Taiwan Reef Biotope.

@Broder, they are beautiful... The colour is amazing.

I am still in awe though... at this female male change!!! Guess that's nature ...

 

Thanks Mark. You have no idea... They eat as much as I do. On the upside, those Malawis are big enough to stink up a pan..

Thanks Maria.. I'm also surprised. Thank heavens humans stay the same sex. Usually.

 

Thanks Maria.. I'm also surprised. Thank heavens humans stay the same sex. Usually.[/QUOTE]

Hahaaha yes!!!!

 

Bad thing happened. My fault. I introduced another red peacock without quarantine procedure. I'd observed it in the LFS tank for a week or so and the tank had appeared healthy without any ailments visible on any of the fish. Turns out that the fish was infected with velvet, although probably immune to it. I should known better, so please, no sympathy for me. I just want to post this anyway, as a warning to make sure of your diagnosis before commencing treatment.

The first sign that I observed was some sporadic shaking of the fishes heads. No other outward signs. I thought that it may be some flukes or other parasite possibly, irritating the gills so I dosed the tank with metronidazole. I should have done some research right then and there, because I would have realized that this is the first sign of velvet. I then noticed some small whith spots and blotches on fins. I immediately thought Ich! So I proceeded to raise the temp to 32C with the intention of just destroying the life cycle. The infestation was not severe and the fish were strong, so this should have been a good call. WRONG! This started to become clear when the fish started gasping heavily, developing copper colour patches on their skin and becoming lethargic. This is when I realized that this was an advanced stage of velvet. Raising the temperature in conjunction with salt or copper treatment would have been correct, but by simply raising the temp, I had inadvertently sped up the life cycle of the velvet.

I have now now dosed the tank with Cupramine, but 4 of the biggest male Protomelas Steveni are dead and 3 are critical. As an interesting aside, both MTS and rams horn snails seem to be ok with Cupramine. I will update on this, as it would open valuable treatment options if they are.

 

Aaah man this is really sad news Broder! Hope those that remain pull through.

 

Not such a tragedy really. I managed to save 10-12 fry into a grow out tank the other day. They should be adults in less than a year.

 

well thats good news...I guess its not like marines where when you lose your fish it can be thousands of rand down the drain...still, never nice to lose livestock.

 

Sorry to hear @Broder.... its always heart-breaking..


Thanks for sharing details.... I didn't know that head shaking could be caused by velvet

 

I don't know if head shaking is normal @MariaS. According to what I've read, most fish will flash as their gills become infested.

 

I guess it makes sense.... if their gills are infested, its their way of trying to shake off or get rid of what's bothering them...

Good luck with the rest of them....

 

Update, all male hap and peacock tank!

 

Moved this tank into my new shop... Fish are doing great. The rescued Protomelas Steveni juvis are all growing well.

 

@Broder

I never looked at this thread as the name was misleading me!! This is a stunning tank!!!

 

Thanks @Kubusb. Yeah, I really enjoyed this setup. Got rid of all the fish, rocks, plants this week though and am now preparing it as a discus tank.

 

Very nice....

Sent from my LG-H850 using Tapatalk

 

Thanks bud. I'll start a thread when the fish arrive. If they're half as nice as the discus you had, I'll be super stoked

 

Looking great already @Broder
Love the bamboo finish, looks real smart and different

If you have ordered from Marco, i am sure you will be happy!

 

Thanks Maria. Yup, the discus are coming from the Tony Tan import that Marco is doing. Will still be around 6 weeks at least, so plenty of time for the tank to settle in nicely.

 

Setup looks very neat!!