Decisions & Discoveries

I decided to put Aphrodite in the separator before I left on a short 3 day trip because she wouldn't stop nipping at the other fish- even Zeus! I got back and found the Zeus' badly nipped fin had regrown completely! So she's still in the separator and doing well. I'm hoping I can keep her in there until all the guppy's fins grow back too. The new guy is doing well, I still haven't decided on a name yet. I'm leaning towards Tiberious. I came up with more, now the top 4 are Tiberious, Hatchepsut, Socrates, and Nefertiti.  I also did some research about Pachus' disappearance. Appearantly this isn't uncommon. I've come to the conclusion that he died from bad water quality and Zeus ate his algae-covered corpse. It's reassuring to know that plecos only are known to eat corpses, not living fish. So the mystery of the missing Pachus is solved! More pictures of the new guy are above.

Introducing.....

Pachus 4

Just to give you an idea about his size...

Yes! The rumors are true! I bought two new fish this morning! After the recent disappearance of Pachus 2, Pachus 3 looked very lonely. So I bought him a friend: Pachus 4!! He is very long and skinny. The other fish is a gorgeous julii cory catfish, he is so small!!! Now Xerxes will have a friend! I have left the naming up to YOU (yes, YOU!) all you have to do is vote for your favorite name on the sidebar. I will at last give him a name in one week, so vote ASAP! If you are curious about what all of the names mean here's a "guide":

Homer:  An ancient Greek epic poet who is believed to have written the Lliad and the Odyssey, inspiring the invention of the Greek language

Romulus /Remis: Twin Brothers who are central characters in Rome's foundation myth. After being abandoned by their mother, a pack of wolves apparently found them and raised them. They wanted to found a city on Palantine hill. They fought over who would rule the city, which ended up with the death of Remis. Romulus then name the city after himself, Rome.

Achilles: A hero of the Trojan war

Hades: God of the underworld, brother of Zeus

Sparta: A city in Greece, famous for their military power

Pan: God of Shepards and Pastures

Apollo: God of the Sun

Athena: Goddess of War and Wisdom

Iris: Goddess of rainbows

Nike: Goddess of victory

My personal favorites for this fish in particular are Homer-Pan (Homer, Socrates, Romulus, Remis, Achilles, Hades, Sparta, and Pan) I also LOVE the name Tiberious for this fish in particular, but I thought of it after the poll was made. It just fits! If you like that name too, don't vote and I'll probably just name him Tiberious.

All is well

I just returned from my trip last night to find my fish tank just as I'd left it! (except for some evaporated water, of course) What a relief! It was a little bit dirtier, but nothing I can't fix, right? I'm also seriously considering purchasing another corydoras catfish, so please vote for your favorite name on the sidebar!!! Whichever name gets the most votes will be the name of the catfish!

Just to Catch you Up....

Sorry I haven't been keeping you up to date lately. The summer has kept me really busy! Pachus has literally disappeared! He's nowhere to be found. I've cleaned the tank several times since he went missing, and still no sign of him. During all of this time,  Tut has been ill. It started with his fins rotting away, and a large yellow-orange spot growing on his fin. Then he was surface resting. I tried to help him up with the net, but he would immediately sink back to the bottom. I began to fear that he would die, so I did some research. I considered various diseases that fit his symptoms, and came to the conclusion that it was a parasite. I treated him for a couple weeks and, gladly, he is swimming again! I truly hope he makes a full recovery soon! I haven't noticed any new nips from Aphrodite, but Poseidon and Sepa's fins are not growing back! I have been treating them with different medicines, and still no improvement. Well, I guess I'll just have to wait. I've made two or three water changes since my last post. During one of these changes, I accidentally bumped into Zeus with my gravel vacuum, and boy did I startle him! He leaped an inch or two out of the tank before splashing back in. It scared me! A different time, I was putting the decorations back in. I was picked up some gravel to move, and instead grabbed Xerxes for a whole three seconds! It was a shocking, yet almost delightful experience, but it doesn't seem to me that he enjoyed the experience. He totally spazzed out! I must say, it was rather amusing to watch him recover for the next five minutes. Speaking of decorations, I got   a whole box of freshwater supplies from my uncle, who is starting a saltwater aquarium. I'm covered for the next five years! He even has a large filter and gravel if I ever can afford to upgrade tanks! One of my lightbulbs burned out, so my tank is only half lit... I was about to replace it, but I decided to leave it for a week or two. I kind of like it that way. I just hope they don't turn into vampire fish!! Well, I'm about to leave on a two week vacation, so we'll see how my fish do. Don't worry we'll hire somebody to feed them. I be sure to write about it when I get back.

Be sure to check out all new pictures of the fish in the "Fish Name Photo Gallery" tab!