FISHIOLOGY

 Tail biting when in single tank 2 weeks later in comm tank tail biting stopped.  He was in a comm tank for 2 weeks plus and tail biting finally stopped. I suspect it stopped earlier but fins were tattered and torn from fighting against each others. But with a heavy price to pay, flowers had dropped tremendously as I now needed to feed them daily to avoid fightings. Will try to hold on to them a little longer as I will now try to get the flowers in a comm tank. This 2 has the most flowers amongst all and we'll see how bad they do in these environment.

The chinese giant salamander (Andrias davidianus) was on my wish list for sometime, a true relic dinosaur of the passed. The oldest recorded specimen from China is tot to be nearly 200 years old and around 1.5 meters in length. The wild Giant Chinese Salamander will soon join the extinct rank but luckily farmed giant salamander is available by the millions. The local name is wawayu meaning wawa fish, they are able to emit a cry like that of a human baby hence derived the name wawa fish. They are of the cold water amphibian and usually will not survive in the tropic according to many research that I've done. Eating ceased at 28ºc. But they said the same with russian sturgeon as well and I grew mine from 7" to a healthy eating swimming specimen of 18". I've finally acquired a Chinese Giant Salamander around 11" in length, it is a commercial bred for food specimen. It looked quite thin probably due to shipment stress. I'm keeping her in...

This is the update of the red Kelakai and DOC treatment, the color is very orangy for a Terengganu of this size. This is also the 2nd Marulioides that I've tried with Red Kelakai treatment and yes they do bring out the color of the fish. The previous Kalimantan also display obvious orange patches on its side just as this piece.  I think it can be safely concluded that Red Kelakai will bring out the color of the Marulioides from this 2 experiment. Red Kelakai and DOC Previous Kalimantan orangy patch with Red Kelakai treatment

This is a behavior you don't often get to see, mainly because this means the fish is devalue and most people will choose to keep quiet about it. Out of maybe a 1,000 fishes you will find one tail biter, as its name suggest they attack their own tail. As to why exactly they do this is unsure and this crazies is not restrict to Channa Marulioides alone as Arowanas behaves the same sometimes. Some will say they are lonely or hungry, but as you all know I was left with 4 Terengganus and 4 of them is kept in identical environment, single tank fed the same food kept in the same PH and lightings. From my many years in keeping Channa Marulioides this is the 2nd pc tail biter that I've actually encountered. I've swapped the fish tank with another Terengganu as I was wondering if the tank reflection is causing the self inflicting wounds but the fish that took its place behaves normal and this fish continue to attack its own tail. I've also tried raising the PH to...

Recently I've suddenly received a lot of this same question regarding: can I put PSB and also BB together? or I've bought PSB do I still need BB? First of all you shouldn't be using PSB or BB product but given us asians we love maximizing our tank and tends to overload it. If you're lazy to read all the technical stuff just scroll down to conclusion ok now Lets break down everything and I'll explain them thoroughly. BB stands for beneficial bacteria, meaning any bacteria that are involved in the nitrogen cycle will be classified under beneficial bacteria. Nitrogen cycle Nitrification - Aerobic - Oxygen environment : Ammonium (NH4) convert to Nitrite (NO2) and finally nitrate (NO3). This is phase 1 of the nitrogen cycle done by the usual nitro bacteria. This will be the typical phase achievable by the common aquarium, the remaining NO3 will be removed by water change or by plant. Energy involved oxygen. Denitrification - Anaerobic - very low to zer...

Today I'll share an improved design of DIY Brian Shrimp Hatchery I've designed. 20 years ago I was hatching BBS for a whole year when I was breeding discus and based on the old design this is the improved version. The improved version I use a 3 way adapter and a base bottom with 2 holes. This way it is more sturdy and less chance of leaking. Even if it leaks you have a bottom bottle to contain the salt water and wont spilled all over. Drill a hole at the cover Silicone Glue a 3 way adapter, 1 is for aerator and another for harvesting bbs One for aerator another for harvesting Drill 2 holes to make base stand Cover the bottle and bbs will be concentrated at the bottom.  Bbs at the bottom where there are light Straighten the bottle before harvesting and unhatched eggs will get stuck on top of the bottle Tilt the bottle like this and less eggs will be stuck on the bottle above water Tiger enjoying bbs

The ban with coral is getting tougher and we aquarist feels the pressure nowadays. Coral Chip has long been the buffer source for most of us because it WAS inexpensive and plentiful. But that is then and this is now, it ain't cheap anymore. I kept hearing this every time I go mamak with hobbyist and I told them my last purchase of coral chip was I think somewhere 4 or 5 years ago. Most will look at me puzzled and asked me what do I use for buffering nowadays? I told them the same batch of coral chip!!! A little information about coral chip, What you need to understand about coral or coral chip is they are made entirely of calcium carbonate. They releases calcium ions when exposed to CO2 and also acid during nitrification process. But bacteria will soon take resident in the coral chip and produces a slime that covers the entire coral chip. This is the part when hobbyist feels their coral chip no longer functions and throw them away. The slime protect the coral chip from relea...