I wanted to get some clown loaches. I know they will decimate snail
populations, but do they eat MTS? I want to keep the MTS, as they help
stir the sand

Rich

Rich Conley wrote:
I wanted to get some clown loaches. I know they will decimate snail
populations, but do they eat MTS? I want to keep the MTS, as they help
stir the sand

They do eat them, but the MTS seem to thrive despite the loaches in my
tank.

--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

Ok. so I should let the MTS numbers get kinda high before I add
them...thers only a couple there now...newly established 55...
Rich

"Victor M. Martinez" wrote:

Rich Conley wrote:
I wanted to get some clown loaches. I know they will decimate snail
populations, but do they eat MTS? I want to keep the MTS, as they help
stir the sand

They do eat them, but the MTS seem to thrive despite the loaches in my
tank.

--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

Rich Conley wrote:
Ok. so I should let the MTS numbers get kinda high before I add
them...thers only a couple there now...newly established 55...

Only two MTS? You'll be lucky if they find each other to reproduce... ;-)
Yeah, I'd wait until the first batch of snails reaches adulthood. You'll see
them all over the place when they come out.

--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

I think theres like 6 or 7...need to take some more out of my 20H, and throw em
in....they just dont seem to transplant very well...especially to new tanks

once they get acclimated though..they do great.

"Victor M. Martinez" wrote:

Rich Conley wrote:
Ok. so I should let the MTS numbers get kinda high before I add
them...thers only a couple there now...newly established 55...

Only two MTS? You'll be lucky if they find each other to reproduce... ;-)
Yeah, I'd wait until the first batch of snails reaches adulthood. You'll see
them all over the place when they come out.

--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

I wanted to get some clown loaches. I know they will decimate snail
populations, but do they eat MTS? I want to keep the MTS, as they help
stir the sand

My clown loaches do a pretty good job of killing any MTS in their tank. They
find MTS tougher than other snails, but still manage to get them in the end.

In addition, I don't recommend clown loaches in a planted tank. Eventually, as
the loaches get larger, they will start eating the plants, and they can be
incredibly destructive. And clown loaches and MTS together in a planted tank
are real trouble. Once the loaches realize there's escargot in the substate,
they will start digging. You would not believe the size of the holes they can
dig. Until they got the last of the MTS, my tank looked like a minefield.

If you're willing to put up with all this...then congrats, loaches are very
charming fish. (There must be a reason I still have mine.) I just got four
more for my tank. Yoyo loaches. The LFS had four, for $4 each, and I couldn't
resist. Such beautiful, active, friendly fish. Hopefully, they will be less
destructive than their larger cousins.


Leigh

http://www.fortunecity.com/lavender/halloween/881/

I have experience that says otherwise, I have an MTS infested tank, my 4
clowns won't touch them, and they all came from 2 snails that I got. They
are livebearers right? if so then they are likely perpetually pregnant.

(Victor M. Martinez) wrote in
:

Rich Conley wrote:
Ok. so I should let the MTS numbers get kinda high before I add
them...thers only a couple there now...newly established 55...

Only two MTS? You'll be lucky if they find each other to reproduce...
;-) Yeah, I'd wait until the first batch of snails reaches adulthood.
You'll see them all over the place when they come out.

LeighMo wrote:
are real trouble. Once the loaches realize there's escargot in the substate,
they will start digging. You would not believe the size of the holes they can
dig. Until they got the last of the MTS, my tank looked like a minefield.

I wonder why mine don't seem to do any damage? Perhaps because I have gravel
as substrate? Perhaps it is too heavy for them to dig? Besides, my clowns
are wimps, they rarely seem to come out of their caves, other than for eating
sinking pellets.

resist. Such beautiful, active, friendly fish. Hopefully, they will be less
destructive than their larger cousins.

I love my yoyos (I also have 4), they just never stop moving!!!

--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

I wonder why mine don't seem to do any damage? Perhaps because I have gravel
as substrate? Perhaps it is too heavy for them to dig? Besides, my clowns
are wimps, they rarely seem to come out of their caves, other than for eating
sinking pellets.

My loaches were very well-behaved for years. Never ate plants, never dug.

I think the difference is size. When I got them, they were only an inch long.
They are slow growers, so it took them years to reach their current sizes of 5"
to 6". But now they are big enough to do some real damage...and they do. :-/

On the good side, they never bother my shrimp.

I love my yoyos (I also have 4), they just never stop moving!!!

I know! And theyr'e so gorgeous, with their silver and black markings.

I think they've made my clown loaches more active, too. They've been spending
a lot more time out in the open since I got the yoyos.






Leigh

http://www.fortunecity.com/lavender/halloween/881/

"Victor M. Martinez" wrote in message
...

I love my yoyos (I also have 4), they just never stop moving!!!

--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

I have both yoyos and Botia Histrionica (golden zebra loaches). I find the
Histrionica are much more active and out in the open a lot more, but that
may be due to their being in different tanks too.
Bob.

I love my yoyos (I also have 4), they just never stop moving!!!

How long have you had the yoyos?

James

They are slow growers, so it took them years to reach their current sizes of 5"
to 6". But now they are big enough to do some real damage...and they do. :-/

Good grief, your SAE's must be huge as well. At least from the tank
pics, they look almost as long as the clowns!

James

"JEB" wrote in message
...
I love my yoyos (I also have 4), they just never stop moving!!!

How long have you had the yoyos?

James

I've had the yoyos for 2.5 months. They are growing like weeds. The largest
is 3.5 inches now, was only 1.5inches when I got them. They are getting fat
on pond snails. They were out more when I first got them, but became shy
after I lost one.

Bob

I've had the yoyos for 2.5 months. They are growing like weeds. The largest
is 3.5 inches now, was only 1.5inches when I got them. They are getting fat
on pond snails. They were out more when I first got them, but became shy
after I lost one.

Bob

Thanks, I really like loaches, and am interested in trying to find a
good fit for my proposed tank. My wife really likes clowns (hey, what
can I say), but I'm shying away from them at least for now.

James

Good grief, your SAE's must be huge as well. At least from the tank
pics, they look almost as long as the clowns!

The SAEs are immense. They grow much faster than clowns. They grew from being
a fraction of the size of the clown loaches to being longer than the clowns in
less than a year.

That is one thing to keep in mind with SAEs: they get to be quite large.
Though many references say you can keep them in a 20 or 29 gallon tank, IME,
that's too small. They are big, active fish, that do best in schools, and need
a large tank. I wouldn't keep them in a tank less than 4' long.


Leigh

http://www.fortunecity.com/lavender/halloween/881/