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NFC: pardon me brother, but could you spare a shiner?

alternate title:

interspecies sexual confusion in captive populations of fish.

Well, to introduce myself, I am Kidt, a 24 yo 4th year bio student in Ga.

my current mixed population tanks are a 35, a 55 and a 10 gal gambusia 
colony tank.

I recently moved and the 2 larger tanks were reset with new substrate on 
mamorial day '00

the 35  (salinity tolorances of darters?) is mostly populated with fish i 
got for free at a moving sale.
the people weren't having a yard sale when i pulled ino the yard, they were 
just moving, and when i inquired on a hunch if they had any aqurium stuff 
they didn't want to move, i ended up leavign wih thier fish, who had been 
slated for the toilet.

i still have most of them.
2 black skirts
1 red eye tetra
1 albino cory

and a 6 in pleco ( in the 55)

also in the 35 are 1 wild caught flag fish (Alanta area aquarium Asso. fall 
acution '00)
3 khulie loached (also AAAA)
1 female german ram (on clearance for 1$ in macon ga)
there may be 1 fantail darter hiding in there somewhere

there were also a population of false neon terta (green neons) and cherry 
barbs, but the f neons didn't like my new water and the cherrys where whiped 
out by my ich infection, along with most of my rams and my serpea tetra.

the substrate is mostly walmart special kitty cat litter (natural clay, red 
bag) with a little play sand and vermicualite mixed in, seeded with osmocote 
and top dressed with not enough pea gravel (neede the rest for the 55).

the tank is planted with hornwort, anacharis, a melon sword, and mics. 
others.  i will be adding some bacopa and penny wort as soon as my hood is 
built next week.  i currently have one 22 inch grow stick over the melon 
sword.

filtratration is by a marineland pinguin biowheel 330.

there is a peice of drift wood in the tank.

in the 55 are 5 "god only knows what species" of "lrg austailian 
rainbowfish"

and 2 male red shiners.  these fish were purchaced at petsmart on memorial 
day.  the shiners were labled as "rainbow dace danios" and the sales girl 
got somewhat offended wih me when i answered her inquire as to why i was 
laughing so hard.  she though i was accusing her of saling bait fish when i 
explained what the "danios" in the fancy goldfish tank were. (3.99$)

i usually avoid petsmart, but this one was new and seemed clean, and i ned 
replacements for the bosemanis who died under my landlords care while I was 
moving.

i needed the fish mass to justify keeping both tanks to my parents.
and at the time i needed both tanks as the 4 inch angelfish would have eaten 
the fales neons.  tha angel was another rescue of sorts.  someown was 
getting out of the hobby ans i wanted her serpea, and ended up with both.  
the angel, despite my best attemps to kill it, looks perfect, so i keep it, 
and have re designated it as a "potentially hostile plant" and other wise 
ignore its persence in my "rainbow fish" tank.

also in the 55 are a trio of southern red bellied dace, a unsexed trio of 
fat head minnows (well how much for just one?  you just want one? yes. bait 
store guy bags 3 and hands them to me-3 mo quarintien) 5 oto cats, the 
before mintioned pleco, and 2 male garnardi killifish that i some how ended 
up with.

the tank is set up the same way as the 35, with the same filter, except that 
i layered the sand over the kitty litter instead of mixing it and i didn't 
use any vermicualite.

there is drift wood in the tank, and many plastic and real plants.
i have had no problems with this tank, and the fish seem to love life.

the gambusia tank is the typical overplanted, overstocked, overlit, swamp of 
a colony tank.  the fish seem to love it.

the well water i have now is ver hard, and has a natural ph of 8.2.

of course i like pretty little tetra, and not tan cichlids. figures dosn't 
it?

well anyway, the male redshiners, keep trying to mate with the male 
rainbowfish (t posistion, getting above them and trying to forse them down 
into the plants).  So i was wonderimg if anyone could spare a female or two? 
  the male killies are trying the same thing! but i am not looking for 
female killies.

I was laid off june 1st and am now drawing unemployment while I tank summer 
classes at the local college. So i cannot afford to compensate for potage at 
the time.  anyone want to help a kid out?




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