Unfortunately, my previous betta had some digestive problems,...

Unfortunately, my previous betta had some digestive problems, and passed away, and I got a new one, a lovely mustard gas super-delta. A friend of mine has dubbed him Cassidy.  So here are some pictures. the gray thing in the bottom of the one picture is the mirror i was using to get him to flare.

He’s a bit more shy than the late Nathaniel was, but he is very curious, and I’m happy to report that this one ALSO jumps into the little waterfall feature and just chills there, half submerged. So bizarre, apparently bettas in general like doing that. It goes against everything i’ve head about bettas about how they dislike current due to the long fins, but 2 in a row now, and both swim against a fairly strong current to jump right into the little stream.

I’d never actually seen a mustard gas (yellow bi-color)  for sale before, so had to get him, and though his body isn’t the most colorful, i think he’s gorgeous.

As for the tank, you can see that i’ve had a bit of an algae problem, it’s getting under control now though, I started dosing Flourish Excel and that seems to have helped a lot, and the algae is dying back. Some leaves are still gross looking, though, and i am going to have to scrub that rock in the middle clean.

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So, to replace the ill fated African Dwarf frogs, which I am...

So, to replace the ill fated African Dwarf frogs, which I am fairly certain no one should buy due to Chytrid fungus clearly being present at the breeder level and terminally sick frogs being sold to stores, I got some Pygmy Cories and Ember Tetras, 5 of each, to go in my desktop tank with my betta, Nathaniel and some cherry shrimp. I like the Pygmy cories the best, cus who doesn’t love cories? I know I do. I had bronze cories when I had my 80 gallon tank, and they were the best, when i saw they had pygmy cories at the store, i knew i had to get them. Just the cutest little guys.  I’ve had them for nearly 2 weeks now, and they are doing fine. Only problem being the betta is a total pig and kept eating the cories food. It’s not good for him to stuff himself, and they need to eat. I tried feeding them at night, but that didn’t seem to work, so i hit on this idea… a couple cups tied together with holes large enough for the cories to get in, but too small for the betta. I figured i would leave it in over night when the ligts are out, and then pull it out in the morning so the tank is pretty again. Thought this was a GREAT idea. Betta doesn’t gorge himself, cories and shrimp can eat in peace, and i can easily remove uneaten food. Sadly, the cories (and shrimp) seem totally oblivious to this new addition to the tank, while the betta shoves his face in the holes futilely. Ah well, cories are still adorable, even if they are dumb.

sorry for the yellow tinted pics, the tank has sort of a blackwater thing going on, looks fine in person, and is good for the fish, but it photographs terribly.

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Nathaniel did it again, jumped/wriggled into the waterfall...

Nathaniel did it again, jumped/wriggled into the waterfall feature. It happened shortly after topping off the water, so i thin it is related to the water level and if i leave it a little lower he can’t make it, but I don’t think it’s hurting him any. This time, he used the plant he knocked over before as a hammock of sorts, so didn’t make it quite as high up as before, but… still. included photos of him wriggling back out and swimming free, so you can see he’s fine. I had also like JUST fed him, so he’s got a bit of a tummy on him there.

He’s weird. But that’s why i got him, i guess. I was kind of set on a purple betta, but he had a spunk and personality that I liked.

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So my fish just did this. Wriggled up and just chilled in the...

So my fish just did this. Wriggled up and just chilled in the waterfall feature, laying on a rock. then he wriggled back into the tank and went back to building a bubble nest. He’s always liked finding ways to let the current go over him without it washing him away, he’ll lean against plant leaves and such, and has leaned on rocks UNDER the water before, to let the current flow over him. This is new though.

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Finally got a halfway decent shot of my betta fish. The flash...

Finally got a halfway decent shot of my betta fish. The flash makes the iridescence go crazy, but hey, at least it’s in focus.  Unfortunately though, while he is doing great, the same can not be said for the frogs. Looks like the ones i got came infected with Chytrid fungus. It’s that same fungus that is causing a mass extinction of frogs all over the world, it’s incredibly deadly, hard to spot until it’s just about ready to kill them, and it seems that they are coming infected from the breeders. So while i was able to save one, at least so far by raising the temperature to insanely high temperatures for like 5 days, will need to see if the fungus comes back, I think i am giving up on the frogs. They are adorable, but are just too risky to get right now, since they will more than likely come infected. Instead, I may try and get some pygmy corydoras.

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