South American river aquarium

[Yoannikko]

Hello everyone,

So, along with my 57L A. borellii tank, I've started working on a new project. I'll be re-using my Aquel 54L tank (60x30x30) that's been empty for three weeks now. Plans are to make it a loricaridae tank. It will also serve as intermediate untill I can get a bigger tank, ideally a 120/150x45x30. The fish will be moved from this tank to the next one.

Yesterday, there was a fish expo in my town, and I ended up bringing home a beautiful little Hypancistrus sp. (L262), about 5 cm in length. He (or she) hails from the Rio Tapajos, from what I've gathered, and is usually found near the banks, in and around rocks and (some) branches. So, this is what I will be going for.

This will not be a full-on biotope, as the plants will not necessarily be from South America, but I will still try to keep it biotope-adjacent. I will have some emersed plants, most likely Acorus variegata, and some on the branch as well (pothos, mostly).

I've already mocked up the hardscape, but I was waiting on an order of supports to put under the rocks before finalising everything. I finally received the supports this weekend, so will be able to work on the tank this week.

What I'm a bit unsure about is the water parameters. From what I've found, soft water is what would be best. So I will most likely use 100% RO water, with maybe a few leaves to soften the water. Then again, pH in the Tapajos seems to range from about 5-5,5 to about 7, so not sure if it will be necessary.
Temperature is the big question mark, though. I've read that these Hypancistrus need anywhere from 24 to 27°C, but I've also read that 26/27°C is the minimum. And when searching for info on this particular river, it seems that temps are closer to 27/28°C.

Any input is greatly appreciated !

Here's a few pics of the fish (in a quarantine tank) and the hardscape :

 

[Mike Wise]

The Tapajos is a clearwater river, especially the middle and upper reaches where this species is collected (near Itaituba). Based on this, your water will be fine but it seems that breeding has been successful at higher values. Read some of the breeding reports for water and temperature. A few degrees one way or the other shouldn't bother them.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

Yesterday, there was a fish expo in my town, and I ended up bringing home a beautiful little Hypancistrus sp. (L262), about 5 cm in length. He (or she) hails from the Rio Tapajos,

This is what PlanetCatfish says <"https://www.planetcatfish.com/common/species.php?species_id=1631">. I've grown out a couple of species, and they were very reclusive.

I'm not sure they are a good mix with Apistogramma spp. <"https://apistogramma.com/forum/threads/cacatuoides-with-l260.23717/#post-111167">.

I've read that these Hypancistrus need anywhere from 24 to 27°C, but I've also read that 26/27°C is the minimum. And when searching for info on this particular river, it seems that temps are closer to 27/28°C.

The warmer the water is the more difficult it is to retain a high level of oxygen saturation, and high oxygen levels are imperative for Hypancistrus spp..

cheers Darrel

 

[Yoannikko]

Thank you both for your replies !
Regarding temps, the PlanetCatfish description is the first one I read before purchasing this L262. But after reading a bit more, I've read more often than not that temps should be in the 26-30°C range, like on the sudamerikafans website. I had set the temperature at 24°C yesterday, but decided to raise it to 26°C today, just in case. But I won't go too much higher because the flow isn't too powerful in this QT tank.

And @dw1305, don't worry, I wasn't planning on putting this litte guy in with my Apisto. My A. borellii will stay in the Fluval Flex 57L (tank in my other topic), and this L262 will go into my Aqael 54L (the tank in the photos above) for the time being.

And concerning behavior, if they act like common Ancistrus, I have a pretty good idea of what that'll be. Right now it's very similar, as he stays glued to a surface (the filtre, mostly) for a majority of the day, and becomes a bit more active towards the end of the day, and after lights out. But my Ancistrus, once they got used to their surroundings, were also somewhat active during the day. I believe the fact that my lights were pretty dim also helped in this regard.

Last question, what would you suggest I feed it ? From what I've read, they are omnivores but lean more towards meaty foods than veggies. Though I've also read that juveniles might like a bit more greens than adults. I have algae wafers, as well as "meaty" wafers on hand, as well as a whole bunch of Corydoras tablets. And frozen artemia, though with the shrimp in the tank, I doubt he'll have much of a chance to get to them (I'll probably remove the shrimp this week btw).

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

Last question, what would you suggest I feed it ?

A lot of people use Repashy Foods.

Mine got a mixture of live food (Grindal worms, Black worms, Earth worms, Tadpole Snails (but you have to break the shell open for them) and some frozen (Prawns or Mysis shrimp). I supplemented this with pellets (I'd use Fluval Bugbites now) and some veg (usually Capsicum Pepper). They also helped themselves to the Echinodorus leaves, until I added blanched Green (French) Bean, Courgette or Cucumber.

The only time I used to see them was if I crept up on the tank at night, so I'm not sure what they ate, but they grew out OK, so some of the above.

There were also Asellus aquaticus in the tank, and <"I assume these were eaten as well">.

cheers Darrel

 

[Yoannikko]

Hi Darrel,

Thanks for your recommendations on food ! I read about Repashy foods, but having a hard time finding bottom feeder specific ones in France ^^' I'll keep searching, maybe I'll get lucky.

I have plenty of bladder snails (i assume they are the same as Tadpole snails) in my other tanks, so this could be a possibility as well. As for worms, I'll have to look into it. I used to feed my Ancistrus some blanched zucchinis and raw cucumbers, so that is also a possibility for maybe one meal per week. As for the peppers, did you feed raw or blanch temp beforehand ?

Today, when I got home from work, I found the little guy on the substrate, so maybe he won't be too shy. Then again, there aren't many hiding places in this quarantine tank. Maybe it'll be a different story in the tank I'm putting together for him.
The only problem with the holding tank (apart from shrimp eating all the food) is the fact that the substrate is old aquasoil, which is very powdery and goes everywhere every time he moves around. I'll see if I can't put a top layer of sand when I move the shrimp out.

 

[Yoannikko]

Hello,
So I've been able to work a bit on the tank today, after eceiving the supports for my hardscape friday afternoon.
I glued most of the rocks together, so there wouldn't be any movement. The rocks wedged in the root didn't require any glue, as they are pretty solid.
I was finally able to use the sand that I purchased from Wio about a year ago ! It looks amazing, and I like all the little bits of botanicals in the sand. I still have some left (+ a few dried leaves) to place in the tank, but I realized that I did not have enough sand, so will have to order more this week. I'm planning on planting emersed plants in the back left corner, so the substrate needs to be deeper on that side.
I also have a few twigs that I plan on glueing to the root, to add more details. And finally, I'm also going to order some "pebble" versions of the rocks I used for even more detail.

Plants-wise, there will be some Acorus variegata in the back left side of the tank. I was also thinking of putting in a few pieces of java fern, as I just tore down a 30L tank that was filled with the thing. I realize it's not very "biotope", but I don't want to throw it away and I'm not going for a "true" biotope anyway, just the feel of a river in S.A.
What do you guys think ? Should I do it ? Will the plant like the stronger flow I plan on having ?

Here's a couple pics of today's work :

 

[Yoannikko]

Hello everyone,

So the project has moved forward since last month. I've finished the scape, filled the tank with water and added the plants.
And today I finally started working on my light stand. Now, it's very still a WIP, but it does at least give the idea of what the finished product would look like. I still need to reinforce the structure a bit and stain it (tested the staining on a spare piece, with a roller, didn't turn out great). And as for the light itself, I wanted to see how my Chihiros A-series would work, but I will probably go for one or two spotlights instead. I think it'll look better, and as it stands, the light itself is in my field of view when on the couch (not very fun, even blinding at times).

I've added a second pump (not running in the photos), as I find my JBL Cristalprofi e402 is simply not powerful enough in this instance.

 

[luisramos126]

Hello everyone,

So the project has moved forward since last month. I've finished the scape, filled the tank with water and added the plants.
And today I finally started working on my light stand. Now, it's very still a WIP, but it does at least give the idea of what the finished product would look like. I still need to reinforce the structure a bit and stain it (tested the staining on a spare piece, with a roller, didn't turn out great). And as for the light itself, I wanted to see how my Chihiros A-series would work, but I will probably go for one or two spotlights instead. I think it'll look better, and as it stands, the light itself is in my field of view when on the couch (not very fun, even blinding at times).

I've added a second pump (not running in the photos), as I find my JBL Cristalprofi e402 is simply not powerful enough in this instance.

View attachment 16427
View attachment 16428

Lovely scape.
What kind of plants are those in the back?

 

[Yvonne G]

. . . as to the 'light-shining-in-my-eyes' problem, you can attach some sort of flap across the front of it that directs the light down.

 

[Yoannikko]

Lovely scape.
What kind of plants are those in the back?

Hi, thanks very much !
The plants in the back left are Acorus variegata. They measure about 30 cm at the moment, but are supposed to get up to 50 cm.

. . . as to the 'light-shining-in-my-eyes' problem, you can attach some sort of flap across the front of it that directs the light down.

Yeah, I thought about that as well. I wanted to go for some different lights, but will probably just use this one and hang it up with steel wires. I've solved the problem by turning the intensity down, and I think it will do the trick long-term.

It's been about a month since I filled the tank up, so I will most likely move my little L262 in during the week.

 

[Yoannikko]

Hi everyone,

It's been a few months since I updated this thread. My little pleco is doing really well since moving him (or her !) to this tank, though I rarely see him ^^ He has put on some size since I first brought him home. In april, he measured around 3-4 cm, and today he's around 6-7 cm, but has doubled in girth.

The tank itself has evolved a bit. First, I removed the java ferns, as they were catching a lot of particles from the sand, and even started melting. I replaced the Wio sand this weekend with some fine river sand, will see if that makes a difference.
At the same time, I had an Echinodorus bleheri in my 30L cube that I decided to place in the tank. I'm now thinking of adding 1 or two more in the background.
I also moved the Acorus variegata, as they weren't doing well at the time. That's when I realized that they had rizomes. So I placed them on top of the branch. They're not dying anymore, but not really growing either. Maybe my water doesn't have enough minerals in it.
The Monstera is developping slowly but surely, and I recently added two purple fittonia as well.

I didn't like the JBL canister filter that I used, so removed that and I'm currently running a Superfish Aqua Flow 200 filter (400 l/h max) internal filter. I will probably get a HOB filter at some point, a Tidal 55/75 or the equivalent FLuval Aquaclear.

I'm still thinking of adding a school of smaller fish to liven things up a bit. Haven't decided if I should go for dwarf corys (hastatus, most likely), which would enjoy a bit more flow, or a school of H. amandae or P. simulans, but I would have to compromise on flow if I went with these.

Anyway, here are a couple pics of the my L262 from this past weekend, before putting him back in the tank after changing out the substrate. And one of the tank as it sits today.

 

[Yoannikko]

Hello,

So I have finally gotten a hold of the second and final species for this fish. I came upon them by chance, as I was looking for a schooling fish that liked faster flowing waters, which wasn't a Corydoras, and that could fit in my tank. Not many such fish out there, I found out !

The fish I ended up getting is Hyphessobrycon wadai. It is pretty rare, and I've only seen them available online, at around 10€ per fish. I got them last week and put them in qt untill yesterday. I purchased 12 from a local breeder, for 1€ per fish, but I later found out that I had only been given 11. Not a problem, especially considering the price I paid, and it took me a while to figure it out as they move around constantly ^^
Unfortunately, I lost 1 a couple of days after bringing them home. I examined the dead fish, and the remaining 10, but detected no signs of illness or parasites. They are very active and eat very well, so I decided to transfer them over to this tank yesterday.

After observing them for a bit, I think my tank is a bit on the smallish side for this fish (60 cm in length). They are very good swimmers and would probably benefit from a tank with a length of 80/90+ cm. I've been looking at getting a "big" shallow tank (120-150 cm in length) for a while, so maybe I can make that happen in a few months time.

No pics, as my camera is pretty meh, and they move around too much ^^'

 

[anewbie]

Hello,

So I have finally gotten a hold of the second and final species for this fish. I came upon them by chance, as I was looking for a schooling fish that liked faster flowing waters, which wasn't a Corydoras, and that could fit in my tank. Not many such fish out there, I found out !

The fish I ended up getting is Hyphessobrycon wadai. It is pretty rare, and I've only seen them available online, at around 10€ per fish. I got them last week and put them in qt untill yesterday. I purchased 12 from a local breeder, for 1€ per fish, but I later found out that I had only been given 11. Not a problem, especially considering the price I paid, and it took me a while to figure it out as they move around constantly ^^
Unfortunately, I lost 1 a couple of days after bringing them home. I examined the dead fish, and the remaining 10, but detected no signs of illness or parasites. They are very active and eat very well, so I decided to transfer them over to this tank yesterday.

After observing them for a bit, I think my tank is a bit on the smallish side for this fish (60 cm in length). They are very good swimmers and would probably benefit from a tank with a length of 80/90+ cm. I've been looking at getting a "big" shallow tank (120-150 cm in length) for a while, so maybe I can make that happen in a few months time.

No pics, as my camera is pretty meh, and they move around too much ^^'

I might eventually try a few in my winkelfleck aquarium as it is 48x24 (inch) @ 76. I've had this problem with emerald eye rasbora (for example) that while not super large love to swim a lot and want a longer run.

 

[Yoannikko]

Honestly, from having only kept them for a week, I find this fish very interesting. They are always on the move, either doing their own thing, or darting about as a group. I've seen some jousting going on, but nothing too serious, it's actually quite fun to see them do this.

Apparently they prefer a bit more flow, which is why I chose them for my pleco tank, so I don't know how that would work with apistos, though.

 

[anewbie]

Honestly, from having only kept them for a week, I find this fish very interesting. They are always on the move, either doing their own thing, or darting about as a group. I've seen some jousting going on, but nothing too serious, it's actually quite fun to see them do this.

Apparently they prefer a bit more flow, which is why I chose them for my pleco tank, so I don't know how that would work with apistos, though.

My aquarium has good flow at the top and less so at the bottom so if they hang high they will get a bit of flow; the winkelfleck don't seem to mind at the bottom and haven't protested or otherwise complained

 

[Yoannikko]

Mine definitely like to be in the flow, I often see them around the outlet of my filter (need to get a bigger filter for more flow ^^). But they also hang out all over the tank, from top to bottom.

 

[Yoannikko]

Hi everyone,

Just wanted your opinion on something. Today, while trying to catch a glimpse of my L262 from the side of my tank, as I do everyday, it appeared to me that the skin on his backside looked "weird". But he vanished a couple of seconds later and that was that... So I decided to take him out of the tank temporarily to better see what was going on. I would like a second opinion from you guys, but his skin appears "raw" to me ? Like he got stuck in between two rocks. What do you guys think ?

 

[Mike Wise]

Is that red dot at the base of the tail fin an open wound? There is also something like it on the dorsal fin.

 

[anewbie]

Looks like some sort of bacteria infection - i forget the +/- thing but this is a slow moving one eating the skin. I had htis happen to a pleco once - it can be treated but i forget the details.