# Otocinclus Cocama - A Zebra's Journal



## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

The Zebra is one of the most fascinating species by markings and character. I really wanted to attempt this but the pricing was just too much to fit the bill. Finally, one day, I just decided to go for it and made my first purchase of (5). Here they are after arrival:









These wee ones where purchased just under a year ago. Still too young to properly sex at the time. They were acclimated very slowly to their new home. Colored up nicely just after 24hr mark in the tank which was a pleasant surprise. A few short days later, I lost one. However, the suspected reason would surprise you. I suspected aggression had a hand in it as I found two puncture wounds in the deceased one. Very much matching that of a fin. I found a similar mark on another Oto which lead me to that conclusion. I have had no further issues since.

Here is a group photo at two weeks in the tank munching on some home prepared specialty food.









As time went on, I eventually was able to determine that my little group consisted of all males. Was a little bummed. Again due to pricing and availability, I was just going to have to wait my time as to when to get another group in.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Throughout this past winter, I made the commitment to get another group come spring and revive this project. Not too long ago, I contacted a fellow PT member here, Loachutus (a.k.a Todd Hooper), in regards to some floating plants. After several conversations and mentioning about the Vittatus, I told him that I was also attempting the Cocama's and that I had to get another group in due to only having males. 

What happened next was a big surprise. He told me that he had purchased some a while back and even lost a few. There were a couple nice females in his tank. He then offered to *donate* the two lovely ladies to my project! Really was shocked. Needless to say and really what could I say, I had to accept this kind offer.  We just had to work through the logisitics of shipping and weather. There was no rush. Mother Nature eventually provided a window of opportunity and they began their journey to Virginia two days ago. They arrived yesterday just fine and acclimated to the tank nice and slowly.

Here's a couple shots of the ladies during acclimation:
Lady1:










Lady2:









I'll get better shots once they are all settled in.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

We now invite you to join us on this hopefully fantastic journey. There will be ups and downs (preferrably way more ups) and hopefully the successful end result of a spawn or two. I will be posting updates to the tank such as water parms, flora, fauna, etc.

And as always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask away.

Thank you and enjoy!


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## Powchekny (Jan 25, 2010)

Wonderful project! You'll be doing a great thing for the aquarium hobby, and the genus _Otocinclus_ if you can get them to breed reliably in captivity.

I'd love to have Otos in my tank, but my experience has been so bad in the past that I feel irresponsible buying more.

It just makes me sick thinking of the countless millions of these guys that die in shipping, and after that even in well run aquaria because of the suffering they've been put through.

I read some speculation once that Otocinclus species have such a high mortality rate in aquaria because their intestinal fauna die out during the capture and shipping process. Have you ever heard that?


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## tuffgong (Apr 13, 2010)

Good luck James. If anybody is equipped to do this it's you! If you succeed. I will be one of your first customers!


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## MoeBetta (Feb 5, 2011)

Indeed good luck, looking forward to watching your progress.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Powchekny said:


> I read some speculation once that Otocinclus species have such a high mortality rate in aquaria because their intestinal fauna die out during the capture and shipping process. Have you ever heard that?


For the most part, this is true. Once the bacteria die off completely, it's pretty much end game for the little guy. However, if you catch it in time, you can reverse the effects.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

tuffgong said:


> Good luck James. If anybody is equipped to do this it's you! If you succeed. I will be one of your first customers!


Thanks kindly to all.

Mr. Hooper is #1 on list though. If it weren't for his contribution, I wouldn't be able to get going on it. :wink:


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## Rockhoe14er (Jan 19, 2011)

wow this is going to be great. Good luck James. I hope you have good luck breeding these guys. Then once i move to Virginia in the fall i can maybe buy some up from you.


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## Loachutus (Aug 27, 2010)

> The more I studied and researched, the more I wanted this project to be successfull to be able to offer captive raised Otos to the general public. As many of you know, they aren't treated very well from capture to our tanks. They are caught in the 1000s and usually shipped in bad conditions just to wind up at the LFS half starved to death. This leads to a very low survivability rate. Many unfortunately don't even survive the export.


And that's why you have them sir. Lookin forward to updates!! Those are some handsome males, BTW.


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## Da Plant Man (Apr 7, 2010)

Can I be third on this list? 

Glad to see somebody is actually doing something! I feel sorry now that petco is carrying them. Who knows how high the death rate spiked (after transport) when they started carrying them.


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## hydrophyte (Mar 1, 2009)

Those are really cool little fish.

And this sounds like an interesting project.


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## billb (May 29, 2009)

Looking forward to this journal! I re-read your O. vittatus journal, are the zebra's sharing the same tank? Can you give some detail on your feeding routines?

Thanks!


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

billb said:


> are the zebra's sharing the same tank? Can you give some detail on your feeding routines?


I probably should have kept the Vittatus journal here as well.

The Zebra's have thier own tank. While they can reside with each other, for the purpose of this project, I house them all seperate.

I won't have the feeding routine established in their tank for about another week. This gives the newbies time to settle in and adjust. During this period, I will keep an abundance of foods available to them so they can learn what to expect and such. Sounds a bit trivial but it has been working wonders in all the other tanks.

I will tell you that the main staples are Ken's Veggie Flakes and Sticks, blanched zucchini, seaweed and Snailo (It's there for the shrimp but I see them hit it every now and then). In addition, I'll be resuming the prepared powdered food that you see in the group pic. It's a combination of algae and veggie powders that is held together with Agar. A member on another forum came up with this and has done quite well. Even the shrimp go crazy over it.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

24hr mark and still looking good. One more day to go to clear the first hurdle.


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## tuffgong (Apr 13, 2010)

Have you noticed the females eating yet?


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

tuffgong said:


> Have you noticed the females eating yet?


I've seen them on the glass and in the crypt jungle. They are moving about which is good.


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## palufreak (Mar 1, 2011)

Very cool project... I myself want to eventually breed, raise and sell fish and inverts, including otocinclus!! Will start with a normal planted tank first (first real one)!!!!
Anyways, good luck!!


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## ADA (Dec 31, 2010)

Those are so cool!


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

All are doing just fine in their new home. I catch the new additions at different areas of the tank everytime I check on them. I may be able to get in there and start readjusting some of the plants now. I will follow that with a 10% water change and a recharge of the CO2.


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## LICfish (Oct 9, 2010)

Great project. Good luck! I'd like to be on the list too please


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## waterfaller1 (Jul 5, 2006)

Because of my extremely sad experience, I too am interested in your project. I went in with a friend, and ordered 17 of them from a vendor here in Fl. I will save you the horror of their bloated photos, as I lined them up, as they passed away shortly after arrival.:icon_cry: The vendor never made good on my loss.It was a sad and expensive lesson.
I wish you the best with them.:icon_cool


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## GDP (Mar 12, 2011)

Are these hard to breed in captivity? The reason I ask is because you would think this would have been done already. Just curious. I hope you are successful though because I know I would buy some. Im new to oto cats but have 3 so far, and love them.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Unfortunately, yes. With a little luck and a boat load of patience, I'm sure hoping we can do this.


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## JCoxRocks (Mar 22, 2005)

Man... I'm cheering you on for sure. I'm not far from you in NC, so if you are successful, I think a road trip would be in order. I have 5 of these little guys in my tank from Corys R Us and I love them! They are busy little eaters and have decimated a large patch of algae I had on the glass on my 125g. I was going to scrape it but decided to leave it for their enjoyment. I'm glad I did as they have plowed through it like it was nothing. I have some manzanita floating in my tank now and they seem really interested in it too.

I hope everything works out for you. I'd be very interested to see if you can successfully breed them. Good luck! And more photos please!


J


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## 4f1hmi (Apr 22, 2009)

I am a fan of zebra otos too but was not to lucky with them before.GL on your project !


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Water change done with minor gravel vac. That was done just to prepare the area as I plant so as to not stir up a bunch of stuff. I'm going a little bit different on this tank from the Vittatus due to the nature of the Cocama's. I'll do a water test Thursday (wont be home tomorrow) after this to get some readings to see where I'm at and if it hits the numbers I'm looking for. 

Also in the process of swaping filters. This tank had been run on a ZooMed 501. While it worked well for the time, I'm looking to create a bit more of a centralized current. The outflow from the HOB should flow over the piece of driftwood creating a nice subtle current. I'll swap media from the Vittatus tank with a new pad and use it's established media to help get started on the new filter. I'll over filter for a while by leaving the ZooMed on for about a week.

Here's a current species list:

*Fauna:* (6) Otocinclus cocama - 4 males and 2 females, (5) Caridina cf. propinqua, (5) Caridina gracilirostris. The C. propinqua will be permanent residents and I'll be adding about (5-7) more. Being low order breeders, this will actually keep the numbers and activity level down in the tank. The C. gracilirostris will be moving to the Vittatus tank once I relocate the Tigers to their own tank. Other future additions will be (2) Pomacea bridgesii.

*Flora:* Bacopa caroliniana, Bacopa monnieri, Bacopa sp. 'Colorata', Cryptocoryne balansae, Cryptocoryne wendtii (bronze), Hygrophila polysperma. For a low lying plant, I originally was going to go with a few Dwarf Sags but I'm rethinking that. I may still look into though. I have Downoi and RI in the Vittatus tank. I know as foreground plants of that nature, the options are pretty limited. If I can master Lobelia cardinalis, I may even try that. I'm also still looking to acquire Littorella uniflora.

*Substrate:* Flourite

*Lighting:* This is also tricky as it is a shared light with another tank. 32w T8. I'm actually looking to scale this down to around 18w. It will still be a shared light so I'm looking to find a 36" fixture. I could go with an indepent fixture but I was trying to cut down the amount of equipment being plugged into one source. I hate cables. I may go CFL in the future with the new rack but we'll see where this takes us.

*Filtration:* Current: ZooMed 501 mini-canister. Planned: Standard HOB w/ sponge prefilter.

*Decor:* I'm actually going with a flat piece of field stone and manzanita driftwood. I will have the stone sticking straight up and try to position the DW to lean on top it. This will provide more surface area for grazing and extra hide spot. This may go away if I can build a moss wall but I'm looking to do that with Fissidens.

I think that just about sums this tank up in a nut shell. It will slowly piece itself together. All the stem plants were trimmed low so they can fill out as the environs dictate. I will also be using DIY CO2 on this tank. My choice of dry ferts to start will be a PMDD mix. Might be a bit sensitive to try and mess with EI at this point.

I'll try and get some pics posted when the smoke clears.


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## JCoxRocks (Mar 22, 2005)

I'm no expert, but can I suggest that you add some sort of wood to your scape? My cocamas have been CRAZY about the manzanita I recently put in my tank. They really seem to love it. They were all over it while it was floating and even when I positioned it in the tank last night, they'd swim away angrily as I moved it and then come flying right back to it when I pulled my hand out. They looked like little bees scatterring when I disturbed their hive.

J


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Thx. I do have a small manzanita piece in there at the moment. They do seem to like it. I have been flip flopping on keeping or removing it. But it will stay for the moment.


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## chad320 (Mar 7, 2010)

Very nice project James. I agree on the wood. Otos love it. I dont think they rasp on it to eat it like plecos do but it seems to grow enough biofilm of algae or whatever that they hang around it alot. It also probably serves as a hiding comfort for them too. They have pretty good camo and probably feel invisible on the wood.


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## JCoxRocks (Mar 22, 2005)

Don't take my word for it... here's my little guys in action...










Ignore the blurry fish in the way trying to hog the spotlight and you should be able to see at least 3 of my 5 cocamas in this one...










Sorry... crappy iPhone pics I snapped as I was running out the door at lunch, but still a compelling argument for keeping some driftwood in their tank.

Did I mention, I love these little guys?

J


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## tuffgong (Apr 13, 2010)

Those zebra oto's are really pretty fish. I can't wait until James breeds enough for us all.


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## Loachutus (Aug 27, 2010)

@James, the girls had mopani in their tank, FWIW.:icon_bigg



> Did I mention, I love these little guys?


Probably my favorite cat.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Manzanita to be replaced with Mopani. Will have to reposition some crypts around and work on a couple foreground plants. Should have the new filter in place today as well.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Wasn't able to spend as much time as I had originally planned in the tank today. I did manage to get the filter in place. I'll prepare the prefilter probably tomorrow. The current actually turned out to be a bit stronger than I wanted. I can adjust it on this model though so I think it will turn out ok.

The Mopani is in and will have to tweak it a bit as well once I move around the crypts. Without the moss wall in there, I will need to put in a couple more background stems.

I did notice all Otos in the crypt jungle.

Still need to recharge the CO2 and get the water tests done for my baseline. I will set that on the schedule for tomorrow.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Finally got the tank topped off. Went on a duckweed erradication mission. As you know that will be a never ending battle. I'll be pretty diligent in that if I see a plant, it will be removed. I am going to be using Azolla as my floater in this tank.

On that same note, I felt like I was a marine biologist collecting samples from the wild. The wild turned out be to my 45g with a boat load of floating stuff. The Azolla was thoroughly blended in. I found a very good way of picking it out. A bamboo skewer. The Azolla went right to it which was odd and gratefull at the same time.

Tomorrow I may finally get the crypts sorted out and that ever elusive water test.

All occupants doing just fine. I saw the two ladies in what appeared to be a turf war in that they were scuffling for the same spot under the driftwood.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Here is the current shot of the House that Cocama built. lol









Pretty much have the crypts where I want them. Seem to be a nice spot around the rock and driftwood. Driftwood was swapped out yet again with a nice piece of Malaysian wood. Fits nicely into the scape.

Plenty of floor space for now until I get a moss wall up. For now, I'll just incorporate stem plants around. As you can see, they need to fill in.

Zucchini is placed right up front under the wood. 

Removed a few more Duckweed plants. Will stay on top of it. Didn't see anything floating up top after I was done but I'm sure it's lurking.

Water test definately will be done tomorrow. Was too cloudy to do from planting the crypts.


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## JCoxRocks (Mar 22, 2005)

Looks good so far! Fingers crossed for you!

J


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

And now the numbers:

Temp: 80 (Ouch...immediately unplugged the heater and will go without one for now. Fan blowing over the tank to cool down. Will monitor to see where it stabilizes. May do the same thing as the Vittatus tank. That temp is a nice 75)

pH: 7.4
NO3: 10
GH: 7
KH: 5
TDS: 167

Inside Room Parms: Temp - 72, Barometric Pressure - 31.65, Humidity - 39%

New CO2 is prepping and I expect the big 3 parms to adjust slightly after 24hrs. Will take new readings on Friday to see where we are at after CO2 recharge.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Temp already down to 76. Two degrees away from target. Turned the fan off and air stone on to oxygenate the water.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Morning check of the tank found the temp at a nice 74 degrees. Right on target. Now to wait until this afternoon for the flex and see if there will be any swing.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

All is holding steady still. Water change on tap for today. I have seen one of guys hanging with a lady but not for long periods of time. May have just been a casual "hi, how you doing" encounter.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Still waiting on the tank to fill in. Everything is just soooooo slow growing. I really need to consider swapping out this substrate. If the plants aren't growing well, it will certainly impact the project. I'm contimplating setting up a tank for Eco and get it ready for a swap or even another SMS. I can't do a ton of changes in here that will impact the over all environment but may need to seriously consider the substrate swap. The plants are the key to this.

I have Eco in the O. Macrospilus already but don't want to disturb that tank. Those two are finally spending more time together which hopefully is a good sign. The Caridina 'Dark Greens' are getting a bit numerous so will have to start thinning.

The Cocama ladies are doing outstanding. Found them together yesterday. Probably gossiping about the boys. We know how that goes right?  j/k ladies.

The Mopani wood with the rock seems to be a big hit as well. This seems to be the major hang out. With the crypts nestled right beside it, makes for good cover.

Search continues for O. Flexilis and O. Mimulus to round out my Otocinclus projects. One day ... eventually ... hopefully.


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## JCoxRocks (Mar 22, 2005)

My little guys are still crazy about my manzanita. There is a light layer of algae on there, which is great for them. My regular otos are fat and happy. I can't tell if they are gravid or just really fat right now. My zebras are all still thriving and enjoying life!

I'm still checking in on your little guys and hoping someone gets frisky one of these days!

J


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

All is doing well. Watching the ladies hanging out more with the guys. Not that it means anything mind you, but it's good seen the clan as one. Dropped a piece of zuc in the tank that is probably about 2". All six Otos were somehow on it.


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## Ben. (Mar 29, 2011)

James, do you microwave zuc or just drop it in?

What's your prep with zuc?


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Ben. said:


> James, do you microwave zuc or just drop it in?
> 
> What's your prep with zuc?


My apologies for missing this. I boil them for ~ 2mins. Let cool in cold water. Feed a fresh batch and freeze the rest. I'm actually thinking of trying to steam them so they don't lose much of the nutrients during the boiling process.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Still not happy with the way the tank is growing over the course of time it has been set up. Definately time for a substrate change. 

I'm contimplating two options at the moment:

1) Pull some already established SMS from another tank. Rinse it off well to hopefully ensure no "extra" critters come over with it such as snails, detritus worms, etc. This of course would be the quick and simple method.

2) Start up a whole new fresh batch of SMS in another tank. After about a month, I would transfer it over to the Cocama tank.

I know I have griped about the Flourite for a long time, but finally deciding to take action on it.


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## Loachutus (Aug 27, 2010)

James, do you need more plants? I've got some NL java fern and some crypts I would be happy to send your way, if that's the case. The NL's will have some algae from the 75 the girls were in. LMK.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

The winds of change are a blowin. Just not getting the growth I'm looking for out of the Flourite. This tank just hasn't performed since it was set up. Today...things are about to change. I'm calling in a relief pitcher. Prepping new SMS at the moment. Will be pulling the Flourite in just a few minutes. I'll pull it out, do a good bottom vac of what is left and then drop in the new substrate. Will stay with the same plants for the moment and recharge the CO2.

I'm going on holiday next week so we'll see how it does if I can get any marginal differences by that time.


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## Ben. (Mar 29, 2011)

james0816 said:


> My apologies for missing this. I boil them for ~ 2mins. Let cool in cold water. Feed a fresh batch and freeze the rest. I'm actually thinking of trying to steam them so they don't lose much of the nutrients during the boiling process.


Thanks, I might just throw a few in the rice cooker tonight and see if my otos like them just as well as the boiled.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

I've been thinking of trying my hand at steaming as it keeps more nutirents in the veggie. But...I don't have a steamer so that kind of puts a damper on things.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Flourite is out and SMS is in. I have to add just a bit more though. I'm kinda in crunch time mode as time is running out before going on holiday. I might not be able to snap any pics before leaving. I still have to scape and such as well. I'll probably just throw things in there for the moment and scape when I get back.

I have decided against recharging the CO2 before I leave. Don't really want to chance the sitter not turning on the air stone (no timers on this tank as yet).


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## Lil' Swimz$ (Jul 24, 2010)

Looking good


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

*Update 13-Jul-2011*

Finally working on this tank again after returning from holiday. Ok....removed all the plants from the tank. Placed back (5) C. wendtii's. I'm pretty much using the same format as the original layout. I have (3) Wendtii's in front of the driftwood and (2) behind.

I'm going to transfer over (2) Downoi crowns from the Vittatus tank. I'll work in the same stems that were in there previously.

Also planned will be another ledge. With this one, I would like to use Fissidens, but that is going to be a tall order. I may just make two ledges and reserve one for Fissidens when I can acquire enough of it. The other I will use Subwassertang again. On top of the ledge, I plan on using Lobellia. Just have to make sure it grows properly and not leggy. But I don't think that is going to be an issue.

The canister filter has been officially removed and filtration is strictly HOB now. Current looks to be doing as planned.

Once the scape is complete, I'll get my baseline water parms and we'll go from there.


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## VadimShevchuk (Sep 19, 2009)

Any breeding yet?


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## freph (Apr 4, 2011)

Very interesting project. You have my attention.  Best of luck!


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

*Update 16-Sep-2011*

It is with great sadness that I make this entry. I wasn't going to post at first but decided it wouldn't be true to myself or to the people reading this.

I just encountered my worst tank disaster in my fish keeping years. I lost all my Cocama's due to a busted tank. Some time during the night, the left side of the light fixture broke free which fell onto the tank breaking the side pane. I have suspended lights over most of the tanks. I didn't have time to investigate as yet this morning. 

Also lost were (7) Propinqua shrimp and maybe my Brigg. I just got these beautiful Propinqua guys in yesterday too. The Crypts that were on that side of the tank were snapped. Most likely cut by the glass as the water gushed out.

Cleaned up what I could before leaving. Remaining shrimp should be fine without a filter for a while. Hopefully it is still operational. Have about 2" of water above the substrate.

This is not the end of this project. I will rebuild. I'll have a new tank put together today and then start the search for a new group of Cocama's.


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## 2in10 (Feb 8, 2011)

Sorry on the loss.


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## tuffgong (Apr 13, 2010)

Oh wow. That's some tough luck. Definitely, sorry to heart that James. Good luck on getting back up and running again. Hopefully, you are past all of the technical difficulties...


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## shrimpnmoss (Apr 8, 2011)

Wow...that suxs....sorry to hear that James....look on the bright side...at least your house did burn down from a electrical short...the fixture fell in the water?


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

shrimpnmoss said:


> Wow...that suxs....sorry to hear that James....look on the bright side...at least your house did burn down from a electrical short...the fixture fell in the water?


Thx and I didn't even think about the possibility of fire. That's a scary thought.

The light was in the tank propped up on the piece of driftwood. There was still some water on it. Don't know if the light works or not as I'll find that out later today. I'll be surprised if it works. The bulbs at least have to be shot.

Hard to envision the chain of events to get to the end game. I've been pondering it quite a bit so far.


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## Rockhoe14er (Jan 19, 2011)

wow i'm so sorry to hear that James.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Still working to get the new tank the way I want it. I'm actually going to set it up more similar to the Vitattus tank this time. The Fissiden wall took a nice beating as well. Guess I didn't have it tied down good as I thought. I patched it the best I could so we'll see how it will fill in. Hopefully I'll be satisfied with it in the next couple of days.

Remaining shrimp seem to be doing ok. A couple still showing signs of stress and that is understandable.

I've also started the search for new Cocama's. Nothing has shown up on the importers lists as yet.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

New tank is pretty much back together. Looks a bit empty compared to before. Still debating on a foreground plant but will probably stay with Downoi for now. For the time being, it will just be C. Propinqua in here until I locate some more Otos.


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## madness (Jul 31, 2011)

james0816 said:


> New tank is pretty much back together. Looks a bit empty compared to before. Still debating on a foreground plant but will probably stay with Downoi for now. For the time being, it will just be C. Propinqua in here until I locate some more Otos.


I know how discouraging this must be but hopefully the data and experience that you collected over the last 5 months will help when you eventually get started again.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Thanks. Just a minor speed bump the way I see it.

Here's my hit list of candidates if people want to keep an eye out for me:

Otocinclus Cocama
Otocinclus Flexilis
Otocinclus Mimulus
Nannoptopoma sp. `PERU`


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

*Update 13-Oct-2011*

Ok, dealt with another surprise today. Got home today with two boxes waiting on me. Odd, I only ordered one plant package so was only expecting one box. Opened the first one and it was the plants. 

On to the second box. The sender had my name and addy on it as well for the recipient was me too. No other markings on it. Ooooooooooook.

Opened the box to a small note inside. "Here's a couple guys to get you started again. Thanks for all you are doing with the Otos and Shrimp." Signed.....Annonymous Fish Fan.

Removed the styrofoam top and foam padding to find a bag. Inside the bag where (2) nice little O. Cocama boys!

I'm speechless at this and don't know who to thank. So whoever you are....Thank You Very Much!! That truely was a Random Act Of Kindness.

Little guys are acclimating as I type.


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## Bahugo (Apr 18, 2011)

james0816 said:


> Ok, dealt with another surprise today. Got home today with two boxes waiting on me. Odd, I only ordered one plant package so was only expecting one box. Opened the first one and it was the plants.
> 
> On to the second box. The sender had my name and addy on it as well for the recipient was me too. No other markings on it. Ooooooooooook.
> 
> ...


Super cool story! Will be following too see what happens with everything. Whoever went out of there way to do this is a great person. :thumbsup:roud: The coolest part is they didn't want any type of credit and too stay completely anonymous.


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## tuffgong (Apr 13, 2010)

Bahugo said:


> Super cool story! Will be following too see what happens with everything. Whoever went out of there way to do this is a great person. :thumbsup:roud: The coolest part is they didn't want any type of credit and too stay completely anonymous.


+1million!!!:thumbsup:

The Anonymous Fish Fan really personifies what our entire hobby is all about. I'm in complete agreement with his note. We really appreciate all that you are doing James!! Good Luck!!


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## Finalplay10 (Jun 29, 2010)

Any updates on this ? I just started an O. affinis breeding project about two weeks ago. Have 20 in my 29g high tech. Heavily planted w/ some driftwood. Any suggestions ? How do you go about raising the fry ? Also I just learned that my LFS is receive a 200+ order of O. Cocoma. Will they interbreed with affinis or do I need to set up a separate tank for them ? Your my inspiration ! Keep up the great work !


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## 150EH (Dec 6, 2004)

James can you tell me what variety of Oto these are and why is one so fat while others are much smaller?


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

I have placed an order for some more Cocama's. They should be here sometime this week. {crosses fingers that there will be at least one lady in the bunch} 

The two guys are still doing well. They are literally piglets; can go through a slice of zucchini in just over a day.

Going to look at changing the some the scape around a bit. Not too increadibly happy with how it's growing so we'll see. May just have to work with what I have at the moment as shipping plants this time of year isn't all that great.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

New guys (and hopefully gals too) arrived and acclimated just fine. These ones have a different look then the ones I've had in the past and the two that are currently in the tank. They have big black and white bands and the white portion is bright. Very beautiful little guys. I'll snap a couple pics and get them posted up. They are already eating zucchini and cruising the tank very actively.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

And finally a descent shot of the new Cocamas:










You can see how these guys have a broader striped pattern than the others.


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## Rockhoe14er (Jan 19, 2011)

wow they look amazing.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Yay!

I so hope your project is successful- we so need some CB populations of these gorgeous guys!


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

That would be nice wouldn't it. I'm really curious about the different looks though. I mean, they aren't even close in appearance. Time to hit the books again.


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## ibmikmaq (Aug 19, 2011)

Beautiful! That is the first species of fish I am putting in my 300 gallon! I am gonna try to get one dozen of them! And let them have the run of the entire tank for at least a month!


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Coming back from taking a little bit of hiatus during the holidays.

The Cocama's have been really active of late. There is one definate female. I believe there may be one more but still a bit on the young side to determine. The older lady from time to time does have a couple guys around her but I haven't seen any tell tale signs of a hint of a spawn. Just social get togethers.

As with the old tank, this tank as well just doesn't seem to want to produce the nice lush planted environment as the others. I'm leaning towards the lighting now actually being a bit too much. I will be making an adjustment to this as I clean up the tank a bit. The Fissidens didn't even take hold which surprised me a bit. I'll try to salvage what I can of it and see if I can work with it in another tank for now.


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## Royal Pleco (Sep 11, 2011)

Hey James, this is awesome on what you're doing... I am new to otos, and will be getting some in a day or two. How do you persoanlly acclimate them?
How many can I have in a 20 Long, with just shrimp and a BN pleco in it.. 7?


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## xenxes (Dec 22, 2011)

james0816 said:


> My apologies for missing this. I boil them for ~ 2mins. Let cool in cold water. Feed a fresh batch and freeze the rest. I'm actually thinking of trying to steam them so they don't lose much of the nutrients during the boiling process.


I wrap a piece of wet paper towel around mine and microwave it for 20-30 secs. Not sure if it's the same thing.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Royal Pleco said:


> Hey James, this is awesome on what you're doing... I am new to otos, and will be getting some in a day or two. How do you persoanlly acclimate them?
> How many can I have in a 20 Long, with just shrimp and a BN pleco in it.. 7?


Personally, I drip acclimate everything over a period of a couple hours.

As for how many, I probably wouldn't do more than 6 with the BN in there. You have plenty of space for more, but BNs are hogs.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

xenxes said:


> I wrap a piece of wet paper towel around mine and microwave it for 20-30 secs. Not sure if it's the same thing.


Hmmm...may have to give this a try. I've thought about steaming as well to retain as many nutrients as possible.


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## xenxes (Dec 22, 2011)

Just make sure you use the non-bleach no-additives added towels  Lol I "bake" potatoes and corn the same way, nuke it in wet paper towels. Fast & easy.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

So it's been a long spell between updates here and unfortunately, there hasn't been anything to report. The tank just isn't responding like the other Oto tanks in terms of plant growth. Starting this evening, I'm taking another big swing at it.

We're going to start with a massive snail removal effort. If I can find it....it's coming out. I'll also cleanse all the plants from egg sacks as well. I bet this impacts their grazing grounds.

I've already replaced the lighting over the tank but still haven't seen much from the plants. Very odd if you ask me. Same conditions as some of the better growing tanks but they don't seem to want to cooperate. Haven't put my finger on it as yet but I'll figure it out.

We'll reset the tank by doing a good gravel vac and then replant.

I'm also planning on relocating the Caridina thambipillai. Being a larger shrimp (compared to others), it will make for less activity for the Otos. When I can find them again, I'll be adding some Caridina serratirostris to this tank.


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## Aquaticus (Jan 7, 2013)

Great thread! What is a good source for Otos? The last six I bought from the LFS all went belly up in less than three weeks, which I am assuming means they starved to death.


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## mitchfish9 (Apr 30, 2012)

Incredible thread, I just read it all. Thanks for keeping us updated even without success yet. Im keeping my fingers crossed for you!


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## thelub (Jan 4, 2013)

How can you sex otos? I have a half dozen in my tank that are now about 3 months old and I'm hoping I might get some to breed. Most if not all are very fat. I too have found they like zucchinni and cucumber. Is there a way to tell when they have reached sexual maturity?

*edit* nm. I actually meant to post this in your other oto thread but I read about sexing them over there. I'd still like to hear your thoughts on sexual maturity.


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## Green_Flash (Apr 15, 2012)

Cool thread and an awesome project.

I can recommend you try ADA Amazonia as a substrate for plant growth, it is amazing.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Well...tank is all cleared out. Removed a ton of snails. Still have a few more to get this morning as I spied when the lights came on but nothing major. Found some egg sacks on the glass to remove as well.

As for shrimp, I have relocated the C. thams. I also have a small Tangerine Tiger project in this tank as well. My TT's threw a couple of white/clear tigers with orange eyes. I've seperated all them and put them in this tank. So there are a total of (6) of these shrimp in this tank now.

Today I will do some more gravel vac'ing and washing off the plants to put back in. I'm in the market for some small flat(ish) driftwood as well to build a ledge.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Aquaticus said:


> Great thread! What is a good source for Otos?


Thanks. Msjinkzd is an excellent source



mitchfish9 said:


> Incredible thread, I just read it all. Thanks for keeping us updated even without success yet. Im keeping my fingers crossed for you!


Thank you and thanks for reading



thelub said:


> How can you sex otos? .... Is there a way to tell when they have reached sexual maturity?


Males are smaller and more slender. The ladies will be larger and have more of a "girlish" figure. 

As for sexual maturity, I have found that they can reach this as early as a few months.



Green_Flash said:


> I can recommend you try ADA Amazonia as a substrate for plant growth, it is amazing.


I tried the Aquasoil I before. Wound up pulling it out as the tank just never cleared and only got worse over time. Couldn't take it any more. Maybe was just a bad batch or something. Most of my tanks now have SMS it. Works awesome if I must say. Unfortunately, you can't find it anymore and I'm down to my last bag.


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## Green_Flash (Apr 15, 2012)

That could possibly be one of the two older types of amazonia? ADA stopped making those and came out with new amazonia which gets better reviews.


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## james0816 (Jun 26, 2008)

Green_Flash said:


> That could possibly be one of the two older types of amazonia? ADA stopped making those and came out with new amazonia which gets better reviews.


 
Hmm...I'll have to look at that then.


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## pianofish (Jan 31, 2010)

Did you ever get the zebra's to breed?


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## Minhha2006 (Oct 14, 2014)

Mega bump. Ive read this entire thread, simply inspiring! I have a catfish exclusive tank atm and i love it this way!


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