ajbroome

aspringAmano wrote... > Have you thought about ordering some eggs online and starting > breeding colonies in NZ? As Rob says, eggs are banned because they cannot be ID'd at the border :-( > The subspecies of Walkeri that I have is no longer available > in the wild-a Parking lot now stands in its natural habitat! That'd be the infamous GH2 strain. We used to have them here in back in the early '90s. They suffered from being too easy to breed and too prolific such that at one stage *everyone* had them and then everyone stopped breeding them *because* everyone had them. Then no one had them... You got yours via the AKA species preservation plan (Wright Huntley perhaps)...? Andrew.

Pegasus said... > I was wondering if any member had an unusual Anabantoid While I don't have any, I've seen several different anabantoid fish in NZ including Chocolate gouramis (Sphaerichthys osphromenoides) which is one fish I'd consider keeping in my new fishroom if I see it again. I've also seen Croaking gouramis (Trichopsis vittatus) and Sparkling gouramis (Trichopsis pumilus) as well as the usual Colisa and Trichogaster species etc. They're out there, you just need to be patient and hunt them down. Andrew.

Seahorse said... >... can anybody tell me the best Ph level for Cichlids please There is a school of thought that says pH is almost unimportant when it comes to fish health (assuming the extreme end of the scale is avoided) and that you don't have a huge ammonia problem and high pH. Some people say that what's really important in the amount of dissolved solids and that it's just a case of tanks with low pH *tend* to also have a low level of disolved solids since these can buffer the water and therefore make it resist swings in pH. Dwarf South American cichlids (such as Rams) seem to appreciate soft water (and least when they're wild, or close to it, stock) with soft water you often get a low pH. Kribs are from western Africa and originally came from similar water but have been tank bred for so long now that they seem to do well in almost any water that can support other fish life. There are a plethora of web sites and mailing list archives that discuss water chemistry and how it relates to fish especially cichlids. The archive of the Apistogramma mailing list would be a very good place to start, IMHO. Andrew.

Bigfish wants some fish to go with his goldfish and Benny says... > ... go and catch yourself some Inanga! Assuming you keep your goldfish in a tank indoors there are many species of fish that can co-habit based on temperature. Obvious ones include 'plecostomus', rosy barbs, peppered cats and so forth. There are others but it would depend on the size of the goldfish and so forth. I've done several cold water ( ie un-heated) tanks in the past (without goldfish) and they can be quite spectacular. Have a look at Mark Owens page at: http://www.aquaria.net/art/finart/cool.html Andrew.

aspiringAmano said... > I dont know what different species you will get compared to USA We only have a very small range of killies available to us in NZ. Not because they're illegal to have or anything but because of the problems of importation and quarentine. You can get some idea of what we have, or have had, by looking at the 'species' section of http://nzka.killi.net Sadly many of these have disappeared from the hobby. I've spent a bit of time in the US and have been to 3 AKA conventions and a BAKA WCW. There are really some nice fish available to those lucky enough to be in the hobby there. Later, Andrew.

Caryl said... > (Kelly) ... has this site where you can go and see photos of his > new house, scenic shots, and a number of photos of killifish, most > taken at NZKA Shows. > http://photos.yahoo.com/bc/kellyr_nz He's just uploaded some pictures of fish from the 2002 NZKA AGM should anyone be interested. Look in the appropriately labelled album. Thanks Caryl, Andrew.

Hi Neil, Good to see you here. Let me know if you want to get into Killies again... Andrew.

Hey Peter, Glad to see you're doing well with those guppies and Siamese fighters. Good luck, Andrew.

Deleatidium said... > I want to have a large conservatory with pond and turtles and > somewhere to house my cacti (another hobby). This all sounds familiar. I bought a house last week, of course it's got a conservatory (not for turtles or fish) since I also have a few peculiar plants (Stapelia-like things, many carnivorous plants, orchids and some big scary aroids as well as a vast collection of ornamental Oxalis). It also has a tandem garage, some of which will become a fishroom, a 'sleepout' where the turtles and fish (and rats) will live temporarily at least. I'm debating about turning the swimming pool into a turtle or fish pond. I think I'm going to be busy over the next couple of months. All good fun during the tedious winter, of course Andrew.

Benny said... > who has the biggest fish? My two inch Rachovia brevis ain't gonna win this one ;-) Andrew.

Folks, The Asian Arowana (Scleropages formosus) is available in several colour forms. They are considered good luck by some Chinese and are often kept as status symbols. The best ones are now captive bred (ponds rather than tanks usually) and are available with all the documentation to support this (ie CITES paperwork etc). I've seen them in NZ once before (don't ask me if they were here legally or not) about 10 years ago. I've seen one or two of the 'Australian' Arowana (Sc. jardini). Wet Pets still has one as a display fish. The most common Arowana seen in the NZ pet trade is, of course, Osteoglossum bicirrosum. Very occasionally you might see a black arowana (O. ferreirai) which apparently are only hugely different to the silver ones as juveniles. These are all big carnivorous fish. You'll need a 6 foot tank and lots of feeder fish, IMHO. Have a look at http://www.dragonfish.com for all you ever wanted to know ;-) Andrew.

Pegasus said... > ... it appears we might not have a "Petsmart" over here. Petsmart (aka Pet-stupid) are a chain in the US. Kind of the McDonalds of the pet trade. The quality is generally about as good... Andrew.

Caryl said... > I think Pegasus covered all the most likely reasons for the > colouration (or lack of it) and it is probably the age difference > between the two batches and different fathers. Without seeing them it's hard to be sure but I wouldn't be suprised to find that one batch were kept in a much lighter tank than the other. Bright tanks with pale backgrounds can affect the amount of colour a fish shows. This is one reason a lot of show tanks are painted black on the back and sides and use a dark substrate. Just my thoughts. Andrew.

Ira said... > Pretty little fish, I was seriously considering getting a few, but > decided my tanks are getting pretty crowded already. Probably just as well since Festivums get quite big. The ones I had 10 or more years ago were bigger than most Severums I've seen, for instance. Nice fish though and relatively peaceful all things considered. Andrew.

Caryl said... > I have prepared and uploaded photos Grant took at conference. Excellent pics, Caryl and Grant I dunno what pics Pete took, I should chase him up and get them uploaded somewhere... At the PNAS meeting last night we watched a video, by Daniel Giles, of the Napier conference etc. It was well worth the look. Andrew.

Midas said... > Has anyone ever had problems with roundworms (Camallanus) before? Last time I visited Len Trigg in the Waikato he was having problems with these in some Aphyosemion scheeli. He tried a couple of things and eventually got a vet to make up a treatment that worked well. He's writing an article, to be published in the NZKA journal and I'm sure he'll be happy to tell you what he did. Contact Len at [email protected], tell him I sent you if you like. Andrew.

Bill asked... > Can any of them be kept in a community enviroment with > other fish, or do they need a devoted setup especially for them? I've kept several species of killie in community tanks in the past. Obviously it depends what you want to keep them with. Epiplatys annulatus won't last long with an oscar for example but fish such as Aplocheilus lineatus will probably do well with larger tetras, gouramis, barbs, Angels etc (but nothing too small or else the killie will eat *them*). Fish such as Aphyosemion scheeli can be kept with smaller more peaceful fish too. I've been known to donate spare male killies (including annuals like Nothobranchius) to Wet Pets for them to keep in their display tanks. Generally, it doesn't pay to mix closely related killies in the same tank as they are prone to hybridisation and the females often look quite similar to each other. Also agression can be more of an issue between closely related species. Hope that helps, Andrew.

Bill said... > How long can Killie eggs remain dormant? That's kind of one of those "How long is a piece of string" type questions. I've personally had eggs hatch after being stored a year instead of the recommended (for that species) 3 months and I've heard stories of some species (Simpsonichthys magnificus for example) still showing undeveloped eggs after 3 years storage. Then again, some can hatch after only a few days. In general, with the species available in NZ currently it's either around 14 days for the non-annual species (Epiplatys, Rivulus, Aphyosemion etc) and 3 or 6 months for most of the Nothobranchius, Cynolebias (now broken up into Simpsonichthys, Austrolebias etc) and Rachovia etc. > What would be the easiest species to start off with? If you wanted a non-annual fish then I'd suggest something like Aphyosemion scheeli or Epiplatys dageti (perhaps Aplocheilus lineatus gold as well). If you wanted to try an annual species then probably Nothobranchius guentheri or N. foerschi would be good places to start. Hope that helps. Andrew.

Benny said... > are cichlids good parents? Many cichlids, chromides included, can make very good parents. Ultimately though it's likely the fry will get eaten by other fish in the tank or by the parents themselves if they decide to spawn again. IMHO, it's always best to breed fish in their own tank rather than in a community set-up. If it were me, I'd set the adults up in a 2ft tank with water conditions similar to the original tank. Move the adults into this new tank, feed well (deally live foods) and maintain the best water quality you can. The adults will most likely spawn again within a few weeks if all goes well. Then you can let the parents care for the fry if you want to take the risk or else move the adults back to the main tank and raise the fry seperately. It depends on how many fish you want to raise I guess... Andrew.

Benny said... > my chromides have just layed eggs on a rock and are > guarding them! what amazing luck i had, that I got a male > and a female. Well, until you see actual fry you only know that you've got at least one female. Sometimes cichlid females will 'pair off' if there is no male present and go through the motions of laying eggs and guarding them. Of course, if there is no male then the eggs wont be fertile... > for those that want to know my pH is 7.2 and I have 1tsp of > salt per 10 litres, suprisingly the other fish seem to like it. The pH sounds good for chromides and I bet they'd tolerate a lot more salt without too many problems. This may not apply to other fish and plants though... Good luck. Andrew.

Cees said... > tell me more You should've been there Cees There was some positive comments on the FNZAS web presence and especially The Fishroom. A couple of screen-dumps were included in with the Agenda etc so all attendees should know this place exists now. And, apparently, it's mentioned in the latest Aquarium World but I haven't seen mine yet... > Those of you who where at the conference, what > happened. And can someone send me an updated list of the > executive. Some data on this site will now be out of date. I think you should contact Dave Dalziel for the official version on what went on. The Exec is mostly the same so there shouldn't be too many drastic changes to make. Of course Kelly Rennell is no longer Treasurer, that job being taken over by Warren I understand. As for the unofficial version, it was all good fun - as usual - with several regulars here attending. I know I had a good time... ;-) Looking forward to Blenheim in 2003. Andrew.

Folks, The yellow apple snails are not plant friendly at all. They are the only critter I know which will eat Java fern and Java moss. After that, they'll eat your sponge filters if they've got algae on them, I kid you not! They get big too. The brown snails are much easier to maintain in a typical planted tank. I can do people a good deal on red ramshorn snails Andrew.

Benny said... > ... had a look on the niwa website that showed what the > distribution of Inanga is and it showed they are present in > Northland, so they must be able to withstand 18 degree > water temperature. Bear in mind that a shaded forest stream (where Galaxius spp tend to hang out) is not going to be as warm as a shallow lake or pond, no matter what the ambient temperature is... I've caught G. maculatus (the common Inanga) mostly in small shallow streams around Palmerston North (including over my back fence in the Mangaone Stream, within the city limits), which doesn't mean that they don't occur in bigger rivers of course... Have a look at: http://www.nzfreshwater.org/ for good info on NZ native fish. It includes captive maintenance info at: http://www.nzfreshwater.org/index_aquaria.html There is also a mailing list based at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nzfreshwater Andrew.

Benny, Paul Parsons spawned the true Orange Chromide (Etroplus maculatus) several (ie more than 10, perhaps closer to 15) years ago. Try contacting him perhaps ( http://paul.aaquaria.com/Enter.html or [email protected] ). Mostly what we see in the shops these days are the gold form of this species (IMHO) unfortunately. See: http://www.aquahobby.com/orange.html for some info on breeding. I did see some 'Green' chromides (E. suratensis - being sold as 'pearl spotted chromides or some such name) at Wet Pets over the weekend. You don't see them very often. Andrew.

Benny said... > Does anyone know the max size for a jack dempsey About 8 or 9 inches (20cm or so). See: http://www.aquariacentral.com/fishinfo/ ... psey.shtml Andrew.