OutOfAfrica

Thanks Caryl, This thread is starting to take on a much more enjoyable tone If this is caryl ( alias MX 5 ) from Blenheim then we have met. My collection has increased and now it is on offer to anyone genuinely interested. Afrikan - good bit of humour really. Probably better than some peoples efforts - I have heard some real classic attempts, but at least they try

Evil Say hello to Shane at Te Puke parts world for me and let him know I will catch up in March :lol:

dudette - even better. Nothing like the care of a good woman Tell you something funny. When I was a kid I came across some Gold Axolotyls in Australia and tried to import them to no avail. So I settled for some black and white ones instead. Well these guys did their thing and before you know it I had hundreds. The seed was sown. In 1981 I was working at a pet store and had progressed to tropical fish ( and my axies ). One day they had these weird but very attractive "African Cichlids ( Chick a lids :lol: ) in stock and I was told they were "mouth brooders" . WOW, I gotta get some of these. They were called Psuedotropheus Lombardoi and Psuedotropheus Auratus ( back then ) so I got some pairs and spawned them - facinating back then I can tell you. The rest my friends is history . Now I have got my Gold Axies and am going to get back into these again - funny how things go full circle :lol: BTW: Some of the fish I have on offer I have kept going for 9 years now and I really want them to go to people who will keep them going another 9

I am considering the PM's sent to me from the North Island folk but I would prefer to sell to South Island only - I really don't have the time to organise the freight etc to send then across the ditch. It looks as if "tropheus" is planning on flying down to collect his specimens and this suits me to the ground but he stated that he is only coming down for his fish so please do not hassle him. Let me think about it for a while. I am happy to suuply anyone but time is the problem ( the reason I am selling in the first place ). Afrikan - If you consider yourself a dreamer then feel offended but from what I here you are OK so relax dude. I have a good idea who you all are - it was not aimed at anyone in particular ( well one person does come to mind actually, and you know who you are ). evilknieval69 - get a life. No further comments to the likes of you. I do not know how to post pics ( and no one has told me how even though I asked ) so some sort of explanation helps. Some people out there are going to be happy with this opportunity, some are not.

When you have put in as much effort as me for as many years as me to strive for the best specimens possible then you too would be proud of your collection. My collection has been obtained with much effort but I share the offspring with any real enthusiasts - dreamers need not apply. If you saw these fish for yourself you would be dumb struck as many have been already. When was the last time anyone here commited to purchasing ALL the fish requested in an importers order to risk getting a good strain of just ONE species for your own personal enjoyment Modest NO - just proud of my little guys. Not to mention just stating the facts Come visit and see for yourself OOA

The top fish in herefishiefishie reply above looks exactly like mine but alas even he is not as good. Mine has the same basic colours but his fins are much better - the ventral fins on mine are twice as long, but basically pretty similar regardless. Oh yeah, he and his 6 female companions are for sale as per my list. In fact at present 4 of the females have mouths full of fry. Better get them out when I get home I guess OOA

Gee, hasn't this thread got heated Settle down people - I mean seriously :roll: From my experience with these fish ( some 6-7 years ) I would say that the male is a poor example of a C. Borleyi "Kadango", but a "Kadango" none the less. At certain angles they look very blue ( the scales have blue edging that gives this appearance ). The females look good. If they are not fed properly then they look elongated and not full bodied ( this may not be the current owners fault ). Not being critical but is has become very difficult to get quality stock. I had an importer down here bring in several batches before I got my A+ stock. Tropheus has seen mine and knows how good these guys can look. If I new how to post pic's then I would do so. BTW: If anyone in the South Island is interested I am closing my fish room and it is all up for grabs. I have some very rare and beautiful African Cichlids. OOA

C. Borleyi "Kadango" There are other "variants" of C. Borleyi but they come from other reefs again. One population even has females identical to "Kadango" but the females have yellow fins and not orange fins like ONLY the Kadango variety have. The males of this variant are different again. DO NOT CROSS THE VARIANTS :evil: , that is bad practice. Do your homework and get it right or flood the market with more rubbish fish from ignorant keepers. I have a true Kadango variety and if you saw them you would be blown away at the intense colour and fin quality - the males ventral fins finish at the caudal fin - impressive .

Another 24 Otopharynx Lithobates ( yellow nape ) fry 41 Hap' Brownae fry. After the last clean out ( thanks Tropheus and Cameron ) I am finally filling my tanks again Yellow band Trop' Dubs look like they are going at it again too Anybody out there got any unusual African Cichlids they are prepared to part with?

Hi team He is still doing well. Happily hanging around in his tank eating trout chunks and the odd Malawi :lol: tropheus and cameron came down from Auckland two weeks ago and took a look, they thought he was awesome 8)

If you like the fish then give it a go. Keep a very good eye on them though. Feed your existing fish first and then introduce the newbies. I prefer to re-arrange the tank just before lights out and introduce the newbies 5-10 mins before the lights go out. This gives them a quite time to look around before the morning rush. Get up early the next morning and see how everyone is getting on. Personally I have kept the most unlikely companions ( Africans only ) together VERY successfully. Not sure if they are still there but I supplied a lot of the Africans for Butterfly Creek - even an 18cm Borleyi I have only ever had one bad tempered Venustus - generally if your fish are well fed then they get along just fine. Territory is another trigger for aggression - you may wish to try a bare tank for a while if things get a bit intense Good luck

Hi Team, There are lot of fish that should not be banned. It is unfortunate that the authorities are either so misinformed or uneducated here in NZ. I am trying to do the right thing. The way I see it is like this: I am a consumer who enjoys ornamental fish. I do not import fish or any other live stock and simply liked what I saw and bought it. It is not my job to know what is permited and what is not. Thank you all for bringing this situation to my attention - I will endeavour to get it all resolved one way or the other. If I was to have my pet removed from my posession I would be extremely upset. This fish poses ZERO environmental risk here in NZ ( he has been quarantined now for over two years ). The outcome I am hoping for is that whoever needs to know contacts me and we come to a reasonable agreement. If this involves being granted a special permit with stringent conditions on tracking his where abouts and current condition ( eg: dead or alive , including producing a corpse upon death ) then this would be very acceptable and logical. Anyway, we will see how it all pans out. Thanks for all your help Off to Antarctica now so will check in when I get back in aprox 2 weeks. PS: He has an 8 foot tank waiting for him when/if required.

He lives in a 4 foot tank at present. I phoned MAF today to report him as an illegal import. I thought if I spoke to someone of authority then we may come to some sort of arrangement in order for me to retain him. They could not put me onto anyone who could help and suggested I call "The Ministry of Fisheries" - they could not help me and got me a contact # for MAF again - I called on the new MAF # and they said to call DOC I give up - I did my best to inform the authorities so I guess he stays I mean what do you do :-? Maybe being honest can pay off ?

From all the info I have found they only get to 24" in captivity so easily manageable. Hideous - mate you gotta see it in person - VERY attractive fish. Its like trying to explain the beauty of a fully coloured Malawi Utaka - you just can not do it. But if you see them in the flesh they are quite outstanding

A pretty crappy photo I know, but I snuck out and snapped a quicky during my daughters birthday party But that is my little friend all right

I have just sent a pic to "MysticVampire". Confirmation on its way aye Mystic Mean while I will continue to enjoy him FYI - the one at Wet Pets was only about 8" when I delivered him and these guys grow slowly and live a long time. The secret is not to over feed them or they get FAT . Keep em lean and they will live a happy healthy life. Oh yeah, I feed mine chunks of trout every 3-4 days ( and the odd African Cichlid )

I would be happy to post a pic for you "disbelievers" but don't know how. And yes he exists all right. His brother ended up at Wet Pets in Palmerston North. For the initiated, you know that one exists brcause it started a riot on this forum quite some time back :lol: Give me your e-mail address Sharn.

He is for sale if I get offered the right price. I am not into negotiation. Make me an reasonable offer and I will decide if he stays or goes. Highest bidder may win.

Hi Tracey, I was wondering how long it would take for you guys to wake up. 7568 was the best of your guess's - Meow I mean, how many clues do you have to drop for the penny to drop LOL

I know they are "taeniolatus" - but "taeniolatus" is not on the list. Many years ago they were classified as "fenestratus" and "fenestratus" is on the list. If you work the system then you get what you want legally I have been keeping Africans successfully for about 20 years on and off and am very familiar with re-classifications etc. BTW - if the proposed new import list is factual then BYE BYE to the selection we enjoy today :evil: PROBLEM - MAF have no idea what they are looking at and that is why they have to resort to such drastic measures. LIFE EXPECTAINCY of an escape African Cichlid in NZ - NIL The disease issue is what should be addressed - and I am not talking "white spot" brought on by stress ( EG: The long travel and variable temperatures etc ), but the really bad ones - viral , bacterial etc. SOLUTION - Get someone who is an enthusiast and knows their stuff. This way the "permitted list" could be increased without the risk of introducing potential bio- hazards. Oh Yeah - And the authorities were so good at keeping out Dydimo - talk about lame :oops:

Man am I on a roll. Spawned today: Tropheus Dub - Yellow band Copadochromis Borleyi Kadango Protomelas Fenestratus - Red Empress What a day . Early Xmas present What has tommorrow got in store FYI - I have a fish room with 40 - 50 tanks and heaps of breeders, so there is always something going on 8)

Hi MooLoo, Had the video once. Got bored with it and gave it to a mate. His video player eventually chewed it up one day :-? Sorry, can't help you. Don't have any other videos either.

Hi Team, My cute little Julies have spawned again. They are such good parents. Anyone else spawned these guys ?

Hi Team, I was travelling around NZ quite a while ago and during my journey I came across a very interesting cat. It was advertised as a "Pictus" . Looked really cool so I bought it. Now that my "little" pictus has grown into an 18" beauty I thought I should check out what variety he is - he has a flat head and really cool vertical stripes Ummmmmmmmmmmmmm :-?