Merrilyn's Altums - new photos.

[Merrilyn]

I know I've been promising photos for a long time, well here they are :shock:

I have two groups, the first lot are ten I got from Ravi (Finland Aquarium) two years ago, when they were the size of a 5 cent coin plus fins. The largest of these now has a body size of around 4 inches plus fins. All ten are still thriving. No losses.

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/ladyred2005/Merrilyns%20Altums%20%20September%202010/ZZ6EE97861.jpg

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/ladyred2005/Merrilyns%20Altums%20%20September%202010/P1000645.jpg

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/ladyred2005/Merrilyns%20Altums%20%20September%202010/P1000629.jpg

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/ladyred2005/Merrilyns%20Altums%20%20September%202010/altums1.jpg



This next group are three years old, so I guess fully grown. The body size is larger than the wild caught heckels they are housed with.

An yes, I know there's algae on the glass :oops:

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/ladyred2005/Merrilyns%20Altums%20%20September%202010/P1000633.jpg

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/ladyred2005/Merrilyns%20Altums%20%20September%202010/P1000639.jpg

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/ladyred2005/Merrilyns%20Altums%20%20September%202010/P1000640.jpg

[Merrilyn]

Sorry about the quality of the photos. These were taken with my 'point and shoot' Panasonic.

I promise I'll get better pics once Taksan gets here with his super duper camera :wink:

Hey Taksan ---------- where are ya :wave

[goodoo]

My local fish shop reckon they can get altums. I think they are ignorant or lying . What questions should I ask to find out if they are really altums.

[Merrilyn]

You need to ask if they're Orinico Altums or Peruvian Altums.

There is only one real altum and that's the Orinoco. The Peruvian is actually a scalare and not an altum at all.

Altums are being imported into Australia, although it is nearing the end of the catching season. Problem is they tend to be horribly expensive (think around $150 for a tiny fish) because the losses are so high. For every 100 fish imported into Australia, only around 20 survive quarantine. A lot of importers refuse to import them because of the high losses.

[goodoo]

Thats really sad. Thanks for the info. I will ask.

[nicholas76]

AWSUM PICS MEZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hot!

[finlandaq]

Hay Merrilyn,

Great looking fish. I still remember how small they were when I got them in.

You really have done a great job growing them to this size.

Rav

[Merrilyn]

Remember this Ravi? This is the size they were 2 years ago.

http://www.discusforums.com/forum/files/tiny_altumsa.jpg

[the_oracle]

Handsome batch you got there, Merrilyn.....
Too bad, I lost all my Altums a couple of months ago......
Keep the pics coming....


Sanie.

[Mr Wild]

I love the red in their fins when they are small - do they keep that? I couldn't see it on the adults but it may be the light.

[Tommo]

Red , They are sooooooo nice !
They have grown big !!

Cheers

Andrew

[Merrilyn]

Did a full clean and re-aquascape of the tank today, so I thought I'd take the opportunity to measure the altums. The three year old altums measured 5 inches body height with a total height of 10 inches, and the two year old altums measured a body height of 4 inches, total height 8 to 9 inches.

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/ladyred2005/Merrilyns%20Altums%20%20September%202010/P1000649.jpg

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/ladyred2005/Merrilyns%20Altums%20%20September%202010/P1000653.jpg

These are a couple of the three year olds.

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/ladyred2005/Merrilyns%20Altums%20%20September%202010/P1000659.jpg

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/ladyred2005/Merrilyns%20Altums%20%20September%202010/P1000660.jpg

[nicholas76]

Wooah !!! What a horse Mezz!! They have grown superbly well. Awsum pictures.

[Tommo]

Huge fish !! :)

[Tommo]

Can you get a full tank shot ? :D

[Mattzilla]

awesome!

[scott bowler]

wow mezz awesome fish , you are the best

[taksan]

I'm coming to inspect the "full clean"

[Merrilyn]

I'm coming to inspect the "full clean"

Bring ya camera :lol:

[Tommo]

And i'll bring some bags and a net :p

Also Matty can you ditract Merrilyn , so i and grab all of them please ;)

[albatrozz]

Hi Merrilyn,

How do these guys fare in temps of 26deg celcius? Is it essential to keep them at 28-30deg?

Also, would you agree with their common stereotype that their extremely fragile and unstable?? Like would they drop off like flies if the nitrates get too high or they experience a simple aquarium disease such as white spot?

[taksan]

How do these guys fare in temps of 26deg celcius? Is it essential to keep them at 28-30deg?

Also, would you agree with their common stereotype that their extremely fragile and unstable?? Like would they drop off like flies if the nitrates get too high or they experience a simple aquarium disease such as white spot?

They need to be kept at high temps above 28c and with extremely low nitrates. They are a fragile specialized fish and must be kept accordingly.