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How to look afterRasbora vaterifloris
Deraniyagala, 1930
(Other members of the genus Rasbora)
ADULT SIZE: 4 cm
WATER CONDITIONS: Moderately soft and acidic
TEMPERATURE RANGE: 23-28 C
FOOD: Feed Rasbora vaterifloris small live-foods and fine grade dried foods
DISTRIBUTION: This species comes from Sri Lanka
AQUARIUM CARE: This small Rasbora is found in shady streams in Sri Lanka. In the aquarium it does best in a planted species tank, although will tolerate peaceful community setups
BREEDING: Best bred in a well planted species tank using a long term setup. Fry require paramoecia as a first food
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BREEDING: Best bred in a well planted species tank using a long term setup. Fry require paramoecia as a first food
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FOOD: Feed Inpaichthys kerri small live-foods and fine grade dried foods
DISTRIBUTION: This species comes from Brazil
AQUARIUM CARE: This gorgeous tetra likes a loosely planted tank, dark, but with some open water for swimming. Easy to keep and not fussy about food, a great addition to most community tanks. Not to be confused with the similar Nematobrycon palmeri, also sometimes referred to as the Emperor tetra.
BREEDING: Male Emperor tetras defend small territories in which they breed. Adult fish should be removed, and the fry fed on newly hatched artemia nauplii.
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BREEDING: Male Emperor tetras defend small territories in which they breed. Adult fish should be removed, and the fry fed on newly hatched artemia nauplii.
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How to look afterMelanochromis johanni
Johanni Mbuna
Eccles, 1973
(Other members of the genus Melanochromis)
ADULT SIZE: 12 cm
WATER CONDITIONS: Moderately hard and alkaline
TEMPERATURE RANGE: 25-28 C
FOOD: Feed Melanochromis johanni a predominantly vegetarian diet
DISTRIBUTION: This species comes from Lake Malawi
AQUARIUM CARE: Probably the least aggressive Melanochromis (certainly when compared to M. auratus and M. chipokae), though still quite boisterous like all mbunas. Best kept in a group, one male to several females. Sexing is simple as males are black with light blue patterning, whilst females (and juveniles) are generally yellow (see pictures). Like all mbunas it will graze on algae and plant matter, and should be fed foods with some vegetable component.
For more about a typical tank set-up see Setting up a Lake Malawi Cichlid Aquarium.
BREEDING: A typical maternal mouthbrooder
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johanni males are considerably less aggressive than other Melanochronis species
Female Melanochromis johanni have a largely yellow body and fins, unlike males of the species which are entirely black/blue
BREEDING: A typical maternal mouthbrooder
Have you bred Melanochromis johanni? Why not fill in a breeding questionaire?
This page summarises breeding reports provided by visitors to this site, along with some statistical analysis. Please feel free to contribute – whatever your experience!
2 breeders have filled in breeding reports, a summary of the results are shown in the graphs below. You can read the full reports here.
To add details of your experiences of Melanochromis johanni, why not fill in a Breeding and maintenance Report.
Remember, each record represents only one persons experience; if you had different results, or used different methods, please share your experiences
Water conditions: Moderately hard and alkaline
Water temperature: 20-23oC
Disposition: Somewhat aggresive on occasions
Community tank?: Only with species of similar size
Spawning Method: Other (see below)
Breeding problems:
Skewed sex ratio
Sex ratio: Somewhat female heavy
Breeding difficulty: Easy
Sucess: Very sucessful
Years Experience: 2
Other Comments:
Date this record created: 20th August 2011
Breeding date: 2011
Breeder: Thomas
Location: Hilton Head Island, SC
Water conditions: Moderately hard and alkaline
Water temperature: 24-27oC
Disposition: Somewhat aggresive on occasions
Community tank?: Only with species of similar size
Species Profile | Images | Breeding Report | Similar Species
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How to look afterPanaque nigrolineatus
Royal Panaque L027
(Peters, 1877)
(Other members of the genus Panaque)
ADULT SIZE: 25 cm
WATER CONDITIONS: Moderately soft and acidic
TEMPERATURE RANGE: 23-28 C
FOOD: Feed Panaque nigrolineatus a predominantly vegetarian diet
DISTRIBUTION: This species comes from Brazil, Colombia
AQUARIUM CARE: The Royal Panaque is one of the more difficult catfish for the aquarium, but is also one of the most attractive loricariids. Diet is made up of green matter and some small live foods – to what extent algae is eaten may vary, but blanched vegetable matter is always accepted Bogwood is essential for this fish to rasp on, and also as a hiding place
BREEDING: Unknown
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The Royal Panaque, L027
A very attractive Amazonian catfish
BREEDING: Unknown
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How to look afterPapiliochromis ramirezi
Ram, Butterfly cichlid
(Myers & Harry, 1948)
(Other members of the genus Papiliochromis)
ADULT SIZE: 7 cm
WATER CONDITIONS: Moderately soft and acidic
TEMPERATURE RANGE: 22-27 C
FOOD: Feed Papiliochromis ramirezi small live-foods and fine grade dried foods
DISTRIBUTION: This species comes from Colombia, Venezuela
AQUARIUM CARE: The ram is a real aquarium favourite, with its stunning coloration. They are a peacful dwarf cichlid, and should be kept with other peaceful fishes. They are not overly fussy eaters, though like all fish, relish frozen and live foods. They do best in a planted tank, with some open areas, bogwood and stones. Sometimes referred to as Microgeophagus ramirezi.
BREEDING: Breeding occurs on a flat stone, or in a pit, and is not at all unusual in the aquarium, and once hatched the adults tend their fry
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Ram cichlid
The golden strain of Papiliochromis ramirezi, the golden ram
BREEDING: Breeding occurs on a flat stone, or in a pit, and is not at all unusual in the aquarium, and once hatched the adults tend their fry
Have you bred Papiliochromis ramirezi? Why not fill in a breeding questionaire?
This page summarises breeding reports provided by visitors to this site, along with some statistical analysis. Please feel free to contribute – whatever your experience!
2 breeders have filled in breeding reports, a summary of the results are shown in the graphs below. You can read the full reports here.
To add details of your experiences of Papiliochromis ramirezi, why not fill in a Breeding and maintenance Report.
Remember, each record represents only one persons experience; if you had different results, or used different methods, please share your experiences
Water conditions: Neutral
Water temperature: 24-27oC
Disposition: Active, but not aggresive
Community tank?: Yes, a good community fish
Spawning Method: Other (see below)
Breeding problems:
Poor egg survival
Sex ratio: Roughly equal
Breeding difficulty: Average
Sucess: Average
Years Experience: 3
Other Comments:
Date this record created: 11th May 2009
Breeding date: 2008
Breeder:
Location:
Water conditions: Moderately soft and acidic
Water temperature: 24-27oC
Disposition: Very timid
Community tank?: Yes, a good community fish
Spawning Method: Long term (fry appear with adults)
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How to look afterTetraodon mbu
Giant fresh water puffer
Boulenger, 1899
(Other members of the genus Tetraodon)
ADULT SIZE: 50 cm
WATER CONDITIONS: Not critical
TEMPERATURE RANGE: 23-27 C
FOOD: Feed Tetraodon mbu predominantly live foods
DISTRIBUTION: This species comes from Cameroon, Congo (DRC), Congo (Rep.), Tanzania, Burundi, Lake Tanganyika, Zambia
AQUARIUM CARE: The mbu pufferfish has a wide distribution across Africa, where it inhabits larger lakes and rivers. This large fish needs a meaty diet, like most puffers: prawns, mussels, earthworms and the like are eaten with relish The temperament of the mbu puffer can vary, but in general it is best to keep them in a species tank in case they attack tankmates. Another species probably best left to larger public aquaria.
BREEDING: Not practical in the home aquaria
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The mbu puffer can reach 2 feet long! Not an ideal home aquarium species
BREEDING: Not practical in the home aquaria
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How to look afterHemigrammus erythrozonus
Glowlight tetra
Durbin, 1909
(Other members of the genus Hemigrammus)
ADULT SIZE: 4 cm
WATER CONDITIONS: Moderately soft and acidic
TEMPERATURE RANGE: 23-27 C
FOOD: Feed Hemigrammus erythrozonus small live-foods and fine grade dried foods. Even as adult fish, newly hatched Artemia are very much enjoyed.
DISTRIBUTION: This species comes from Peru
SEXUAL DIFFERENCES: Females plumper, males slimmer.
AQUARIUM CARE: Glowlight tetras prefer a dark well planted tank, and like other neons will look their best under such conditions. Use a darker substrate, ample planting, particularly at the rear of the tank, with some floating plants to create shaded areas.
Being a typical shoaling characin it prefers tank mates of the same species, and will also shoal with other similar fish.
BREEDING: Breeding requires plenty of conditioning food and soft water. This species is an egg scatterer with very small fry, that must be fed infusoria as a first food
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Glowlights like a dark, well planted tank
BREEDING: Breeding requires plenty of conditioning food and soft water. This species is an egg scatterer with very small fry, that must be fed infusoria as a first food
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How to look afterPterophyllum scalare
Angel Fish
Lichenstein, 1823
(Other members of the genus Pterophyllum)
ADULT SIZE: 15 cm
WATER CONDITIONS: Moderately soft and acidic
TEMPERATURE RANGE: 24-28 C
FOOD: Feed Pterophyllum scalare live and dried foods
DISTRIBUTION: This species comes from Brazil, Ecuador, Peru
AQUARIUM CARE: A very well-known and easy to care for species. Thrives in a large tank, with a good varied diet. Several different colour forms have been cultivated: black, white, gold, silver, orange, and mixtures of all of these(see the images for some examples). Generally peaceful, although a little more aggressive when spawning.
The angelfish thrives along the Amazon river, and up its tributaries. It lives amongst dense vertical roots where the stripes of the wild-type fish give it perfect camouflage. An aquarium set-up should be well planted at the edges, but also have roots or driftwood, and an open area for swimming. Best kept with peaceful tankmates; other Amazonian species such as tetras are ideal. Avoid fish with any tendancy to fin-nip.
BREEDING: Breeding is possible, with adult pairs spawning on a pre-cleaned leaf, or stone. As with many cichlids, the parents will guard their fry. If spawning takes place in a community aquarium, it is better to remove the spawning site to a seperate rearing tank, as other fish will eat the larvae.
Have you bred Pterophyllum scalare? Why not fill in a breeding questionaire?, or examine existing Pterophyllum scalare breeding reports
LINKS:
fishbase
There are many angelfish cultivars; this is the half-black
This is the golden strain of angelfish
The Marble Angel is one of the most hardy strains
Angel fish cultivars are more widely available than the wild type fish. This is an “orange face” angel.
A Gold angelfish in front of a spawning cone; these act as a substrate on which discus and angelfish can spawn
BREEDING: Breeding is possible, with adult pairs spawning on a pre-cleaned leaf, or stone. As with many cichlids, the parents will guard their fry. If spawning takes place in a community aquarium, it is better to remove the spawning site to a seperate rearing tank, as other fish will eat the larvae.
Have you bred Pterophyllum scalare? Why not fill in a breeding questionaire?
This page summarises breeding reports provided by visitors to this site, along with some statistical analysis. Please feel free to contribute – whatever your experience!
8 breeders have filled in breeding reports, a summary of the results are shown in the graphs below. You can read the full reports here.
To add details of your experiences of Pterophyllum scalare, why not fill in a Breeding and maintenance Report.
Remember, each record represents only one persons experience; if you had different results, or used different methods, please share your experiences
Water conditions: Moderately soft and acidic
Water temperature: 24-27oC
Disposition: Somewhat aggresive on occasions
Community tank?: Yes, a good community fish
Spawning Method: Other (see below)
Breeding problems:
Deformities
Sex ratio:
Breeding difficulty: Very easy
Sucess: Very unsucessful
Years Experience: 6
Other Comments: Slate or leaf with eggs removed from parents tank after the eggs were fertilized. Methaline blue in a small rearing tank until start swimming. Frequent large water changes after that and moving the fry to bigger tanks as they get bigger. Largest hatch I have had is about 500 that made it to juveniles. Average hatch size to juveniles (when I start selling or trading them) is 30-80.
Date this record created: 13th July 2020
Breeding date: 2020
Breeder:
Location: United States
Water conditions: Moderately soft and acidic
Water temperature: 24-27oC
Disposition: Somewhat aggresive on occasions
Community tank?: Only with species of similar size
Spawning Method: Other (see below)
Breeding problems:
Poor fry survival rate
Sex ratio: Roughly equal
Breeding difficulty: Easy
Sucess: Fairly sucessful
Years Experience: 3
Other Comments: They start their breeding when the water temperature changes a little bit (when cleaning) first they search a good enough leaf which they polish until it’s clean. then they lay their eggs on this leaf. which they will guard en keep clean. they protect the babies by taking them in the mouth en when the danger clears they spit out the baby fish
Date this record created: 27th October 2012
Breeding date: 2010
Breeder:
Location:
Water conditions: Very soft and acidic
Water temperature: 28oC+
Disposition: Somewhat aggresive on occasions
Community tank?: Only with species of similar size
Community tank?: Only with species of similar size
Spawning Method: Other (see below)
Breeding problems:
Deformities
Sex ratio: Roughly equal
Breeding difficulty: Average
Sucess: Average
Years Experience: 3
Other Comments:
Date this record created: 10th May 2011
Breeding date: 2010
Breeder:
Location:
Water conditions: Moderately soft and acidic
Water temperature: 24-27oC
Disposition: Somewhat aggresive on occasions
Community tank?: Yes, a good community fish
Spawning Method: Adult fish removed from tank
Breeding problems:
Poor fry survival rate
Sex ratio: Roughly equal
Breeding difficulty: Easy
Sucess: Fairly sucessful
Years Experience: 1
Other Comments: The first couple spawned on the algae scraper in the community tank shortly after a 25 percent water change. Removed the scraper to a 35 liter breeding tank with the parents. They took great care of the eggs and young fry. Fry are able to consume newly hatched baby brine shrimp when they are all at free swimming stage (about a week after spawning) until when they rely on their own yolk sack.
Date this record created: 3rd March 2011
Breeding date: 2011
Breeder: Ceyhun
Location: Istanbul
Water conditions: Moderately soft and acidic
Water temperature: 24-27oC
Disposition: Somewhat aggresive on occasions
Community tank?: Yes, a good community fish
Spawning Method: Long term (fry appear with adults)
Breeding problems: none
Sex ratio: Roughly equal
Breeding difficulty: Very easy
Sucess: Very sucessful
Years Experience: 20
Other Comments:
Date this record created: 30th December 2009
Breeding date: 2009
Breeder:
Location:
Water conditions: Neutral
Water temperature: 28oC+
Disposition: Somewhat aggresive on occasions
Community tank?: Yes, a good community fish
Spawning Method:
Breeding problems:
Poor egg survival
Sex ratio: Almost all males
Breeding difficulty: Easy
Sucess: Very unsucessful
Years Experience: 3
Other Comments: I just let them be themselves in a heavily planted tank. The eggs were not removed, so the other fish ate them. This happened 6-7 times in the first 2.5 years. ( 3boys, 1girl)90gal.,27.5degrees