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Yes, as pugperson mentioned we went lfsing yesterday and i uh got some uh new fishies

I bought 6 panda corries, 2 are broader than the rest, hoping that they are female and not just older:%) They are about an inch in length roughly, and they are just silly little guys swimming around in the 29 gallon acting like fools, and having stand offs with the bn fry/juvies, and with the guppies for the algae wafers I dropped in some blood worms this morning, but they didn't seem terribly interested yetguppies went totally insane though

Just thought I'd share my good fortune Heck couldn't help myself when they were only $3.99/each US...

Here are some pics of the little guys/gals please ignore any streaking on the glass i did try







oh and a pic of the sterbai they are schooling with the Tris and Schwartzis



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"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom." Thomas Carlyle

Nice looking pandas... good luck with them!

Very cute pics.

~Meow. Thus spoke the cat.~

Glad you changed the gravel....the blue and black gravel was sort of garish....I much prefer the natural look.

Nice Pics, I also own pandas and they are great fish!

Good luck with your Panda's & all the other Corydoras.


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:#(last night when i got home I did my normal head/fin check of the new fishies I've added this past weekend, and found one of the corries dead:#(

There didn't seem to be anything wrong with the little cory when I pulled him out, other than the fact that s/he was dead Other occupants in the tank are 5 BN fry/juvi (abt 1-1.5 inches long), numerous guppies, and even some day to 3 day old guppy fry...

I've checked water parameters since and all is good, ammonia=0; nitrites/ates=0; pH=6.8. I'm thinking maybe it was just luck of the draw? I hope so This morning everyone seemed fine and frisky as they should be when I turned on the light and did the breakfast feeding...so hopefully there will only be one loss...

Just thought I'd let ya'll know. Thanks for the kind words, they are adorable and are hilarious to watch when they guard "their" Algae Wafers from the guppies:%)

crossing fingers,
heidi

"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom." Thomas Carlyle

Panda are known for being sensitive. Maybe that was one of the weaker ones that couldn't take the stress of a transfer.

Good to hear that you got new cories; I kinda like sterbais and the pandas are pretty popular. You should try and find some unusual or rare species if you have the space, it/they would be the crown of your collection.

Panda cories are definitely one of the more sensitive types. I would guess that your casualty just didn't acclimate well, it is common for new pandas to just keel over. Just keep an eye on the rest, and hopefully they will all settle in nicely. There really isn't much you can do for the new fish at this point besides making sure that the water is nice and clean.

---

And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

Have you any idea how old they were when you purchased them?

In my experience, if Pandas are shipped for sale at just 16 weeks, they tend not to like the shock of the transfer, and the more sensitive ones will expire. Good breeders wait until they're 20 weeks old minimum before shipping them - that extra month of development seems to add to their robustness. Even so, new juvenile Pandas should be acclimatised with a LOT of care, and some dealers have a nasty habit of just dumping the poor things in the nearest available aquarium, without checking if the parameters are suitable. Even if the parameters are in the Pandas' ideal range, a sudden transfer from one aquarium to another without a good deal of care and attention acclimatisation wise will result in a fairly horrendous attrition rate. Worse still, if the Pandas arrive on the Monday, and you buy them on the Tuesday, then by Thursday the attrition rate will hit YOU and not the dealer.

Mind you, as I've found out the hard way, things can go wrong even in the best maintained aquaria where Pandas are concerned. I persevere with them because they're such lovable fish, but that just makes the losses all the more disheartening when they happen. And the bad news with Pandas is that when they start going down, it's never just one or two odd ones, they drop in sixes and sevens. If your Pandas have had a rough time prior to you taking them on, then (as harsh as this sounds) you can congratulate yourself on a job well done if you keep the attrition rate below 50%. Pandas are your classic 'fine when well, need intensive care when not' fishes, and need more than the usual attention to detail. Think of them as being the Cory version of Discus, treat them as such, and you won't go far wrong barring an out of the blue catastrophe like my recent one. Let's face it, before my recent disaster, I must have done something right for Mata Hari and the gang to spawn 96 times in 2½ years, because Pandas won't do that unless they're very happy ...

At least I can console myself that my Pandas had a good life prior to the "Black Death" episode ...



Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Well, so far so good as far as the other 5 little guys/gals go

Last night when I got home they were all in a doggy pile by the intake for the canister filter...but I no sooner dropped in the algae wafers and out they came flying, first only 1, then 2, then all 5 were flying around sticking their little snouts in and about looking for their dinner

I have 2 that seem a bit more rambuncious (sp?) than the others, but that could just be them, I'm thinking.

Assuming that cory growth rate is the same between metaes and pandas, I want to say that they are about 6-8 months old at this point. They are just over an inch in length, there about (hard to measure the little guys as they fly about, and it's not like they will simply jump out of the tank on command and lay on the ruler)

So all in all they are looking goodI'm quite pleased with them, and am thinking I might want to go back to the LFS (since I know I have the "extra" money to make it till payday) and get a few more Think I'd be ok? The guy there let me basically catch my ownnot sure if that is good or not, but as least I was quick

heidi

"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom." Thomas Carlyle

If you've got the funds and the space to bump up the shoal to 12, I'd go for it. If they're over 20 weeks old then they should be fine, provided of course they're acclimatised with due care and attention.

Oh, and a tip.

Step one : make sure the receiving aquarium gets a decent water change and gravel vac before getting the new Pandas.

Step two : get some live food to drop in with them. Once the new Pandas have been acclimatised, released in the aquarium and allowed to settle for a couple of hours, drop in a large live food banquet. Nothing like live food for helping Pandas settle in nicely.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

That's why they are doing so well cali the gravel couldn't have been cleanerit was uh new and i had just redid the tank I definately plan on bumping them up to 12 or so; but will do a good gravel vac/water change before adding the new guys...as for live food I've never been able to get it here, but i'll give them a nice dinner of frozen blood worms seems to be everyone's favorite of course I have one that thinks he and the bn are best of buddies and the other 4 stay in the back by the intake, any idea why? I'm gonna add some plants next weekend, just waiting for the auction but might remove some anacharis from the 2.5 and place it in thereand maybe heck i don't know still up for grabs right now, the tank is like new

I'll keep you posted and let you know how they are, for now they are fiesty, and have to be they have piggy guppies in the tank with them:%)

heidi

"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom." Thomas Carlyle

When you say your four other Pandas stay near a filter intake, some questions need answering.

Is this a power filter (internal canister type) with an intake at the bottom and an outlet at the top (similar to the Fluval units we get here in the UK)?

Only one thing to remember is this - Pandas hail from waters in the wild which can run fairly quickly, so they like currents. Plus, they may have worked out that your filter creates currents that draws all the food in that direction - when it comes to finding where all the food goes, fish are pretty smart you know

Plus, a quick temperature check might be in order. Don't let it exceed 26°C as Pandas don't like being 'cooked'. If your temperature is, say, 23°C or 24°C, you should be ok, and if it's down in the 21°C or 22°C range then your Pandas should be *really* happy, because quite often they like it cooler than the average tropical fish (and certainly cooler than many other commonly kept Peruvian natives). Usually, 21°C is a spawning temp for Pandas!



Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002