male.

A:  You very likely have a pair.  Their sexual dimorphism becomes more apparent as they mature.

A:  Near as I can tell, the one with the pink belly is your female.  Both sexes chase each other.  LA

A:  We got ours from a truck driver who captured them somewhere in the wilds of California.  You can buy them on the internet from Carolina Biological Supply.  LA

A:  At first, I thought their needs are basically opposites so I'd say no.  Then I reconsidered since your Russians would be at the bottom and your dumpies would go to the top.  Their humidity needs are disparate. But rather than getting a divorce over the issue, I'd give it a shot.  Make it a jungle at the top and a desert below.  LA

A:  Those rascally chains make it much harder to start a pet business these days.  Get a job in a local pet store.  Learn as much as you can in two years.  You will then be more qualified to decide if you like the career.  Luckily, I like it and I don't consider it work.  If it were work, I'd find something more interesting to do.  Ditto the website.  LA

A:  I've never seen "black spot disease," so I have no idea what it is, what causes it, or how to cure it.  For the whitish and/ripped fins, I'd do a significant gravel cleaning then use your MelaFix.  LA

A:  Either way on the MelaFix.  I'd eliminate the bluegill, oscars, and pacu as potential eaters and absolute stressors of your smaller guys.  You might also want to reconsider your sharks and tinfoils also.  Or just take out the little guys.  LA

A:  I wrote about the Asian needlenose gar -- a little bitty twerp compared to the Atlantic needlefish you refer to.  Another commonly confused species is the longnose gar (from the Mississippi and tributaries) which is also called a needlenose gar.  So, I guess its time for me to write a page on the Asian needlenose gar.  You should be able to find the info you want by googling on "Atlantic needlefish."  LA    

A:  Go back to your original plans.  Forget the wasp fish and other brackish thoughts until you have more experience.  Five gallon tanks are probably best for killifish and bettas.  Think in terms of you have a large fish bowl -- not a real aquarium.  And putting a protein skimmer on a five gallon tank is not very practical.  They're more for a 55 saltwater.  Get several larger tanks before you look into protein skimmers.  Why are you using fives at all?  They usually cost more than tens, which you can usually find on sale for $10.  Fives work fine for spawning bettas, but not much else.  Get some 20Hs if you intend to get serious.  Thirties would be better.  And you can usually find 55s on sale.  Fives will make you crazy.  LA

A:  The Mid-America Cage Bird Society here in Des Moines can probably help you better for an Iowa source.  You can reach them at macbs.org.  LA

A:  Sure.  They will probably narrow their population to two by beating up the odd-man out.  LA

Way 1:  Siphon it into a bucket using a one-inch siphon.
Way 2:  Remove it with a fish net.  Then siphon out the bits left.  LA

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