fish QT updates-

The little striped severum in his bin is doing better- what I thought was a smudge of fungus starting on its fin now looks like it was just a small injury after all. I took him out of his QT bin to take some photos this morning- sent them to a guy who wants to buy him from me but I was making sure the fish would heal first.

I've been doing small partial water changes (half to one gallon) on his bin every morning and evening. He's been eating but very skittish and shy- spending most of the time hidden behind plants in the back. Until today- for the first time I saw him cruise up and down the bin front eagerly when I first came in the room. After getting caught (gently, with the box not a net) for photos he hid again for a while, but was then out and about again. So I think he's either feeling more comfortable in his surroundings, or better from his injury (or both!)

The festivums in half-filled 20H QT continue to delight me. So far they've eaten all the prepared foods I have- but are especially crazy for flake. Turns out these fish were wild caught- I'd much rather they were tank-raised, but the fish store guy demonstrated they'd adjusted fine and were eating by giving their tank flake while I watched. I bet that's why they had parasites (coming from the wild). Also wonder if flake is the first (or only?) food they got in captivity, did they just go nuts over it because the taste was so different from their natural fare? or are they so desperate to grab it because they had so much competition in the store tank (which was pretty crowded with another species and just these two festivum)? They come out quick enough for other foods I offer, but when it's flake they zoom to the surface and snatch one bite after another frantically. Especially the little one!

I'm noticing differences in personality. The bigger one, Foxface, always hangs back. It has claimed a spot at the rear of the tank, under the heater and above where these plastic tubes I dropped in there lie (short leftover pieces of uplift tubes I had put in the 55 thinking the kuhlis might use them as hiding places). 

(Fish pinched its tail shut in alarm when I sneezed!)

I don't know if Foxface is more shy, or just smarter- waiting to see if his smaller companion gets into trouble for being so forward.

Rascal is far more often out in the open at the front of the tank- whether he's braver, or just anxious to pick up food opportunities by being out front, before Foxface chases it away, I don't know. It sometimes 'wags' its head back and forth at me now, begging for food! They've both eaten almost all I have to offer now- and from the fresh foods they seem to like best dandelion leaf, peas and cabbage worms. They will eat carrot and collard greens too, but don't like broccoli or purple dead nettle.

Rascal has his own spot too- under the fake bridge.

Except that Foxface often chases him out of it. He's gotten a few minor tears from that, in dorsal and pectoral fins.

I think just one more week of QT (to assure myself parasites don't reappear) then these guys will go into the 55 with my angelfish. I'm curious to see if they'll each claim a particular hiding spot in there, too.