Dicrossus foirni

[ryansmith83]

Does anyone keep this species of Dicrossus?

I have seven individuals that I received in 2012 as 3/4" juveniles. They are probably all 1.5" or so now. Early on there was one definite male. Now, with each passing day, it appears they all are. Is there an environmental aspect to sex ratio in Dicrossus fry, or is that really my luck of the draw to have all seven males?

I say they look male because they are developing the exaggerated red dorsal and long pelvic fins with blue and white edging. There are no fish with small clear (or red) pelvics as I've seen in the pictures of females.

Also, having never kept Dicrossus before, I just fed these guys with frozen brine and a staple of New Life Spectrum crumble/micropellet. Now the fish appear extremely fat, rather than slim and streamlined as you see in pictures online. Is there a different diet I should try? I read that Dicrossus should have more vegetation in their diet but I'm not sure what their staple food should be.

Aside from being fat and all male, they are a great little fish. I was hoping for the chance to spawn them but that's looking slim unless by some miracle I have a female (or I can find someone else selling them).

 

[wethumbs]

Are they 1.5" SL or TL? If they are 1.5" TL then they are just getting ready to be sexable. Males will typically 'explode' in growth rate and start to establish the hierarchy by sparring with others. Look for behavioral queue like the aggression to help identify the males. Environmental factors can have huge affect on the sex ratio of the spawn which is a risk in buying juveniles of many Neotropical cichlids like Dicrossus and Apisto. Even WC Dicrossus come in with mostly one sex or the other.

 

[ryansmith83]

They're probably a bit over 1.5" TL. The group is in a 55 gallon so the only real sparring I see is at feeding time. I have some silk plants and caves in the tank and they tend to get away from each other fairly easily. Originally they all looked the same when I got them, then one male really started to develop his dorsal coloration. Now at least five of the seven are doing the same -- they've caught up in growth and are developing the really long pelvic fins and tall dorsals.

Any idea about the feeding? I'm thinking they shouldn't look so bloated all the time.

 

[gerald]

Lightly cooked green peas are widely accepted by most cichlids any many other fish, including many we usually think of as primary carnivores. (Years ago I had an archerfish who'd shoot peas of out my hand and hapily eat them). Cooked sweet-potato and zucchini are also worth a try, but I find peas to be the veggie of preference for most kinds of fish. I buy the frozen organic ones - they cost about twice the price of "conventional" farmed peas but they're still very cheap compared to most fish-food. While the Dicrossus are actively growing a meaty high-protein diet doesn't seem to cause problems. But when growth slows down after 9 mo or so, then I'd be more careful about limiting meat and worms to avoid fatty liver/kidney damage.

 

[wethumbs]

As Gerald said, they love high protein diet to facilate the growth rate, and green peas are a great addition to their diet. Just make sure to crushed the pea to help break the 'skin' when feeding them. Not sure your fish is truely 'bloated' or you are not use to seeing Dicrossus body shape. A picture or two would help clarify your concern.

I did had a batch of 1" juviles came down with 'bloat' awhile back which I had to treat them with medication. In that case, there was a distant difference from well-fed to truely 'bloated'.

 

[ryansmith83]

I'll stick to the NLS pellets if it's not a huge concern. They've been really easy little fish. I was always afraid to try Dicrossus because of the reports that they are sensitive, but mine are not fussy about foods and seem happy as long as they get their weekly water change.

They are very difficult to photograph because I do not have lights over their tank and I have to use camera flash. It washes out their color a bit (as does the light blue background and light sand) so apologies for the lack of markings showing on the fish.

 

[wethumbs]

None of the fish in the pics looks 'bloated', unfortunately they all look like males.

 

[ryansmith83]

Yes, I think they're all males too, based on the markings in the fins. I do have one single fish who's much smaller but I just assumed it was a runt. Maybe I will get lucky and it will be a female.

 

[ryansmith83]

Here's an update on the Dicrossus. One of the seven fish is still really tiny and not showing much color. I cannot tell if it's a stunted/runted male or a female. It started developing male features (maroon dorsal, blue anal fin) but then stopped. It stays mostly colorless now.

Apologies for the bad pictures and the horrible aquascaping. They love that old, ratty silk plant for some reason so I've just left it in there. They don't sit still for pictures at all. Any time I try to get them displaying/flaring at each other, they run from the camera.

(One of the six males has a blue dorsal)

(Maybe that's a female near the bottom?)

 

[gerald]

Pic #2 fish in bottom left corner, and pic #8, fish on left in front of clay house - are they the same fish?
It (they?) look possibly female. If not, I hope the little one is, or even better I hope you find some more females.

 

[Rod]

Time will tell!!!

Gerald maybe correct ?
and I think he is!!!
Runt maybe female ?
Blue in dorsal maybe a female trait?
I suggest any fish without a spade tail is female....

Love to see these mature and in breeding dress!

GOOD LUCK!

 

[ryansmith83]

The fish Gerald mentioned is a month or two younger than the rest. I bought two groups a month or two apart from the same seller -- the second group was all DOA except the fish Gerald mentioned and the small colorless fish. So I'm pretty sure the one in picture #2 is a male, it's just not as developed as the other males. All the other males looked the same back in January -- fatter with less exaggerated fins. I'm pretty sure this one will become thinner and more elongated over the next month or so and look like the other males.

The only one I'm not sure about is the small, colorless one.

If you look at the pictures of collected D. foirni, the females are all much smaller than the males and show no color in the fins with the exception of red pelvics. I read that they stay clear until the females are sexually mature, then they turn red. All the pictures I've seen show females keeping short, stubby fins. Only the males have the dramatic, tall dorsal and the long, trailing pelvics.

 

[ryansmith83]

PS - You can see males and females here: http://natureplanet.blogspot.com/2010/09/dicrossus-foirni-sp.html

 

[Rod]

All others seem to have red under the eye....but the runt doesn't....Hope your "runt" is a girl

ps.....anubias and java fern attached to driftwood are easy to look after.....I like real plants....

 

[freshwaterfishfan]

I am curious, were these sold as Dicrossus foirni? I wish we sold see more species from the Dicrossus genus in the hobby.
Steve

 

[ryansmith83]

Yes, they came from an Aquabid seller in Hawaii who sold them as D. foirni. I have never seen them listed anywhere else. I happened upon them by chance while looking for D. maculatus. I was hoping to breed them but it's looking less and less likely...

 

[freshwaterfishfan]

Yes, they came from an Aquabid seller in Hawaii who sold them as D. foirni. I have never seen them listed anywhere else. I happened upon them by chance while looking for D. maculatus. I was hoping to breed them but it's looking less and less likely...

That was a good find and worth the risk. Closest I ever got to a "rare" Dicrossus was when Atlantis Tropical Fish brought in a bunch of Discrossus sp. Tapajos (labeled as maculatus). I got plenty of males and females out of a group of 20 or so but could never get them to spawn.
Steve