Jelimafish
CCA Members
Sorry for such a long post but I wanted to ensure that I included as much information as possible.
I purchased (4) Brevis almost 2 weeks ago and had a few questions. I will include my Tank Parameters First just to make things slightly easier.
Size: 20 Gallon Temp: 78 F PH: 8.2 Nitrite: 0 Nitrate: >20 PPM GH: 180 KH: 240
When I purchased (4) Brevis from my LFS I had been using Zebra Danios to cycle the tank. My original plan was to get Similis or Multis however the fell through but I am actually quite happy with my purchase. I currently have a second tank cycling as my I am hoping I have some good luck at the BFD but anyway back to my current situation.
Out of the (4) Brevis there is (1) that is the largest (2) roughly the same size and (1) that is less the Half the size of the largest however I am not sure this is due to Gender. The larger 3 basically separated the tank into 3 sections and while they do occasionally lip-lock they tend to stay in their sections except for when it comes time to feed them. The smallest basically stayed closer to the mid to upper level of the tank with the Danios and while he was chased a bit the Danios got the brunt of it (Nothing overly aggressive - not even nipped fins - Just Chasing).
For the first week or so I left the Zebra Danios in with them however they used the entire tank and I thought it would be best to remove them as they have no sense of boundaries. Unfortunately instead of chasing the Danios the larger Brevis (especially the largest) started chasing the smallest Brevis (Nothing overly aggressive yet but it is almost as if he has become a dither). Around this same time I also added a rock to block the line of sight a bit however the largest Brevis now simply swims above the rock and goes almost vertical with his tail towards the surface and face towards the bottom to scan the tank. After removing the Danios I did not see the smallest Brevis for almost 3 days so today I decided to use a bright flashlight with the lights off to see If I could find it within a shell and the light did make it leave the shell however he could not get back to a shell until the lights went off. Today while removing some waste and uneaten food I noticed the smallest Brevis attempt to leave the shell but was instantly pushed back inside by the second largest. The second largest Brevis occasionally goes into the shell with the smallest but for the most part uses the shell directly next to it. I can see the smallest one however it has not come out to eat for about 2 days at this point.
I recently decided to take a more hands-off approach as I think my constant worrying and changing things has not been helpful however before going completely hands-off I figured I should get some input so I have listed a few questions below.
1. Is it normal for a Shell Dweller to not leave a shell for so long? At what point should I just move the smallest to another tank?
2. (Separate Issue) I noticed that a uneaten food and waster tends to stay in certain sections of the tank. Should I lower the intake tube on my HOB? I have an Intake Sponge so I am not too worried about sand. I also ordered a Sponge Filter last night and plan on putting it on the other side of the tank to increase aeration, add some extra biological media, and hopefully keep too much debris from settling. Will this be beneficial or am I wasting my time? (I have been using a "Turkey Baster" to remove uneaten food and waste so that I do not have to do a full water change but once again I want to be a little more hands-off.
3. I know that my current setup does not allow me to add much else as it would increase the bio-load however is there something small that can be added the would help to clear uneaten food without eating any eggs or fry that may come from the Brevis? I have heard so many mixed things about MTS I am not sure if I should even bother.
4. As I stated above this was originally set up for Multis or Similis however with the Brevis I am slightly concerned that I have too many shells. I currently have 24 Extra Large Escargot Shells for the 4 Brevis. Could this be causing some of the territorial aggression as many of the fish have claimed 6-8 shells within there territory. If I was to leave 8-12 shells and separate them a bit could this help the smallest Brevis find a shell or should I give it some more time? (Speaking of the shells I have noticed the uneaten food and waste does tend to fall within the shells that are within a territory but not used often which kind of goes back to question 1 and 2)
5. If the chasing/aggression continues should I re-add the Danios or is there a better suited fish for this? My daughter does have some Mickey Mouse Platys which are currently cycling the second tank along with the (3) Danios that I removed.
I have included a few photos taken 2 days ago below of each fish just for reference. (Please excuse the lighting - this is a work in progress)
Largest Brevis:
Medium Brevis 1:
Medium Brevis 2:
Smallest Brevis:
I think that is all of the questions that I can think of at the moment and any help is greatly appreciated.
I purchased (4) Brevis almost 2 weeks ago and had a few questions. I will include my Tank Parameters First just to make things slightly easier.
Size: 20 Gallon Temp: 78 F PH: 8.2 Nitrite: 0 Nitrate: >20 PPM GH: 180 KH: 240
When I purchased (4) Brevis from my LFS I had been using Zebra Danios to cycle the tank. My original plan was to get Similis or Multis however the fell through but I am actually quite happy with my purchase. I currently have a second tank cycling as my I am hoping I have some good luck at the BFD but anyway back to my current situation.
Out of the (4) Brevis there is (1) that is the largest (2) roughly the same size and (1) that is less the Half the size of the largest however I am not sure this is due to Gender. The larger 3 basically separated the tank into 3 sections and while they do occasionally lip-lock they tend to stay in their sections except for when it comes time to feed them. The smallest basically stayed closer to the mid to upper level of the tank with the Danios and while he was chased a bit the Danios got the brunt of it (Nothing overly aggressive - not even nipped fins - Just Chasing).
For the first week or so I left the Zebra Danios in with them however they used the entire tank and I thought it would be best to remove them as they have no sense of boundaries. Unfortunately instead of chasing the Danios the larger Brevis (especially the largest) started chasing the smallest Brevis (Nothing overly aggressive yet but it is almost as if he has become a dither). Around this same time I also added a rock to block the line of sight a bit however the largest Brevis now simply swims above the rock and goes almost vertical with his tail towards the surface and face towards the bottom to scan the tank. After removing the Danios I did not see the smallest Brevis for almost 3 days so today I decided to use a bright flashlight with the lights off to see If I could find it within a shell and the light did make it leave the shell however he could not get back to a shell until the lights went off. Today while removing some waste and uneaten food I noticed the smallest Brevis attempt to leave the shell but was instantly pushed back inside by the second largest. The second largest Brevis occasionally goes into the shell with the smallest but for the most part uses the shell directly next to it. I can see the smallest one however it has not come out to eat for about 2 days at this point.
I recently decided to take a more hands-off approach as I think my constant worrying and changing things has not been helpful however before going completely hands-off I figured I should get some input so I have listed a few questions below.
1. Is it normal for a Shell Dweller to not leave a shell for so long? At what point should I just move the smallest to another tank?
2. (Separate Issue) I noticed that a uneaten food and waster tends to stay in certain sections of the tank. Should I lower the intake tube on my HOB? I have an Intake Sponge so I am not too worried about sand. I also ordered a Sponge Filter last night and plan on putting it on the other side of the tank to increase aeration, add some extra biological media, and hopefully keep too much debris from settling. Will this be beneficial or am I wasting my time? (I have been using a "Turkey Baster" to remove uneaten food and waste so that I do not have to do a full water change but once again I want to be a little more hands-off.
3. I know that my current setup does not allow me to add much else as it would increase the bio-load however is there something small that can be added the would help to clear uneaten food without eating any eggs or fry that may come from the Brevis? I have heard so many mixed things about MTS I am not sure if I should even bother.
4. As I stated above this was originally set up for Multis or Similis however with the Brevis I am slightly concerned that I have too many shells. I currently have 24 Extra Large Escargot Shells for the 4 Brevis. Could this be causing some of the territorial aggression as many of the fish have claimed 6-8 shells within there territory. If I was to leave 8-12 shells and separate them a bit could this help the smallest Brevis find a shell or should I give it some more time? (Speaking of the shells I have noticed the uneaten food and waste does tend to fall within the shells that are within a territory but not used often which kind of goes back to question 1 and 2)
5. If the chasing/aggression continues should I re-add the Danios or is there a better suited fish for this? My daughter does have some Mickey Mouse Platys which are currently cycling the second tank along with the (3) Danios that I removed.
I have included a few photos taken 2 days ago below of each fish just for reference. (Please excuse the lighting - this is a work in progress)
Largest Brevis:
I think that is all of the questions that I can think of at the moment and any help is greatly appreciated.
