Loaches Online Forum

I finally got myself to try it in the big tank.

The good news is that there seem to be no overnight deaths, but we really don't know much about long-term effects of an exposure to melons.

Now, the loach reaction:

One species took to it instantly:



I think all of P. Oblonga visited the melon within first ten minutes and ate with no hesitation. Striped kuhlis did not react to it at all.

Zippers were the next.

The procedure was the same with each fish: approach the melon, touch it with barbels, and leave for a couple of minutes... then come back and eat.

One of the clowns and one of the yoyo's did the same, the yoyo also tested it with barbels before eating.

Schistura, striped kuhlis, and Kubs were not interested at all.

Toxic fumes of the melon had some effect on the yoyo's who got into serious bickering...this, together with rainbows hovering low above the melon, kuhlis and zippers coming and going, and me watching produced a madhouse.

And then after watching them slowly eating for a half hour, I left for just a minute and someone ate the entire piece... no idea who...

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Did anyone try this on hillstreams ?

My Sewellia eat honeydew (yellow) melon. Not tried watermelon with them though, only in my clown loach tank.

Emma

Thanks Emma,

Definitely will try it, whenever my wife buys it next.

The Sewellia tank has a couple of plecos in it, who might be interested as well.

For some reasons they are reluctant to eat with me around so it took four more tries to see the Orgy.

Every time something was interfering. The worst was yesterday when while waiting I discovered that the canister filter intake protection came off. The search of the filter revealed two kuhlis: one pretty gravid Myersi and one small Oblonga..not fully sure it is mine...fortunately, no kuhli fragments, but by the time I finished with the filter, watermelon was already eaten.

Did finally catch it today. One Clown and All Yoyo's. Yoyo's bickering as eating. The Clown is the one with the Spot who incidentally evolved from the shiest to the most outgoing over the year, and is also the fastest growing -- will be the largest in another year.

Fascinating , and very helpful !