Tuesday 9 November 2010

Betta Splendens

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Betta Splendens or more commonly known as Siamese Fighting Fish is one of the most beautiful colorful fish you’ve ever seen. Breeding bettas is neither hard nor expensive but in order for the reproduction process to be a complete success you must respect a sequence of steps.
  • First you need to prepare the pair for spawning. To do so you must change their water daily for one or two weeks and feed them intensively with live and frozen food. 
  • Second work on setting up the proper tank for spawning. Normally a ten gallon tank with 50w submersible heater, a sponge filter and lots of live plants would suffice in creating the perfect environment for the betta fry to properly develop. You should also place a Styrofoam cup cut in half for the nest site and a glass container to separate the male from female. 
  • Third step is accustoming the pair with their new environment. This can be done by taking each fish (first the male and then the female) in a cup of water and gradually allowing them to come in contact with the water in the spawn tank. The female must be place in the glass enclosure until the setting is ready for her to spawn. This is an important phase as releasing the betta female to soon can affect the breeding process in an irreversible way. At this stage observing the female closely is critical. Four signs will tell you when she is ready to spawn: her attitude towards the betta male – she will no longer be scared of him, her stomach form –her stomach will look like she had swollen a marble piece, the vertical line bars that will appear on her body and the way she swims to show off her lines. When the betta female displays at least three of the four signs you can release her into the spawn tank and let the reproduction process start. This is quite a hectic scene with lots of chasing around the tank, nipping of the fins and nest destruction if the female doesn’t like it. The male will build a new one and things will start to calm once she approves the nest. Then they will start dancing and embracing near the nest. This is quite spectacular as the male will grip the female with his body and twist her feverishly. This embrace will last about 10 to 20 seconds at which time both eggs and sperm will be released. The male will place the eggs into the nest and the reproduction process will continue for another three hours. 
  • Once the reproduction it’s over the male will chase the female away. At this point you can place the female in the glass enclosure. The male will take care of the eggs making sure they remain in the nest. After two or three days the eggs will hatch and the male will struggle to keep the fry from falling out of the nest. Once the fry will begin to swim on their own the male’s job will end and he too can remove him from the tank. This usually takes place 48 hours after the hatch.
Betta breeding can lead to exceptional results in terms of colors and finnage making you the proud owner of one or two dozens of splendid tropical fish.

Wednesday 18 August 2010

Buying shoes online

The two main advantages of online shoes shopping are the possibility of choosing and comfortableness of purchasing. Due to the fact that the range of sizes, colors, styles and brands is wider on the internet, you are more likely to find the exact pair of shoes you want when shopping online than from a regular shoe store. Thanks to online shopping you no longer need to fight the crowds or wait around to be served, all you need to do is click on the pair you like and order it from the comfort of your home.
Furthermore when shopping online all stores are open 24 hours a day offering better discounts than those presented by regular stores. These may include matching accessories or free transport for purchases that exceed a certain amount. That’s why buying multiple items from the same site can be a good opportunity that could save you some time and money.
One of the main concerns when buying shoes online is the return policy procedure which differs from one site to another. Most online shoe sites will pay for return shipping on products as long as you give them back in good condition. A good tip here is to treat the shoes you try on just as if you were in a regular shoe store. If they don’t fit read carefully the provider’s instructions regarding return policy and refund before deciding what to do next. You might ask for your money back or consider waiting for the right pair of shoes to be delivered to you cost free.
Another concern about purchasing shoes online regards the payment security. Usually, prestigious and important shoe stores have very secure sites.
Hopefully this informative guide will help you understand what are the pros and cons of online shoe shopping these days. Taking into account that this practice has become quite popular among internet lovers understanding it can only help you.