Like I said, the turtles quickly outgrew the 15-gallon tank they called home. I upgraded to a 46-gallon. Hopefully this will last at least couple of years...it will be kind of crowded if both grow up to be 10" long. We will see.
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Power Nap
Mr. Sun taking a nap during the afternoon...totally aware that I was doing a photo shoot for him.
Dinner!
Mr. Sun enjoying dinner at his new home. Like Miss Mi, he looked tiny in the new home...well, not for long.
New Home
OK, I finally got a bigger home for the turtles. This time, it was a 15-gallon tank. Miss Mi looked tiny in this thing on the moving date. It was hard to imagine that she would soon outgrow this tank in merely 10-month time.
Escape Attempt
One of the turtle got sick and I had to send it back. So I was left with two. I placed them in this bowl while I changed water for their home. The bottom of this bowl isn't even big enough for two quarters to lie flat. That should give you an idea how big (or small) the turtles were.
Basking
I think Miss Mi is the smartest turtle of the three. She quickly figured out the little island in the center is used for basking. This was less than 24 hours after she arrived! The other turtles never quite learned it...or were just too shy.
Three's a crowd
OK, I blogged enough about the fish...what about some turtles? This picture was taken right before I placed them in this island habitat I purchased along with the red-ear sliders. They quickly outgrew it. The little tank only lasted about a month.
Energizer Bunny
The big guy is going at it again...man, I think I am going to see more baby fish. He is like an energizer bunny. He just keeps going, going, and going...
Hemichromic bimacultaus
Jewel Cichlid, another new member of the cichlid tank. This is the only non-Malawi cichlid in the tank. My niece insisted on getting it. I was worried that it might be devoured by the mbuna but it stood its own.
Playing Catch-up
The fry still schooled together, just like how they were in the mother's mouth. One was left behind and was swimming hard to try to catch up.
Translucense
More fish fry, from a new batch. It's barely 2-day old. You can see that it hasn't fully consumed the yolk yet. It has got a cool translucent body.
Fighting its Reflection
The betta, who sees its own reflection in the lens of the camera, displays aggression through flaring.
Fish Fry
One of the fish fry. I thought he is a male based on the hint of blue but it turned out to be a female.
Product of Love
First surviving offsprings. Some of the fish from this batch still live in the tank today.
Mating Ritual
Here is a video of the mating ritual. You can witness the violent body shake I mentioned earlier in this video.
Mating Ritual
The big guy was trying to woo the female again...it's interesting how his face darkens whenever he does that. He also shakes his body quite violently, in an attempt to impress the female.
New Friend
After getting the ice blue zebra couple, the next cichlid I got was an electric yellow (Labidochromis caeruleus).
Vivid Color
The big guy's color really shows when he is around the female. It's quite an amazing display.
The Female Ice Blue Zebra
Bought a female for the big guy...pretty soon the female was holding. None of the first offsprings survived. She learned to be a good mother as time went on and many of the fry actually grew up to be adults.
Attack of the Mbuna!
While the turtle is digging for some food, the fish just decided that he wouldn't let him have any...
Aggression
Here is a video that shows just how aggressive this guy can be...that's why I had to put him in his own tank.
Yawn
This is the icon I use for my
My first cichlid
My love affair with cichlid began with an ice blue zebra. I wanted an aggressive fish that can defend itself against the red-eared sliders I had. But it turned out the mbuna was too aggressive for the turtles to handle. I had to eventually purchase a new tank just for the cichlid. Once I had a tank dedicated to the cichlid, I bought a second one, a third one, and so forth...the rest is history.
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