Category Archives: Aquarium

Denison Barbs in the Aquarium

I’ve seen these fish a few times, and really like their colour, schooling behaviour, and overall activity. Tried making a deal at Big Al’s a couple weeks ago, but they wouldn’t sell them to me. Yesterday they had a sale, 25% off all fish, so I went in to see if they had any left, and I was in luck.


They look awesome in the tank, and it seems the other fish have altered their behaviour a little – the school of Black Tetra’s are out in the open more, swimming along with the Denison barbs, even though they’re 1/3 their size. We have a school of Siamese Algae Eaters that tend to be a little shy until feeding time, but they are out a lot more, swimming along with their new tank mates.
The new fish may grow as large as 6″, currently, they’re around 2.5″ to 3″.
There are a number of names they go by, Indian Flasher Barbs, Roseline Sharks, or Denison’s Barb. The scientific name is Sahyadria denisonii.

New additions to the new aquarium

Aquarium

The stand for the 55 gallon aquarium turned out very well – unfortunately, the used aquarium I bought off Kijiji was way more scratched up than I had noticed.  Over Christmas, Big Al’s had a sale so I bought a new one – which looks awesome.  I also purchased a Hydor canister filter, and Eheim 150W heater.

55 gallon community aquarium and stand
New community aquarium

The aquarium is up and running, and is currently stocked with:

  • 6 siamese algae eaters
  • 10 Black Tetras
  • 27 Neon Tetras
  • 10 Glowlight Tetras
  • 3 bundles of Vallisneria spiralis
  • 2 bundles of Hygrophila corymbosa

New additions to the aquarium

Aquarium

Siamese Algae EaterPicked up 3 Siamese Algae Eaters for the aquarium this evening.   Also picked up some plants, some sort of Hygrophila, I think.  Getting more algae growth, so I figured I should try controlling it with some algae eaters, and also add a little more nutrient competition by adding more plants.
hygrophila

New Aquarium

Aquarium

IMG_0424Last year my son decided he wanted an aquarium, so we bought a 30 gallon setup on Kijiji. I helped him set it up – and unfortunately, he insisted on having it in his room – and after a couple months it became neglected, half full of water, and dark green with algae.
So one evening a month or so ago, we moved it downstairs and into the living room – where it gets a bit more attention, and the fish get fed. 🙂  A few more dollars have been spent on better lighting, and a better substrate for plants.
He had 6 catfish already – 4 different kinds of Cory’s (2 panda’s, 2 peppered, 1 albino, and 1 leopard), and we added 9 fancy guppies (3 male red metal delta tails, and 6 females – not sure what kind they all are) to the mix.  There are now 5 or 6 additional guppies as well. We’ll probably add a school of neon or cardinal tetras – I’ve read that they like softer water, so I think they would do well.
guppies2

Albino, Panda, Peppered and Leopard Corydoras

Trying to get some really good plant growth happening in the tank – but I’m not sure that our softened water is all that conducive to lush plant growth.  I’ll just keep trying different plants until we get a combination that works!
The tank is currently filtered using an in tank model – but I think that will get replaced in the near future with an external canister model – something that will get a little more flow.