Really Frustrated!

[MBOU]

Hi

I am seriously drawing a blank here!! I cant find ANYWHERE selling interesting species of livebearers, especially since i am so fussy!! Im not a fan of the goodeids or amecas and halfbeaks dont fit into my tank plans at all.

Really Im wanting swordtails, would love some Montezumas or something equally as pretty and unusual, something i can sell or share the fry out. Ideally i guess 2 trios (1:2) would be ideal.

None of my local shops sell interesting livebearers, i cant even find anything on the lists myself to get in!! The BLA website wasnt particularly helpful either...


Gemma

 

[nmonks]

You should be able to get at least some unusual livebearers through the bigger stores, like Maidenhead Aquatics. If you're able to get to Wildwoods and Wholesale Tropicals in London, both of these regularly stock unusual livebearers. Try using the Tropical Fish Finder web site to do a search; the catalogue there covers most of the better shops and for any given species the "stock" button lists any shops with that species.

If you're anywhere near Berkhamsted, I can easily share some Limia nigrofasciata. I also have some Ameca splendens and Nomorhamphus halfbeaks, but those aren't of use to you.

The BLA seems mostly to be oriented around auctions and so far as I can tell those auctions are always somewhere up north, Corby I think.

Cheers, Neale

 

[MBOU]

I work for MA myself not seen anything interesting to me on the lists with few exceptions and they would cost a LOT of money...

I might give you a shout back about the Nigrofasciata because if you are in THE Berkhamsted that i can just nip through Ashridge to, Im no more then 20 minutes away

Is there anything in particular that you are looking for?

 

[nmonks]

Berkhamsted, Herts., anyway -- is that THE Berkhamsted?

Cheers, Neale

 

[MBOU]

Thats the one, Im in Dunstable...

 

[nmonks]

Well feel free to PM me some time and come pick some Limia up, should you need them.

Cheers, Neale

 

[dunchp]

The BLA criticism is absolutely wrong guys, the BLA is geared up for people who get involved, it costs £12 to £20 a year (depending on what service you want) and for that you get access to around 150 breeders throughout the country, Europe and the World. There are two auctions, but there is also a Species Maintenance Programme that retains a list of who keeps which species and can put you in touch with people local to you keeping and breeding many different species.

Do remember that some of these guys really worship their fish and treat them as pets, they are not like a shop and they don't sell their fish for a profit. This means that they will look for people who are serious before they pass on their fish and if you are a member of the BLA then this will go along way to showing that you are serious.

I believe that the Species Maintenance Programme Officer lives near Aylesbury, his details are in the management page of the BLA website and he may be able to help you with local (to you) keepers of whatever livebearer your heart desires.

Like I said at the start, you will not get very far in the BLA if you do not at least get involved. If you get involved then there will be people falling over themselves to help you.

 

[OldMan47]

I would go back to the original question. I have no idea what conditions exist for fish keepers in the UK, but in the US the only place that I ever find rarer livebearers is at a club auction. I own several breeds of goodeids that I found at club auctions and at the ALA auction last year. I would expect the BLA to have much the same access to rare livebearers as the ALA does. Members show up at the convention and bring their excess stock with them as potential sales items. If you are able to attend a BLA auction, that would be my first place to look for anything at all unusual. I am a member of the BLA web site although I never expect to be able to participate in their conventions.

 

[MBOU]

I have paid up and am a member of the BLA, its probably just me then, their website wadnt really... welcoming and i couldnt find what i wanted so i came here on the assumption there would be members i could speak to on here.

I am all for club being good and would prefer to buy fish from a local breeder or hobbyist than a shop and that says a bit seeing as i am in the retail industry myself.

I do know how clubs work as a general rule, i belong to a fair few for hamsters, rodents, reptiles, and fish... its just not all clubs are particularly active or active in my area.

 

[dunchp]

Right. Well done and welcome to the BLA.

What species are you after? If you drop me a PM with your wish list, I will see if I can sort out a few appropriate local breeders to put you in touch with.

Presently I have some surplus of a few species, especially if you are happy to take young.

 

[OldMan47]

Young always make a better choice, IMO. They are far better at surviving shipping than adults and will give MBOU a better chance of having fish survive to breed in a new tank. That is very generous of you.

 

[karigupi]

I have paid up and am a member of the BLA, its probably just me then, their website wadnt really... welcoming and i couldnt find what i wanted so i came here on the assumption there would be members i could speak to on here.

I am all for club being good and would prefer to buy fish from a local breeder or hobbyist than a shop and that says a bit seeing as i am in the retail industry myself.

I do know how clubs work as a general rule, i belong to a fair few for hamsters, rodents, reptiles, and fish... its just not all clubs are particularly active or active in my area.

I have to agree, I found that the BLA website was not really welcoming, I expected a members area, with active forum, lists of breeders around the country, a for sale area etc, maybe its on there somewhere that I couldnt find?

I found Wildwoods online to be good for rarer livebearers if you dont mind paying for postage, I ordered my formosa from there & they even popped in a couple extra as they were the last ones they had.

 

[dunchp]

The website is new and has only been going for a short period of time. To have an active forum, you need participants and to get participants you need to participate. So if you want an active forum, get on and get involved. The website will get better in time, but it is run by Helterskelter who is currently moving house.

We do not have a list of breeders around the country on line as people do not want to be inundated with calls regarding their fish, but we do maintain that information and if you join the BLA you get access to that kind of information quite easily. It costs £12 - £20 a year depending upon what package you go for but to be honest at the prices Wildwoods charge you could make that money back with a few carefully selected choices especially if you are looking for Chapalichthys pardalis.

In any event, I very much hope that MBOU will soon be able to espouse the benefits of the BLA from her first hand experiences.

 

[MBOU]

Well I can already say my experiance went from dissapointed to really impressed with the amount of help that is actually out there

Will keep you all updated