Pelvicachronis taeniatus

[bigbird]

Morning All,

have so far keep and breed many apistos, however fell in love with the dwarf west africans. Our LFS has some Taeniatus in stock from Glaser in Germany and I was looking at getting a pair for my 100litre tank. Any suggestions or ideas to help me on this or even do you suggest another type ? I would like to try West Africans now
Any help would be great. cheers jk :biggrin:

 

[Mud Pie Mama]

I purchased a pair of P. taeniatus "Moliwe" from Ryan @ twofishguyz.com back in January 08. I am very pleased w/ them. Great fish, I would not hesitate to snap up a pair. They are now quite friendly and personable to me. In other words, they have tolerated my nose right up to the glass watching, quite well.:redface:

However, when their first fry were out, they totally chomp the tail off one of the female Endlers. I also removed all my ottos, although not getting chomped, they were n't getting much peaceful time to forage. They did spawned easily within a month of aquiring them.

 

[ste12000]

You have good taste....

I aquired a wild pair of Pelvicachromis Taeniatus 'Bipindi' about a year ago, they took a few months to settle and get aquainted with their surroundings. After that they have been very prolific breeders and are also about the best parents i have ever had..I am on my fourth spawn from them now and each has been larger than the last, they are currently sharing the tank with about 200 week old fry..They both share brood caring duties and there has been very little aggression except the odd falling out(how many couples dont fight??)
They are kept in a small 18x12x12 breeding tank filled with sand, wood and plenty of caves, sponge filtration and a temp around 75f..Ph is 6.7 and TDS tests at 60PPM.
They have earned an extended stay in my fishroom and i cannot imagine being without them, the fry are also proving popular at auctions and there are lots of people in the UK that are sharing the pleasure of my 'Bipindi'.

I hope you enjoy yours..

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=hhsNDJSnOig

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=M2nr4cw3Igg&feature=related

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=RCpHuTfD-o0&feature=user

 

[MikeR]

I will be receiving two pair of Pelvicachromis taeniatus "Moliwe" also from Ryan at twofishguyz.com this next week. I've never laid eyes on live P. taeniatus in 40+ years of fishkeeping, so I am very excited.

They are going into a 150 gallon heavily planted tank that has no other current residents. The tank has been set up for 2 years.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Mike

 

[bigbird]

Morning Mike,

I bought my Moliwe , from our LFS in Sydney and they were imports from Aquarium Glasser. I have had them for 4 weeks and the pair are just stunning. They have all colours of the rainbow, are not shy and are great to watch. I basically read up on their requirements and they need a set-up similar to the Apistos. So in my tank I have 3-4 caves, wood and roots and plants. Also oak leaves and white very fine sand as substrate. I feed them brine shrimp and flake food. As dither fish i use a fish in Australia called mountain cloud, tiny but also nice colours. I will hope to add 2 ottos this week. I do 30% water change per week in my 30G tank. I only have this one pair in there and 5 dithers. So enjoy and keep us update.
cheers jk :biggrin:

 

[MikeR]

JK:

Thanks for the suggestions. "Set-up similar to Apistos" helps. The tank has been set up for 2 years or so, heavily planted with lots of petrified wood. The substrate is rather fine sand, now with lots of organics. The tank has some directed sun exposure, uses a CO2 system for pH control, RO water which I reconstitute with marine salt (worked for M. ramirezi).

One concern I have is that I've been using dry chemicals as plant food, just dumping it in 3 times a week. Would this be a stressor to the fish with such a sudden influx of chemicals, especially the potassium nitrate? The plants like it (I harvest pounds of plants each month), but that doesn't mean the fish would.

Mike

 

[Mud Pie Mama]

Hi Mike,
My P. " Moliwe" are in a planted tank. I dose Excel everyday, then powdered ferts everyday too. (Macros one & Micros next day.) I have not noticed any adverse effects. My pair spawned just fine and the fry were raised up for five months now in the same tank.

 

[MikeR]

That's good to know. How long have you had the "Moliwe?"

Mike

 

[Mud Pie Mama]

I've had my pair of P. taeniatus "Moliwe" since Jan '08, so six months. They love their planted tank and proved it by spawning within a month of being in their new home!:biggrin:

I was very please w/ the fish I received from Ryan.

 

[MikeR]

I've spoken to Ryan, and he seems a good guy.

I've asked about and researched the P. taeniatus quite a bit, so I guess I should just shut up and try them . Nothing beats experience.

Mike