[drosera]

I was fortunate enough to acquire a pair several years ago. I do belive they were a pair, as they both displayed characteristic male and female signs. Whatever the case, they were best of friends, inseperable.

This is one of the kinds of fish that made me take note of their behaviour. They are extremely curious, and I dare say intelligent. From day one, they knew I was the food person, and they had no qualms investigating my hands whenever I put my hand in the tank. They also loved to investigate the whole tank, including wher eI was adding water, when I did cleanups/water changes. On the whole, I found them friendly, adaptable, resilient, and curious fish.

What follows is a completely subjective view. The male died a couple of years before the female. Her depression at the loss seemed obvious to me. She was less active, ate less, and generally just moped around the tank for several months. Even my husband, who gave up any interest in the fish a very lng time ago, noticed it when passing the tank. Her buddy was gone, and she had lost all enthusiasm for living.

Fortunately this eventually passed, but she always remained much more timid than she used to be. I would expect this from a schooling(?) type fish, but I always wondered if she still harbored an emotional attachment to the one fish who had been her friend.

She's gone too now. I would reccomend them to anyone who is able to house at least 2 of them comfortably. They are very interesting and personable fish, and their needs are easy to fulfill.

Take care!