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-ED May 7th 06 01:13 AM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
I just added a RT black shark to my tank this week and I wanted to post a
question about his coloring....The fish appears grey with black fins, save
the red tail fin. The body lenght is close to 1.5 inches...I was curious to
find out if it will develope into the 'jet' black body I've read about; or
will this grey-color remain, or is it an indication of his/her mood...

Thanks for the help...-ED



netDenizen May 7th 06 01:28 AM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
-ED wrote:
I just added a RT black shark to my tank this week and I wanted to post a
question about his coloring....The fish appears grey with black fins, save
the red tail fin. The body lenght is close to 1.5 inches...I was curious to
find out if it will develope into the 'jet' black body I've read about; or
will this grey-color remain, or is it an indication of his/her mood...

Thanks for the help...-ED



I don't know about the colour, but it will probably become a big, mean
son-of-a-b. My brother had one for 7 years plus and it was the boss of
the tank - not a nice fish, actually.

Frank May 7th 06 02:27 AM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
ED wrote,
I was curious to
find out if it will develope into the 'jet' black body I've read about; or
will this grey-color remain, or is it an indication of his/her mood...


I guess you can call it 'mood', but it's really called stress. As soon
as it settles in, it will become 'jet' black with a blood red top fin
and tail. They tend to get a little aggressive as they grow, but not so
bad if there are kept in a small group of 2 or 3...

or is it an indication of his/her ...


While it's 'gray' - look midway on it's body - see a black dot, or two
black dots? Wonder if these dot differences has any thing to do with
sex (?) ................... Frank


-ED May 7th 06 02:42 AM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 

"Frank" wrote in message
oups.com...
ED wrote,
I was curious to
find out if it will develope into the 'jet' black body I've read about;

or
will this grey-color remain, or is it an indication of his/her mood...


I guess you can call it 'mood', but it's really called stress. As soon
as it settles in, it will become 'jet' black with a blood red top fin
and tail. They tend to get a little aggressive as they grow, but not so
bad if there are kept in a small group of 2 or 3...

or is it an indication of his/her ...

Yeah..I call it stress/mood..That would have posed a question as to how long
it would become comfortable; of which would have opened a series of
variables..;-)

While it's 'gray' - look midway on it's body - see a black dot, or two
black dots? Wonder if these dot differences has any thing to do with
sex (?) ................... Frank

One dot..about 1/4" behind the eye. It is a lone-shark =/ no pun
intended...He/She's the only shark I purchased for the tank. The vendor told
me it was a scavenger/algae eater...I wanted the spotted cories..all they
had were the albinos...I thought about it, and picked out the RT shark. It
has the white tip atop of its dorsel. Thanks ever so much...........-ED



Trevor Stenson May 7th 06 06:38 AM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
In article ,
netDenizen wrote:

-ED wrote:
I just added a RT black shark to my tank this week and I wanted to post a
question about his coloring....The fish appears grey with black fins, save
the red tail fin. The body lenght is close to 1.5 inches...I was curious to
find out if it will develope into the 'jet' black body I've read about; or
will this grey-color remain, or is it an indication of his/her mood...

Thanks for the help...-ED



I don't know about the colour, but it will probably become a big, mean
son-of-a-b. My brother had one for 7 years plus and it was the boss of
the tank - not a nice fish, actually.


My Rainbow shark turns a lighter shade of pale black when stressed.
(ie, major water change, "tankscaping", etc.). But even when it is
healthy and happy I wouldn't call it jet black. For them a touch of
grey-kind of suits them anyway, and it's alright.

I had, as a youth a Red-Tailed Black Shark, and at one time a Rainbow
Shark. The RTBS had a black body.

For whatever reason, my RTBS was not aggressive at all - and this was in
a 10 gallon community tank mind you. He lived for years and was not a
problem fish. The two rainbows I've had seemed more aggressive.

I currently have a Rainbow Shark in a 20+ gallon tank.

I think the trick with both sharks is to give them a nice cave they can
call their own, don't over-crowd with lots of middle to or top-to-bottom
dwellers (although mine have seemed to like a the company of at least
one other bottom dweller), have lots of plant cover for the other fish
and most of all find the right balance of tank-mates that won't p@ss it
off.

For instance, my Rainbow shark is not threatened by my Pleco or my
Swordtails.

[yes I know (thanks to the group) that the Pleco will have to be moved
at some point when out grows the tank]

The RS pays those other fish little attention. As for my Betta, well he
is a top dweller, and I have plenty of plant coverage including floating
Hornwort so he stays out the sharks way. They did spar off a lot when
they were about the same size as were determining who would be the alpha
fish.

Now that the shark is much bigger he's the heavy weight champ. He
wasn't compatible at all with neon tetras. I found that out the hard
way.

Cheers,

TS

--
Trevor Stenson

http://members.shaw.ca/kitschy/Digs.html
http://members.shaw.ca/kitschy/Blog/Blog.html

Flash Wilson May 7th 06 09:19 AM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
On Sun, 07 May 2006 05:38:25 GMT, Trevor Stenson wrote:
I had, as a youth a Red-Tailed Black Shark, and at one time a Rainbow
Shark. The RTBS had a black body.


Mine had a black body too - very dark.

For whatever reason, my RTBS was not aggressive at all - and this was in
a 10 gallon community tank mind you. He lived for years and was not a
problem fish. The two rainbows I've had seemed more aggressive.


Mine was a "rescue" from someone who kept it in a small tank with
a large pleco, two angels, and various tetras. It was tiny when I
got it even though he'd had it for years. Because of its small size
I initially put it in my tetra tank but it was rather nippy, so I
moved it to the larger cichlid tank where it held its own and finally
began to grow. It's dead now (no idea what caused it) - don't think
it had much of a life in that tiny tank I adopted it from.

But it definitely had character and spirit. Aggressiveness, probably
not, but it's a lot tougher than it looks!

--
Flash Wilson - Web Design & Mastery - 0870 401 4061 / 07939 579090
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Work: www.wdam.co.uk Personal: www.gorge.org

-ED May 7th 06 03:36 PM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
Trevor Stenson wrote:
In article ,
netDenizen wrote:

-ED wrote:
I just added a RT black shark to my tank this week and I wanted to post a
question about his coloring....The fish appears grey with black fins, save
the red tail fin. The body lenght is close to 1.5 inches...I was curious to
find out if it will develope into the 'jet' black body I've read about; or
will this grey-color remain, or is it an indication of his/her mood...

Thanks for the help...-ED


I don't know about the colour, but it will probably become a big, mean
son-of-a-b. My brother had one for 7 years plus and it was the boss of
the tank - not a nice fish, actually.


My Rainbow shark turns a lighter shade of pale black when stressed.
(ie, major water change, "tankscaping", etc.). But even when it is
healthy and happy I wouldn't call it jet black. For them a touch of
grey-kind of suits them anyway, and it's alright.

I had, as a youth a Red-Tailed Black Shark, and at one time a Rainbow
Shark. The RTBS had a black body.

For whatever reason, my RTBS was not aggressive at all - and this was in
a 10 gallon community tank mind you. He lived for years and was not a
problem fish. The two rainbows I've had seemed more aggressive.

I currently have a Rainbow Shark in a 20+ gallon tank.

I think the trick with both sharks is to give them a nice cave they can
call their own, don't over-crowd with lots of middle to or top-to-bottom
dwellers (although mine have seemed to like a the company of at least
one other bottom dweller), have lots of plant cover for the other fish
and most of all find the right balance of tank-mates that won't p@ss it
off.

For instance, my Rainbow shark is not threatened by my Pleco or my
Swordtails.

[yes I know (thanks to the group) that the Pleco will have to be moved
at some point when out grows the tank]

The RS pays those other fish little attention. As for my Betta, well he
is a top dweller, and I have plenty of plant coverage including floating
Hornwort so he stays out the sharks way. They did spar off a lot when
they were about the same size as were determining who would be the alpha
fish.

Now that the shark is much bigger he's the heavy weight champ. He
wasn't compatible at all with neon tetras. I found that out the hard
way.

Cheers,

TS

Well, should I concern myself with the Danios I've put in there. At
present, 10 Zebras are in there.
Thanks.........-ED

NetMax May 7th 06 03:42 PM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
"Trevor Stenson" wrote in message
news:kitschy-234F4E.23382506052006@shawnews...
In article ,
netDenizen wrote:

-ED wrote:
I just added a RT black shark to my tank this week and I wanted to
post a
question about his coloring....The fish appears grey with black
fins, save
the red tail fin. The body lenght is close to 1.5 inches...I was
curious to
find out if it will develope into the 'jet' black body I've read
about; or
will this grey-color remain, or is it an indication of his/her
mood...

Thanks for the help...-ED



I don't know about the colour, but it will probably become a big, mean
son-of-a-b. My brother had one for 7 years plus and it was the boss of
the tank - not a nice fish, actually.


My Rainbow shark turns a lighter shade of pale black when stressed.
(ie, major water change, "tankscaping", etc.). But even when it is
healthy and happy I wouldn't call it jet black. For them a touch of
grey-kind of suits them anyway, and it's alright.

I had, as a youth a Red-Tailed Black Shark, and at one time a Rainbow
Shark. The RTBS had a black body.

For whatever reason, my RTBS was not aggressive at all - and this was
in
a 10 gallon community tank mind you. He lived for years and was not a
problem fish. The two rainbows I've had seemed more aggressive.

I currently have a Rainbow Shark in a 20+ gallon tank.

I think the trick with both sharks is to give them a nice cave they can
call their own, don't over-crowd with lots of middle to or
top-to-bottom
dwellers (although mine have seemed to like a the company of at least
one other bottom dweller), have lots of plant cover for the other fish
and most of all find the right balance of tank-mates that won't p@ss it
off.

For instance, my Rainbow shark is not threatened by my Pleco or my
Swordtails.

[yes I know (thanks to the group) that the Pleco will have to be moved
at some point when out grows the tank]

The RS pays those other fish little attention. As for my Betta, well
he
is a top dweller, and I have plenty of plant coverage including
floating
Hornwort so he stays out the sharks way. They did spar off a lot when
they were about the same size as were determining who would be the
alpha
fish.

Now that the shark is much bigger he's the heavy weight champ. He
wasn't compatible at all with neon tetras. I found that out the hard
way.

Cheers,

TS

--
Trevor Stenson



My observations have been very similar. In temperament, I find the RS
(Rainbow Shark, red dorsal and red caudal fin) more of a community fish
than the RTBS, but once acclimated, RTBS body is more jet black than the
RS (though both darken with age and comfort level). Very beautiful fish
as adults if they can be kept with the right tank mates.
--
www.NetMax.tk



-ED May 7th 06 04:11 PM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
NetMax wrote:
"Trevor Stenson" wrote in message
news:kitschy-234F4E.23382506052006@shawnews...

In article ,
netDenizen wrote:


-ED wrote:

I just added a RT black shark to my tank this week and I wanted to
post a
question about his coloring....The fish appears grey with black
fins, save
the red tail fin. The body lenght is close to 1.5 inches...I was
curious to
find out if it will develope into the 'jet' black body I've read
about; or
will this grey-color remain, or is it an indication of his/her
mood...

Thanks for the help...-ED



I don't know about the colour, but it will probably become a big, mean
son-of-a-b. My brother had one for 7 years plus and it was the boss of
the tank - not a nice fish, actually.

My Rainbow shark turns a lighter shade of pale black when stressed.
(ie, major water change, "tankscaping", etc.). But even when it is
healthy and happy I wouldn't call it jet black. For them a touch of
grey-kind of suits them anyway, and it's alright.

I had, as a youth a Red-Tailed Black Shark, and at one time a Rainbow
Shark. The RTBS had a black body.

For whatever reason, my RTBS was not aggressive at all - and this was
in
a 10 gallon community tank mind you. He lived for years and was not a
problem fish. The two rainbows I've had seemed more aggressive.

I currently have a Rainbow Shark in a 20+ gallon tank.

I think the trick with both sharks is to give them a nice cave they can
call their own, don't over-crowd with lots of middle to or
top-to-bottom
dwellers (although mine have seemed to like a the company of at least
one other bottom dweller), have lots of plant cover for the other fish
and most of all find the right balance of tank-mates that won't p@ss it
off.

For instance, my Rainbow shark is not threatened by my Pleco or my
Swordtails.

[yes I know (thanks to the group) that the Pleco will have to be moved
at some point when out grows the tank]

The RS pays those other fish little attention. As for my Betta, well
he
is a top dweller, and I have plenty of plant coverage including
floating
Hornwort so he stays out the sharks way. They did spar off a lot when
they were about the same size as were determining who would be the
alpha
fish.

Now that the shark is much bigger he's the heavy weight champ. He
wasn't compatible at all with neon tetras. I found that out the hard
way.

Cheers,

TS

--
Trevor Stenson



My observations have been very similar. In temperament, I find the RS
(Rainbow Shark, red dorsal and red caudal fin) more of a community fish
than the RTBS, but once acclimated, RTBS body is more jet black than the
RS (though both darken with age and comfort level). Very beautiful fish
as adults if they can be kept with the right tank mates.

Thanks again...The tank, as of now, has alot of swimming room given the
plant styles and placements (its not crammed with foliage)..the
philadendrum droops in areas to provide cover as well as serving as a
dinner plate to prevent most of the food from getting lost on the
bottom. The RTBS took to the tank immediately, combing over the various
surfaces..it didn't bother hiding out when first introduced. It took
off straight for the long driftwood and began combing it up and down.
As far as I can tell, its quite comfortable..it had a small stand-off
with the male betta...no big deal..he went one way..betta the other.
Thanks again....-ED


Mister Gardener May 7th 06 05:20 PM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
On Sun, 07 May 2006 14:36:17 GMT, -ED wrote:

Trevor Stenson wrote:
In article ,
netDenizen wrote:

-ED wrote:
I just added a RT black shark to my tank this week and I wanted to post a
question about his coloring....The fish appears grey with black fins, save
the red tail fin. The body lenght is close to 1.5 inches...I was curious to
find out if it will develope into the 'jet' black body I've read about; or
will this grey-color remain, or is it an indication of his/her mood...

Thanks for the help...-ED


I don't know about the colour, but it will probably become a big, mean
son-of-a-b. My brother had one for 7 years plus and it was the boss of
the tank - not a nice fish, actually.


My Rainbow shark turns a lighter shade of pale black when stressed.
(ie, major water change, "tankscaping", etc.). But even when it is
healthy and happy I wouldn't call it jet black. For them a touch of
grey-kind of suits them anyway, and it's alright.

I had, as a youth a Red-Tailed Black Shark, and at one time a Rainbow
Shark. The RTBS had a black body.

For whatever reason, my RTBS was not aggressive at all - and this was in
a 10 gallon community tank mind you. He lived for years and was not a
problem fish. The two rainbows I've had seemed more aggressive.

I currently have a Rainbow Shark in a 20+ gallon tank.

I think the trick with both sharks is to give them a nice cave they can
call their own, don't over-crowd with lots of middle to or top-to-bottom
dwellers (although mine have seemed to like a the company of at least
one other bottom dweller), have lots of plant cover for the other fish
and most of all find the right balance of tank-mates that won't p@ss it
off.

For instance, my Rainbow shark is not threatened by my Pleco or my
Swordtails.

[yes I know (thanks to the group) that the Pleco will have to be moved
at some point when out grows the tank]

The RS pays those other fish little attention. As for my Betta, well he
is a top dweller, and I have plenty of plant coverage including floating
Hornwort so he stays out the sharks way. They did spar off a lot when
they were about the same size as were determining who would be the alpha
fish.

Now that the shark is much bigger he's the heavy weight champ. He
wasn't compatible at all with neon tetras. I found that out the hard
way.

Cheers,

TS

Well, should I concern myself with the Danios I've put in there. At
present, 10 Zebras are in there.
Thanks.........-ED


I once read a description of zebra danios as "constantly moving about
the tank yet never appearing restless or nervous." And yes, that's
what they do. Plenty of action, never disruptive. They must love your
big tank. Zebras were one of the first egglayers that I spawned, I
have a special place in my heart for them.

-- Mister Gardener
-- Pull the WEED to email me

Frank May 8th 06 03:43 AM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
-ED - wrote,
That would have posed a question as to how long
it would become comfortable.......


A day or two tops, if your water parameters are to it's liking.

He/She's the only shark I purchased for the tank....


I would get at least one more - get one that has two dots on its side -
beleave me, it makes them much more happy and they won't show near the
aggression.

The vendor told
me it was a scavenger/algae eater...
I wanted the spotted cories..all they
had were the albinos....


Don't know what size tank you have, but I would get one cory per 5
gals. for the clean-up crew. The RTBS, as it gets larger, will eat
where ever it wants, not just off the bottom. Mine would take their
food from my fingers most of the time............... Frank


Frank May 8th 06 06:57 AM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
-ED - wrote,
should I concern myself with the Danios I've put in there...


They will be fine untill the RTBS is large enough to take them in one
bite. I had an 8" RTBS in a 180 gal. (2' x 2' x 6'). Since I was
breeding them, I fed White Clouds to this tank. The RTBS could easy
take a 1.5" White Cloud in a split second from across the tank. They
are a lot faster than you could ever think a Danio or White Cloud could
be. Funny thing though, it was around 5" before it took it's first
Cardenal Tetra. Had to move him to the 180 gal. tank the following day
as he went through a half dozen before I figured out it was him - the
Cardenals were his tankmates from day one................. Frank


-ED May 8th 06 07:23 AM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
On Mon, 08 May 2006 00:57:04 -0500, Frank wrote:

-ED - wrote,
should I concern myself with the Danios I've put in there...


They will be fine untill the RTBS is large enough to take them in one
bite. I had an 8" RTBS in a 180 gal. (2' x 2' x 6'). Since I was
breeding them, I fed White Clouds to this tank. The RTBS could easy
take a 1.5" White Cloud in a split second from across the tank. They
are a lot faster than you could ever think a Danio or White Cloud could
be. Funny thing though, it was around 5" before it took it's first
Cardenal Tetra. Had to move him to the 180 gal. tank the following day
as he went through a half dozen before I figured out it was him - the
Cardenals were his tankmates from day one................. Frank


Holy Shark-Bites Batman....=0 This sounds like the theory I heard years
ago that alot of tropical fish will 'grow in scale' to their environment..
I'm glad you told me about the reflex this fish is capable of. That's
enlightening to say the least. I'm looking forward to his maturity. He's
a pale grey at the moment..at times I notice his red tail almost fading to
a translucent/transparent coloring. I've got my eye on him. I wish I had
set this tank up as a headboard for my bedroom. 8" is quite a sizable
fish I must say. He must have been a trophy, indeed. I'm not looking
forward to him getting that big..for it will force me to build the bigger
tanks I mentioned before. I'm rough-drafting some plans now, but I need
to concern myself with the load it will present in my upstairs apartment..
As such, I feel that a long, thin tank would put the load more on the
support wall..ie- about 7'x 21"x 14" from the wall. I'm gonna have to
visit more sites that illustrate today's construction techniques to havea
better handle on its overall dimensions.
Thanks for the holler....-ED

--
Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/mail/

Mister Gardener May 8th 06 01:45 PM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
OFF TOPIC - Ed, your return address on your email is bouncing. If
there is a secret to contacting you, please email me with the details.

-- Mister Gardener
-- Pull the WEED to email me

Trevor Stenson May 8th 06 02:34 PM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
Holy Shark-Bites Batman....=0 This sounds like the theory I heard years
ago that alot of tropical fish will 'grow in scale' to their environment.


I'm not sure he is saying that for a fact. I used to believe in that
but maybe there is a slight tank-size effect in that if a fish isn't
eating and thriving because it is not happy in its environment, then it
will tend not to grow as fast.

But anyway both my Pleco and Rainbow Shark have grown to about 6 inches
and 4 inches, respectively (and both with large girth) in less that 5
months. They started out an inch or less in length. That is in a 20
gallon tank, and the shark getting big did at least correlate with his
taste for Neon Tetras.

I'll probably trade my Pleco in for a Bristlenose when he gets too big
for the tank.

Cheers,

Trev

--
Trevor Stenson

http://members.shaw.ca/kitschy/Digs.html
http://members.shaw.ca/kitschy/Blog/Blog.html

NetMax May 8th 06 03:14 PM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
"Trevor Stenson" wrote in message
news:kitschy-2B5BA3.07344608052006@shawnews...
Holy Shark-Bites Batman....=0 This sounds like the theory I heard
years
ago that alot of tropical fish will 'grow in scale' to their
environment.


I'm not sure he is saying that for a fact. I used to believe in that
but maybe there is a slight tank-size effect in that if a fish isn't
eating and thriving because it is not happy in its environment, then it
will tend not to grow as fast.

But anyway both my Pleco and Rainbow Shark have grown to about 6 inches
and 4 inches, respectively (and both with large girth) in less that 5
months. They started out an inch or less in length. That is in a 20
gallon tank, and the shark getting big did at least correlate with his
taste for Neon Tetras.

I'll probably trade my Pleco in for a Bristlenose when he gets too big
for the tank.

Cheers,

Trev



There's definitely a strong correlation between tank size and fish size,
but the general consensus is that water quality is a bigger vector (and
not coincidentally, large tanks typically have better water quality).
That and diet. It's not unusual to see sudden growth rate being
associated with foods being given. This is most obvious with fry as they
move through different food groups, but you can see it in older fish as
well, particularly when fed live foods (fish, shrimp, bugs, worms etc).

The RTBS eventually attacking tank-mates sounds about right (though I've
never had an RTBS that large and I'm jealous). Tank-mates are isolated
from being food for a long time. Usually until one gets ill and swims
funny and then the larger fish's instinct gets stronger and it takes a
bite. Then it's a buffet smorgasbord. Adding new small fish can also
trigger this. Angelfish keepers are often familiar with DNT
'disappearing Neon threshold' ;~).
--
www.NetMax.tk



Nikki May 8th 06 05:54 PM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 

"NetMax" wrote in message
...
"Trevor Stenson" wrote in message
news:kitschy-2B5BA3.07344608052006@shawnews...


-- There's definitely a strong correlation between tank size and fish
size, but the general consensus is that water quality is a bigger vector
(and not coincidentally, large tanks typically have better water quality).
That and diet. It's not unusual to see sudden growth rate being
associated with foods being given. This is most obvious with fry as they
move through different food groups, but you can see it in older fish as
well, particularly when fed live foods (fish, shrimp, bugs, worms etc).


www.NetMax.tk


I was reading a web page on betta's this guy was doing all kinds of
experiments, one was to see if clean water made the fish grow faster, so he
separated two groups of fish and changed ones water a lot and the others not
so often, feed the same food and did everything else the same, after some
time pasted the fish who's water was being changed a lot and kept very clean
grew a lot faster, then he did a test to see if he then started doing the
water changes more often on the other set of fish if they would catch up and
they did. He went on to do all kind of different things like that it was
interesting.
Nik



-ED May 8th 06 07:39 PM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
On Sun, 07 May 2006 00:38:25 -0500, Trevor Stenson wrote:

In article ,
netDenizen wrote:

-ED wrote:
I just added a RT black shark to my tank this week and I wanted to

post a
question about his coloring....The fish appears grey with black fins,

save
the red tail fin. The body lenght is close to 1.5 inches...I was

curious to
find out if it will develope into the 'jet' black body I've read

about; or
will this grey-color remain, or is it an indication of his/her mood....

Thanks for the help...-ED



I don't know about the colour, but it will probably become a big, mean
son-of-a-b. My brother had one for 7 years plus and it was the boss of
the tank - not a nice fish, actually.


My Rainbow shark turns a lighter shade of pale black when stressed.
(ie, major water change, "tankscaping", etc.). But even when it is
healthy and happy I wouldn't call it jet black. For them a touch of
grey-kind of suits them anyway, and it's alright.

I had, as a youth a Red-Tailed Black Shark, and at one time a Rainbow
Shark. The RTBS had a black body.

For whatever reason, my RTBS was not aggressive at all - and this was in
a 10 gallon community tank mind you. He lived for years and was not a
problem fish. The two rainbows I've had seemed more aggressive.

I currently have a Rainbow Shark in a 20+ gallon tank.

I think the trick with both sharks is to give them a nice cave they can
call their own, don't over-crowd with lots of middle to or top-to-bottom
dwellers (although mine have seemed to like a the company of at least
one other bottom dweller), have lots of plant cover for the other fish
and most of all find the right balance of tank-mates that won't p@ss it
off.

For instance, my Rainbow shark is not threatened by my Pleco or my
Swordtails.

[yes I know (thanks to the group) that the Pleco will have to be moved
at some point when out grows the tank]

The RS pays those other fish little attention. As for my Betta, well he
is a top dweller, and I have plenty of plant coverage including floating
Hornwort so he stays out the sharks way. They did spar off a lot when
they were about the same size as were determining who would be the alpha
fish.

Now that the shark is much bigger he's the heavy weight champ. He
wasn't compatible at all with neon tetras. I found that out the hard
way.

Cheers,

TS

Its a sad day when I google for photos of Red-Tailed Black Sharks...and
not one..not one mind you...look like my little grey buddy!!!


--
Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/mail/

Mister Gardener May 8th 06 09:31 PM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 
On Mon, 8 May 2006 12:54:09 -0400, "Nikki"
wrote:


"NetMax" wrote in message
.. .
"Trevor Stenson" wrote in message
news:kitschy-2B5BA3.07344608052006@shawnews...


-- There's definitely a strong correlation between tank size and fish
size, but the general consensus is that water quality is a bigger vector
(and not coincidentally, large tanks typically have better water quality).
That and diet. It's not unusual to see sudden growth rate being
associated with foods being given. This is most obvious with fry as they
move through different food groups, but you can see it in older fish as
well, particularly when fed live foods (fish, shrimp, bugs, worms etc).


www.NetMax.tk


I was reading a web page on betta's this guy was doing all kinds of
experiments, one was to see if clean water made the fish grow faster, so he
separated two groups of fish and changed ones water a lot and the others not
so often, feed the same food and did everything else the same, after some
time pasted the fish who's water was being changed a lot and kept very clean
grew a lot faster, then he did a test to see if he then started doing the
water changes more often on the other set of fish if they would catch up and
they did. He went on to do all kind of different things like that it was
interesting.
Nik

Makes sense. And is interesting. Now, if only more people would read
articles like his and follow through with the conclusions . . .

-- Mister Gardener
-- Pull the WEED to email me

Nikki May 8th 06 11:12 PM

Red-Tailed Shark Coloring
 

"Mister Gardener" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 8 May 2006 12:54:09 -0400, "Nikki"
wrote:


"NetMax" wrote in message
. ..
"Trevor Stenson" wrote in message
news:kitschy-2B5BA3.07344608052006@shawnews...


-- There's definitely a strong correlation between tank size and fish
size, but the general consensus is that water quality is a bigger vector
(and not coincidentally, large tanks typically have better water
quality).
That and diet. It's not unusual to see sudden growth rate being
associated with foods being given. This is most obvious with fry as
they
move through different food groups, but you can see it in older fish as
well, particularly when fed live foods (fish, shrimp, bugs, worms etc).


www.NetMax.tk


I was reading a web page on betta's this guy was doing all kinds of
experiments, one was to see if clean water made the fish grow faster, so
he
separated two groups of fish and changed ones water a lot and the others
not
so often, feed the same food and did everything else the same, after some
time pasted the fish who's water was being changed a lot and kept very
clean
grew a lot faster, then he did a test to see if he then started doing the
water changes more often on the other set of fish if they would catch up
and
they did. He went on to do all kind of different things like that it was
interesting.
Nik

Makes sense. And is interesting. Now, if only more people would read
articles like his and follow through with the conclusions . . .

-- Mister Gardener
-- Pull the WEED to email me


Later on tonight I will see where I have it, I know I saved the web
page...ill post it, you might like it. Although its about betta's a lot of
it will apply to any fish and I guess he has some time on his hands because
he has done a lot of different experiments.
Nik




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