Growing Out A Parrot

[Midwater]

Three dollars, two albino long fin bristlenose, one parrot, and about fifty horsefaces.

I am growing out the parrot, so he is in this small tank for the time being.

I notice the horsefaces don't come out of the sand so often now. And as he gets bigger I assume he will only get more intimidating. He tries to push the silver dollars around, but they don't really care.

Only the bristlenoses are indifferent. They have grown from less than one inch to about five or six inches in a year. But I don't like them. They are over bred and unnatural.

I got the parrot about a week ago, and he was grey. Now he is beginning to get the green and pink colour, and seems to enjoy spirulina pellets and ghost shrimp.

 

[Midwater]

Got some better pictures. Got some of the horsefaces too.

 

[Midwater]

Now moved to the big tank.

 

[duanes]

With your stark bright substrate, its no surprise that all the fish in that tank look unnaturally washed out.
The most common predatores for all the fish, like the ones pictured above, are birds, and on bright white substrate, they all would stand out like sitting ducks in nature to predators, unless they instinctually adapt to the substrate by being somewhat chameleon-like, and this instinct doesn't disappear just because they are in a tank.

At some point the fish may realize, their instinct is unfounded in an aquarium.
But using natural color substrate usually goes a long way to having fish display their natural coloration.
Not just un-naturally bright substrate but Dark often ends up causing certain species to to try to blend in an unnatural way.

Natural color sand is the substrate most fish (especially cichlids) have adapted to live over, and its color offers great camouflage.
There are 3 Herichthys carpintus in the shot above left, but (right pic) that natural color also allow a great side view for them to attract mates.
Of course I am a bit anal,about natural biotopes, so take my blather with a grain of salt, because I collect substate photos to that end
Below some underwater shots in S America I took, as reference for biotope tanks

Below substrate shots, taken in a Panama stream, there are lots of tetras in each pic, but from above the blend in.

But from the side in a tank, those tetras stand out well

Below substrate shots from Cenote Cristalino in Mexico, Jack Dempsey habitat .

 

[Midwater]

 

[SilverArowanaBoi]

I have a question, how big do Parrots get? I saw one at a fish show and have been thinking about it since. Is it peaceful and also can it fit long term into a 55 gallon?

 

[Midwater]

I have a question, how big do Parrots get? I saw one at a fish show and have been thinking about it since. Is it peaceful and also can it fit long term into a 55 gallon?

They get dinner plate size. I would say a 55 is to small.