March 2009 - Kitchener Waterloo Aquarium Society

M A R C H 2 0 0 9Fins & TalesServing Kitchener-Waterloo and the surrounding area since 1960In This Issue: Volume 49, Issue 3The Minimalist Aquarist in Israel - page 5PlantED Tank: Cryptic Bio-types - page 9Avoid Being a Nervous Fishkeeper - page 12Breeding The Peacock Gudgeon - page 14Breeding The Peppered Corydoras - page 18Official Publication of the Kitchener-Waterloo Aquarium SocietyNext Meeting:Tuesday, March 3 rd at 7:30pmCatherine Salmon: BettasComplimentary CopyWelcome to our club!Visit us at http://www.kwas.ca

M A R C H 2 0 0 9This Issue Contains...TMA in IsraelBAP: Peacock GudgeonBAP: Peppered CorydorasPlantED: Cryptic Bio-TypesFrom The VP’s Desk &From The Editors’ DeskPage 4Recently Joined MembersPage 7After last month’s“tourist attraction”grotto report, TheMinimalist Aquaristfinds a stunningexample of world-classpublic aquaria anddiscusses the intricaciesof how theseinstitutions educate andrehabilitate within ourhobby.Page 5After quite a fewattempts Geoff finallymanages to breed thisbeautiful, if odd, fishand keep the fry alivefor more than 60 days.Now that he’s got thetechnique down maybewe’ll see more of thisfish in the area stores orfor sale on the forumand in this year’sauctions?Page 14Ed Koerner serves uphis recipe for breedingthe peppered cory inone of the mostentertaining andcreative BAP reportsthis club has everpublished. Be sure tocheck this article out,even if you don’t ownany corydoras. Afterthis you might want topick some up, even ifit’s just for a dinnerdate.Page 18Crypts are one of themost common plants inour tanks. Even non“planties” can keepthem alive. However,there is much more tothis group of plantsthan mere adaptability.Ed discusses many ofhis favourites in thethird edition of ThePlantED Tank.Page 9March Exchange ReportSmall Tale: Super NeonPage 8Page 13February Show Jar ResultsPage 15February Meeting MinutesPage 16Constitution AmendmentsName That FishPage 17Page 19Upcoming Fishy Events• Mar 3rd - KWAS General Meeting• Mar 10th - KWAS Business Meeting• Mar 15th - Peel/Brampton Auction• Mar 15th - CAOAC Meeting• Mar 16th - CDAS General Meeting• Mar 22nd - Hamilton Auction & Flea Market• Mar 29th - Brant Show, Auction & Flea Market• Apr 7th - KWAS General Meeting• Apr 14th - KWAS Business Meeting• Apr 18th - Sarnia Auction• Apr 19th - Durham Show and Auction• Apr 19th - CAOAC MeetingOn the front coverThis photo of a Spotted GreenMandarin (Synchiropus picturatus)was taken by Joran Roncato and isthe winner of February’s Fish of theMonth contest.On the back coverThis 55 gallon planted communitytank is owned by Jerry Doucette andwon February’s Tank of the Monthcontest on our forums. Can the nonplantedand non-salt tanks evencompete? Why don’t you try?• Apr 20th - CDAS General Meeting• May 2nd - St. Catharines Auction• May 3rd - London AuctionGet your cameras out! Your fish or tank could be featured in an upcomingedition of Fins & Tales! How? All you have to do is win the monthly People’sChoice Photo Contest on our forum. Submit pictures to webmaster@kwas.cabefore the 1 st of each month then vote between the 1 st and the 7 th .2

KWAS Mission StatementThe Kitchener Waterloo Aquarium Society, KWAS is a nonprofitorganization whose primary goals are to:• Further the hobby and study of tropical fish and relatedendeavors• Inspire the preservation of aquatic life• Maintain a meeting place for its members• Develop and maintain a library on aquatic life• Promote fellowship among its members• Seek out and establish a kinship with other clubs withsimilar objectivesKWAS is a charter member of CAOAC:The Canadian Association of Aquarium ClubsFins & Tales is published 10 times each year between themonths of September and June for KWAS members. Opinionsexpressed in this publication are those of the authors and notnecessarily those of the Fins & Tales editors or KWAS. Themention of any product does not constitute an endorsement byFins & Tales or KWAS members.Reprint Policy — Articles from this publication may be printedin a not-for-profit publication provided credit is given to boththe author and KWAS. Copies of the reprint must be sent toboth the author and KWAS. Any other use is prohibitedwithout the written consent of KWAS.M A R C H 2 0 0 9KWAS Officials 2008 - 2009ExecutivePresident ** To Be Elected in May **Vice President Geoff Money (gmoney@golden.net)Treasurer Brad McClanahan (nasfan@3web.com)Secretary Lezley Smith (scarlett_0767@hotmail.com)Past President Al Ridley (pyrofish@sympatico.ca)Board of DirectorsEditor/Publisher Cameron Turner, Tanya Morose(editor@kwas.ca)Exchange Editor Zenin Skomorowski (zenin@golden.net)Membership Chair Miecia Burden (miecia@rogers.com)Auction Chair Ed Koerner (edkoerner@sympatico.ca)Oktoberfish Chair Al Ridley with Ed, Miecia and GeoffLibrarian David Bradley (davesolo29@sympatico.ca)Lunch Committee Katie McClanahan (nasfan@3web.com)Programs Al Ridley (pyrofish@sympatico.ca)Raffle Chair Charity Gilmore (char_n_jenn@rogers.com)B.A.P Chair Miecia Burden (miecia@rogers.com)H.A.P Chair Filipe Martins (filipem@rogers.com)CAOAC Reps Phil Maznyk (and one position open still)Name That Fish Zenin Skomorowski (zenin@golden.net)Jar Show Anthony McAslin (mcspetworld@sympatico.ca)Webmaster Phil Maznyk (webmaster@kwas.ca)Pet Store Liaisons Al Ridley (pyrofish@sympatico.ca)Zenin Skomorowski (zenin@golden.net)Exchange Program — KWAS exchanges newsletters with otherclubs across North America. If your club is interested inbecoming a part of this program please contact our exchangeeditor by mail or e-mail zenin@golden.netCorrespondence — Please send all correspondence to theKitchener Waterloo Aquarium Society, Box 38037 256 KingStreet North, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada N2J 4T9.Submission of ArticlesCover images and articles can be submitted for publication inFins & Tales by all hobbyists and must be submitted digitally.Priority is given to KWAS members and to topics that have notbeen recently covered. Not all submissions will be printed inthe month they are submitted. The editors of Fins & Tales maybe required to edit your submission for length, spelling,grammar and/or clarity. Please indicate if you would like toproof read the edited version prior to official publication.Submissions are due via email to the editors (editor@kwas.ca)by the 15 th day of the month for publication in the upcomingissue of Fins & Tales. Please contact us if you have anyquestions or would like suggestions or feedback on possiblearticle topics.Advertise in Fins & TalesPlease contact the newsletter editor if you are interested inadvertising in KWAS Fins & Tales. Rates apply for ten (10)consecutive issues (one year).Business Card, B&W$25/yr1/4 Page, B&W $60/yr1/2 Page, B&W $100/yrFull Page, B&W $150/yrFull Page, Full Colour$35/issueAdvertising of any hobby related items in Fins & Tales is free toKWAS members in good standing, space permitting.Join KWAS2009 Membership Fees Adult Family 1 Year $25 $30 2 Years $48 $58 3 Years $71 $86 4 Years $92 $112 5 Years $100$120Junior Members (18 years and younger) $10 per year 3

Hi All,M A R C H 2 0 0 9From the Vice President’s DeskWe have seen some glimpses of spring in the air, with warm weather and cooling again, but spring is just around the corner. MyOscar did not see his shadow the other morning, so spring will be in less than 6 weeks.We will continue to use the meeting format that was introduced last month: we will start with the usual BAP, HAP and name thatfish, followed by the auction where half the items will be sold, and then we will have a break before our program.After the program we will auction the remaining items followed by the show jar results and finishing off with the raffle. So if youhave any auction items get there early and get registeredWe will have a vote on changes to the club constitution and by-laws, so look inside the news letter to see the actual changes thatare proposed. [Ed: See bottom of page 17]In March the show jar category is Characins and AOV, so get involved and bring some fish out.We now have an Oktoberfish Chair for 2009, Al Ridley, with Ed Koerner looking after organizing the auction and Miecia Burdenand myself looking after the show.Thank you to Phil Maznyk, who is now our CAOAC rep.I would like to voice my support to Phil and Al for all the work they are doing by looking after and policing our forum. Theiractions have the full support of the executive.See you at the meeting.Geoff MoneyVice President, KWASFrom The Editors’ DeskAnother month, another fine set of articles from our regular contributors.We have to thank everyone who has submitted something over our tenure as newsletter editors. Without you our job would bemuch easier… but of course that would only be because there would be no newsletter to produce. Thanks for making our jobhard :PIf you’ve been thinking of writing an article, telling a story or starting a column, please contact us to discuss your ideas. We’ll doeverything we can to help you and get you started.This month we have another Small Tale from “Mrs. CB” on page 13. If you have any fun stories like this, we want them. Noteverything in Fins & Tales needs to be educational, some of it can be entertaining too.Last month we mentioned we’d be increasing the advertising rates in our newsletter, but after a careful survey of other clubpublications, only The Aquatic Gardener charges more than we do (5-10x as much actually), but they also have a circulation ofmore than 1000 people quarterly. As a result we’ll leave everything alone and instead focus on finding some new advertisingcontent.Like last month, if you have any ideas about who might be interested in advertising please let us know ASAP. We’ll be sendingout solicitation packages in the next few weeks.Also like last month, we’ll end with an assurance that this newsletter won’t fill up with too much advertising… well unless no onebothers to write articles. How’s that for a “write something today” threat?See you at the meeting.4Cam Turner & Tanya MoroseNewsletter Editors, KWAS

M A R C H 2 0 0 9TheMinimalistAquaristin IsraelDoing more with less and keeping it simple: TMA’s visit to Israel (part 1)— Article and Photos by Rein & Char Breitmaier, KWAS (mrrein@gmail.com)As I wind down the pages of ourMediterranean tour, I’ve saved awhopper of a fish story for last. We stopthis month in the State of Israel, in theCity of Eilat (pronounced eh-latt). Asearch we always do as we venture fromcountry to country is for ‘public aquaria’and in the entire Middle East, the only hiton the web or in the guide books wascalled alternately Israel Coral World orEilat Marine Park. Having recentlyvisited the Cairo Aquatic Ghetto (or wasthat garden grotto?) last month, we weresuspicious but when the admission pricehere was listed as $24 instead of the buckor two we had been accustomed topaying for attractions we were hopeful.Eilat is Israel’s southern-most point andits only access to the Red Sea (via theGulf of Aqaba) – a fishes richenvironment as we have spoken of inthese pages.Toronto had their brightly painted Mooseas a promotional gimmick a few yearsago (or was that Mooses?), Buenos Airessimilarly had giant fibreglass cows, butEilat had a sidewalk display of giantfishes. Things were definitely looking up.There are hiccups on every quest andours came as we spotted an ever-so-tackyadvertisement for the Marine Park, adisplay that took up an entire island inthe middle of a traffic round-about. Abizarre looking sea tower and a caricaturesubmarine on a blue gravel bedsurrounded by bigger than life fishes gotTMA thinking animatronics a-la-Disneyinstead of ‘world class aquarium’. Woulda fuzzy-headed fishy version of Goofycome strolling around for photo ops withthe kiddies?A young lady bussing tables at our hotel,who incidentally spoke seven languages,grimaced when we asked whether one 5

could walk to the aquarium. How farcould it be for heaven’s sake as you couldsee Jordan and Saudi Arabia across thebay one way and Egypt was just a tenminute drive the other way along thecoast? An hour later already somewhatfootsore, we finally caught sight of thereal sea tower and we’re thinking the busmight have been a better idea. Weremained hopeful that there would bemore to it than a bell-bottomed lighthouse. We were about to be verypleasantly surprised.The first thing a visitor encounters at thefront gate is an enormous glass cube. This‘coral head in a box’ display was entirelyopen to the tropical sun although Isuspect the glass was lightly tinted. Bymy paced steps about 8 feet square with asix foot water depth inside, yetsparklingly clear it showed no algae toimpair the inward view. The fishes werestunning and I knew in that moment thatthe rest of today had been booked up. Weasked about saltwater management and itturns out they rely directly on waterdrawn from 42 meters below the surfaceout in the Gulf. Water is pumped into aholding reservoir from which it streamsthrough the various displays beforeexhausting back to the sea. I found thispart a little worrisome as the gulf whichis part of the Red Sea is a major shippinglane for cargo vessels but it hides a deepunderwater rift (2850 metres at itsdeepest point – yes, nearly 3 kilometresdeep) with an enormous water volume.Interestingly any captive breeding thatoccurs within the Eilat system alsoflushes out into the surroundingecosystem and helps either feed orrepopulate the reef.6M A R C H 2 0 0 9A short pier led past the submarine whichturned out to be a variant on the glassbottomed-boattheme, scooting alongwith its windows just barely submerged,to the sea tower. Once in the tower acircular stairway lead 26 steps down tosea level, and a further 26 steps to theunderwater viewing chambers. Twocircular pods each surrounded bywindows let the naturally sunlit reefshine in. The tower was built into a coralhead which has been augmented by thereintroduction of hundreds and hundredsof new corals from the school program(more about that later). Each new coralspecimen bears an identification tagwhich permits the student who adoptedand cared for the coral fragment in the labto continue to monitor and appreciate itsprogress.Outside the observatory windows thecorals are neither fed nor cleaned butexist as in nature. The viewing windowsare another matter and every few monthsneed to be scrubbed. Being the equivalentof two stories underwater gave TMA aview not possible by snorkelling alone.We were in the realm of the scuba divernow. You note immediately that any redcolouration is gone and a soft bluepermeates the scene. The coronet fisheswhich escaped my lens a month ago wereback, stalking their prey by hanging nearthe surface before recoiling and divingsharply into a school of lesser fishes. Wewere reminded that a living reefembraces a natural food chain philosophywhere not every specimen is guaranteedsurvival.Soft corals swayed in the currents, maturelion fishes would be eating no guppieshere tonight as their captive brethrennormally might, and schools of marinefry numbering in the thousands cascadedby our eyes. Signage throughout thetower display was bilingual, includingEnglish, but curiously absent any Latinnames. Guides came throughintermittently with large group tours andthen a host of languages followed. Wewere never far from a staffer willing tohelp identify a fish and yet were neverhurried along to the next exhibit. Isuspect one could literally perch at one ofthese windows all day and be entertainedby the endless activity mere inches awayon both sides of the glass.Education is a key element for manypublic aquaria and this marine park haspartnered with the local school board.Coral reefs routinely suffer damage fromrecreational divers, shipping, and storms.Eilat Aquarium sends its divers out tocollect freshly broken fragments from the

sea bed returning them here to thefacility. Each piece is glued to a flat rockwhich will serve as its base in therecovery tanks. School children are taskedwith accurately measuring the growth inthe rehabilitation phase along withproviding light and food. At the end ofeach school year, the corals are returnedto the Red Sea, some to the viewing areaaround the tower. Pollution and climaticchanges take a toll on reefs each year butthis program offers a plan to rebuildsome of that damage.M A R C H 2 0 0 9TMA can never be entirely trusted not topoke a nose and a camera lens into anydoor standing even slightly ajar, so I amable to offer a quick peek at thezooplankton/phytoplankton grow-outchambers that provide the food source forthe corals and other filter feeders like thelittle gem I will close with this month.Clearly a relative of the pipefishes/seahorses complex, TMA has not seen thesebefore on display and what amagnificently delicate specimen it was.The ornate ghost pipefish has a glass-likebody camouflaged with fingernail cuticlesized spikes and is draped with what Ican only call Red Sea khaki. These pelagiclittle fishes could easily be overlooked innatural environments. I rotated our phototo make him easier to view and toexamine, but normally Solenostomusparadoxus hang head down in the watercolumn. It seems we’ve only just begunhere in Eilat but fortunately as theentrance coupon states we can visit asecond day for free for the one paidadmission. We can explore here furthernext month – but let’s take the businstead. - TMANew Members inJanuary and FebruaryA hearty welcome to our new members from the January andFebruary meetings. We’re always thrilled to have more peopleto share experiences and stories with. If any of you have somenugget of info, or small story to tell please share it on our forumor with our newsletter editors.•Cindi Butler and Linda Driscoll•Steve Byer•William Neal•Victor Dinh and Tianna Bartolo•Ryan and Kelli Barton•Melanie Whelpdale•Anne Kelly•Matthew Sendzik•Taryn Sendzik•Alex CampbellThe Fish Sempaiwww.fishsempai.cominfo@fishsempai.com(519) 648-9992• Show quality goldfish: Ryukin, Ranchu, Oranda,Butterfly Moors, Jikins, Pearlscales, Tosakin• Japanese & Malaysian Koi• Arrange to visit the fish farm to see one-of-a-kind,rare and marvelous specimens• Hobbyist Club members receive 10% off purchases• Wholesaler inquiries are welcome• Visits by appointment ONLY1268 Kramp Road RR 2, Breslau, Ontario N0B 1M0 7

M A R C H 2 0 0 9March Exchange Editor’s ReportSubmitted by Zenin Skomorowski, KWAS (zenin@golden.net).The newsletters featured in this column and others are available toyou. Please let me know by email, or at the monthly meeting, whichones you would like to read.Living near the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago does haveadvantages. Besides seeing great displays of fish, some highschool students can qualify for the Lake Ecology Summermentorship programme. Sam Borstein wrote two essays andhad an interview before being accepted. He spent a weekaboard a tall ship on Lake Michigan and attended classes onthe Great Lakes history, geology, biology, invasive species andmore. Read all about his projects and experiences in theNovember-December 2008 issue of Cichlid Chatter from theGreater Chicago Cichlid Association. Also in this issue, RickBoester wrote about Neolamprologus tretocephalus. Many peopleconsider them to be a smaller version of the much largerFrontosa. These very aggressive fish require a meaty diet andlots of hiding places for the female. Another Tanganyikan isthe Petrochomis. Mike Garibaldi describes how they are verysimilar to Tropheus, but are much larger.A couple of marine salt water articles can be found in theJanuary 2009 issue of Pisces Press from the Nassau CountyAquarium Society. The Bumble Bee snail Pusiostoma (engina)mendicaria burrows in the sand bed. There are about 30 speciesof Clownfish. They love to live among the tentacles of a seaanemone. Clownfish have an interesting hierarchy in a groupand on occasion will change from male to female.Charlie Drew wrote a couple of articles for the January 2009issue of The Monthly Bulletin from the Hamilton & DistrictAquarium Society. The Honeycomb Catfish Tatia perugiae isoriginally from Peru. They inhabit piles of driftwood, and arenocturnal feeders on insects, worms and crustaceans. Charliealso details his perfect infusoria technique to produce thesemicroscopic organisms as a first food for very small fry. Also inthis issue is a description of the Open Aquarium to promoteplant growth. It is written by Claus Christensen, managingdirector of Tropica Plants of Denmark.There are a variety of pond plants in the Sagittaria family.Derek Tustin details a few in the January 2009 issue of TankTalk from the Durham Region Aquarium Society. In hiscolumn Eyeballs On Oddballs, Derek talks about a prehistoricmonster. Well, it was labelled as “Monster Fish” at a Local FishShop. Turns out it is Thalassophryne amazonica or the AmazonToadfish. This benthic ambush predator sits buried in the sandor mud with just its eyes poking out, waiting for a meal toswim by. The Toadfish opens its huge mouth, creating avacuum to suck in the prey, and then holds it and makes bitesize pieces with its many rows of teeth. This monster also hasvenom producing glands beneath hollow dorsal spines. Youdon’t want to step on this fish.Have you ever thought of what your Top 10 favourite fishwould be ? Sam Borstein had too many to fit on one list, so hemade up several lists based on geographical regions. His firstlist of Central American Cichlids is in the January-February2009 issue of Cichlid Chatter from the Greater Chicago CichlidAssociation. There are some photos and descriptions with whythey are on his list. See if any match your favourites. Also inthis issue, Rick Borstein talks about the “Hybrid” issue thatwas triggered by discussion on the GCCA Cichlid Forum. Thedictionary defines a hybrid as an offspring of two animals orplants of different races, breeds, varieties, species or genera.Rick details what this means for fish and the hobby. Someview hybrids in a very negative light, others say they are justenjoying their pets and do not distribute hybrid fish withoutfair warning. Is it a moral issue ?Bruce Hart writes about his experiences breeding theSynodontis petricola in the February 2009 issue of Aqua Anticsfrom the Sarnia Aquarium Society. This small rock dwellingcatfish from Lake Tanganyika is a popular choice with fishkeepers today. Bruce had to try a couple of setups before hewas able to get a decent number of eggs to be produced andhatched. Peter Melady, on the other hand, got someunexpected spawning results from his Dwarf Neon RainbowsMelanotaenia praecox. Sometimes, you just get lucky.Surf’s up ! Here is this month’s web site to explore:www.earthlife.net/fish/intro.htmlGordon Ramel has created a web page of interesting fish factsand terms. Some examples:Benthic = Living on the floor of the sea, ocean, river, pondPelagic = Living and swimming in the open waters of the sea,ocean, river, pondPoisonous = Makes you sick if you eat it.Venomous = Toxins injected by stinging or biting.The most poisonous fish in the world = Death Puffer of MakimakiArothron hispidus. The internal organs of this fish are sopoisonous that it takes less than 0.1 grams to kill an adulthuman being in less than half an hour. Nevertheless people inJapan eat the flesh of this fish which can be safe if none of thetoxin in the organs gets into the final cut. Chefs who preparethe meal serve a special three year apprenticeship. However,despite all precautions about 50 people die every year in Japanfrom eating poorly or improperly prepared fish.8

M A R C H 2 0 0 9The PlantED Tank: Cryptic Bio-TypesA Regular Column by Ed Koerner, KWAS (edkoerner@sympatico.ca). Photos by the author and Glen C.large, from plants that top out at 2 inches like C. parva to largeleaved giant C. wendtii that can easily grow over 24 inches in thehome aquarium.Almost everyone that has had plants in their tank has had acrypt at some point in time. The most popular species in myopinion is C. wendtii. It is found in several colour varietiesgreen,bronze and red, and there are several cultivars that havebeen developed. Most people know cryptocoryne as a slowgrowing low light plant but in reality this is a misconception.Yes, they can be kept in low light, sometimes at ½ wpg and theywill even grow a little but these are not the conditions that theyare at home in.Last month I talked about bio-types and their relationship withchoosing plants in the aquarium. Here are a few photosshowing that even though we talk about a bio-type we often aretalking about the fish we are keeping and not truly the fullenvironment we are setting up. The photos above and below arefrom a couple of my “South American” tanks and there areclearly plants that have never seen the Amazon Basin.Most crypts are found in streams and rivers with moving wateror swampy overflow water basins. They are emmersed for mostof their lives and really only submerged during rainy wetseasons when the water levels are high. Being placed into anaquarium often 20-24 inches below the water level is somethingthat they have adapted to, not evolved to. Their leaves can beabove or below the surface and will form differently in each.When grown emmersed, or with the roots and part of the plantin water but the rest left to grow out into open air, the leaveswill be thicker and tougher and will often be more coloured orspotted. They will often be more rippled and textured as there ismuch less pressure on them in air compared to under water. Itis in this emmersed state that crypts are most likely to flower aswell. They will send up flower stems from the center of theplant that look like trumpet lilies. The stems will grow abovethe water surface where they will go to seed, then fall to becarried away to germinate wherever the current takes them.“South American”... Maybe the fish are, but not all of the plants are!Well, when last we left our chat on plants and bio-types Imentioned visiting the species of Cryptocorynes or cypts next.This is a rather large family of plants with over 60 species andmany more cultivars being added into the mix. They are nativeto Asia in warm and humid environments like India, Sri Lanka,Sumatra and further east. They are found in sizes small and125G tank with 6 varieties of bunched crypts 9

M A R C H 2 0 0 9Being that most crypts spend their time in an emmersedcondition they are heavy CO2 feeders. Plants that are near or atthe surface will absorb much higher levels of CO2 than at thebottom of an aquarium and they, of course, enjoy more light aswell. Leaves out of water have easy access to CO2 and light sogrowth will be fuller, thicker and faster. While crypts arenormally considered a slow growing plant, the recent increaseof CO2 use in aquariums along with new light technology andfertilizers have provided plant enthusiasts with fuller growththan ever before and I have seen many tanks producing junglelikestands of plants.So, what is a crypt and why should you have one (or many) inyour tank? Well, almost everyone that has plants in their tankhas one so you should too, right? Not always but they willhandle a wide range of conditions and they are quite adaptable.BUT, I should add at this point that there is a condition knownas crypt melt that often accompanies the acclamation stages.This happens from no fault of the plant keeper – quite often aplant will be put into a new tank and the water parameters maynot be the same as what the plant came out of. The plant willoften start to melt, which is that its leaves will start to rot and itsstems will decay near the base of the plant. I have seen thishappen in my plants from moving from one tank to another oneright beside it. The different water conditions and lighting are toblame. If the conditions are still favourable to grow the plant, itwill come back on its own, slowly poking out a few leaf stemsas if checking if the coast is clear. If left undisturbed it shouldnow come back and flourish in the new environment.There are some plant suppliers that actually prune back all theleaves right down to the stem for this reason before shipping.When put into the new tank, they will send out leaves that arenow acclimated and growth will be healthy. If you arepurchasing new plants make sure you look for a firm crownand good root structure as this will be more important than thecondition of the leaves.Crypts can handle a wide variety of water conditions once theyare acclimated. They will survive the soft water conditions of aSouth American bio-type and the harder water conditions of anAfrican Rift Lake tank. They can be kept in slow watermovement conditions or a fast flowing river tank. They caneven be grown with only their roots in the water. In theirnatural setting they experience most of these conditionsthrough various seasons of the year.The family is also popular since it comes in many shapes, sizesand colours. There are deep reds and brilliant fuchsias, brownsand bronzes as well as various combinations and shades ofgreen. It should be noted that the more colour there is to theplant the more light it will require to keep it. A red plant willneed more light than a basic green one, and may also benefitfrom an occasional supplement of iron. There are small leavedvarieties and wide leaved, tall and narrow, spiraled andstraight, crinkled, ruffled and smooth – enough to satisfy anyplant lover.Crypts form a large root ball which, over time, can becomequite woody and thick. A solid crown sits atop the roots andshould not be buried in the substrata or the plant will rot. Stemsforming leaves will radiate from the crown. The plant willpropagate through runners sent out from the root ball as itmatures and in shallow water, with a flower. The flower oncepollinated will form a seed pod. Over time the plant can bedivided at the roots into several new plants that are ready tomake it on their own. One thing to remember is that crypts liketo grow as a group – don’t get them and try separating theminto little individual plants, they will do better planted as aclump and split up every so often. They will also continue togrow quite well when root bound.Some Cypts that I have experience with...Cryptocoryne wendtiiThis is maybe the most popular crypt, and is normally the plantthat people think of first when considering them. It is generallya small to medium sized plant growing to 6-12 inches but thereis a giant variety that will send 24 inch leaves to the surface.There are three colour varieties – green, red and bronze orbrown. The green can develop nice stripes in the leaves underfavourable growing conditions while the red will take on analmost fuchsia tone to the undersides of its leaves. The bronzeunder good light can take on a deep brownish purple and itrather unique in its shading. The leaves are long and narrowand tend to hang in a broad spread. A good cover plant for themid level of the aquarium.Cryptocoryne crispatulaThe are a number of varieties to this plant, the most popularbeing balansae, with tonkinensis being another in my tanks. Thisis an interesting species as it has very rippled and texturedleaves that are long and thin….. growing well over 24 inches ingood conditions. It is a rich green colour and can take over acorner of a tank very easily.Cryptocoryne crispatula10

M A R C H 2 0 0 9Cryptocoryne parvaThis little thing is one of the smallest of crypts attaining fullgrowth at about 2 inches. It has smooth green leaves and lookslike a miniature sword plant. I find that these are hard plants tokeep, as they tend to need a lot of light or they quicklydegenerate and almost disappear, yet if given high light theytend to become covered with algae, which will retard theirgrowth and looks unsightly. Having CO2 present in the tankwill greatly improve the success in keeping this very niceforeground specimen.Cryptocoryne spiralisAnother variety that will grow tall and thin, this plant sends upleaves over 20 inches long that are about ¼ inch wide in widespiral patterns. These spirals are much looser that a corkscrewval but look quite interesting when the plant forms into severalstanding clumps. The ruffled edges also add to the texture andinterest of the plant.Cryptocoryne retrospiralisThis plant will form a thick tangle of woody roots like mostcrypts do and will develop leaves 6-12 inches tall that are a bitwider and more colourful than spiralis. Leaves will be green or arusty yellowish colour and will form into a bushy clump withshorter leaves as it gets root bound. A good mid level plant thatshould be divided up over time to encourage taller growth.Cryptocoryne blassiThis is an interesting plant as it is different from most crypts. Ithas a rather large rounded leaf 2-3 inches long, green on top buta brilliant fuchsia underneath. It grows 10-12 inches high andcan be quite a center piece when it meets its full colourpotential. It does seem to take a bit more acclimating as it’slarger leaves show the effects of melt more so than some of thefiner leaved plants but it is well worth looking for.sword-like narrowing to a fine point and with good light willtake on a reddish-brown coloration. It is good grower and willeasily form runners and form a nice clump of plants.Cryptocoryne pontederiifoliaA different looking plant, it is light green coloured with largespade shaped leaves. I have found it to be rather slow growingand more needy of light than most crypts. It takes some time toestablish but once it takes hold will send large root tendrils outthat will shoot up to form runner plants. It needs some spacebecause of its leaf size and upward growth pattern and makesfor a good mid tank specimen.Cryptocoryne lucensThis is a nice foreground or mid tank plant with smooth swordlikegreen leaves that give a clean and crisp appearance. Theleaves will grow 4-6 inches and will develop into a nice bushyclump about 12 inches tall. It seems relatively undemanding oflight and any other needs and has been an easy plant to grow.Cryptocoryne walkeriWalkeri is another variety that will form into a dense bushyclump over time and sometimes may look quite similar towendtii at first glance. It has rippled leaves that can be variedand mottled shades of green but will grow wider and a bitshorter. It should be used as a mid tank plant as it gets too thickand bushy and will outgrow a foreground placement and willget about 12 inches high but will take on a weeping form.Well, there you have a glimpse at just one species of Asian plantselections with many more varieties of crypts left to search for. Iwill revisit this part of the world in future articles. Next monththough, spring is in the air and it is time to clean off the gardentools. Get ready to head out and enjoy time with some pondplants along with their roles and uses. Thanks for reading andsee you again. - PlantEDCryptocoryne undulataCryptocoryne undulata and red wendtiiThis is a very nice plant that can be placed in the mid or rear ofthe tank as it can grow 15-18 inches tall but should have someroom to spread it attractive leaves. They are rippled with 11

M A R C H 2 0 0 9Avoid Being A Nervous FishkeeperSubmitted by Phil Maznyk, KWAS (pmaznyk@rogers.com). Photos by the author except as noted.Fishkeeping is supposed to be relaxingand fun. Is it not? Often it is, however justas often, it is not. Here are some reasonsthat fall into the latter category. Dead anddying fish, algae everywhere in the tank,heater and filter problems and fish thathide all the time. Is it any wonder thatnew hobbyists have high anxiety? Whatwill go wrong next? Why did I get intothis hobby in the first place? Those aretwo of the most common questions thatbeginner aquarists find themselves askingwhen things start to go wrong!When it comes to aquariums, preventionis everything. Curing a diseased fish isunfortunately, often as likely to fail, as itis to succeed. Continually removing algaewill become a nuisance chore veryquickly and never seeing those nice fishyou purchased can make us all wonderwhy we have an aquarium in the firstplace. It is logical to assume that thesolutions to all of these challenges couldwell be found in the initial approachtaken.12Scrubbing problem algae.Having too many fish in the tank, feedingthem too much, too often and notmaintaining good water quality are allgoing to result in sick fish that canquickly become dead fish! It is not aquestion of ‘if’ but ‘when’ will thishappen. You cannot maintain good waterquality if the organic load in theaquarium is too high. This is trueregardless of the size of tank and even thetype of filtration you choose. Wishing itwere not so, will not correct it! Researchyour fish, based on your particular tank’ssize and filtration, you can make aneducated guess on an appropriateamount of fish.Poorly maintained tank.The combination of excessive organiccompounds in the water, warm waterconditions and excessive light will alllead to algae problems. If there is lot oflight, particularly direct sunlight, you canhave an abundance of green algae in yourtank faster than you could imagine. Ifthere is less light, you could even end upwith an excess amount of brown algae.While not as difficult to clean as the greenform, it can still become an unpleasantsight. From a biological point of view,algae are simple single celled organismsthat are a naturally occurring componentof all aquatic environments, both inaquariums and outdoors in nature.Aquarists however, have the power tocontrol the intensity and duration oflighting that reaches our tank. You couldeven fill the tank with live plants. Theywill naturally absorb excess nutrients thatopportunistic algae are using to prosper.Too many nutrients, too much light.Photo from marchak.caFish will hide for many reasons. Somespecies however, are nocturnal. Theycome out mainly after you have turnedthe lights off. This behavioral pattern is adirect result of their natural evolution. Itis the way nature made them! Daytimepredatory fish are unable to efficientlyhunt in a dark aquarium. Many species offish, especially catfish, have sensitivebarbels to help locate the presence offood. They have adapted to being activemainly under the cover of darkness. Youare not going to change their naturalbehaviour by eliminating their hidingplaces. Doing this will only causeincreased stress levels for the fish, whilepreventing you from observing andappreciating the natural behaviour ofthese nocturnal fish.Nocturnal species.To prove this, take a small flashlight andplace a small piece of red plastic over thelens. Turn on the flashlight after dark andshine it in your tank. Fish will not be ableto see the red light. You might be verysurprised to see those elusive shy fishactive and out having a grand old time.My friends, the fish are only doing whatis natural for them. Some fish are, bydesign, quite timid and will only stay inview if they feel secure. Again, havingsufficient hiding places is very important.In this case, it will actually increase thelikelihood of seeing the fish more often.

M A R C H 2 0 0 9Tank with plenty of hiding spots.If you select aggressive fish for acommunity tank, any peaceful specieswill hide in order to avoid beingharassed. You can easily avoid suchproblems by knowing the general habitsand behaviour patterns of your fishbefore you actually purchase them.Take the time to think the habitat throughwell ahead of the actual fish purchase. Ifyou need more rock add it. If you needmore caves create them now. Doing all ofthis beforehand means you won’t beadding more stress while the fish aresettling into their new home.Peaceful community tank fish.Relaxing in the living room.Photo from Reid WilsonI have told numerous new hobbyists thatdone properly, fishkeeping does not needto cause anxiety and can actually becomea real stress reliever. Most of us pickedthis hobby as a way to relax. Choose yourfish carefully, do not overstock your tank,feed small amounts of food a few timeseach day. By doing regular water changeswith regular tank maintenance, you willvery soon discover that it isn’t thatdifficult and can truly provide you manyyears of enjoyment with little effort onyour part. - PhilAggressive species.Small Tales: The Super NeonSubmitted by “Mrs. CB” (forum handle), KWASYears ago, as a teenager, my dad and I thought it was a greatidea to have a fish tank. We were given a 20g tank without alid, a few decorations and a heater - so we thought we’d fill it.We went to the LFS and purchased a HOB filter, a light, andgravel.After we set it up and filled it with water from the kitchen tap,and switched the light on (and NEVER turned it off!) we satdown to decide how many fish and what kind of fish to get.Then we trotted back down to the store to make our purchases.We bought several goldfish, a few angelfish, some neons, and ofcourse the trusty pleco.Well as you might imagine, the angelfish started dying shortlyafter. When we called the fish store, they told us that thetemperature wasn’t warm enough. We cranked up the heater.The next morning the water in the tank was warmer than mybath water! The fish that were still alive (some goldfish, anangel, and 2 neons) were in serious trouble. We emptied half ofthe tank and topped it up with cooler water from the tap andthen waited.When things stabilized, off we went to replace our stock. Wedecided not to replace the pleco because we never saw himanyways. We also didn’t add anymore angel fish because theywere just too sensitive! We picked up some various tetras andcherry barbs, another goldfish or two, and shark or similar fish(I don’t remember exactly).The fish seemed to do alright for a while now that we hadstabilized the temperature, and continued to do our waterchanges: every week we stripped the tank down to about aninch of water in the bottom to keep the fish wet, and replacedthe water with tap water that was reasonably close intemperature to the water we took out. We scrubbed all the rockwork and cleaned the filter.Over time though, we lost fish after fish. When the last goldfishdied, we decided that we didn’t want the expense of replacingfish every week, so we would tear down the tank. As we wereemptying the tank and removing all decorations, out swam thislittle neon! I called him our miracle fish. Since we neverreplaced neons, I knew he was from the original batch. He hadsurvived everything! We immediately replaced the water wehad taken out, and let him have his very own tank. He didn’tlive for long (I wonder why?), but I was so proud of this littleSuper Neon! - Mrs. CB 13

M A R C H 2 0 0 9Breeding Tateurndina OcellicaudaBAP Report by Geoff Money, KWAS (gmoney@golden.net). Photos by aquariumpoetry.blogspot.com.This fish is commonly known as the Peacock Gudgeon andcomes from a family of fish known as Sleeper Gobies. This is abit of an “oddball” fish that is not very common in theaquariums.The fish comes from low land rivers and ponds of New Guinea,and is one of the most colourful fresh water fish available. Theyare very peaceful and undemanding; they can live with manytypes of non-aggressive fish.These fish tend to live low in the aquarium, but are willing tocome up for food when offered. In my experience theirfavourite food is blood worms, although they will take frozenbrine shrimp, but they are not too crazy about dried food, onlyeating it if there is nothing else and they are hungry.The fish love dark tight places in the aquarium, and that iswhere they will spawn.I setup a small 10 gallon aquarium for conditioning andspawning, I had a sponge filter and a thin layer of gravel on thebottom, and Java fern for some greenery. The temperature wasaround 76°F with a low wattage light on for 12 hours a day.The breeding aquarium also had three pieces of ½” diameterplastic PVC pipe, cut about 3” long, this would act as breedingcaves for laying eggs. I placed them in such a way that I couldsee inside the pipe.tank with the same water, and waited. I could see the frydeveloping in the eggs, everything looked good, and so Iwaited. The next day the eggs hatched (24-48hrs), I could seelittle tails sticking out the eggs and the following day all weregone and the male was swimming around.I went through the same scenario a few times wondering what Iwas doing wrong. Every time the male would eat the fry oncethey had hatched. So next time I removed the eggs and pipe butno male, only to see the eggs fungus.The secret here is to wait for the eggs to develop, leave the maleto look after the eggs. Just before the eggs hatch remove themale and use an air stone to fan the eggs until they hatch,success!!!!!!.The fry are quite small, I used a mature sponge filter and“liquidfry” for the first week and then microworms, until theyare able to take baby brine shrimp, from then on it was clearsailing. As the fry grow they are able to take different types offood and plenty of it.A batch of 30-50 fry seems about normal, I’m sure the batcheswill get larger as the females grow.So if you are looking for a bit of a challenge give these fish a try.- GeoffSexing the Gudgeons is quite easy, the male is larger than thefemale, he also has a larger head with a bit of a lump, like somemale cichlids, but not as large. The females head and body ismore streamline with a bright yellow colour on the abdominalarea.I placed six fish in the breeding tank, two males and fourfemales, I started conditioning by feeding frozen foods everyday, with a 25% water change once a week, in most cases I usedrain water with tap water added to bring it up to the correcttemperature.Within a few weeks, one of the males really coloured up, andthis is where you see a little aggression. He would do a littlechasing around the tank, but nothing harmful. I next noticedtwo fish sitting side by side in one of the pipes just waving finsat each other, so this looked like a good sign, and sure enoughthe next day I saw eggs hanging from the ceiling inside the pipeand the male fanning the eggs. He will guard and care for theeggs with constant fanning until they hatch.This is the tricky part; I lifted the pipe with my finger over oneend and placed the pipe, the male and the eggs into anotherPeacock Gudgeon - Male (top), Female (bottom)14

February Jar Show StandingsJudged by Anthony Mc AslinM A R C H 2 0 0 9Rift Lake Cichlids SpeciesPointsZenin Skomorowski Pseudotropheus socolofi 4Tony Gibbons Aulonocara stuartgranti 3Alan SmileyProtomelus virgatus Gome2Alan SmileyAulonocara stuartgranti Chilumba1Zenin Skomorowski Astatilapia latifasciata 1Geoff Money Otophenynx lithobattes 1Junior Rift Lake CichlidsJohnathan Samson Synotilapia hara 4Griffen Quigley Julidichromis kipli 3Johnathan Samson Griffen QuigleyAcei2Hap 441AOV AdultsZenin SkomorowskiGeoff MoneyGeoff MoneyNeon Dwarf Rainbow4Black Lyretail Molly3Corydoris anenus2AOV JuniorsJohnathan SamsonGriffen QuigleyGriffen QuigleyJohnathan SamsonPeoples ChoiceAlan SmileyPlakat Betta4Golden Wonder Killie3Longfin Albino Cory2Crowntail Betta1Protomelus virgatus Gome2Adult TotalsZenin Skomorowski 20Geoff Money16Al Ridley7Alan Smiley5Tony Gibbons 3Junior Totals Griffen Quigley 26Johnathan Samson 11March’s class is Characins which include all tetras, silverdollars, headstanders, etc.For future classes visit: http://www.kwas.ca/jar_show.htm 15

Meeting MinutesGeneral Meeting on Feb 3rd, 2009Submitted by Lezley Smith, KWASWelcome guests. There were 45 peoplepresent including 3 guests.Announcements• Welcome guests• Memberships dues are to be given toMiecia• Shop Hop, there will be approx. 10-20people going. We will meet at the 401and Homer-Watson carpool lot at 9amon Feb 21BAP:Geoff Money received a certificate forbreeding Tateurndina ocellicanda (PeacockGudgeons)HAP: none to reportName that Fish:This month’s “Name That Fish” was ayoung pair of Sulphur Crested Lithobates(Otopharynx lithobates) donated by GeoffMoney. They were guessed by TerryClements.This month’s “Name That Non-Fish” wasa Glass Scraper (Raschiettus vetri) guessedby Kaitlynn Cook.Program:Rein Breitmaier spoke about his differenttrips with a question and answer period.Show Jar:Six people submitted 18 entries. Detailedresults in newsletter and on website.Library Draw:$14.00 won by Alicia SummerRaffle:There were two prizes of Goldfish PondFood with a container won by ToddHenry and Cindi Butler.M A R C H 2 0 0 9Business Meeting on Feb 10th 2009Meeting was held at Geoff Money’shome.Regrets: Cam Turner, Brad McClanahan,Katie McClanahan, Charity Gilmore.Miecia BurdenMotion to approve January’s businessmeeting minutes as published.Motion: Zenin SkomorowskiSeconded: Phil MaznykVoted on and carriedAmendment to the previous minutes:Under New Business instead of "therewill be a little change in our programpresentation", it should have said that"there will be a change in our meetingformat."Motion to approve February’s generalminutes as delivered by email:Motion: Al RidleySeconded: Ed KoernerVoted on and carriedFuture business meeting hosts:February: GeoffMarch: MieciaApril: CamMay:June: ZeninTreasurer’s Report (Brad McClanahan):Read by Geoff in Brad’s absenceMotioned: Zenin SkomorowskiSeconded: Ed KoernerVoted on and carriedCorrespondence: None.Committee Reports:NL Editor/Publisher (Cam): Absent• Printing receipts submitted to Brad atthe Feb general meeting. Well withinthe $0.50/copy budget.• Thanks to Phil and Zenin for Preeditingarticles. Makes our jobmanageable.• Emailed many other publications readvertising rates. Ours are on-par forB&W ads with the circulation/membership we have. If ourmembership gets over 150 then weshould consider revisiting the ratesotherwise not.• Will be contacting local LFS stores(unless the pet store liaisons should dothis instead) to ask about advertising.Looking for a total of 1.5 pages moreB&W advertising to make up foraquatech canceling.• Also seeking two full page, full colouradvertisers to increase the colour spacefor member articles that are heavy onthe photos (Phil's, Zenin's and TMAmostly). Have advertising contact infofor Tropica, Hagen, Seachem andZooMed. Will seek others if they aren'tinterested.Webmaster (Phil):• Going well overall.• All three forum buy and sell sectionswill be changed to "read only" to tryand keep the sellers information clearand concise.• Forum marine section expanded to twosections as it is a very busy section• Invertebrate forum section added• Behind the scenes forum challenges andissues discussed• Section for KWAS members only, clubnews etc. to be discussed at the nextmeeting.• Al and Phil will continue to monitorwith the Executive’s support.Program (Al):March: Catharine Salmon on BettasApril: Setting up a pondMay: Kate Gallagher on ShrimpJune: Pizza party and tank drawExchanges (Zenin):Going well16

CAOAC (Phil):• Phil has volunteered to be the CAOACrep, nomination accepted.M A R C H 2 0 0 9Our proceeds from our Library drawfor March will go to the CDAS.Membership (Miecia): absentPet Store Liaison (Zenin, Al):Zenin placed CAOAC convention cardsand flyers in the different stores.• Reviewed all clubs who are part ofCAOAC that have renewed for 2009with insurance coverage• Looking for any photos of pastconventions for their 50 th this year. E-mail Paul McIntoshpdmcintosh@rogers.com• Would like all clubs to help promotethis year’s event on their websites andforums. They have produced a fullcolour post card that Pet Store Liaisonscan distribute.• There will be a silent auction at thisyear’s event. If anyone has somethingto contribute they can contact TonyBernard namansi@yahoo.com• Cambridge Aquarium Club is lookingfor donations of books for their library.The following articles are proposed by the executive and BODas replacements for the corresponding articles in our currentconstitution. They will be voted on at the next general meeting.Article ILoss of Membership: Any member, whose actions may bedeemed detrimental to the best interests of KWAS, may bedropped from the membership and mailing lists in an expedientmanner, by a majority vote at a special closed meeting of theexecutive members only. (Subject to article IV- special).Article IVClosure: Any decision taken at a General or Business meetingshall not be revisited for (1) full year without a two thirds (2/3)majority vote of the general membership to reconsider.Article VIIProcess - Executive memberAuction (Ed): going wellLibrary (David):• Zenin placed the DVD of WonderfulWorld of Fish Keeping in the library.1. A formal written complaint must be presented to the KWASExecutive by a KWAS member in good standing.• We will review our library for duplicatebooks that we can also donate toCambridge.Raffle (Charity): absentHAP (Filipe): progressing wellBAP (Miecia): none to reportNTF (Zenin): going wellShow Jar (Anthony): going well with lotsof new people enteringLunch (Katie): absent3. Notice of intent:• Send a letter to the person involved• An insert attached to the newsletter or e-mail to themembership.4. A vote will be taken at a general meeting at which “noticeof intent” has been given. A two-thirds (2/3) majority voteof the members present is required for dismissal.Process - BOD or General Member1. A formal written complaint must be presented to the KWASExecutive by a KWAS member in good standing.2. If time allows an Ad Hoc committee made up of two (2)officers and two (2) senior members-at-large will be createdby the executive to investigate the complaints and reportback to the executive. If time does not allow, Article 1, lossof membership shall apply.The executive will decide if an investigation is warranted.3. Notice of intent:Al is in need of flyers . Zenin will askCharity about getting more flyers printed.Oktoberfish:Al Ridley was asked to be theOktoberfish Chair and accepted. Mieciaand Geoff will handle the Show Roomand Ed will handle the Auction Room.Old Business:Shop Hop in February – Six $40 gas cardswill be given to the drivers.Motion: AlSeconded: ZeninVoted on and CarriedNew Business:The following constitution changes havebeen accepted by the Executive and BOD,to be voted on at the next meeting.KWAS Constitution Review & Proposed Changes2. If time allows an Ad Hoc committee made up of two (2)officers and two (2) senior members-at-large will be createdby the executive to investigate the complaints and reportback to the executive. If time does not allow, Article 1, lossof membership shall apply.The executive will decide if an investigation is warranted.• Send a letter to the person involved4. A vote will be taken at a special closed meeting of theexecutive. 17

M A R C H 2 0 0 9My Recipe for Peppered CatfishBAP Report by Ed Koerner, KWAS (edkoerner@sympatico.ca). Corydoras PaleatusPeppered Catfish1 large, plump, ripe female2-3 males who are ready to goMixed greens & stuffing mixFresh cold water or snowFirst, place female and males into a prepared tank. In my case Iused a 75G with sand for a substrata. A 20G would be fine, but Ihad this 75G plant grow out with nothing else of note except fora few plecos… whatever works. Take greens and mix wellthrough out the tank to provide shelter and targets for eggs.Wide leaves of crypts and swords work best for this as theyhave room for the eggs to adhere to. Set temperature to 76-78degrees F and let sit.Over the next week or two condition with good foods – I foundthat the corys loved black worms and would literally try pullingthem from each other like a scene out of Lady and the Tramp. Thefemale became huge and bloated and I honestly was concernedthat she would burst. Some frozen brine shrimp and variousflakes supplemented their diet.After the conditioning stint, all that was needed was a waterchange. I did a 20% change and used a 50/50 mixture of tapwater and melting snow that was fresh and cold. This broughtthe temperature down to the low 70’s and I added some moresnow a few hours later.my hands though in a fry tank I had running for a few angels…soft water (rain/snow) with some mosses and a sponge filter.I placed them among some moss and waited. After 3 days Idiscovered small little black things wiggling around. They hadthe appearance of a tadpole with a wide tail and very shortquick bursts of movement. The next day I also found some ofthese little gaffers in the original breeding tank. Apparentlyeggs had been laid around the tank on plants and I hadn’t seenthese. I did not feed anything as the fry seemed to be findingmore than enough scouring the tank bottom. I did no waterchanges during this time either as I had read how sensitive coryfry are to changes in water parameters.After two weeks they started looking like miniature corys,getting fuller in the mid section and the dorsal being morepronounced. They still moved in very quick sudden movementsand seemed to find more than enough food scraps on thebottom of the tank. I now did a small water change as there wasa lot of detritus accumulating on the tank bottom. After a monththe fry were about ¾ inch long and looked like the adults. Ifound that the fry kept in the 75 gallon tank are growingnoticeably quicker than those in a 25 gallon tank. Conditions arepretty much the same in both.The 75 gallon “breeding” tank is set up with about 50% tapwater (and sometimes I even add conditioner) and 50%rainwater or snow. It runs at 76 F with one AC 500 filter and 176watts of lighting. The tank has a good inch of white silica sandand is filled with plants of various varieties. Subsequent spawnstend to happen within two days of a water change or addingmore snow to bring down the water temperature. - EdA day later I found clusters of eggs on the glass about 2 inchesfrom the top. There were several groupings, with 16-20 eggs pergroup. The first few I left and they disappeared over night. Thenext afternoon I found more and a BN pleco up right beside onegrouping. He quickly swam off but I saw a guilty look in hiseyes and I felt that he had been responsible for thedisappearance of the first eggs. I took the blade of a utility knifeand carefully attempted to scrape off the eggs. I was afraid thatthey would squish and be very soft but was surprised that theywere a very firm gel consistency and they came off quite easily.They are rather sticky though, so you remove them from theblade with your fingers, only to have an interesting timeremoving them from your fingers. I managed to wash them offPeppered Catfish served over fresh mixed greens.18

M A R C H 2 0 0 9February Name That FishSubmitted by Zenin Skomorowski, KWAS (zenin@golden.net). All photos by the author.Sulphur Crested Lithobates (Otopharynx lithobates)This month’s “Name That Fish” was a young pair of SulphurCrested Lithobates (Otopharynx lithobates) donated by GeoffMoney. They were guessed by Terry Clements.They originally come from Lake Malawi in East Africa. Theirmostly carnivore diet should include frozen shrimp, krill, liveworms, insects and high protein flakes and pellets to bring outtheir colour highlights.Young males have a blue/yellow/orange body with some darkblotches, a blue head and an orange tipped dorsal fin. Oldermales have all blue bodies with a yellow blaze running fromthe dorsal down the forehead. The female is silver-grey withsome dark blotches. She will mouth brood eggs and fry forseveral weeks. Try to move her to a brooding tank because themale will continue harassment to breed.Glass Scraper (Raschiettus vetri)A minimum of 30 gallons should be provided to start, and alarger volume as they grow . They may end up measuring upto 12.5 cm (5 inches). Hiding places in piles of rocks should beprovided, and a sand substrate is preferred. The water shouldcontain calcium compounds found in hard water and can be ina range of pH from 7.8 to 9.0. Temperature can be 24 to 27C (75to 81F).This month’s “Name That Non-Fish” was a Glass Scraper(Raschiettus vetri) guessed by Kaitlynn Cook.It has a non-slip soft grip and is about 33 cm (13 inches) long.The stainless steel blade will remove algae from glass. It shouldnot be used on acrylic or plastic aquariums to avoid causingscratches. Great care should also be taken not to disturbsilicone seals. The angled head makes it easier to clean in thelower corners. 19

M A R C H 2 0 0 9Join our forums @ www.kwas.ca/forumWith over 4,000 unique visitors every month our forums are amongst the most active of any ‘local’ hobby club. With membersfrom all over the world, but especially all over Canada, the wealth of knowledge and advice is astounding. The moderators andadministrators take great pride in maintaining top quality discussion, debate and information and it shows. Thanks to everyonewho participates already. For everyone who hasn’t (yet), come join us and see what all the fuss is about!Come to our meetings. We love to have guests.KWAS meets on the first Tuesday of each month from September until June at the Adult Recreation Centre at 185 King StreetSouth in Waterloo (at the corner of King and Allen). We meet on the second floor in the large multi-purpose room. Parking is atthe rear of the building. The meeting room opens at 7 PM with the meeting starting at 7:30 PM sharp. Please feel free to come outat any time and learn more about your hobby, KWAS and the many benefits of belonging to our club.Guests are welcome any time.Bring your friends and showthem what our club is allabout!MeetingParking20