As is often the case in Texas, a drought (we’re a half year into another drought after the last ended a few months before this one started), ends with flooding. Saturday, while Susie and I were in Fort Worth, the farm got 3.2”, the biggest single day rainfall since Tropical Storm Hermine in ... Read More
Archives for April 2013
Blue Iridescent Sword
Once again the urge to create a new fish struck. So, today, while going through our blue mickey mouse maculatus, I imagined the iridescent blue of the platies on a swordtail. I selected a few female platies and, after some thought, picked a male swordtail to father the new color strain. Which sword ... Read More
Duckweed and Chickens
The most feared phrase for our employees is “Go do duckweed.” Duckweed, sometime within the first couple of months of our operations, got introduced into the vats. It is impossible to eradicate; it can only be controlled…somewhat controlled. Since our livebearer vats contain fry, it’s not ... Read More
Fish Photography
Today I finished (a day before deadline) an article on lyretail mollies for my column in Tropical Fish Hobbyist (TFH) magazine. Unfortunately, I still have to take photos of the mollies. I’m not a photographer and my editor and her staffers at TFH insist on what I deem “artistic” photos. Whereas I ... Read More
White Mickey Mouse Sword
Today, while sorting through our White Mickey Mouse Maculatus Platies to select breeders for our breeding colony, I thought, “Wouldn’t it be nice to have this color pattern on a swordtail?” No sooner than thought, I set aside eight female platies. After finishing with the platies, I picked a ... Read More