40G: Odds and Ends

This weekend, I finally decided that both Hygrophilia sp. ‘Sarawak’ and the Potamegeton sp. from Florida were not working well in my aquascape. I wanted to add some smaller leafed stems, and happened to see Didiplis diandra and Rotala rotundifolia at a local fish store, so I bought a few stems of each. Ripping out the previous two plants ended up sending debris all throughout the tank, as you can see on the Anubias leafs below.

Speaking of the Anubias barteri ‘coffeefolia,’ it is growing quite nicely in the tank right now. It’s sending up new leaves rather frequently, and the Olive Nerite Snails, are doing their job keeping them largely free of spot algae. (If I could keep some hair algae out of this tank, that would be fantastic!)

Additionally, probably about 3 months ago, I purchased a bag of Windelov’s Java Fern at a GWAPA auction. As soon as I stuck it in the tank, it completely melted. I’m glad to see that the rhizome did not die, as it’s finally sending up some new leaves, as shown below.

Any time I get around this particular tank with a camera, the fish either go perfectly still, or hiding in the back corners. Luckily, this time, I caught this group of Melanotaenia praecox hovering, watching me and my camera very closely. Every time the flash went off, this fish got a little bit spooked, so after 1-2 shots, I let them be.