Username: Flyingmonkeypoop (real name is Mike)
Years keeping fish: about 20 years
A few species you have kept: Too many lol. I have had tetras, platys, mollys, swordtails, betas, loaches, plecos, paradise fish, guppies, gouramis, convicts, firemouths, sun fish, perch, calvus, darts, bicher, danios, barbs, and all the other common freshwater species.
For saltwater I have had black and normal occelaris (sp?) clowns, damsels, chromis, brown tang, zebra tang, some little cleaner gobies, a goby that looked like a tadpole, fire fish, peppermint shrimp, candycane shrimp, some other cleaner shrimp, bangaii and PJ cardinals (got the bangaiis to breed), lots and lots of various corals and zoanthids (favorite is the hammerhead/frog spawn corals), mushrooms, algea stuff, anemones, hermit crabs, a decorator crab, and lots lots more
I started when I was a child with a goldfish who went from being black to white by the time it was 5 years old. After he died I had a community tank for ages. I had tanks off an on for awhile then I moved to the city and got a 29 gallon tank on craigslist. I started with a couple convicts but they were annoying so I gave them away and got a pair of firemouths which of course bred like crazy. At the same time I had them I got 3 marmokreb crayfish which also bred like crazy. I ended up with a second 29 gallon which I turned into a planted community tank. I got a breeder pair of the L144 blue eyed bushy nose plecos that bred pretty well for me in that tank.
I got rid of the planted community tank and turned it into a saltwater over night. I cleaned it out, used the same sand and got dirty water, some starter live sand and lots of liverock. I then started with the fire fish, curly Q anemone, and a shrimp. I then got clowns and some damsels and went from there. I got more and more fish and some soft corals then noticed the fish disappearing and noticed the anemone was eating them so it went back to the store. It was when I got the baby zebra tang that I upgraded to a 55. I sold the firemouths and both 29 gallon tanks when I got the 55 and just had it for awhile and I drip acclimated some hog choker flounder and mollies just for the fun of it. I moved from the place in the city to a friends place the next town over so I sold everything. In total I had over $15,000 in that tank with all the lighting, live rock, fish, corals, and everything else and only got about $5000 for it all.
Favorite Species: Calvus cichlids (not just because of my hairstyle, lol)
How many tanks do you currently have: 2, a 5.5 gallon 'chi' with 3 platys, an anubias that has lived through everything and still growing, and my marmokreb. Then I have a paradise fish that we have had for 11 years now. We were at a show and saw her alone in a corner tank at a pet store. Sisters betta had just died so she wanted another fish so we got it. The poor thing was so neglected for so long, just kept in a 'death bowl' as we called them at the store. We didnt even know what she was for the longest time. She has had many tank mates that she has killed so now just lives with snails. I am looking to upgrade once again, we'll see what craigslist has when the time is right.
Do you have other creatures besides fish? lots of feeder snails and a marmokreb crawfish
Any Advice for people new to fish keeping? Do research, especially on the cichlids!!! Sure you get 'African cichlids' at
Walmart and think theyre cute but then they grow and become agressive and you have no clue what they are when you try to dump them off at the LFS. Also, understand that not all fish can live in the same tank even if the guy at
petco says they are community fish. Even look into feeds, sure most will eat flake but almost all fish love frozen foods as well. I give my fish frozen brine shrimp and bloodworms
