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RE:Rotala Wallichii & SAE's

>On Tue, 23 May 2000, Sylvia wrote:
>
>> Does anyone have any experience with either platys or swordtails doing
>> damage to this plant?
>
>Swordtails will crop R. Wallichii leaves back to the stems.  Platy's are
>so similar that I have to suspect they will do the same.  SAEs alse nibble
>R. Wallichii and I suspect many other fish will also.

I have found this to be true also with these fishes. Barbs also.
Shrimps and snails are the best cleaners of these fine needled tasty plants
IMO.
R. wallichii can be stunted easily(from environmental stresses) and the tips
look like someone has been chewing on them.
Sometimes I have blamed the fish but it was tank conditions. I have watched
them eat the plant personally many times but have never seen damage from
snails or shrimps. If the plant is doing good sometimes it will grow out
well enough to out pace to nibbling and if the SAE's have plenty of other
food..............then maybe...........if your lucky...................
With delicate plants and displays, Amano also uses these animals(shrimps
-much more) typically. I'm trying the 1 shrimp per gallon test to see how
well they perform on a tank that has R. wallichii and some other delicate
plants that I don't trust SAE's, barbs, platies, etc to.

>>>Swordtails will crop R. Wallichii leaves back to the stems.  Platy's are
>so similar that I have to suspect they will do the same.  SAEs alse nibble
>R. Wallichii and I suspect many other fish will also.

>
>I cant speak for Rotala, since I dont keep it, by I have observed my SAEs
>for hours going over delicate stem plants like Ambulia, Alternanthera,
>Myaca, and although they are eating something, its never the plant. Detris,
>algae, scum?

Bio film and some algae and anything else that happens to be there. Bio film
would be the source of protein though, like tadpoles and other things that
nibble algae and surfaces. Algae by itself cannot grow that much. It's the
bacteria on the algae......or plants or rocks etc

Ahhh, SAE's do eat/damage R. wallichii. I promise. The other plants are fine
except this one.
Regards, 
Tom Barr