New Girls (well, 5 of them)

[Rhyn]

I don't have a good pic of Calliope (Big Red) yet, but I've got the other five, at least.


Red: Thalia
Blue: Melpomene (in the back. Can't really see her too well)
White: Clio (I'm pretty sure she's alpha for now)


Erato, the little one in the tank with Calliope and holding her own. She and Terpsichore look exactly alike that I've had trouble telling them apart. The personality's the only real giveaway. This is right after I'd put the filter in, so the air pump was a new addition there. "Hey, wait a minute. What's that thing?"


Poor little Terpsichore, she had to be moved out of the tank with Erato and Calliope 'cause she was so striped up I thought she was gonna get an ulcer (Can fish get tummy uclers?). She's now in the travel tank on my desk next to the Trio and, although still a bit stripey, doing a lot better. She comes up to me and wiggles. She was sooo curious when I broke out the ruler - to give you an idea, that long mark on the left of the ruler is the half-inch. She's the tiniest of the ones I have.

[Betta MVP]

Awww, they are all so cute! You have a nice variety of colors, they will make a fun and interesting female tank.

Congrats!

[Rhyn]

I've never had any fish this tiny before - all mine have been full grown when I got them (except for Perseus who was full grown in the body, just not in the fins). Anybody have any guesses to age? I can try to get a picture with ruler and length of fish if that would help.

Also, any advice on smaller foods they might eat? I got some flakes and theyr'e just a mess. At least the girls can eat those instead of carrying the bio gold in their mouths and not even being able to swallow! One bio gold's about the size of the little sweetie's eye!!

[Jenny]

You can try crushing the biogold or cutting it in half with a nail clippers. This seems easier than buying a new type.

[Rhyn]

Last time I tried crushing biogold, I ended up with The Incredible Sinking Pellets. And while Terpsey has no qualms about eating off the bottom of the tank, that's a habit I'd like her to get out of.

Incidentally, since I put gravel and a plant in the tank, she's unstriped and looks *completely* different. She's black with blue/green irridescence!! Photos to follow soon.

[mickey85]

Aqua-culture betta food is pretty small. Wolfgang has some trouble eating the bio-gold, but he LOVES them, so I give him a few every few days. all 4 mainly subsist off of the aqua culture. You might want to pick some of that up. it's availible at Wally world right next to the bettas... *evil grin*

[Emerson]

What beautiful girls!!! I just love those colors. You should be a very proud parent.

I use AquaCulture. It's a floating micropellet, and all 3 of mine love it. You can also find it manufactured under the brand name HBH Betta Bites.

Congrats and keep us posted!
sef

[BettaBGood]

Rhyn,

They're so pretty! Great color combo - your tank will be eye candy for all to gaze upon... (Clio's really a beauty!)

Ditto on the Aqua Culture Betta Micropellets. They're VERY small & great for those teeny mouths! (Plus, one container will last you FOREVER...)

[RainbowBetta]

They look great. I love the girlies.

[Rachel - old]

They're all gorgeous!

I especially like the first picture! It looks as though the camera is right in the tank with them!

[Rhyn]

No need for the camera to be in the tank - they rarely leave the edges when I'm here! When I wake up, they're over by the side of the tank where my bed is with all three doing what I've come to know as their "Wake up and feed me, Mommy!" dance. Either that or "Turn off that @#$#ed alarm that's right next to our tank!!" I like to think of it as the first, though.

Oh, they were so cute earlier today. I had music playing and the speaker is right next to their tank... Melpomene looked as if she was dancing, Thalia was ignoring it, and Clio was trying to attack the speaker! Guess she's not a fan of country.

They're all settling in pretty well. I don't think I'll be getting the 10 gal after all. The trio is doing well. Very little nippage and that only happens if someone accidentally bumps into someone else. ("Oops, pardon me." "Watch where you're going, you little @#$^&!! *chasechasechase* Ooh! A shiny!") It's kind of odd, but I don't think there *is* an alpha fish. They kinda are just all.. there. The green tube is Clio's and no one else is allowed in, even if she's not using it. But the pink plant in the back belongs to Melpomene and no one else seems to want it. And Thalia just kinda *is*. She's a laid back sort of fishie. If anyone is dominant, it might be Clio, but if she is, she's a passive dictator.

Calliope is still pretty nippy towards Erato, so I'm thinking I may go out and pick up a couple travel tanks to keep them in while I build the dividers. I don't think she'll ever settle to being in a community tank.

Little Terpsichore sits in the travel tank on my desk. She really fits well in the 3/4 gal tank. She's so tiny that it's enough space for her. She rarely leaves the side nearest me anyways. Once I put the gravel and plant in, she decided that it wasn't boring anymore and now rarely is striped. And she's soooooo cute. Tiny = cute. Always and forever, world without end. And she's so tiny. 1 1/4" inches, nose to tail, compaired to full grown plakat Perseus at 2". Height: 1/4" (Perseus: 1/2"). She's itty bitty!!