September 21-30, 2007 questions you asked Aqualand

We don't ship critters or live fish.
When writing us, include your location.
LA_Aqualand@msn.com

Web	aqualandpetsplus.com

Michael J. Hasenpat, Glassboro, NJ, September 21, 2007
Hi, I was wondering if you sold feeder fish? I have a 500 gallon catfish aquarium and am in the process of looking for a supplier so I can feed my fish for a slightly lower price then the neighborhood pet store is offering me. Also, I was wondering if you sell catfish too? I was looking to add a shovelnose, red-tail, or bullhead to my aquarium. Any feedback would be much appreciated. Thank you.

A: We sell feeder goldfish (three sizes), but by the time you pay for any shipping charges they'd be very expensive -- much more costly than your local pet store. And if the price of feeders is a problem, never add a red-tail catfish to your tank.

LA
Foot-long red-tail eating a four-inch goldfish -- the first of three.

PS Your red-tail catfish would also eat all your other catfish.

LA
Goldfish #3.

Krystal (Fish Haven), Pinehurst, TX, September 21, 2007
I was reading on your page about Rosy red minnows. I manage a retail tropical fish store in Pinehurst, Texas. I could never keep those things alive. One day I decided to put an algae wafer in their tank to feed the pleco and those rosies went crazy! They gobbled up every bit of the wafer and the next day there were very few dead. From then on, that is all I feed them and they love it! Not to mention -- we have cut our minnow loss by about 80%. Just thought I would pass on the info. Thanks.

A: Thanks for the excellent info. I didn't get any rosies in today's shipment. I'll try it out next Friday. In the meantime, I'm adding it to my (actually Eric's) rosy red page. LA.

Bill, September 21, 2007
I just purchased 4 mini crabs. The pet store said we can put them in with our freshwater fish. I have a 55 gallon tank. Do they need a little salt in the water ? Or should I put them in a separate tank? Also do they need a little dock to go on ? Thank you.

A: I've never tried keeping them in deep water. I've always kept them half land / half water. They like a bit of salt. I give them a teaspoon per gallon which amounts to about one teaspoon in a 10-gallon with an inch of water. Let me know how yours do in the 55. LA

Ryan Young, September 21, 2007
Hi! I was reading your articles about FW Flounders, Bumblebee Gobies, and Butterfly Gobies. Will 1 flounder, 2 bumblebee gobies, and 1 butterfly goby be compatible in a 20 gallon brackish tank?

A: I've never tried that particular mix. Bumble bees and flounders mix very well. I'd expect the butterfly goby to snack on the much smaller bumble bees. LA

Anne, September 22, 2007
I have a pair of jewels...a mated pair that have fry 3-4 weeks old. They "own" the tank exclusively...lucky buggers. The adults have started doing the lip lock thing pretty heavily yesterday and the smaller male is receiving most of the damage. The last time I had a mated pair the female killed the male. Could you tell my why they are doing this and what can I do about it? I know this is normal fish behavior, but are they getting ready to breed again, or are they done with each other now and want to knock each other off? Thanks for your help!

A: I just got back from the Midwest Cichlid Association's EXPO 2007 yesterday and can assure you that most American cichlids do the same thing all the time. Jewels are African cichlids that act like American cichlids. Remove the parents to new quarters. If over-aggression continues, separate the sexes. Re-introduce them again later. Their lip-locking means you have been taking good care of them. It also means they are cichlids. LA

Lindsay Hodges, Alabama, September 22, 2007
Hey LA, First off, I wanna say thanks...I love your site and it has really helped me with maintaining my 2 aquariums. Secondly, I have 6 Jelly Beans, and just upgraded to a 55, and it seems so empty. I have always had just jellies, and don't have a clue what kind of fish to pair with them. The only other fish I have ever put with them is plecos, and they tear them up within days, save for the 6 incher I found at a Petco. He's too big for them to pick on. My largest Jelly is about 2 inches..maybe a tad more. I wanted to add some new fish to my big new 55, but not something I'm going to cash up on and them get ripped to shreds. All the people who work at pet stores around here are dense, mostly teen pet-lovers who don't really know fish. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, and I'll try and get you some photos of my Jellies when I can.

A: Your jelly beans are 50% convict plus probably gold severum. They usually come in a rainbow of colors. I've mixed them with young Africans and synodontis catfish. If you treat them like regular convicts and mix them with larger cichlids like dempseys, you should be okay. You'll notice a decrease in aggression in the larger tank. It will increase again when they decide to breed. LA

Fange, September 22, 2007
To Whom It May Concern;

How can I tell it's a male or female for a Giant Gourami at very young age?

A: You cannot determine their sex at a very young age. Once they get older, the male has a longer top fin. LA

Lisa Arden, Virgina, September 22, 2007
Hello to Aqualand! I have a question about glass shrimp, if you can tell me. I harvested some from the Chesapeake Bay, and noticed that some of them have what look like tiny brown or whitish "marbles" inside the muscular part of the abdomen. They are spread out individually, not in clusters. Some have many more than others, ranging from one to about nine. I know it's late in the season, could this oddity be age related? The shrimp don't seem to be ill, with no odd behavior, or sickness I can discern. They don't seem to be dying, so I'm just curious more than anything. Thank you in advance for any light you can shed.

A: I don't really know much about saltwater shrimp. The ghost shrimp eggs are held more in a group rather than in a line. I don't know if this helps at all. LA

Joanna Harrington, Australia, September 23, 2007
Hi, Wow it's strange to see the names other countries give to native Australian parrots!! =P

Your Rock Pebbler Parakeet in Australia is called a Regent Parrot, and, not exactly being small (40cm), I find it rather strange that it gets called a parakeet in other countries! =P The Bare-eyed Cockatoo is called a Little Corella here as well.

Isn't it strange that there can't be uniformity amongst names for birds. I hope to see these birds someday be called by their standard Australian name, as that's where they come from! =P

Enjoying your website and photos,

A: Any comments on our English budgies? I added your info to our hookbill pages. Thanks. LA

Joanna Harrington, Australia, September 23, 2007
Is that your page on Parakeets? The only thing to say there is that they're called budgies here, and the ones in the wild are green and yellow, all the other colours like white, blue, yellow, etc are mutations. Also the Rose Cockatoo is called a Galah here. That's where the phrase "you silly galah" comes from! =P

A: I thought they were called budgerigars. I'll add the parakeet and Galah info also. LA

Joanna Harrington, Australia, September 23, 2007
Yeh, Budgerigars is their full name but no one here calls them that, they're just shortened to budgies. Cockatiels are also sometimes called Quarrions, but it's not that common to hear people call them that now.

Also, the English budgies are just bred to be bigger. Your usual genetic enhancement is all. Though it could also be to do with surface area to volume ratio -- it's colder in England so therefore the birds, over many generations, have gotten bigger. They're still native to Australia though.

A: Information overload. Thanks LA

Toni-Marie Astin, September 23, 2007
Do you carry and carp?...Thanks.

A: Yes if you mean koi. No if you mean river carp. We do not ship them ourselves. LA

Tanner Francisco, Ames, IA, September 23, 2007
Dear Larry, Are there any fish keeping groups or clubs in the Des Moines area that have little swap meets to trade and sell stuff? My boss in the fisheries and aquatic research facility at ISU said that he went to a swap meet or something at the Botanical Center a couple years ago and that this group meets there once a month to trade animals and products. I'm trying to get to know more experienced aquarists in central Iowa but everyone I'm finding knows less than me and I end up helping them.
My biggest baby canas are about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch long with many more in the slightly less than 1/2 inch range. How many would you possibly want to buy or trade off of me if you're still interested?
I got a call from the USDA a while back and the guy said they were monitoring online forums and he said that I had Apple snails and that I had to give them up. So I read him the law off of the USDA website stating that it's perfectly legal to own them as long as you aren't throwing them into lakes or shipping them across state lines. He just said that they were investigating illegal shipments of canas and that my handle from the applesnail.net forum was given to him by some lady who sells snails online whom I've never dealt with. This is the 3rd occurrence of something like this happening to someone on the applesnail.net forum. Is the USDA just harassing people to try to get them to stop owning snails or is the government really just as stupid as it makes itself out to be? Just wondering what you think about the issue. Thanks,
Tanner, Junior in Fisheries Biology at ISU

A1: As Maxwell Smart always said: "You missed it by this much (hold your fingers apart 1/4 inch)." The MCA and IAA are both centered in Des Moines. The MCA (see our Home Page) just (hold your fingers apart 1/4 inch) held their MCA EXPO 2007. They had national speakers, a mostly cichlid show, swaps, auctions, raffles, and pizza. You should have been there, dude. MCA holds quarterly swaps in Des Moines. IAA holds their quarterly swaps in different locations in Iowa. You can find their home web sites or track them on our Home Page where we track the local clubs' monthly meetings.
A2: Don't ask me if your gov't knows what they are doing. That's an essay question or a TV sit-com. Congress was once described as 435 ants on a log going over Niagara Falls with each ant thinking he's in charge. (Isn't Niagara Falls in Canada?) Anyway, I would be interested in your 1/2-inch apple snails. LA

Julian Bonfiglio, September 24, 2007
Hello, I just recently purchased a standard 75 gallon tank. It's 4 ft long, nearly 2 feet tall, and 18 inches wide. I want to set up a natural ecosystem, that's semi-aquatic by adding Plexiglass in one end of the tank with some aquarium sealant. I want to have communal species of animals and live plants.

I have been doing a lot of research on what type of animals I can put together. I just want to know your opinion on whether it's a good plan or not. I want to put; 2 Green Tree frogs, 1 House Gecko, 1 Female Anole, 1 Long-tailed Grass Lizard, and 1 Rough Green Snake. In the water section I want to put: 2 newts, 3 tadpoles, and a few fish, maybe even 1 or 2 African dwarf frogs.

Is a 75 gallon tank big enough for 6 land animals? Do you have any other suggestions of additional animals that are compatible with each other and would make a great looking variety? If they are able to fit of course

Which plants would be good to put in there? Please answer back whenever you can. Sincerely

A: Use glass for your divider. Aquarium sealant will not stick to Plexiglass. Make sure your glass supplier "seams" the glass for you. I'd probably double or triple your land population. Most of the ones you list will stay right at the top and be rarely seen. Fire-belly toads usually stay "unhidden." For plants the smaller anubias are perfect but pricey. More economical plants include pothos, philodendrons, nephthytis, and some of the variegated ivies. LA

Kerrie Chappell, Oconto, WI, September 24, 2007
Hello. I saw your website and was wondering if you know where I can get a caecilian? My husband used to have some years ago and would like some again. We just got an aquarium and can't seem to find them anywhere. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks,

A: Caecilians disappeared from the market a couple years ago (maybe three or four). I acquired three a couple weeks ago by ordering "black reef eels." I tried unsuccessfully to order more. As far as I know they are still unavailable unless you drive to Des Moines. LA

Mark Waldman, September 24, 2007
I am writing because I happened upon this web site and saw others with questions. I have had problems with every iridescent shark we owned. One smaller one died and the other is severely depressed about it. At the same time we now noticed a small hole in the bottom fin up by the body of him and we're not sure why or if it's contagious. We have a small tank for 2 small ones that had ich bad and weren't eating well in tank with other fish, so we separated them and aren't sure if we should move the other to that tank too. Could this hole be contagious to other fish or just the same breed? We also bought a very large one that won't eat, must be eating only real late at night, and flips out when you touch the tank to feed them. He's been here over a week now but still seems freaked out all the time.

A: Don't feel like the Lone Ranger. I've had more iridescent sharks catch ich than your whole family will ever even see. The little guys are incredibly sensitive to ich. They're also sensitive to the standard ich cure (malachite green with formalin). They are schoolers that do best in groups. It seems to help if you add a teaspoon of salt per gallon plus half strength ich cure when you first get them. Once they get some size, they make a great specimen fish. Put plastic plants at the ends of your tanks so they won't bonk their beaks when they flip out. Also, give them lots of room. LA

Carol, Cadillac, MI, September 24, 2007
You have got to have the best site on the web. I have sat many nights until 4 AM taking in the information and still haven't covered it all. I'm a Moderator of a large fish forum and constantly am referring folks to your site for information. Great Job!!!!!!!!!

A: Technically 4 am is not actually night, but thanks for the kudos. LA

Toni-Marie Astin, September 24, 2007
Hi, I was wanting the German carp...Thanks.

A: Carps are not native to the USA. As far as I can ascertain, the German carp came from the original carps the US Fish & Game Department imported as game fish.

"In the late 1800's German koi were imported in Japan for food and crossbred with Japanese Koi. The Germans (Doitsu) selectively bred carp to have few or no scales to aid in the processing. During the Meija Erra (1868-1912) the Japanese bred some of their colored koi to two varieties of German carp which nearly doubled the varieties."
koipondfever.com

Look for the cognates. "Doitsu" translates pretty close to "Deutsche" which is the German word for the adjective German. Go to your closest koi farm and ask to see their doitsu koi. They might have what you're looking for. LA

Sean McElderry, Des Moines, IA, September 25, 2007
I recently made an unexpected purchase when I saw an unhealthy and sad looking betta specimen while shopping at a big grocery store. I took the feller home and he's doing great now. I pushed his tank over next to my smaller cichlid tank, and man is it fun to watch! At first my yellow lab cichlid seemed angry over this new "pretty boy" being so close to his home.
Now he makes scheduled stops by my betta and watches as my betta puffs out his gills. In response my lab flares up his dorsal fin as if laughing as the betta tries to get at him.
I'd add krill as a food for bettas, mine will accept nothing else, not even brine shrimp. Of course you should break the krill in a few pieces or they won't swallow it and it will rot on the bottom.
I'd like to add that any experienced betta keeper (I'm at a month if that counts) knows not to use a regular fish net as it tears the fins as they may get caught. I prefer to use my hands, but hey, I'm kinky like that. Many new aquarists appear to start with bettas (beautiful and cheap I'm guessing) so maybe add a top10 care tips or something.
P.S. please get some brown colored sand already!

A: Rough nets often injure betta scales and cause a fungal growth very difficult to cure. I didn't write a top 10 care tips on bettas, but I did write these pages:
Betta Leaf
Betta Breed 1
Betta Breed II
Betta Info
Betta Housing
Betta Pla Kat
Thanks for the krill info. LA

J. Chan, September 25, 2007
Hi... I have a 7 inch Jardini arowana and I was wondering if u would like to buy it? I'm selling it for $150. thank you

A: I don't want to buy him at that price. If you'd like, you can post his picture and price on our bulletin board. LA

J. Chan, September 25, 2007
That would be nice. How do I post on ur bulletin board? btw, my name is Leng and I know Keo

A: Take a picture of your arowana (or have Keo do it) then post it on our fish room bulletin board with your name, phone number, and the price you want. Keo can help you on any of this. By the way, I probably owe him a lunch at the Double Dragon. LA

Bruce P. Beerbower, Hickory, NC, September 26, 2007
I am Naturalist and Director of Visitor Services at Catawba Science Center in Hickory. We are searching for a source for purchasing 2 or 3 large Mud Puppies for a special exhibit we are opening next weekend. (Your info page about these creatures is the best I have seen!) All of our North Carolina Suppliers will not have any until November or December.
Can you recommend any possible sources? Thanks very much.

A: Sorry. I have not seen these intriguing critters for about two years. If I had a source, I'd have some of these guys myself. LA

Julian Bonfiglio, September 26, 2007
Thank you so much for answering back. Oops, I already put the Plexiglass in. What did you mean by "seams"? Fire belly toads? but won't their "cream" harm the other animals in there? What is the best newt for a communal tank that will not attack the other inhabitants?

I'm also a little worried that the Green snake will eat one of the tree frogs I have right now because he only slightly bigger than a large cricket, will it be that much of a problem?

One last question, lol, is there a type of Turtle or Tortoise that can be communal? Thank u for all the plant suggestions as well. I really appreciate it. Write back soon

A: Seaming involves smoothing off the razor sharp edges on cut glass. Glass pros usually use a belt sander. You can do it yourself with a whet stone or piece of wood wrapped in emery paper.
I find fire belly frogs fairly harmless.
The most communal newts include the fire belly and eastern.
Green snakes prefer insects and worms. I've never seen one eat a frog.
Turtles love eating fish and digging. The best ones to add to your terrarium include plastic and ceramic turtles. LA

Andreas Jeppsson, Sweden, September 26, 2007
Hello again. I have written to you now three times I think. I just love your page it gives so much information and it's fun to read about all the animals. But I have a problem now, as I said before I was going to build a new big terrarium for a Chinese Water Dragon that I'm gonna buy very soon. I'm sending with some pictures in this mail so that you guys can see what ive done and what I need help with:
Six pix not seen at present.
Okay so my question is, how do I put the ventilation to my terrarium as best as possible? As you can see, there will be a closed shelf on top of my terrarium which gives me problems with putting the vent in the roof. And this terrarium will not stand against a wall with its back. It will stand like in the middle of a room with one of the sides to a wall, so it will be like furniture to divide the room.
Is it possible to put the ventilation as I show on Pic_6? that I have a vent under and a vent over the glass that is moveable? Do you have more suggestion with vent, light, and damp etc? I hope you can help me with my problems since the local pet store ain't that good with building terrariums.
Also what you think about my terrarium is nice to hear =) since you are the first one to see pictures of my new terrarium it's nice to get feedback. Best Regards from Andreas in Sweden
P.S Sorry if my English is bad in any way.

A: Your terrarium looks really good. I can't put your letter in my Q&A pages because with your pictures it takes too much room. However, with your permission, I'd like to make it into it's own web page and link to it from my Q&As. It will give a lot of people some useful ideas and perhaps inspire them to build their own terrarium from scratch (as we Americans say). LA

Andreas Jeppsson, Sweden, September 28, 2007
Hi, first of all what does Q&A mean? Long time since I was in my English class in school. Also, so you know, I have about 150 pictures so far and the terrarium is not completed yet ,but it will be done in 1 or 2 weeks. So shall we wait until it's done, or do you want the pictures I have now? It's okay if you want to make it into a web page =) It will make me really happy too. But do you have any suggestions on the ventilation? Maybe you can write in words and explain where to put it etc? Best Regards from Andreas

A: Q&A is an abbreviation for Question and Answers. Sorry I forgot your ventilation question. On the side away from the wall, cut your vent The shape won't matter. However, most people prefer adjustable vents. This is not a new idea. On our American outhouses we used to cut crescent moon vents. You may prefer a different design. LA
PS When you finalize your pics, select the best 20. The captions on the pics you sent are very good. I'll have to retype them because they won't cut and paste on my computer.

Ryan Rushing, September 28, 2007
Hello, I love your site I read all section on crabs. I have been trying to set up my own Crab tank. This is the second stock of crabs (mini Fiddler) that I've lost. I had the water tested at a local pet store and they said the nitrites and ammonia were a little high I am treating the tank but it seems as if my crabs are not going to make it. I was just wondering if you had any tips on how to keep these chemicals from getting out of hand. The tank is set up as such: 10 gallon, gravel natural color and some things for them to climb on, I have a Repti-flow filter for the water and about a half to quarter inch of water in the tank. I only had 4 mini fiddlers in the take and they were small. I love these crabs and hate to see them keep dying. OH, I forgot. I feed them in a shallow dish the powdered hermit crab food. If you have any advice I would greatly take it. Thank you for your time.

LA
When kept on sand, mini-crabs dig burrows -- three to the right of their food dish.

A: You're keeping them the same way I am, only better (you added a filter). The only difference I read is their substrate. I'm using marine sand, because they love to burrow in it. You can add Prime to neutralize any ammonia and nitrite.

Bob, Virginia, September 28, 2007
We have fiddlers here and they all live in the mud in salt / brackish marshes. I used to keep them as a kid. The marine sand and using Prime sounds like a great option (mud in a glass aquarium looks horrible) but I'm thinking that those crabs need salt in the water and maybe a dead feeder fish to chew on and a little more water.

Kelly, September 28, 2007
Hi, I just wondered what you thought of a Green bottle Blue tarantula as a pet?? Someone wants to give me one. I do not handle my spiders keep in mind but, I do not want my hand bit off either when I have to change the water. I would be thankful for any of your input. Thanks

A: We use tongs when working with cranky tarantulas. On one hand, if you are uncomfortable with this spider, perhaps you should not acquire it. On the other hand, the price is right. LA

Tiffany Dostert, Minot, ND, September 28, 2007

My baby bearded dragon is about 7 months old, has a huge appetite, but is slightly twitching in its legs. What is wrong with him? I put dragon dust on his food. Would that do anything to him? Please help

A: Leg twitching usually indicates calcium deficiency. Get him to a lizard vet now. He will probably give him a shot of calcium gluconate. LA

Doriana LeForna, Queens, NY, September 13, 2007
Hi. I am very very worried about my son's savanna monitor. It has a red thing near his eye. If it is a mite do you have a picture for me to be sure what it is? Also if it is a mite, I've BEEN USING MITE OFF BUT IT IS STILL THERE! I am so worried and I'm sorry about this yelling. ( The savanna monitor care sheet is very helpful) Thank You

A: Mites are so small my camera cannot take a picture of them. If you consider this a serious problem, you need to take your monitor to a reptile vet. If it were my monitor, I'd take the red thing off with my fingernail. Then I'd put a dab of anti-bacterial ointment on any wound this fingernail surgery might have left. LA

Kat Gordinier, Iowa City, IA, September 28, 2007
Hey, I have a few really nice bettas and I was thinking about breeding them. Do you buy bettas? And if so, are there any requirements and how much do you pay? Thanks for your time!

A: Breeding bettas is very easy because they do all the work. Raising bettas is not so easy because you do all the work. You're looking at a four to six month project. Start collecting containers today. Then, when time and a half has passed, give us a call and I'll give you the current wholesale prices on bettas. Raising bettas is an actual job. LA

Kelly, September 29, 2007
Hi, I was just wondering if I could ask you something else? Some of my spiders have what looks like dry flaky skin under their hair on their opisthosoma (stomach, backside) is that normal? Thanks

A: I really have no clue. I'd suggest lightly misting them, but let me repeat: I have no clue. LA

Nathan Gallinger, September 29, 2007
I've had a needlenose gar for a little more than a month now, and it's seemed okay. Today I looked at him, and his body was curved. It looked like he broke his back somehow.

Do you know if it will survive and if there's any way I can help it?

A: His prognosis does not look good. Every needlenose gar I've seen with that syndrome has died. LA

Jacob Mee, September 30, 2007
I recently google searched for pictures of corn snakes, and happened upon your site. On your page on corn snakes, (http://www.aqualandpetsplus.com/Snake,%20Corn.htm), you have 2 pictures of snakes that are not corn snakes, (3 actually, but you've appended one), they are of BALL PYTHONS! You may argue that they are a morph of corn snake, but on the top picture the shape of the head is clearly a ball python, and on the bottom you can see that the lady is holding a heavy-bodied snake, unlike the slim corn snake. That you would overlook such a simple thing shocks me. Unfortunately, technical difficulties leave me unable to attach a photograph of the place that you have erred, however I shall give you a link as to where this photograph can be viewed. The link is: http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/4/14/983856/Untitled.jpg. Please take time to look at the photograph before responding. It would be appreciated if you could get this sorted out as soon as possible. Thank you, and it's nice to see pictures of adult corn snakes. From all the pictures you see on the internet of babies, you could assume that they never grow up ;). Sincerely,

A: When I read the page I couldn't find the pictures you refer to. Thanks for including the locations of those pictures. I don't know how long ago I corrected those pages. Somehow the computer put those pics there by mistake. The captions obviously had nothing to do with the pictures. I removed them long ago. You googled one of their cached pages from long ago. I have no idea how long Google saves old pages. Thanks for taking the time to send me the info. The info you sent showed obvious ball pythons. As Jimmy Buffet says: "How they got there, I really don't know." Anyway, they're not on the current page. LA

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	Aqualand Q&As September 21-30, 2007

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Under Gravel Filters Sponge Filters Cloudy Water Cool Water Tanks Gravel Vacuums Preventing Disease Feeding to the Max Frozen Foods Green Water Nasty Chemicals Overfeeding Power Filters Rift Lake Salts Quarantine Tank Mini-Tank 2nd Av Bait Pet World Visit Dandelions Aquatic Plants Amazon Swords More Swords Sword Plants III Anubias Aponogetons A. boivinianus A. fenestralis A. ulvaceous Aquarium/Bog Banana Plant Bolbitis Bunch Bunch Plants II Cryptocorynes Crystalwort Dwarf Lily Grassy Grassy II Hornwort Hygrophila Lace Java Lance Fern Java Moss Moss Balls Onion Vermiculite Watersprite	We don't ship critters or live fish. When writing us, include your location. LA_Aqualand@msn.com Enter your search terms Submit search form Web aqualandpetsplus.com Michael J. Hasenpat, Glassboro, NJ, September 21, 2007 Hi, I was wondering if you sold feeder fish? I have a 500 gallon catfish aquarium and am in the process of looking for a supplier so I can feed my fish for a slightly lower price then the neighborhood pet store is offering me. Also, I was wondering if you sell catfish too? I was looking to add a shovelnose, red-tail, or bullhead to my aquarium. Any feedback would be much appreciated. Thank you. A: We sell feeder goldfish (three sizes), but by the time you pay for any shipping charges they'd be very expensive -- much more costly than your local pet store. And if the price of feeders is a problem, never add a red-tail catfish to your tank. LA Foot-long red-tail eating a four-inch goldfish -- the first of three. PS Your red-tail catfish would also eat all your other catfish. LA Goldfish #3. Krystal (Fish Haven), Pinehurst, TX, September 21, 2007 I was reading on your page about Rosy red minnows. I manage a retail tropical fish store in Pinehurst, Texas. I could never keep those things alive. One day I decided to put an algae wafer in their tank to feed the pleco and those rosies went crazy! They gobbled up every bit of the wafer and the next day there were very few dead. From then on, that is all I feed them and they love it! Not to mention -- we have cut our minnow loss by about 80%. Just thought I would pass on the info. Thanks. A: Thanks for the excellent info. I didn't get any rosies in today's shipment. I'll try it out next Friday. In the meantime, I'm adding it to my (actually Eric's) rosy red page. LA. Bill, September 21, 2007 I just purchased 4 mini crabs. The pet store said we can put them in with our freshwater fish. I have a 55 gallon tank. Do they need a little salt in the water ? Or should I put them in a separate tank? Also do they need a little dock to go on ? Thank you. A: I've never tried keeping them in deep water. I've always kept them half land / half water. They like a bit of salt. I give them a teaspoon per gallon which amounts to about one teaspoon in a 10-gallon with an inch of water. Let me know how yours do in the 55. LA Ryan Young, September 21, 2007 Hi! I was reading your articles about FW Flounders, Bumblebee Gobies, and Butterfly Gobies. Will 1 flounder, 2 bumblebee gobies, and 1 butterfly goby be compatible in a 20 gallon brackish tank? A: I've never tried that particular mix. Bumble bees and flounders mix very well. I'd expect the butterfly goby to snack on the much smaller bumble bees. LA Anne, September 22, 2007 I have a pair of jewels...a mated pair that have fry 3-4 weeks old. They "own" the tank exclusively...lucky buggers. The adults have started doing the lip lock thing pretty heavily yesterday and the smaller male is receiving most of the damage. The last time I had a mated pair the female killed the male. Could you tell my why they are doing this and what can I do about it? I know this is normal fish behavior, but are they getting ready to breed again, or are they done with each other now and want to knock each other off? Thanks for your help! A: I just got back from the Midwest Cichlid Association's EXPO 2007 yesterday and can assure you that most American cichlids do the same thing all the time. Jewels are African cichlids that act like American cichlids. Remove the parents to new quarters. If over-aggression continues, separate the sexes. Re-introduce them again later. Their lip-locking means you have been taking good care of them. It also means they are cichlids. LA Lindsay Hodges, Alabama, September 22, 2007 Hey LA, First off, I wanna say thanks...I love your site and it has really helped me with maintaining my 2 aquariums. Secondly, I have 6 Jelly Beans, and just upgraded to a 55, and it seems so empty. I have always had just jellies, and don't have a clue what kind of fish to pair with them. The only other fish I have ever put with them is plecos, and they tear them up within days, save for the 6 incher I found at a Petco. He's too big for them to pick on. My largest Jelly is about 2 inches..maybe a tad more. I wanted to add some new fish to my big new 55, but not something I'm going to cash up on and them get ripped to shreds. All the people who work at pet stores around here are dense, mostly teen pet-lovers who don't really know fish. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, and I'll try and get you some photos of my Jellies when I can. A: Your jelly beans are 50% convict plus probably gold severum. They usually come in a rainbow of colors. I've mixed them with young Africans and synodontis catfish. If you treat them like regular convicts and mix them with larger cichlids like dempseys, you should be okay. You'll notice a decrease in aggression in the larger tank. It will increase again when they decide to breed. LA Fange, September 22, 2007 To Whom It May Concern; How can I tell it's a male or female for a Giant Gourami at very young age? A: You cannot determine their sex at a very young age. Once they get older, the male has a longer top fin. LA Lisa Arden, Virgina, September 22, 2007 Hello to Aqualand! I have a question about glass shrimp, if you can tell me. I harvested some from the Chesapeake Bay, and noticed that some of them have what look like tiny brown or whitish "marbles" inside the muscular part of the abdomen. They are spread out individually, not in clusters. Some have many more than others, ranging from one to about nine. I know it's late in the season, could this oddity be age related? The shrimp don't seem to be ill, with no odd behavior, or sickness I can discern. They don't seem to be dying, so I'm just curious more than anything. Thank you in advance for any light you can shed. A: I don't really know much about saltwater shrimp. The ghost shrimp eggs are held more in a group rather than in a line. I don't know if this helps at all. LA Joanna Harrington, Australia, September 23, 2007 Hi, Wow it's strange to see the names other countries give to native Australian parrots!! =P Your Rock Pebbler Parakeet in Australia is called a Regent Parrot, and, not exactly being small (40cm), I find it rather strange that it gets called a parakeet in other countries! =P The Bare-eyed Cockatoo is called a Little Corella here as well. Isn't it strange that there can't be uniformity amongst names for birds. I hope to see these birds someday be called by their standard Australian name, as that's where they come from! =P Enjoying your website and photos, A: Any comments on our English budgies? I added your info to our hookbill pages. Thanks. LA Joanna Harrington, Australia, September 23, 2007 Is that your page on Parakeets? The only thing to say there is that they're called budgies here, and the ones in the wild are green and yellow, all the other colours like white, blue, yellow, etc are mutations. Also the Rose Cockatoo is called a Galah here. That's where the phrase "you silly galah" comes from! =P A: I thought they were called budgerigars. I'll add the parakeet and Galah info also. LA Joanna Harrington, Australia, September 23, 2007 Yeh, Budgerigars is their full name but no one here calls them that, they're just shortened to budgies. Cockatiels are also sometimes called Quarrions, but it's not that common to hear people call them that now. Also, the English budgies are just bred to be bigger. Your usual genetic enhancement is all. Though it could also be to do with surface area to volume ratio -- it's colder in England so therefore the birds, over many generations, have gotten bigger. They're still native to Australia though. A: Information overload. Thanks LA Toni-Marie Astin, September 23, 2007 Do you carry and carp?...Thanks. A: Yes if you mean koi. No if you mean river carp. We do not ship them ourselves. LA Tanner Francisco, Ames, IA, September 23, 2007 Dear Larry, Are there any fish keeping groups or clubs in the Des Moines area that have little swap meets to trade and sell stuff? My boss in the fisheries and aquatic research facility at ISU said that he went to a swap meet or something at the Botanical Center a couple years ago and that this group meets there once a month to trade animals and products. I'm trying to get to know more experienced aquarists in central Iowa but everyone I'm finding knows less than me and I end up helping them. My biggest baby canas are about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch long with many more in the slightly less than 1/2 inch range. How many would you possibly want to buy or trade off of me if you're still interested? I got a call from the USDA a while back and the guy said they were monitoring online forums and he said that I had Apple snails and that I had to give them up. So I read him the law off of the USDA website stating that it's perfectly legal to own them as long as you aren't throwing them into lakes or shipping them across state lines. He just said that they were investigating illegal shipments of canas and that my handle from the applesnail.net forum was given to him by some lady who sells snails online whom I've never dealt with. This is the 3rd occurrence of something like this happening to someone on the applesnail.net forum. Is the USDA just harassing people to try to get them to stop owning snails or is the government really just as stupid as it makes itself out to be? Just wondering what you think about the issue. Thanks, Tanner, Junior in Fisheries Biology at ISU A1: As Maxwell Smart always said: "You missed it by this much (hold your fingers apart 1/4 inch)." The MCA and IAA are both centered in Des Moines. The MCA (see our Home Page) just (hold your fingers apart 1/4 inch) held their MCA EXPO 2007. They had national speakers, a mostly cichlid show, swaps, auctions, raffles, and pizza. You should have been there, dude. MCA holds quarterly swaps in Des Moines. IAA holds their quarterly swaps in different locations in Iowa. You can find their home web sites or track them on our Home Page where we track the local clubs' monthly meetings. A2: Don't ask me if your gov't knows what they are doing. That's an essay question or a TV sit-com. Congress was once described as 435 ants on a log going over Niagara Falls with each ant thinking he's in charge. (Isn't Niagara Falls in Canada?) Anyway, I would be interested in your 1/2-inch apple snails. LA Julian Bonfiglio, September 24, 2007 Hello, I just recently purchased a standard 75 gallon tank. It's 4 ft long, nearly 2 feet tall, and 18 inches wide. I want to set up a natural ecosystem, that's semi-aquatic by adding Plexiglass in one end of the tank with some aquarium sealant. I want to have communal species of animals and live plants. I have been doing a lot of research on what type of animals I can put together. I just want to know your opinion on whether it's a good plan or not. I want to put; 2 Green Tree frogs, 1 House Gecko, 1 Female Anole, 1 Long-tailed Grass Lizard, and 1 Rough Green Snake. In the water section I want to put: 2 newts, 3 tadpoles, and a few fish, maybe even 1 or 2 African dwarf frogs. Is a 75 gallon tank big enough for 6 land animals? Do you have any other suggestions of additional animals that are compatible with each other and would make a great looking variety? If they are able to fit of course Which plants would be good to put in there? Please answer back whenever you can. Sincerely A: Use glass for your divider. Aquarium sealant will not stick to Plexiglass. Make sure your glass supplier "seams" the glass for you. I'd probably double or triple your land population. Most of the ones you list will stay right at the top and be rarely seen. Fire-belly toads usually stay "unhidden." For plants the smaller anubias are perfect but pricey. More economical plants include pothos, philodendrons, nephthytis, and some of the variegated ivies. LA Kerrie Chappell, Oconto, WI, September 24, 2007 Hello. I saw your website and was wondering if you know where I can get a caecilian? My husband used to have some years ago and would like some again. We just got an aquarium and can't seem to find them anywhere. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks, A: Caecilians disappeared from the market a couple years ago (maybe three or four). I acquired three a couple weeks ago by ordering "black reef eels." I tried unsuccessfully to order more. As far as I know they are still unavailable unless you drive to Des Moines. LA Mark Waldman, September 24, 2007 I am writing because I happened upon this web site and saw others with questions. I have had problems with every iridescent shark we owned. One smaller one died and the other is severely depressed about it. At the same time we now noticed a small hole in the bottom fin up by the body of him and we're not sure why or if it's contagious. We have a small tank for 2 small ones that had ich bad and weren't eating well in tank with other fish, so we separated them and aren't sure if we should move the other to that tank too. Could this hole be contagious to other fish or just the same breed? We also bought a very large one that won't eat, must be eating only real late at night, and flips out when you touch the tank to feed them. He's been here over a week now but still seems freaked out all the time. A: Don't feel like the Lone Ranger. I've had more iridescent sharks catch ich than your whole family will ever even see. The little guys are incredibly sensitive to ich. They're also sensitive to the standard ich cure (malachite green with formalin). They are schoolers that do best in groups. It seems to help if you add a teaspoon of salt per gallon plus half strength ich cure when you first get them. Once they get some size, they make a great specimen fish. Put plastic plants at the ends of your tanks so they won't bonk their beaks when they flip out. Also, give them lots of room. LA Carol, Cadillac, MI, September 24, 2007 You have got to have the best site on the web. I have sat many nights until 4 AM taking in the information and still haven't covered it all. I'm a Moderator of a large fish forum and constantly am referring folks to your site for information. Great Job!!!!!!!!! A: Technically 4 am is not actually night, but thanks for the kudos. LA Toni-Marie Astin, September 24, 2007 Hi, I was wanting the German carp...Thanks. A: Carps are not native to the USA. As far as I can ascertain, the German carp came from the original carps the US Fish & Game Department imported as game fish. "In the late 1800's German koi were imported in Japan for food and crossbred with Japanese Koi. The Germans (Doitsu) selectively bred carp to have few or no scales to aid in the processing. During the Meija Erra (1868-1912) the Japanese bred some of their colored koi to two varieties of German carp which nearly doubled the varieties." koipondfever.com Look for the cognates. "Doitsu" translates pretty close to "Deutsche" which is the German word for the adjective German. Go to your closest koi farm and ask to see their doitsu koi. They might have what you're looking for. LA Sean McElderry, Des Moines, IA, September 25, 2007 I recently made an unexpected purchase when I saw an unhealthy and sad looking betta specimen while shopping at a big grocery store. I took the feller home and he's doing great now. I pushed his tank over next to my smaller cichlid tank, and man is it fun to watch! At first my yellow lab cichlid seemed angry over this new "pretty boy" being so close to his home. Now he makes scheduled stops by my betta and watches as my betta puffs out his gills. In response my lab flares up his dorsal fin as if laughing as the betta tries to get at him. I'd add krill as a food for bettas, mine will accept nothing else, not even brine shrimp. Of course you should break the krill in a few pieces or they won't swallow it and it will rot on the bottom. I'd like to add that any experienced betta keeper (I'm at a month if that counts) knows not to use a regular fish net as it tears the fins as they may get caught. I prefer to use my hands, but hey, I'm kinky like that. Many new aquarists appear to start with bettas (beautiful and cheap I'm guessing) so maybe add a top10 care tips or something. P.S. please get some brown colored sand already! A: Rough nets often injure betta scales and cause a fungal growth very difficult to cure. I didn't write a top 10 care tips on bettas, but I did write these pages: Betta Leaf Betta Breed 1 Betta Breed II Betta Info Betta Housing Betta Pla Kat Thanks for the krill info. LA J. Chan, September 25, 2007 Hi... I have a 7 inch Jardini arowana and I was wondering if u would like to buy it? I'm selling it for $150. thank you A: I don't want to buy him at that price. If you'd like, you can post his picture and price on our bulletin board. LA J. Chan, September 25, 2007 That would be nice. How do I post on ur bulletin board? btw, my name is Leng and I know Keo A: Take a picture of your arowana (or have Keo do it) then post it on our fish room bulletin board with your name, phone number, and the price you want. Keo can help you on any of this. By the way, I probably owe him a lunch at the Double Dragon. LA Bruce P. Beerbower, Hickory, NC, September 26, 2007 I am Naturalist and Director of Visitor Services at Catawba Science Center in Hickory. We are searching for a source for purchasing 2 or 3 large Mud Puppies for a special exhibit we are opening next weekend. (Your info page about these creatures is the best I have seen!) All of our North Carolina Suppliers will not have any until November or December. Can you recommend any possible sources? Thanks very much. A: Sorry. I have not seen these intriguing critters for about two years. If I had a source, I'd have some of these guys myself. LA Julian Bonfiglio, September 26, 2007 Thank you so much for answering back. Oops, I already put the Plexiglass in. What did you mean by "seams"? Fire belly toads? but won't their "cream" harm the other animals in there? What is the best newt for a communal tank that will not attack the other inhabitants? I'm also a little worried that the Green snake will eat one of the tree frogs I have right now because he only slightly bigger than a large cricket, will it be that much of a problem? One last question, lol, is there a type of Turtle or Tortoise that can be communal? Thank u for all the plant suggestions as well. I really appreciate it. Write back soon A: Seaming involves smoothing off the razor sharp edges on cut glass. Glass pros usually use a belt sander. You can do it yourself with a whet stone or piece of wood wrapped in emery paper. I find fire belly frogs fairly harmless. The most communal newts include the fire belly and eastern. Green snakes prefer insects and worms. I've never seen one eat a frog. Turtles love eating fish and digging. The best ones to add to your terrarium include plastic and ceramic turtles. LA Andreas Jeppsson, Sweden, September 26, 2007 Hello again. I have written to you now three times I think. I just love your page it gives so much information and it's fun to read about all the animals. But I have a problem now, as I said before I was going to build a new big terrarium for a Chinese Water Dragon that I'm gonna buy very soon. I'm sending with some pictures in this mail so that you guys can see what ive done and what I need help with: Six pix not seen at present. Okay so my question is, how do I put the ventilation to my terrarium as best as possible? As you can see, there will be a closed shelf on top of my terrarium which gives me problems with putting the vent in the roof. And this terrarium will not stand against a wall with its back. It will stand like in the middle of a room with one of the sides to a wall, so it will be like furniture to divide the room. Is it possible to put the ventilation as I show on Pic_6? that I have a vent under and a vent over the glass that is moveable? Do you have more suggestion with vent, light, and damp etc? I hope you can help me with my problems since the local pet store ain't that good with building terrariums. Also what you think about my terrarium is nice to hear =) since you are the first one to see pictures of my new terrarium it's nice to get feedback. Best Regards from Andreas in Sweden P.S Sorry if my English is bad in any way. A: Your terrarium looks really good. I can't put your letter in my Q&A pages because with your pictures it takes too much room. However, with your permission, I'd like to make it into it's own web page and link to it from my Q&As. It will give a lot of people some useful ideas and perhaps inspire them to build their own terrarium from scratch (as we Americans say). LA Andreas Jeppsson, Sweden, September 28, 2007 Hi, first of all what does Q&A mean? Long time since I was in my English class in school. Also, so you know, I have about 150 pictures so far and the terrarium is not completed yet ,but it will be done in 1 or 2 weeks. So shall we wait until it's done, or do you want the pictures I have now? It's okay if you want to make it into a web page =) It will make me really happy too. But do you have any suggestions on the ventilation? Maybe you can write in words and explain where to put it etc? Best Regards from Andreas A: Q&A is an abbreviation for Question and Answers. Sorry I forgot your ventilation question. On the side away from the wall, cut your vent The shape won't matter. However, most people prefer adjustable vents. This is not a new idea. On our American outhouses we used to cut crescent moon vents. You may prefer a different design. LA PS When you finalize your pics, select the best 20. The captions on the pics you sent are very good. I'll have to retype them because they won't cut and paste on my computer. Ryan Rushing, September 28, 2007 Hello, I love your site I read all section on crabs. I have been trying to set up my own Crab tank. This is the second stock of crabs (mini Fiddler) that I've lost. I had the water tested at a local pet store and they said the nitrites and ammonia were a little high I am treating the tank but it seems as if my crabs are not going to make it. I was just wondering if you had any tips on how to keep these chemicals from getting out of hand. The tank is set up as such: 10 gallon, gravel natural color and some things for them to climb on, I have a Repti-flow filter for the water and about a half to quarter inch of water in the tank. I only had 4 mini fiddlers in the take and they were small. I love these crabs and hate to see them keep dying. OH, I forgot. I feed them in a shallow dish the powdered hermit crab food. If you have any advice I would greatly take it. Thank you for your time. LA When kept on sand, mini-crabs dig burrows -- three to the right of their food dish. A: You're keeping them the same way I am, only better (you added a filter). The only difference I read is their substrate. I'm using marine sand, because they love to burrow in it. You can add Prime to neutralize any ammonia and nitrite. Bob, Virginia, September 28, 2007 We have fiddlers here and they all live in the mud in salt / brackish marshes. I used to keep them as a kid. The marine sand and using Prime sounds like a great option (mud in a glass aquarium looks horrible) but I'm thinking that those crabs need salt in the water and maybe a dead feeder fish to chew on and a little more water. Kelly, September 28, 2007 Hi, I just wondered what you thought of a Green bottle Blue tarantula as a pet?? Someone wants to give me one. I do not handle my spiders keep in mind but, I do not want my hand bit off either when I have to change the water. I would be thankful for any of your input. Thanks A: We use tongs when working with cranky tarantulas. On one hand, if you are uncomfortable with this spider, perhaps you should not acquire it. On the other hand, the price is right. LA Tiffany Dostert, Minot, ND, September 28, 2007 My baby bearded dragon is about 7 months old, has a huge appetite, but is slightly twitching in its legs. What is wrong with him? I put dragon dust on his food. Would that do anything to him? Please help A: Leg twitching usually indicates calcium deficiency. Get him to a lizard vet now. He will probably give him a shot of calcium gluconate. LA Doriana LeForna, Queens, NY, September 13, 2007 Hi. I am very very worried about my son's savanna monitor. It has a red thing near his eye. If it is a mite do you have a picture for me to be sure what it is? Also if it is a mite, I've BEEN USING MITE OFF BUT IT IS STILL THERE! I am so worried and I'm sorry about this yelling. ( The savanna monitor care sheet is very helpful) Thank You A: Mites are so small my camera cannot take a picture of them. If you consider this a serious problem, you need to take your monitor to a reptile vet. If it were my monitor, I'd take the red thing off with my fingernail. Then I'd put a dab of anti-bacterial ointment on any wound this fingernail surgery might have left. LA Kat Gordinier, Iowa City, IA, September 28, 2007 Hey, I have a few really nice bettas and I was thinking about breeding them. Do you buy bettas? And if so, are there any requirements and how much do you pay? Thanks for your time! A: Breeding bettas is very easy because they do all the work. Raising bettas is not so easy because you do all the work. You're looking at a four to six month project. Start collecting containers today. Then, when time and a half has passed, give us a call and I'll give you the current wholesale prices on bettas. Raising bettas is an actual job. LA Kelly, September 29, 2007 Hi, I was just wondering if I could ask you something else? Some of my spiders have what looks like dry flaky skin under their hair on their opisthosoma (stomach, backside) is that normal? Thanks A: I really have no clue. I'd suggest lightly misting them, but let me repeat: I have no clue. LA Nathan Gallinger, September 29, 2007 I've had a needlenose gar for a little more than a month now, and it's seemed okay. Today I looked at him, and his body was curved. It looked like he broke his back somehow. Do you know if it will survive and if there's any way I can help it? A: His prognosis does not look good. Every needlenose gar I've seen with that syndrome has died. LA Jacob Mee, September 30, 2007 I recently google searched for pictures of corn snakes, and happened upon your site. On your page on corn snakes, (http://www.aqualandpetsplus.com/Snake,%20Corn.htm), you have 2 pictures of snakes that are not corn snakes, (3 actually, but you've appended one), they are of BALL PYTHONS! You may argue that they are a morph of corn snake, but on the top picture the shape of the head is clearly a ball python, and on the bottom you can see that the lady is holding a heavy-bodied snake, unlike the slim corn snake. That you would overlook such a simple thing shocks me. Unfortunately, technical difficulties leave me unable to attach a photograph of the place that you have erred, however I shall give you a link as to where this photograph can be viewed. The link is: http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/4/14/983856/Untitled.jpg. Please take time to look at the photograph before responding. It would be appreciated if you could get this sorted out as soon as possible. Thank you, and it's nice to see pictures of adult corn snakes. From all the pictures you see on the internet of babies, you could assume that they never grow up ;). Sincerely, A: When I read the page I couldn't find the pictures you refer to. Thanks for including the locations of those pictures. I don't know how long ago I corrected those pages. Somehow the computer put those pics there by mistake. The captions obviously had nothing to do with the pictures. I removed them long ago. You googled one of their cached pages from long ago. I have no idea how long Google saves old pages. Thanks for taking the time to send me the info. The info you sent showed obvious ball pythons. As Jimmy Buffet says: "How they got there, I really don't know." Anyway, they're not on the current page. 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