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Wow !! That is just excellent Jim...excellent. Very envious !
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That's going to make watching TV a task.
Looks nice Jim, well done.
brad
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Holy crap! Looks awesome!
Give me a ring Sunday I have a few ideas for venting.
What some see as death, others see as beauty.
Casper
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Thanks guys! I'll give you a call tomorrow to catch up Casper. I think I have this solved with the 80 mm. I ran a quick test with it on low blowing into the viv on the top left side and it cleared the glass in a hour. I think I will permanently mount it in the hood and throw it on a timer. That should keep the glass clear during the day or viewing hours. Here's what it looks like with the fan running:
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Shots of the inhabitants (they are quick, so I've been snapping cell phone pics of them...sorry for the poor quality). They are coming out quite a bit now, so I'm pleased with the setup.
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I had to rework the substrate in this viv after I discovered several of the galacs discovered a 0.5 x 1 cm gap in the cork bark on the right side of the viv where they were able to get under the false bottom. I ripped out the FB, and found 5 of the 8 frogs hanging out in the egg crate. I completely removed the egg crate FB and moved to a series of inverted shoe box rubbermaid containers with drilled holes for water flow surrounded by turface for my replacement FB. It seems to be working well, and my tunneling galacs have resumed climbing the background instead of hiding in egg crate.
Some cell phone shots:
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Well it's been a while and I noticed Phil and Casper chatting about the need for updated photos about 6 weeks after they made their posts...I guess I should pay more attention to the chats :lol:
So the bad news first...slugs! Ugh. I had that emergency tear down when I discovered 5 of the galacts had been roosting under the egg crate false bottom. In one night I ripped out the substrate and egg crate FB and I shifted to drilled sterilte shoe boxes and turface as the drainage layer. This has worked out well, but during the process I pulled in slugs. I've been squishing at night with a flashlight and that seems to be doing pretty well. We'll see where I end up, but a full tear down may be in order.
Now that the bad news is out of the way, here's an update on the viv. The galacts are getting bolder with age, and I hear calling. There are eight in there, and usually you can see one or two within a few minutes of plopping down in front of the viv. You will usually see 4 or 5 of the 8 at feeding time. Here are some FTS':
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I've been battling fogging issues. I have to tune the exhaust fans a bit, but I am starting to get the front glass under control. The funny part is the rear class is relatively clear :lol:. Here's a shot with the circulation fan above the top vent disabled:
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Now for some shots of the inhabitants. I'm growing impatient with them :lol:. They are still skittish compared to our tincs, but they seem to be warming up to the living room location.
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This is a cell phone shot from a weird angle when I heard some calling and looked in the viv. Found these three crammed in the upper left corner:
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Have to love it when you build a beautiful tank for them and they choose the glass. Tank has grown in nicely Jim.
brad
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This has really turned out stunning, Jim!
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Well late night slug hunting turned up something more:
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One egg deposited in moss just above the ledge pictured above with the three galacts perched on the edge. The first image is lit with a flashlight and best represents the color of the egg. The second and third are backlit. Guess I'll be offering up some deposition sites tomorrow!
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Grabbed a macro shot today. Looks like the egg is good. You can see the eye developing already.
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Well the first egg molded over in viv. They dropped a clutch of five eggs this week but I am not sure they were good - I pulled the clutch and am monitoring. So some progress! Meanwhile the viv is flowering nicely. I added some generic orchids and I am starting to get new buds! (Exciting for me but old hat for most)
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Here are a few shots of existing flowers:
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And the African violets look like they are starting up:
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And the silver skies never stops:
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And a few flower stalks too...
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Here's the requisite frog shot - they only one I spotted today :lol:
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It's coming up on a year and the viv is changing its appearance. I have sorted out my ventilation issues and the glass is now clear all the time. The silver skies is pretty much taking over the viv which is quite striking. It has covered most leaf litter and the frogs are using it as cover as they move around the floor of the viv. The group is consistently breeding and depositing in the front pool. There are about 8 to 12 tads in various stages of development in there now.
Here are a few updated photos:
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Wow Jim, really looks nice. How is Old that breeding group now? Are they more bold than before? I found certain frogs get to "know" you after a while, wondering if you noticed that w Galacs.
Scott - North Dallas