They have the ability to thrive even in conditions that are perhaps not the
best for the fish themselves. FWIW when I lived in AZ with Rock Hard water
and no RO, I had a beautiful duo of discus. They were healthy and hardy and
very tame. They had a 45 gallon tank mostly to themselves, got lots of water
changes, were warm and well-fed... and kept at pH 8.2 and about 350 PPM
hardness levels with lots of alkalinity! (I hear the collective gasps of the
discus fans out there now!) No breeding, but otherwise in glowing health.
When **all other** parameters are ideal, fish can deal with one that is off
a bit. This is why all the plant-philes out there who keep their NG bows at
pH lower than 7 get away with it -- other conditions are in good order and
the plants keep nitrates to nil.
NG rainbows by and large are higher pH-loving fish, but under good
conditions they can handle lower pH -- to an extent -- and even thrive. Let
ONE more parameter slip tho, and Boom! Trouble. Oz fish are more adapted to
seasonal changes in H2O chemistry so are happier at a wider pH range. That
is why I keep saying "NG" bows... many of the ones listed in the post you
replied to are Oz fish. ;-) Lacutris, boesemani, incisus, and milleniums
are NG fish and by and large would be happier in slightly higher
pHs/hardness, but with all else being good they handle it well. The others
listed are either Oz fish or praecox. Those just put up with about anything!
;-)
I guess it is also a tribute to the hardiness of rainbowfish keepers. ;-)
Glad to hear some of my fish went to long-term homes. So many fish disappear
due to a lack of a long-term committment.
Julie <'><
>From: "Dan Drake" <dd at dandrake.com>
>Reply-To: r_m_l at yahoogroups.com
>To: "r_m_l at yahoogroups.com" <r_m_l at yahoogroups.com>
>Subject: Re: [RML] Fish TB?
>Date: Fri, 06 May 2005 13:31:55 -0700 (PDT)
>
>On Fri, 6 May 2005 12:55:01 -0700, Liz Wilhite wrote:
>
> > I have boesemani, dubs, threadfiins and praecox that are laying eggs
>every
> >day at pH 6.6. A friend has millenium and irian spawning at 6.8, another
> >with splendida at about 6.8. All are heavily planted, CO2 injected tanks.
> >Judging from the number of people frequenting the aquatic plant list who
> >have rainbows in similar tanks I'd hazard a guess that pH is not the
> >problem. I haven't had a sick or dead or sluggish rainbow since I
>increased
> >the amount of surface agitation to increase the O2 levels in the tank --
> >something that is a bit contrary to what most plant people recommend.
>
>As to the plant people, the problem is just that you spend more time and
>money refilling your CO2 tank if there's lots of gas exchange, no? (You'd
>be
>amused or shocked if you knew how often I refill mine. No O2 problems ever,
>though.)
>
>A non-fish-breeder's testimonial: Most of the M. lacustris in my tank
>(planted, CO2, pH 6.8-6.9) are the result of an accident involving a large
>wad of Java moss left in there for a while so that the clown loaches would
>clean out any snails, following which it went into a clean and unpopulated
>tank, following which I noticed an odd shimmering at the surface, followed
>by PANIC where do I find fry food NOW? followed by a couple of dozen very
>nice little lacustris. A good thing: the parental generation(*) were
>starting
>to get a bit old from some earlier periods of high temperature and poor
>tank
>maintenance. But the point is that these lacustris, or lacustres, can breed
>like bunny rabbits at this pH. Still, I've been thinking of cranking up
>the pH a
>little, producing more lacustral conditions, though it will require
>adjusting
>hardness to keep the plants happy.
>
>(*) To reassure the breeders: no hybrids, certified good stock, bought at
>the
>RSG convention in San Francisco several years ago, from two sources, one
>being Julie Z.
>
>
>--
>Dan Drake
>dd at dandrake.com
>http://www.dandrake.com/
>porlockjr.blogspot.com
>
>