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Roots Dyed Dark - Low Tech Blackwater (updated 08-04-14)

A couple of snaps off my phone.

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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

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Love the look of this, Lee!

Ime the hygro doesn't tank to do well in a low tech. Why not try some, Araguaia? This does much better in low tech conditions
Plant Details

Thanks Ian! Thats a great suggestion, it would be nice to have a little bit of colour too. I might give that a try. :)
 
Nice one. Give them a few days to settle in and they'll be looking much better. Mine had completely healed their fins and coloured up (as much as they have for their age) within about 4-5 days.

Yeah, they seem to have improved over night. The blacks on the body seem to have darkened up, i didn't expect to see changes so quickly. They were out in force last night when the lights started to dim, I had all 7 at the front of the tank. Such a great little fish to watch. They seem to love the wee beasties mate, i often see them stalking the seed shrimp in the substrate. :)
 
Is that a maculatus in the picture? If so, those paros are tiny!
 
Hi all,
The paros are quite small mate, i think they are probably about 20mm long give or take at the minute. They should grow a little bigger though, probably to about 40mm
I've had some for a couple of years (2 male "Bintan") and that is about as big as they've got. These look in good condition and their tales look very spade shaped, meaning that they might really be the true P. filamentosus <http://www.parosphromenus-project.org/en/filamentosus.html>.

Cheers Darrel
 
Hi all,
I've had some for a couple of years (2 male "Bintan") and that is about as big as they've got. These look in good condition and their tales look very spade shaped, meaning that they might really be the true P. filamentosus <http://www.parosphromenus-project.org/en/filamentosus.html>.

Cheers Darrel

Ah! I didn't know you had some paro Darrel. Have you had any success with breeding? Yea as you say i think they are probably P. filamentosus, the filament on the caudal and dorsal fins are quite pronounced. As you say we can't be sure though, at least until they start producing some colour. :)
 
Hi all,
Have you had any success with breeding?
No I only bought a pair (they were an impulsive purchase in MA at Brislington on the way back from a funeral, which may have effected me), they looked very sad for themselves, they colored up really quickly, but both proved to be males. They live in the back of the lab. and I don't see them for months at a time. There is one in the left of the photo, just above the dead leaf, and the other is facing to towards us, about 6 cm to the right of it.
They have spectacular blue iridescence in their fins < Parosphromenus sp. &#8216;Sentang&#8217; (Parosphromenus sp. sintangensis) &mdash; Seriously Fish> and usually when I've seen them they have been displaying at each other (fins out, head down), other times they don't venture out of the jungle very often.
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I've actually just bought 5 more (same arrangement, MA at Melksham this time, I felt sorry for them, they looked like colorless, emaciated tadpoles). They are too young to sex, or ID, positively yet, but at least 2 look like males, and my suspicion would be that they are also near to P. "Bintan". They were labelled as P. "sumatranus", so a newly flattened ex rain-forest in Sumatra looks like a possible origin, and "Bintan" is from Sumatra.

I've got them in with 2 (also rescued) Chocolate Gouramis in the kitchen. From my limited experience of both Chocolate and Licorice Gouramis they are fairly straight forward to keep in a planted tank with soft water and live food.

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I'm aiming to re-home the Chocolate Gouramis to some-one who already has a colony and after that I may have a bit of a swap around.

cheers Darrel
 

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Hi all,
I agree on them being hard to resist in a LFS - you just know they're 99% doomed if you don't pick them up.
Difficult isn't it? It is like being able to buy a Tarsier or an Orangutan in your local shop, it is just wrong, but if you don't buy the ones in the LFS they are doomed: <http://www.parosphromenus-project.org/en/politic/actual/biodiversity.html>.

I saw the sumatranus post, (and your and Lee's postings). I think quite a few of us have been having a close look at the "Parosphromenus project" forum recently.

cheers Darrel
 
Hi all,
Difficult isn't it? It is like being able to buy a Tarsier or an Orangutan in your local shop, it is just wrong, but if you don't buy the ones in the LFS they are doomed: <http://www.parosphromenus-project.org/en/politic/actual/biodiversity.html>.

I saw the sumatranus post, (and your and Lee's postings). I think quite a few of us have been having a close look at the "Parosphromenus project" forum recently.

cheers Darrel

On it all the time but havent registered. I think id go against their consensus of needing small tanks for them :/
 
Hi all, No I only bought a pair (they were an impulsive purchase in MA at Brislington on the way back from a funeral, which may have effected me), they looked very sad for themselves, they colored up really quickly, but both proved to be males. They live in the back of the lab. and I don't see them for months at a time. There is one in the left of the photo, just above the dead leaf, and the other is facing to towards us, about 6 cm to the right of it.
They have spectacular blue iridescence in their fins < Parosphromenus sp. &#8216;Sentang&#8217; (Parosphromenus sp. sintangensis) &mdash; Seriously Fish> and usually when I've seen them they have been displaying at each other (fins out, head down), other times they don't venture out of the jungle very often.
parotank_view_crop.jpg


I've actually just bought 5 more (same arrangement, MA at Melksham this time, I felt sorry for them, they looked like colorless, emaciated tadpoles). They are too young to sex, or ID, positively yet, but at least 2 look like males, and my suspicion would be that they are also near to P. "Bintan". They were labelled as P. "sumatranus", so a newly flattened ex rain-forest in Sumatra looks like a possible origin, and "Bintan" is from Sumatra.

I've got them in with 2 (also rescued) Chocolate Gouramis in the kitchen. From my limited experience of both Chocolate and Licorice Gouramis they are fairly straight forward to keep in a planted tank with soft water and live food.

photo2_zpsf966be53.jpg


I'm aiming to re-home the Chocolate Gouramis to some-one who already has a colony and after that I may have a bit of a swap around.

cheers Darrel

Ah! I don't blame you mate, i always feel sorry for them too. However when i picked mine up they were housed in the shops CRS tank, so the water would have probably been fairly soft and acidic... So it was nice to see them in fairly good condition. I have seen them in tap water though and they always look terrible.

I think Alastair is probably the best bet for re-homing your chocolates. They couldn't go to a better place than the lake :)
 

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On it all the time but havent registered. I think id go against their consensus of needing small tanks for them :/

I agree with Tom, Alastair. The guys over at PP would love to see your tank, and would be very interested to hear about your breeding success, especially given that it's a non conventional tank for breeding paros. Get it posted, i think you will get a very good response.
 
Looks good Lee!
(for great tankshots a lens with macrocapabilities and a off-camera flashlight are nice, but i'd say invest in a cheap tripod first, to be able to freeze the camera helps the most at start, luckily with digital you can take 100 pics and only use the one that came out very good)
 
Looks good Lee!
(for great tankshots a lens with macrocapabilities and a off-camera flashlight are nice, but i'd say invest in a cheap tripod first, to be able to freeze the camera helps the most at start, luckily with digital you can take 100 pics and only use the one that came out very good)

Thanks Ed. As you say i think i will just buy a cheap tripod and have a play about. I need to learn what the different settings on the camera do, and how to use them appropriately. Its all good fun :)
 
Right! I've got a bit of a problem. I've been away from home most of the day, and this morning i stupidly asked my wife to feed the fish some brine shrimp. I gave clear instructions and told her not to feed to much (i even showed her how much to feed), i got home tonight at 10, and found the tank swimming in brine shrimp. I've just done a 15% water change to try and get rid of some of the shrimp but theres still loads in the tank. Obviously they are gonna die soon and probably cause an ammonia spike which is the last thing i want. Am i right in thinking its best to do some small water changes over the next few days? Is there any thing else i should be thinking about?

She is defiantly banned now :mad:
 
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