Just a long overdue update: The CPO's seem happy and have mated. My first batch of little ones have just hatched from the eggs and are still clinging to the underside of mommy. I'm in the process of putting together a little photo diary of the whole breeding process along with my observations about ...

Can't speak much about specialty snails, but I know hardcore dwarf shrimp keepers will be pretty emphatic that the best option for an invert tank is absolutely no ferts at all; if that isn't a possibility, then the absolute minimum fertilizing you can possibly get away with. If one were to make swee...

About a month late but in case anyone comes back, I have heard that you can often help "encourage" cories to spawn by doing a decent-sized water change using water substantially cooler than the normal tank water. I've even heard of people doing this but holding off and timing it on an even...

Dave, Gaaahhhhhh! I typed up a whole huge long response to your last post but apparently I forgot to hit the "submit" button after previewing it so the whole thing got lost. :( And I'm too tired to re-type it all, so all I can do is give the Cliff Notes version. 1. Not all of the sites you...

Curious whether anyone else in GWAPA currently (or in the past) has kept the Mexican Dwarf Orange crayfish, Cambarellus patzcuarensis var. "orange" (CPO)? I just bought a sexed pair off Aquabid and they arrived today. Put them in a 10g with my Blue Pearl shrimp and an assortment of snails....

Dave, I suppose different folks do different things, and often there is more than one way to skin a cat. However, I've been involved in dwarf shrimp for years and the sort of folks I talk with on a regular basis are among the best of the best dwarf shrimp keepers/breeders in the country. The kinds o...

All sorts of little critters can be common in a shrimp tank. Hydra, planaria, ostracods, limpets...you name it. The only ones to really worry about are hydra, as they will indeed attack and kill baby shrimplets. (I have heard claims of planaria harming shrimp but I am not entirely convinced...I thin...

Sadly, that day & evening we are having a big regional assembly here at our seminary. Actually, it's not sad we're having the assembly (I have priest friends of mine traveling here from all over the eastern half of the United States, it will be great seeing them), but it's just unfortunate that ...

Some years back when I had them, they absolutely loved chomping down on my black brush algae as well. I'd watch them grab a mouthful and then jerk to the side furiously to rip it off of whatever it was attached to. Pretty amazing fish. I kept them in pH ~ 7.2, moderately hard water, and found them t...

Has anyone had any experience with Bladder Snails ( Physa Acuta ) in their tanks? I ended up with one pretty large (1/2") one as a hitchiker on some plants and overall have enjoyed it in the tank, and while I haven't noticed any plant damage I was curious whether these guys are known to eat pla...