contiplating what to do with new fish tank

[losfreddy]

I've had so many fishtanks in the past, but so recently have come across a used 55 gallon aquarium. Contiplating what to do with it. A part of my wants a terrarium, another part of my wants to fix it into a nice aquarium. I've always wanted a 55 gallon. Desicison descisions

 

[Clint]

55 gallons don't make nice aquariums, in my opinion. Not very wide at all. I hate them.


Turn it on it's side and use it for Drosera.

 

[RoGeTa]

THat isn't nessicarily true. I agree that the width is a PITA, but it can be done nicely. That being said, I would never own another 55 lol. But I did have one for about 4 years. If you do go the aquarium route, just make sure it is a salty.

 

[poolboy101]

I would agree with JLAP and RoGeTa, It is hard to have a orignal looking tank with fresh water. I dont know about salt water but I helped my brother setup his freshwater and whatever we did it didn't look right. It looked like most of the ones you see in pet stores, even with the really unique gravel he bought. he ended up using it kind of as a feeder tank for comets which he feed his datnoids in his 135 gallon. He had a clownloach in it with the comets. He just took out the gravel and painted the back black, now it looks like a cave, which is kind of cool looking.

I like the salt water tank it looks great! I wish I had the patience to take care of fish, but Im way to lazy for water changes and cleaning. Ill just stick with the plants( less cleaning lol)

 

[Clint]

That is some serious corraline algae growth my friend! Beautiful!

 

[jimscott]

Either a salt tank, Aldrovanda, or Petiolaris Complex plants would be good choices!

 

[juliethegr8t]

Hey... I like my freshwater 55. *sniff* All for one stinkin' fish, too. Hehe!!

 

[poolboy101]

Hey... I like my freshwater 55. *sniff* All for one stinkin' fish, too. Hehe!!

Thats a really nice setup! I wish my brother looked like that.

What kind of fish is that? I'm not that familiar with fish. Is its not to aggressive you should put a tiger datnoid in it. They are in that size range, and would look awesome. But I datnoids should be in every tank. lol

 

[StifflerMichael]

I would agree with JLAP and RoGeTa, It is hard to have a orignal looking tank with fresh water.

I disagree, here's my freshwater tank, I don't think it looks less orginal than RoGeTa's tank. This tank is a 55-gallon by the way, so don't blame the tank if you can't make it look nice! However, I'm waiting to move, I will probably abandon this tank and go for the wider 72-gallon bowfront. Given the choice, I will never own another 55-gallon in the future, too skinny.

 

[juliethegr8t]

Thanks. He's a Midas cichlid and he's the meanest fish you'll ever meet, lol! Unfortunately any fish I put in there is as good as dead, including my hands. Rotten stinker, I love him!

 

[jimscott]

Michael - very nicely done!

Julie - What exactly is a Midas Cichlid?

 

[juliethegr8t]

They're New Worlds, Amphilophus citrinellus. They're often confused and closely related to A. labiatus, the Red Devil Cichlid. They'll get 12-15" and can be very difficult to keep with any other fish. Big and mean!

 

[jimscott]

Thanks for sharing the pic! Tropical fish was my childhood hobby and young adulthood job at a wholesaler. That species is totally new to me. Does it appear in TFH or FAMA? Is it South American? And I wonder why or how it hadn't been catalogued years ago.

My speed of Cichlid is Convict & Jewel, ones I bred when I was a teen.

 

[juliethegr8t]

Sorry, I'm not familiar with what you mean by TFH or NAFA? Do you mean the magazines?

They are Central Americans, being found in Nicaragua and the Atlantic side of Costa Rica. It was first described in 1864 by Günther.

Here is a page with loads of inromation you might be interested in. I hope this helps!
http://nis.gsmfc.org/nis_factsheet.php?toc_id=173

 

[jimscott]

I saw this in the fact sheet:

Midas cichlids were introduced through intentional or accidental releases by recreational aquarists or from nearby fish farms (Anderson et al., 1984; Courtenay et al., 1984; Courtenay and Stauffer, 1990).

That explains its late introduction to the market. It does remind me a bit of the Red Devil and a relatively recent hybrid between a Red Devil and something else. I think it's called a Parrot Cichlid, or something to that effect.

 

[juliethegr8t]

The quote you are referring to is actually specifically referring to the populations in the Gulf of Mexico and Florida, where the fish are not native. They are native in the areas I mentioned in my previous post.

They're very closely related to Red Devils, and often confused.

And yes, Parrot Cichlids are hybrids which were originally created by crossing several species of fish (the exact cross is unknown), but Midas cichlids are regarded as one of them.

 

[jimscott]

I'm still amazed that classified species can mate with other species and produce viable offspring. Either I've misunderstood the concept of speciation, as taught in high school, or maybe there's fewer real species out there. And these CP's exemplify my confusion.! whatever happened to ontogeny recapitulating phylogeny?