Cichlasoma Ornatum

[mattlee]

after Nelly suggested these to me after finding out they were available again in the UK i have finally bit the bullet and gone and got some i went up to see Ross at Oddball Express in Staffordshire and came home with his 2 biggest fish. well i say biggest they are about 1.5 inches quite dull grey/silver with the beginning of the green markings on the gill plates, also a slight red tinge to the dorsal fin.
as these fish have apparently not been imported to the UK for 25 years or so i couldnt resist getting a couple to hopefully grow up into the pics you see on google ill be updating with pics etc as they grow and fingers crossed they will be fine and grow well.

if anyone is interested in going to Oddball Express then its well worth the trip as Ross has many many species of cichlid and at very decent prices. i also came home with a nicaraguan cichlid thats about 4 inches for £7 which is much cheaper than normal lfs prices that i have seen. walkers who came with me came home with a chocolate cichlid and a nicaraguan cichlid, both for £17 and both a decent size
i dont want to put people off going as its a cichlid heaven but i was slightly off put by the lack of lights on the tanks as they just use the ceiling lights.... you just couldnt see the fish in the tanks that well but after catching your chosen fish Ross would show the fish to you and if not happy would swap it for another. all 3 of my fish are superb examples so i had no issues. i just wish i could have seen in all of the other tanks a bit better

ill put up some pics tomorrow after they have settled in a bit

 

[mattlee]

this is hopefully what they will grow into

 

[Carlovel1]

I'm not keen on cichlids but they are awesome.

 

[markandhisfish]

nice pickup matt , been drooling over those myself too .

 

[mattlee]

nice pickup matt , been drooling over those myself too .

yeah i was going to get some then changed my mind then wanted some again and as we were going to birmingham today i thought i may as well stay on the M6 and get some..... if they look anything close to those pics they will be worth every penny spent on them today.

they have 4 left so they are still available mark

 

[Carlovel1]

nice pickup matt , been drooling over those myself too .

yeah i was going to get some then changed my mind then wanted some again and as we were going to birmingham today i thought i may as well stay on the M6 and get some..... if they look anything close to those pics they will be worth every penny spent on them today.

they have 4 left so they are still available mark

And how many pennies did you spend?

 

[star4]

I wish my hubby was home today I would have asked you to pick me up on the way although it would have only been for a look for me.

 

[mattlee]

I wish my hubby was home today I would have asked you to pick me up on the way although it would have only been for a look for me.

well star if i go again then ill let you know

nice pickup matt , been drooling over those myself too .

yeah i was going to get some then changed my mind then wanted some again and as we were going to birmingham today i thought i may as well stay on the M6 and get some..... if they look anything close to those pics they will be worth every penny spent on them today.

they have 4 left so they are still available mark

And how many pennies did you spend?

now that would be telling.....

they do have an advert on AQ if you really want to find out though

 

[star4]

Thats if Hubby lets me go, I would need a lead and my hands stapled into my pockets to stop me bringing home loads of fish

 

[mattlee]

Thats if Hubby lets me go, I would need a lead and my hands stapled into my pockets to stop me bringing home loads of fish

im sure he wouldnt mind

im not sure it is the place you can go and leave empty handed though, especially if your into Geos...... ive never seen so many!

 

[kaivalagi]

Wow! So colourful it almost hurts my eyes

What size are they right now?
I think you need to create a pics journal thread just for these fish

 

[mattlee]

Wow! So colourful it almost hurts my eyes

What size are they right now?
I think you need to create a pics journal thread just for these fish

at the minute they are about 1.5 inches ish..... they are currently quite dull grey/silver like most young cichlids. you can just work out some green pattern coming through on the gill plates and a slight red tinge on the dorsal fin. ill get some pics put up as they grow

 

[mattlee]

im finding these ornatums to be very very skittish. i turned the lights on and they went absolutely nuts so ive removed the timer and unplugged the lights for now. im also slightly worried as i just fed them and these are the only 2 fish not to eat and dont even seem bothered with it i really hope they pull through and start eating soon.....

 

[star4]

It might be worth changing your bulb to a much lower light, blue like I have on the Frontosa tank, or even an led strip untill they get use to lights. As you said none of the tanks had lights in only the lights in the unit, it would freak them out. Another option is get some cheap plastic plants that are not weighted down and float them on the top for a bit of cover.

As for feeding, what have you tried them with? they may have been fed just plain flake foods, try that or try some frozen brine shrimp & garlic, most fish cannot resist that

 

[mattlee]

It might be worth changing your bulb to a much lower light, blue like I have on the Frontosa tank, or even an led strip untill they get use to lights. As you said none of the tanks had lights in only the lights in the unit, it would freak them out. Another option is get some cheap plastic plants that are not weighted down and float them on the top for a bit of cover.

As for feeding, what have you tried them with? they may have been fed just plain flake foods, try that or try some frozen brine shrimp & garlic, most fish cannot resist that

Ross said he had fed them on prima so thats what ive just offered. ill try brine shrimp later with them