Someone is getting fat....

[Bully]

I've uploaded the video to Youtube, it's a big file at 10mins long though, and Youtube's compression and conversion has killed the quality

It does take a while to get going, but it is interesting to watch the interactions, well for me it is

The alpha loach comes in around 7:50 and eventually sorts things out

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=do3VoCWlvko

[mickthefish]

thats a great vid Bully, i really enjoyed it.
couple of questions mate,
how large are the striata
your sid's are stunners, how large are they, and could you do a vid panning across your tank please, that small area looks great but i'd like to see the rest of the tank. ( i want some ideas for mine) haha.
i'm reckoning that the striata are poss between 2 to 2.5 inches either that or your sids are huge.
i'm not sure what i was seeing will have to have another look, but it seemed part was courtship and the rest because they greyed out a bit of dominance.?

great job mate
mick

[Bully]

Thanks Mick

I would say the striata in the vid are about 2" TL, I'm not good with gauging sizes though, so I may be a touch out. My biggest sidth is probably about 2" TL. I would have to get them into something much smaller to get accurate sizes though, and catching loaches in my tank is not a job I relish

I'll try and do the pan and scan this evening when it's darker, the room is too light at the moment and there's too much reflection

I agree with your opinion, I think it was mostly if not all hierarchy

[Bully]

OK Mick, you can view the tank here:

Bully's Fish Tank

You can't really see a lot of how it is though. So basically it's river stones laid on eggcrate with black sand and Flourite Black sand mixed 50/50 added in around the stones (for stability and to reduce the chances of digging under the stones). Over the stones are various pieces of bogwood and some mopani wood. Filtration is via a Rena Filstar XP2 & Tetratec EX600. The Rena returns with a passive venturi attached, set to mini bubbles, and the Tetratec returns via spraybar. On the right-hand side of the tank is a Koralia 2 that pumps water over the stones - this is where 90% of my photos are taken as that's where the loaches like to hang out. Heating is via a Rena SmartHeater connected to the Rena external. This is on the left-hand side of the tank, and rather well camouflaged.

The idea of the tank was to have a river base theme. The planting is all secondary to provide nutrient removal and a canopy over the stones keeping them in shade.

You won't see much of the loaches in the tank due to the vid being taken after the official "lights out" time. There are actually 14 B. striata and 13 Y. sidthimunki in there, and if startled you won't see a single one, so there must be plenty of hiding places 12 Harlequin Rasboras & 3 T. vittata complete the asian them. The tetra's and otto's are in holding until I set up an amazon tank and then they'll be transferred over.

Just off-centre left there is a pile of stones at the back of the tank, I don't think they are that visible in the vid


Oh, and apologies Ashleigh because I hijacked your thread

[mickthefish]

bully, you can call me a pillock if you want mate, you posted a pic of your superb tank on the freshwater mate.
i've seen that background in oasis near me, does it take much room of the tank interior bud?

mick

[Bully]

No worries Mick

The background doesn't take much room, I think it's only an inch thick at it's widest point, so in total it's only about 8-9litres of volume in my tank.

I bought it because I got it cheap from the lfs - £5 for two sheets, and I wanted something to add a little texture to the back panel. It was very bright and stood out like a sore thumb to begin with, but it's a lot better now that's it's furred up with algae and gone much darker. I'm not sure I'd be so keen on it if there wasn't so much wood and plants to hide it. The major disadvantage of course is that it's a complete stripdown to remove it, but I like it more than enough to leave it as is The fish seem to love it too, the loaches will often browse over it.