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Depends also what the Africans are. Mbunas are as likely to dig up as much as eat. Your GBAS might like the new growth on Anubias. I haven't had too much problems with haps/peacocks eating plants, or Dems and yellows as per P44. I agree it is worth getting something like Java fern and some Anubias, even some Val to give a try.

I have had experience of both Neolamprologus pulcher and leleupi as Adult pairs almost ripping each other to bits when i removed them from a breeding tank and back to a community situation. they are also lake tanganyikan cichlid of similar temperament to the julies.

I'd be less worried about the Ph levels as I would about the other basic requirements to get 'Julies' breeding. What size is the tank you have now. What is substrate- julies prefer sand as sifting it is part of their natural feeding process. You mention plants for hiding- what about rockwork? Julies need plenty of rockwork. Terracotta pots are a favourite for breeders. Make a little pile in the back or corner of tank. They are also very aggressive toward each other. How many did you keep. Was it a pair? Buying a small group and developing a pair from there is probably the best way to get breeders. They form pairs and don't appreciate visitors Adult males once they have a female will happily kill off other males, and females. This is an article for Julidochromis marlieri but would the same would apply for transcriptus. http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/j_marlieri.php

Thanks for comments guys. Makes me think of years ago when it was Jantzens in Botany. They had the 2000ltr? big cylindrical showtank full of Africans- mainly malawis- Royal blues, Fryeri, Giraffes etc. They reckoned they doubled the amount of peacock, haps they sold because people had the chance to see how dynamic africans could look as adults, as opposed to uncoloured juvies and sad adults many saw sitting in bays of 2ftrs.

Eyebiter Electra Young Jacobfriebergi Young Rubescens- just getting colour Chilumba 'red flush' Daffodil

Had camera out on the weekend and got some peacock/hap pics. Cheers! Baenschi Maleri Copadichromis Azureus- Lithobates

Yes, I was wondering how people with larger groups have found their conspecific aggression, and if they had suffered losses. I guess they are like other lamprologines - have a couple or a colony with an alpha pair.

Yes as above. Discus are a fish, probably more than any other, where TLC as young will determine their quality and health as Adults.

awesome news mate! What do you plan to feed fry. Will watch progress with interest for sure. They are a cool little fish for sure from what i've seen f them.

I think the history and availability of L270 is well known to those on such forums. I don't think they have been on TM much. Tidy profit to be made on that market if you had bred or bought stock at good price.

Cool. They will feed off the parents for little while. Time to get brine shrimp going.

She's a Female therefore is reserving the right to decide whether she is stressed or not 8) In my experience EBJD's are prone to it. Mine have done it for no real reason at all as i could tell. Well no physical reason :-? I wouldn't be too concerned if it happens only periodically.

I agree with likelyhood of Decora being in the mix then It would be down to a few other rift valley syno's as part of mix as discussed here. viewtopic.php?f=32&t=45632 Not a cuckoo Here's one of mine Not petricola or lucipinnis either Body spots look like that of 'Decora' but head shape and eyes look wrong, as is patterning. If it were pure and from rift valley leading dorsal ray would be all black and dorsal would be be all black with white distal margin. Also this fish only seems to have partial black of caudal fin lobes. I would tend to Hybrid hence the lack of known name. I think all the LFS is going to tell you is a non scientific, common name. That name may well lead back to a corresponding scientific name but this means nothing as importers here seem to be applying common names now to syno's in the same way they have for plecs- 'Even spot syno'-?. This is an out take from an article in Planet catfish on hybrids in Syno's- The recent opening up of eastern European markets in the aquarium trade has had quite an impact on the aquarium fish hobby. On the plus side, some species are becoming more easily available because of eastern European breeders (most notably in Russia and the Czech Republic). The other side of the coin is that a larger number of hybrid species are also flooding the market as a result of the quest for "new" and "interesting" species. Because many of the fish are hormonally bred in Eastern Europe, it becomes fairly easy to generate interspecific hybrids simply by fertilizing the eggs of one species with the sperm of another. Synodontis catfish are the dominant African catfish in the aquarium trade because of their attractive coloration and (generally) peaceful nature. Because Synodontis are so popular with aquarists, it is not surprising that they would be one of the first fish so targeted for hybridization. Although they don’t enjoy the same popularity from beginner to intermediate aquarists as the high profile species found among L-number plecos, they do produce a lot more offspring than the small, pretty plecos and thus are more commercially rewarding to fish farmers. The reactions of aquarists to these hybrids differ widely. If, you are a purist at heart and would prefer not to have anything to do with these hybrids, this article is meant to provide you with some tips on how to spot a hybrid Synodontis to help you make an informed purchase (this article refers mainly to hybrids that have a Rift Lake Synodontis as one of the parental species). Many of the hybrids have a Rift Lake Synodontis as one of the parental species, and one of the easiest way to tell if you have a hybrid is if it has some, but not all of the features typical of Rift Lake species. These characters will be covered in detail below. It should be noted that the most reliable way of distinguishing a hybrid from a species is to use a combination (and not just rely on any one) of these characters. 1. Body color Many of the species of Rift Lake Synodontis, especially those with a pattern of large black spots (such as S. multipunctatus and S. petricola), have fairly light colored bodies, so if you spot what looks like a Rift Lake Synodontis with a dark body, you may be looking at a hybrid. There are darker-bodied species of Rift Lake Synodontis, of course, but color combined with the features described below is one way to tell hybrids from the species. If the spots on the body of that "Rift Lake Synodontis" you see are not solid black spots, but an incomplete ring (C-shaped), chances are high that you are dealing with a hybrid. Conversely, there are some hybrids that do not display the color pattern of the Rift Lake species, yet have other features often seen in Rift Lake species, such as white barbels. 2. Eye color Almost all the Rift Lake Synodontis species have coppery eyes, so if you spot a Synodontis without the typical large-spotted pattern of many Rift Lake species, but with coppery eyes, you may be looking at a hybrid again. There are a (very) few riverine Synodontis species with coppery eyes, so eye color is a strong indicator, but by no means a completely reliable one, that you are dealing with a hybrid. 3. Fin color Many of the hybrids with Rift Lake ancestry have some elements of the fin coloration of the Rift Lake species. In the true species, this typically consists of a black dorsal-fin spine and a black dorsal fin with a white distal margin and a pair of black stripes that run along the outer margins or centers of the caudal fin lobes. In many of the hybrids, we see an incomplete manifestation of the parental color pattern, so many hybrids may have a black dorsal spine, but not a black dorsal fin (and white distal edge), or incomplete black stripes that run along the caudal fin lobes. 4. Head and body shape Some of the hybrids have distinctly humped backs caused by a very distinct concavity in the nuchal ("neck") region. Not all Synodontis have this nuchal concavity, or if they do, it is very slight. A very distinct nuchal concavity is a sure sign that you are dealing with a hybrid (or a deformed fish). A number of the hybrids also appear to have squat bodies, although this may not be so obvious. 5. Kinked dorsal spine Some of the hybrids exhibit a distinctly kinked dorsal spine. The dorsal spine may be kinked in very large individuals of some species (e.g. Synodontis clarias), but if you see a kinked dorsal spine in a young fish, chances are good that you are dealing with a hybrid.

looks really nice 'P' As for tetras- i would love to see Platinums in there. I Had 20 in a planted tank years ago and they were awesome. They were called Platinums when they came in although they were these- Hemigrammus rodwayi- golds elsewhere- not sure if we can still get them.

Indeed a Ponderous thought 8) I wonder how many other new terms and words including txtisms( is that new? ) have entered into our vocabulary in recent times, and how many of those are incongruous with what they are meant to describe, yet still do. Come to think of it my iphone looks nothing like an I or an eye.

Unfortunately people have been taking that or similar paths for a very long time. It just happens that this weeks focus of their discontent is a fantasy movie. Perhaps one could argue the film offers a social commentary in the correlation between the films main characters and the discontent many people have in their 'real world' and the allure and escapism that they find in their fantasy virtual world where social interaction is a 'out of body experience' heavily weighted toward their computers and the forums/ virtual sites the frequent? Maybe we should al be hiding our sharp knives

Not only do they soften water, they are an environment for breeding.

if you were to get get another 2-3 pictus then they would pretty much ignore any other fish in the tank. I;'d say 30 tiger barbs would be fine-cool in fact-have heard of barbs used for bringing out shy loaches so could see that working for pictus. 12 tigers 12 green tigers 12 cherry Fits into the colour you are looking for. If you like barbs then have a look at columbian tetras. 30 of them would be awesome too. And they live forever. They are my dither in a 4 ft plec tank

BGJD=Blue Green Jack Dempsey They are the young of EBJD(blue Dempsey, usually male) X regular Dempsey,( usually female). This combo is needed to breed Blue Dempsey- EBJD X BGJD = 50% Blue Dempsey OR BGJD X BGJD =25% blue Dempsey. The blue green will look very much like regular JD except can have more pronounced colours like blues/purples. Unfortunately a few have sold their extra BGJD's which could have effect on regular JD populations as the two look the same.

Yep Look pretty standard young JD. Always a chance that they are BGJD as they have unfortunately been sold on the market.

Surely if technology has fundamental issues in catering for biological realities then the issue is the technology. I just think Ira is being subtly and cleverly ironic in commenting about human's ability to deal with technology and the relationship between biology and technology when put into context of this thread's subject.

Don't go too small. They are nocturnal feeders and will take small tetras. If you have nothing in there already, then the world is your oyster. They are a boisterous fish though so not good with nervy or quite fish like discus. With only two they can be nervy and hidey. How about bigger tetras, or a selection of Rainbows would look cool with all their colour options that you could add too over time and one bigger SA cichlid that isn't too aggressive, like Chocolate or Severum.

I think it is a great movie. Yes 'Dances with Wolves' X 'Fern Gully' X 'Pocohontas'. But I don't think it pretends to be anything more than that. Fantasy with a message that my 8 yr old can enjoy with Her Dad as we allow ourselves the indulgence of wishing we could catch and fly dragons. Perhaps this movie is the wrong vehicle for practicing Critical and Cultural 'one up manship"

I'd be more impressed if at least he wasn't so singularly one dimensional and predictable. I hither too give myself the right to name all my fish anything I want and change them as it suits. Damn the rest of you and Damn any suggestion of my responsibility to any honest well intentioned buyer. Hither too I will call them 'Marks'.

http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/sp ... ies_id=191 check out image '4 of 19'- look like that. PC doesn't give a lot of info on them but other plec forums give bit more info and they seem to be more widespread than just Rio Xingu. Perhaps there are some locational varieties like 'gold nugget'.