Fwd: Re: Flowerpots as caves.

["Ed Pon" <edpon@hotmail.com>]

Doug wrote:
>It's nice to hear these ideas.
>
>Chipping a corner out of a 3" terra cotta pot isn't as easy as people 
might
>lead you to believe. I had to glue pieces back on with silicone. 

I usually get three or four inch terra cotta pots and place them upside 
down in the aquarium.  The drain holds can be enlarged using a rat-tail 
file.  You can also drill a hole on the side of these pots using a 
masonry drill (about 2 bucks at Home Depot).  Once you start the hole 
with a masonry drill, you can use pliers to slowly chip the edge of the 
hold until you get the hole to the right size.  My fish seem to prefer 
the holes on the top (bottom when not upside-down). The terra cotta 
dishes that can be obtained from a garden shop can be used on the bottom 
of the inverted pot if you would like to grab the fry after they've 
hatched.  

You can usually tell when there are eggs in the pot because apisto 
females who are not being picked on will usually only go in when they 
are cleaning the pot in preparation to spawn, or are in there guarding 
eggs.  When they're guarding eggs, thye'll sometimes come out to grab a 
quick bite and then return to continue fanning the eggs. 

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