A few random pictures from the past week or so
- Thread starter anewbie
- Start date
OP
OP
Yes. Not very many because it wasn't clear what species they represented.
The current discussion seems to be trifs; but i original thought they were becks; they sent me a picture but it was blown out.
OP
OP
They didn't have many - they were sold out a day later; i originally asked them to cancel the ones i had ordered (the h. eilyos) were down to 12 when i placed my order - they sold out faster. I really wanted to the h. eilyos as i want to try to breed them and didn't want to disturb the other group i have. Neither group is very large as they are bloody expensive. ALso they make lousy dither as they are very aggressive eaters. Like little piranha - but if i end up moving in 2 years i want to breed them to populate a very large aquarium. The odd thing is they were like totally mad or scared when i first release them but 2 hours later when i offered some food they immediatly calmed down - nothing like a little food to brighten up a stressful day.
Anyway the open question is are they a new species or a colourmorph of some other species
As of this hour I'd say they are a geographic variant of N. erythrurus which had been synonymized with N. trifasciatus but has recently been restored. But there's a movement afoot to elevate all these variants to species, so time and the splitters will tell.
OP
OP
For others; this is a good description of the two species:
Nannostomus erythrurus - Aquarium Glaser GmbH
The three-banded pencilfish, Nannostomus trifasciatus, is one of the most popular ornamental fish. It combines numerous characteristics that make it desirable: beautiful coloration, peaceful nature, small size, and easy feeding. However, few people know that the name “Nannostomus trifasciatus”...
www.aquariumglaser.de
Aquatic Clarity has them now as well. Jeff posted photos on his Facebook page but hasn't added them to the list yet on his site. Quarantine, I suspect. As with WetSpot he says they came in as N. sp. Sao Gabriel.
OP
OP
Yea - i'm waiting to see how much they are and if he has anything else interesting to justify shipping. He also has gold margitas which are not bad - i generally prefer the smaller pencilfishes and i could use 2 more groups but shipping is a bit pricey. The other thing is most of my smaller dither seem to last forever. I really should learn to breed the epesi and h. eilyos since i don't intend to buy any more of those (too expensive). The h. eilyos are pretty darn nice but of course not suitable for keeping with breeding dwarf cichild.
Something is going on, when I look at those beauties you got. I couldn't get pencils for the longest time - any species. But suddenly they seem to be trickling in. Here, with our small market, I only see the once common ones, but I didn't see any for the longest time. Maybe there's a pencilfish renaissance starting.
For local aquarists, they're all new.
For local aquarists, they're all new.
It's started with the introduction of the 'newer' species and variants that possess saturated color--N. rubrocaudatues etc--and has been steadily growing. WetSpot and Aquatic Clarity have always been good sources here in the USA and even they have expanded their offerings in recent years so I take that as reflective of supply and demand. WetSpot just sold out the latest new offering that @anewbie and I had been discussing. Their listing was posted last Friday and sold out this past Wednesday. That's for an unknown variant at $13 a pop.
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OP
OP
According to wet spot they were actually sold out by sunday night; and their h. eilyos were sold out by saturday night and those suckers were $33 a fish.
The 'gold' N. marginatus are a lovely variant, though I wager they will be among the first to be split off the "marginatus group.' and elevated to species.
N. espei will spawn for you in acidic water--Discus-acidic, as low as in the 4s, though anything under ph 6 will do-- temp of 78F or so and, I have found, best in pairs. All the other species seem to be willing colony spawners but not espei. I'd separate the sexes for a week or two. Males, as you likely know, have elongated anal fins. Condition well and then reunite them in a densely planted, well-established tank. They lay a few eggs at a time usually on the underside of a broad leaf such as Echinodorus, and they repeat the event over the course of several hours, usually in the morning. Remove the breeders when they are finished. A well-established tank is essential so the fry can feed off of the existing biofilm and free-swimming microorganisms.
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fishorama
Fishaholic
I always have trouble with overhead tank pics. Are there are fish showing? I can't tell. Nice sand color, lots of wood & vallisneria?
Are your pretty cardinals & plants in that same tank? The sand seems lighter, just a different lighting angle? Your tanks are so big it makes it hard to say just what I'm looking at sometimes, lol. Not your clown loach tank I'm pretty sure!
Are your pretty cardinals & plants in that same tank? The sand seems lighter, just a different lighting angle? Your tanks are so big it makes it hard to say just what I'm looking at sometimes, lol. Not your clown loach tank I'm pretty sure!
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