# Only in Florida Tank(Update 2-6-08)Lots of Pics!



## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

This is a tank I have been wanting to do for a while now, and I have finally set it up. It is a 10 gallon w/ 27w compact fluorescent light, cheapo power filter and a 100w heater. Bare minimum requirements for a fish tank. It has shultz aquatic soil as substrate w/ some mud on the bottom for nutrients. So far I have what I believe is Hygrophila corymbusa, ludwigia and some bacopa. I am getting some more bacopa and hygro soon..and I know of a place where I can find cabomba. It currently has 5 reject platys from my other tank. They were nipping at the vals. I would love some suggestions or comments!
















There is no scape right now because I am just cycling the tank for now...once the plants are used to the tank I will move some stuff around.


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## waterfaller1 (Jul 5, 2006)

Everything looks healthy, good luck with your tank.


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

Awesome, I've been collecting locals lately for the same purpose. I didn't realize we have corymbosa, and I just bought some a few weeks ago from S&S, lol. 

You should try to grow some of the local Hydrocotyle as ground cover, like H.verticillata. I think the dominant one that grows in yards and pond banks here is H.umbellata, pretty much the same plant with a different color flower. I'm interested to see if it'll grow low in a tank the way it does emergent, it gets pretty gangly floating in the ponds, not as uniform a floater as H.leucocephala.


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

I have tried some type of hydrocotyle-it grows in the water and on the banks in the pond at work. It just slowly melted away, but I will try some again in this tank. Maybe I will have better luck!

Also, I am not sure about the corymbusa-this is just what I believe it is. It has survived just over a week in my other tank, but no new growth yet-the leaves just spread out to look how they do in all the pictures I have seen. If it does well, this tank will mainly be hydro because I love the way it looks.


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## esteroali (Oct 24, 2007)

*Florida Hydocotyle*

I have grown Hydrocotyle that I found in dry ditches. It melts in the tank. In my Florida Nano I have Hydrocotyle that I found immersed in a pond and It is doing well. I suppose they could be different species but they all look the same to me.


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

Well, by this weekend all of the "hygro" has completely melted away...including the stems and everything. The roots were even mush! I took off the filter because it was constantly clogged, and put in a sponge filter. I also decided to put some duckweed in and threw in some sticks that were in my pond outside. They are just oak twigs, but they can't do too much damage until they rot, correct? I also put in 5 tiny mosquito fish that I caught with the duckweed-and around 50 frog eggs that are now tiny tadpoles. They are probably just cubans, but I am hoping they might be green treefrogs. It is kind of early for them to be laying though? We just had a very cold week, and now eggs? It has even really warmed up much. Anyways, here is the tank now:


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## mistergreen (Dec 9, 2006)

flag fish are from florida.


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

I went to a local canal and got some cabomba and re arranged some. I took out the mosquito fish. mistergreen- what about the flagfish? I know what fish are from around here and I am not getting anything else. I could just pretend I got the platys from a runoff canal. There is supposed to be a place not far from me that has all kinds of mollies/platies loose.


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## mistergreen (Dec 9, 2006)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordanella

I'm just saying flagfish would make a good addition to your all florida tank... Just watch out.. Some of them could a have a pugnacious attitude.

You can find some vals too.


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

I added one once and he took an instant liking to my stargrass, a vicious one at that, destroying a basketball size stand within two days. Shame, he was a really interesting, wiggly fish. He lives in the pond out back now. I'd like to start up a proper tank for some one day, where plants aren't the main concern.


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## mistergreen (Dec 9, 2006)

any other cool fish out of the everglades or something?

edit:
you got some cool fish down there actually.
http://www.fishbase.org/Country/CountryChecklist.php?c_code=840&vhabitat=fresh&csub_code=US-FL


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

Is it just me or do flagfish look a little like sailfin mollies? I also caught some kind of killie a year or so ago that was bright orange and yellow...I was just stupid and didn't think about it being special. Never caught another one since. 
Here are some more pictures-went to the park and got some red plants and some others that were under water...have a clue what they are?


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## NeonShrimp (Mar 9, 2006)

Very nice, I like the dash of red, the first scape was all green. Thanks again for the pictures


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## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

Good looking Florida tank! Flag fish would be nice in there. If it was bigger you could add a sturgeon.


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

I could always convert my pool! I haven't seen flag fish anywhere...They are pretty cool looking. I had an idea if I had a bigger tank to show what happens when the exotic platy's/mollies breed with our sailfins, but I don't have that bigger tank! I hope the red plants I got survive, because they do look nice. They were just growing in a ditch by a park I go to.....


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## fshfanatic (Apr 20, 2006)

Flag fish are actually a type of killi as well and very easy to keep. They are always in stock in the LFS's around here. I have three juvi's in my 29 now and I love them..


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## esteroali (Oct 24, 2007)

*Red Plant*

What is the red plant?? Where in Florida did you get it? I want some too!HMMM....maybe we could do some trades? I'll wait to see if it grows...


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

Yeah, about the red plant-I have no clue what it is. Hasn't melted in 1 day so far...looks the same to me. If it does well I know a ditch that has a lot-maybe I should go get some more before it dries any?


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

Got some more plants and moved everything into a 55. Standard 4' shoplight as lighting. I will be getting a lot more plants soon hopefully.


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## Sandman333 (Dec 8, 2007)

I need to get another tank and do this, or move out of this apartment so I can have larger than 10 gallons. 
Every time I walk or bike past a body of water I am compelled to stop and check what kind of plants I can see. Right now the only pond-plants that I have taken are bacopa and a hair grass. I've seen so many more. There's a huge amount of difference in bodies of water in Orlando, no two ponds that I've seen have had the same collection of plants.


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## BTDarters (Dec 30, 2007)

Cool tank! Swamp Darters (_Etheostoma fusiforme_), Bluefin Killifish (_Lucania goodei_), and Pygmy Killifish (_Leptolucania ommata_) are all Florida natives and would look really cool in there! If you can't catch these guys locally, you should be able to find Swamp Darters and Bluefin Killies at your Local Fish Store mixed-in with the ghost shrimp. The Pygmy Killies you will probably have to get on-line if you can't catch them. I think Paul Sachs has them at his website, http://www.aquaculturestore.com. 

Brian


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

I have caught the bluefin killies before. They are really cool, but soo tiny! All the ones I have seen are around 1" or so. I am still thinking about making this a tank representing the waterways around exotic breeder-ies. I would keep the 4 platys, add a few native sailfin mollies, and let it be. Maybe add some of those mosquito fish that have black all over? What are those called?


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

Now that you have a 55gl, I can add my suggestion. Belonesox belizanus (Pike Topminnow), they hang out in reed like plants and ambush they're prey. Too cool, I want to set up a species tank with some one day. They're totally predatory though and will eat smaller fish, have also been known to resort to cannibalism, and the females can reach about 8", males are around 4".


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

Those sound pretty cool. Do you know anywhere I could find some? I haven't even heard of that...Also, the hygro-like plants that I got yesterday have been completely cleaned of algea(thanks to the platys) and are perked up looking great. This stuff grows so fast! I am thinking about just letting it take over my tank and just keep the top clear. For some reason I always love the overgrown look everyone seems to dislike.


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

I'm not sure exactly where to find them in the wild, but I hear they're all over the place. I was planning on asking the local fish farmer, he brings various strays into the LFS with his guppies and I was hoping he'd have some around or know where to get them (obviously not with his guppies, lol), he's the one I got my Flag fish from.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

leodeal384 said:


> I have caught the bluefin killies before. They are really cool, but soo tiny! All the ones I have seen are around 1" or so. I am still thinking about making this a tank representing the waterways around exotic breeder-ies. I would keep the 4 platys, add a few native sailfin mollies, and let it be. Maybe add some of those mosquito fish that have black all over? What are those called?


a Gambusia or Poeciliopsis sp?


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

I've been able to catch baby fundulus in tide pools in Estero, when the tide comes in or goes out just enough to leave them in little pools with small outlets, it's easy to block off the outlets, raise up the sand on the sides, then cut a line in the side so the water drains low enough to scoop them up by hand. They need to be drip acclimated from salt to fresh for a long time in a well oxygenated container though, I've measured the SG of some of these tide pools as high as 1.033.


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

lauraleellbp said:


> a Gambusia or Poeciliopsis sp?


I think they are Gambusia affinis holbrooki. I used to call them cow minnows when I would catch them years ago.


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

jaidexl said:


> I've been able to catch baby fundulus in tide pools in Estero, when the tide comes in or goes out just enough to leave them in little pools with small outlets, it's easy to block off the outlets, raise up the sand on the sides, then cut a line in the side so the water drains low enough to scoop them up by hand.


What are baby fundulus?


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

I went fish hunting today in the canal, first net and I caught this guy:








He is under the fake roots, right in the middle. I thought he would color up a little, but he hasn't yet. He had faint black bars along his back and looks like some kind of killi or topminnow? I have no clue, but I am sure he/she is not a baby something. He looks kind of like this: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/myFishImage.php?n=222_IMG_1187_edited.jpg

New pic-


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

leodeal384 said:


> What are baby fundulus?


Sorry, Fundulus diaphanus aka Banded Killifish. Very tiny ones like 0.5".


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Don't they prefer brackish? Or am I thinking of a diff. banded killi?

BTW I'm totally enjoying your tank... I just might set up a 10gal and stock it from the canal next to my house (I'm in the everglades watershed...)- very inspirational!

When are we going plant hunting? lol:thumbsup:


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

I need to update with some pics of this tank. The hygro-like plant has started growing nicely and my platys have babies all over the tank. I set up a 3 gallon nano with a ton of that hygro stuff in it, and some "hairgrass" type plant I found a while ago. I also couldn't resist the urge to get a dojo loach for the 55. I was planning on him digging everything up, but he doesn't seem to like digging....maybe he doesn't like the sand? Anyways, this tank probably isn't going to be a florida fish only tank, I have so many platys now I don't have anywhere else to put them for a while. I'll get some pics tonight maybe.


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

lauraleellbp said:


> Don't they prefer brackish?


I think they're highly adaptable. I haven't tested them to find out though, I find them in water with an SG as high as 1.033 (very high, I think it might have something to do with them being in tide pools, water evaporates leaving salt to increase SG). I've never experimented with them because they go straight into a mantis tank and become food.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

LOL all the horror stories I've heard about mantis- do you keep yours in an acrylic tank?


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

No, it's an AGA tank with 1/8" glass. :eek5: 

He's only about 1.5" if that yet. He packs a small punch for now, but watching him put holes through rocks here is making me reconsider how quickly I'll be upgrading his domain. I have an astrea snail in there to gauge when that should happen, I figure once he can open the astrea then he can open the tank, he's not quite there yet.

His species maxes out at under 3". I don't know how true it is, but I read the larger species like G. chiragra and O. scyllarus are the only one's that can chip glass.


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

That plant has grown so much in such a short time! I love how the tips are turning a rusty color. Does anyone know what it really is?


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

Very nice.

Probably Hygrophila polysperma. I've had my eye out for that but no dice.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

The cabomba is doing great!

Were the others emersed or submerged?


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## leodeal384 (Sep 25, 2007)

Everything was growing submerged, except some plant that is out of the picture. 

Jaidexl-I could probably snag you some if you want. There is a TON of this in a local canal. It grows up the the surface of the water, but usually doesn't break the surface.


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