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Lake Tanganyika Riparium

I would love to see a vid of this setup with the fish.:watching:
I'll try to get video next week.

For right now it doesn't look like so much because these new cichlids just hide all the time. So do the catfish.
 
I'm getting this tank into shape and the plants are starting to grow in. The planting is still sort of thin for a very good FTS picture, but I got this quick photo to show some of the foliage. The red plant on the right is Hibiscus acetosella African rose mallow. This plant is a true East Africa species, so it represents the flora of that area. The grassy plant is Phalaris 'Strawberries & Cream' ribbon grass. I have this fast-growing grass planted in several planters to make a grassy background.

The catfish and the new julie cichlids just hide all the time. I hope that I can track down some kind of suitable shoaling fish to add.

27-III-13-vegetation-I-m1.jpg
 
Here's a quick FTS! The riparium planting is rather thin needs to grow in some more. These plants all grow pretty fast, so it should be looking pretty full in about six weeks.

27-III-13-tank-II-m.jpg
 
Here are a couple more shots. Like I mentioned before, the riparium planting needs to grow in some more, but it looks more full if you view it from the side.

27-III-13-tank-IV-m.jpg


27-III-13-tank-III-m.jpg
 
Here's another new plant that I am trying out in this setup.

St. Job's tears (Coix lacryma) is a tropical grass related to corn (Zea mays) that grows well in wet soils. It is pretty easy to start from seed and these are seedlings that I got about six weeks after sowing.

10-V-13-Coix-lacryma-I.jpg


This plant can grow to 48"+ tall, but I hope that I will be able to control its size with pruning. I already put all of these little seedlings in riparium planters and I have more sprouting on the way.
 
I got back to work on this tank and now I have it replanted and all cleaned up. The water is crystal clear.

This morning I got a quick shot with the morning sun shining through.

17-IV-13-tank-I-m.jpg


The planting will be looking good with about six weeks to grow in.
 
Hi all,
Looking good in the sunshine, like the Julies as well. I'm very tempted by Tanganyikan cichlids, I like Cichlids and I like interesting fish. I found myself looking at the "Escargot" in the supermarket the other day, and it definitely wasn't the snails that interested me, it was their shells.
St. Job's tears (Coix lacryma)
This is one that you can get seed of fairly easily in the UK, so I'll be interested in the result.

cheers Darrel
 
Hi all,
Looking good in the sunshine, like the Julies as well. I'm very tempted by Tanganyikan cichlids, I like Cichlids and I like interesting fish. I found myself looking at the "Escargot" in the supermarket the other day, and it definitely wasn't the snails that interested me, it was their shells.
This is one that you can get seed of fairly easily in the UK, so I'll be interested in the result.

cheers Darrel

I like these julies a lot. They are one of the best fish that I have kept. With that opaque charcoal black coloration they really look more like a marine fish.

The Coix lacryma rew very well in the riparium planters, but it started to get tall fast. I think it would work in a larger setup or a setup with a more vertical kind of orientation. Each plant has just a few long leaf blades, so I recommend putting several in each planter so that they will fill out more.

I'd also like to know how the Coix lacryma works out. Is it something that would do well planted in about 10" of water?

It grew very well in the riparium planters. I would guess that it would do best with its crown not much below the water level, so 10" might be too deep.

Here's a couple more quick shots.

17-VI-13-tank-II-m.jpg


17-VI-13-tank-III-m.jpg
 
Now the plants have had a couple of weeks to start to grow in. They look pretty good.

29-VI-13-tank-I-m.jpg


Here you can see the new Lake Inle danios. These seem like a real good "stand in" choice as a shoaling species for a Tanganyika setup. They look real good with the julies and the Synodontis.

29-VI-13-tank-II-m.jpg
 
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