Today we processed our Sciaenochromis fryeri (commonly known as Electric Blue Ahli Cichlids). But, this blog isn’t about them; it’s about plecostomus. We put our breeding colonies of cichlids, usually 6 males and 40-50 females, in 300 gallon vats, where they stay for three to four months before ... Read More
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Texas Garter Snake
The Texas Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis annectens) is one of the three snakes that have established breeding populations in our greenhouses. All three species (the other two are water snakes) share a common characteristic: they are livebearers. Since there is no sand or soil in our greenhouses ... Read More
Cherry & Cherry Marmalade Labeotropheus fuelleborni
Yesterday we processed some miscellaneous cichlids and got a pleasant surprise in a vat of Labeotropheus fuelleborni I’d set aside a while back. They were part of a group of juvenile Blue Marmalades I was keeping as potential breeders. Three of the fish turned out to be almost red, two non-marmalade ... Read More
Green Lyretail Sailfin Molly
Ashley and I processed the Green Lyretail Sailfin Mollies today. This a is relatively old strain of ours, having been developed in the late 1990s by crossing some Red Leopard Lyretail Mollies from an Asian farm with Poecilia latipinna, San Antonio River, which we had collected in 1998. As usual ... Read More
Copperhead in Tree
Around noon today I was walking toward the greenhouses in our yard when I spied a copperhead about 10 feet up in a redbud tree. I’ve noticed over the last 10+ years that it’s right about mid-July that our copperheads cease hunting cicadas and June bugs emerging from the ground and switch to hunting ... Read More
Aulonocara jacobfreibergi ‘Lemon Jake’
This morning we processed Aulonocara jacobfreibergi ‘Lemon Jake’. It is a very pretty fish. The photo is one of our six breeding males. We got our beginning breeders (as 1-2” juveniles) last year in July from our customer Fish Gallery - Houston. They were grown up to form a breeding colony in ... Read More
Scorpion and Greenhouse Ecosystems
This afternoon I was removing a broken vat and, Robyn, a hatchery employee asked, “Do you know there is a scorpion on the vat?” As a matter of fact, I’d noticed it when I pulled the vat out. I figured it could ride along to the dead vat cache. It was fortunate I’d seen it. I get stung by ... Read More
Red Cherry Shrimp, Neocaridina denticulata senensis
This pretty little shrimp makes a great nano-tank or plant tank specimen. They are not shy and their bright coloration makes them stand out. While they are considered algae eaters, I’ve found they don’t. They sit on the algae and eat bits of food adhering to the plant, but they do not eat ... Read More
Freckle Hifin Genetic Tests
I recently sent off a column to Tropical Fish Hobbyist (TFH) magazine about a strain of Hifin Platies we have that breeds true. For those of you who don’t know, the hifin gene is a homozygous lethal in swordtails and platies. Fish that inherit two hifin genes, one from each parent, die as embryos. ... Read More
Preparing for three days of talks
There are times I should do only what has to be done. But, things happen… This time I had three speaking engagements in Vermont and Montréal, Canada in just three days in May. The day before leaving I spent most of the day before getting ready for the trip. Susie had booked us on an early morning ... Read More