For the first time we could import this beautiful barb from Burma. The largest scientifically known specimen of Systomus binduchitra (the species name comes from Sanskrit and means “spotted”) was 8 cm long including tail fin. Due to its close relationship to S. sarana, it can be assumed that it will probably grow somewhat larger in large aquaria over the years. In fact S. binduchitra was synonymous with S. sarana for decades.
They are very lively, extremely social animals, which one should absolutely care for in a school. It was hardly ever possible to have only one specimen in the picture, they stick together so closely. Otherwise, the usual rules of the barb-care apply, therefore here and there sandy ground to enable digging and varied nutrition, in which also vegetable components may not be missing. The water temperature can be in the range between 18 and 30°C, whereby a seasonal rhythm does the animals very well. The chemical composition of the water is rather indifferent, any drinking water is suitable for the care of S. binduchitra.
For our customers: the animals have code 369073 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
Again and again it is circulated that the wild caught of ornamental fish threatens species and the diversity of species, is predatory exploitation of nature. However, there are no scientific studies that would prove this. All scientifically founded, serious work on the topic proves the opposite: Wild caught of ornamental fish is a clean thing!
In an elaborate documentation Don McConnell illuminates the background of the wild caught of ornamental fish in Amazonia. This documentary is a must for all those who are interested in ornamental fish, aquarium science and species protection even in the slightest.
Click here for the stream: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/wildcaughtaquariumfish/471489992?fbclid=IwAR1LOxszF-f6CkFa4SjmYaCJMgqQIb61He-oGgPTiksI5-7IfO6BqneMBQk
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This cute dwarf armored catfish reaches a maximum length of only 3 cm. Aspidoras pauciradiatus comes from the central Rio-Negro area and is an ideal community fish for characins, dwarf cichlids etc. Strangely enough, the specimens on which the scientific description is based were allegedly collected in the Rio Araguaia near the town of Aruana, about 2,000 km from the usual fishing grounds of the species. Since then they could not be found there again.
For our customers: the animals have code 208704 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Several goodeids are a parade play for the fact that conservation of species in captivity by hobby aquarists is possible and partially extraordinarily successful. The species Charcodon audax occurs endemically (i.e. exclusively there) in parts of the catchment area of the headwaters of the Rio Mezquital in the Mexican state of Durango. It is threatened by many influences. Mainly the species inhabits springs as long as they are clear enough. Because of the great drought in recent years, the individual populations are widely scattered and have hardly any contact with each other. In the remaining habitats released fishes are the biggest threat: Gambusia senilis, sunfish (Lepomis), black bass (Micropterus) and tilapias were exposed there, partly for mosquito control (which is useless, because they are eaten by Characodon as well), but mainly as food fish. Nowadays there are released tilapias in almost all habitats, which compete for habitat, food and oxygen, but also are direct predators, at least for young animals.
This year we had five different populations of this colorful goodeid on offer, but three of them were sold out before we could create a newsletter. Still in stock are “Guadalupe Aguilera” and “Puente Pino Suarez”. We ask our customers for understanding that we can not deliver such treasures by pairs and also the sizes are quite variable. There are only a few specimens available each year anyway, and we buy them all to support the conservation breeding efforts.
For our customers: Puente Pino Suarez has code 216273, Guadalupe Aguilera code 216243 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
The first Indian dwarf puffer fish (Carinotetraodon travancoricus) of the new season have arrived. These cute animals – they are freshwater puffers – only grow 2-3 cm long in nature, in the aquarium they may grow a little bigger, but not much. You should keep these animals in a swarm if possible; then they form a ranking and are so busy with themselves that the dreaded fin biting, which almost all pufferfish species can (but do not have to!) show, is largely absent. Only among each other, there are slight fin-damages, that heal without complications.
The males can be recognized by the fact that they are much slimmer and have a longer head, they also become somewhat larger than the females. All pufferfish prefer to eat snails, mussels and shrimps. Thanks to their well-developed teeth, pufferfish can bite off well. So they can easily be fed with mussel meat and other Frutti di Mare from the freezer. All the usual types of frozen food can be added to it, red and white mosquito larvae are particularly sought after as live food, but daphnia (water fleas) are also healthy and an excellent occupation for the small animals, which, like all pufferfish, are always curious and playful. In nature, insects and their larvae, worms and crustaceans make up the largest part of the diet, but algae also make up a not to be underestimated food portion (approx. 25-30%), although it is not clear whether these algae are actively eaten or rather accidentally ingested. Dry food is not eaten by dwarf puffer fish.
Indian dwarf pufferfish originate from South India (Kerala), where they are unfortunately considered increasingly endangered by dam construction, deforestation and the conversion of forest areas into farmland. One can breed them quite well in the aquarium, they are plant-spawners without brood-care, but it is ecologically more meaningful and probably the only possibility to do something for the protection of these animals in this country if one buys wild catches. Although it is claimed occasionally that the catch for the aquarium supply would have led to a strong decline of the populations, there is no proof for that; one should look at such desk considerations, that are not supported by scientific field research, very, very skeptically.
For our customers: the animals have code 436302 on our stocklist. Please note that we supply wholesale only.
This is certainly one of the most peculiar loaches ever. The genus Vaillantella – at present three species are distinguished – has a band-shaped dorsal fin running over the entire back, while all other loaches have relatively short, triangular dorsal fins.
Vaillantella are black-water-inhabitants and become 12-15 cm long, usually remain however clearly smaller; V. maassi is widespread in the peat-swamp-areas of Malaysia and Borneo, a habitat extremely endangered through destruction for oil palm plantations. Unfortunately, therefore all fish (and other living beings), that occur there, must be classified as highly endangered. The catch of ornamental fish can help to preserve at least parts of these biotopes as economic areas and is therefore an active environmental and species protection.
Vaillantella maassi has so far only very rarely been kept in aquariums. One should care for it analogous to the well known Kuhli loaches (Pangio). The very large, forked tail fin enables Vaillantella an explosive propulsion; the aquarium must be covered therefore absolutely gaplessly, so that the animals do not land on dry land, if they are grabbed by the well-known wandering instinct, which many loaches show temporarily in the aquarium.
For our customers: the animals have code 473053 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
There is a nice story about the discovery of the king tetra, which we don’t know if it’s true, but it’s worth telling: In the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia (INPA), Manaus, Brazil, aquatic plants were kept in an aquarium. Fish were actually not in it. But suddenly, as if from nowhere, cute baby fish, apparently characins, appeared. When the animals had grown up, they fascinated by the bright blue color of the males. Moreover, it turned out to be a genus and species not yet known to science. So, one moved into the area, in which the water-plants had been collected, because obviously the fish had come as eggs, attached to the water-plants, into the aquarium. In the north of the federal state of Mato Grosso, in the Rio Aripuanã (a tributary of the upper Rio Madeira) they found what they were looking for. The genus was then described in honor of the institute: Inpaichthys, i.e. fish of the INPA. The species name kerri honors the then director of the institute, Warwick Estevam Kerr.
The king tetra is a very pretty, small (3-4 cm) tetra. In the wild type, only the male becomes blue in the back. The females (recognizable by the red adipose fin, that is blue with the male) have a beige-brown back in the wild type. Super Blue does not only turn blue earlier than the wild form (already at about 2 cm), but also the females get a blue back.
For our customers: the Super Blue has code 264722 on our stocklist Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
No other classic aquarium fish has had to put up with such a drastic renaming regarding the scientific name as the tiger barb. This is due to the fact that in earlier decades, characteristics that we now consider important species characteristics were only considered an unimportant variance. The actual tiger barb, Puntigrus tetrazona, which comes from Sumatra, has black in its fins, where our aquarium tiger barb has red. In the hobby this real Sumatran barb was practically never represented. Our aquarium fishes come from Borneo. The species P. anchisporus was already scientifically described in 1902, long before the first import of the fish for the aquarium in 1935. However, because of the small differences, which are only to be found in the living coloration, the species was considered to be identical to the P. tetrazona, which was described in 1855 from Sumatra.
The generic name Puntigrus is admittedly very young; it was coined only in 2013, when one finally went to classify the Asian small barbs correctly and according to the natural relations. Previously, one had accommodated it provisionally for centuries in so-called catch-all genera (Barbus, Puntius, Systomus), of which it was quite clear that they don’t form any natural unit. But the gigantic biodiversity of the Asian small-barbs, that is not completely grasped also today yet by far, let earlier attempts, to divide them up reasonably, fail again and again.
For our customers: the magnificent XL tiger barbs illustrating this post have code 371914 on our stocklist. Please note that we supply wholesale only.
The sword platy, Xiphophorus xiphidium, belongs to the top rarities among the live-bearers. The species is found on the headwaters of the Soto La Marina River and its tributaries, Tamaulipas State, on the Atlantic side of Mexico. The very pretty species remains with approx. 3 cm (male) resp. 4 cm (female) clearly smaller than the common Platy (Xiphophorus maculatus). Since both species can cross in the aquarium, one should refrain in view of the rarity of X. xiphidium from maintaining it together with its close relatives.
There are sword platies that look slightly different, for example those with a circular spot on the tail base, those with two small dots or with a crescent moon. Since these different colour forms also represent different populations, one should also pay attention to pure breeding on this level. Currently we have a variant without any tail pattern in stock.
Young males look very similar to females, also because they also have a “pregnancy spot”. Fully developed adult alpha males are very attractive fish with their tiger pattern.
The care and breeding of the sword platy is much more demanding than that of the ordinary platy. Above all, X. xiphidium should not be kept too warm, preferably at room temperature without additional heating.
For our customers: the animals have code 476702 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesalers.
This pleco from the Rio Xingu is an old friend, however, it received a scientific name only in 2005. It received the L-number 31 already in 1989.
The genus Parancistrus is closely related to the genus Spectracanthicus; the formerly often used genus Oligancistrus is invalid and declared synonymous with Spectracanthicus. The only difference between Parancistrus and Spectracanthicus is the size of the gill opening, which is significantly smaller in Spectracanthicus than in Parancistrus. Unfortunately, this is not visible in living animals.
The Peppermit Pleco reaches a respectable size of almost 25 cm; however, in nature the animals usually remain smaller by a third; in an aquarium, where the fish live much longer than in nature, a more significant size can be reached, therefore P. nudiventris can only be recommended to owners of large aquariums. There it is a peaceful and beautiful inhabitant.
Like all species from the Rio Xingu, it requires comparatively high temperatures of 26-30°C. L31 feeds on Aufwuchs and accepts almost every common fish food in the aquarium, as long as it is lying on the bottom.
For our customers: the animals have code 26480-L 031-3 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
This very elongated Piranha can be confused hardly with other species because of its characteristic body shape. Type locality is the Rio Guaporé, Mato Grosso, Brazil. Aquaristic imports are mostly from Peru.
Serrasalmus pingke from Venezuela was described from the Rio Apure. The holotype (54 mm long) is shown in MACHADO-ALLISON (2002); it has a black spot on the tail base. MACHADO-ALLISON evaluates this, as well as FERNÁNDEZ-YÉPEZ & RAMIREZ, 1967 as a juvenile pattern. S. pingke is a synonym for S. elongatus. This has been repeatedly contradicted and S. pingke is seen sometimes as a good species. The solution for this riddle can be found in the appendix of the “Piranha Book” by MYERS (1972). There are hand drawings of all piranha species from Venezuela by FERNÁNDEZ-YÉPEZ, which he distinguished. And there is a young specimen of S. manueli called S. elongatus. The assumption that S. pingke is a different species than S. elongatus was based on this confusion and S. pingke is surely a synonym for S. elongatus.
From about 8 cm length on S. elongatus develop a color pattern of vertical lines in the front part of the back and dots on the flanks. But some specimens are evenly dotted all over the body. A relatively small, roundish humeral spot is often present, but sometimes indistinct, the whole caudal fin is blackish up to the outermost edge, which is transparent. From about 10-12 cm length the iris is red, before silver. Sexually mature males seem to get a red belly and gill cover area. Striking and typical for S. elongatus is a dark eye mask. With a maximum length of about 30 cm S. elongatus is one of the largest piranha species. The species is considered to be very aggressive, is a notorious fin biter and should be cared for individually if possible to avoid losses.
The distribution area of Serrasalmus elongatus covers the entire entry of Orinoco and Amazon.
For our customers: S. elongatus has code 291804 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
Literature:
FERNANDEZ-YEPEZ, A. & M.V. RAMÍREZ (1967): Los caribes (serrasalmidos) de Venezuela y las pesquerías. Trabajos anexos a la Comisión Contribuciones al tema. Ier Foro Internacional sobre Planificación y Desarrollo Pesquero, Caracas: 1-25 + 18 Figs.
MACHADO-ALLISON, A. (2002): Los peces caribes de Venezuela: una aproximación a su estudio taxonómico. Boletín de la Academia de Ciencias Físicas Matemáticas y Naturales de Venezuela, 62: 35-88
MYERS, G. (1972): The Piranha Book. Trop. Fish. Hob. Publ., Neptune City, NJ. 125 pp.
Only rarely does the pretty barbel Acrossocheilus paradoxus reach us, which is native to China and Taiwan. It is a medium sized species; in the wild you usually find specimens up to 12 cm total length, but the record for this species is 22.5 cm. Such large animals look different, the head is longer and the banded pattern gives way to a uniform green-golden shine.
In nature this subtropical species lives in boulder-filled rivers, which resemble smaller alpine rivers in their structure. The mouth of this barbel has a horny layer at the front edge, which probably serves to rasp off growth from the rock. In addition, A. paradoxus also has two well developed barbels, which are used for detecting small animals in the sand.
In behavior Acrossocheilus paradoxus resemble other algae-eating barbels, like Garra or sharks (Labeo and allies). Among themselves they can be a bit quarrelsome. Regarding the water composition A. paradoxus is undemanding. Since the water-temperatures in the home-waters of the species can sink under 15°C in the winter, one should maintain it occasionally cool with reduced lighting. Then also the breeding should be possible, about which was not reported yet. One can assume however that it is a free spawner without special brood-care.
For our customers: the animals have code 361903 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
One of the smallest loricariid species at all is Parotocinclus eppleyi, the Peppermint-Oto. The species is fully grown with a length of 3 cm (without caudal fin), but such animals can already be seen as xxl-format and are extremely rare. Usually the species, which is common in the upper and middle Orinoco, is 0.5-1 cm smaller.
These cute dwarfs are considered to be tricky, especially in the acclimatization phase. One should always give them dead leaves and roots, which have been in the water for a long time and have a lot of Aufwuchs, in the tank. In addition, food tablets are a well suited food for Parotocinclus species.
As so often it seems to be decisive with these animals, with how much expertise they were treated in their home country after the catch; our current import from Venezuela is very stable and does not cause any problems.
For our customers: the animals have code 276562 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
Via Manaus we have been able to import splendid Brochis splendens. The Emerald Cat comes from a huge area, from Peru to the Pantanal in Brazil; based on the experience with other Corydoras it is more than likely that there are several species hiding behind the name “Brochis splendens”. But such things should be subject of a scientific revision and not the speculation of hobbyists. One should only be aware that it makes little sense to assemble a breeding group from different imports from different countries of origin. For further variations see https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/brochis-splendens-and-b-cf-splendens-cw-35/
For our customers: Brochis splendens “Rio Negro” has code 212496 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
Since its first import in the 1930er years, the White Cloud Mountain minnow (Tanichthys albonubes) is available practically exclusively as offspring for the aquarium hobby. Nowadays, this is all the more true since the free-living stocks are considered highly endangered due to environmental pollution. However, the “simple” white cloud is not really bred by most professional breeders, but only multiplied, however in masses and very successful.
What is possible, however, if you dedicate yourself to breeding in the literal sense of the word, is just shown to us by one of our German breeders, who is specialized in a few fish species, among them white clouds. Currently he supplies us with e.g. “Gold Longfin”. We think the pictures speak for themselves.
For our customers: The animals have code 457552 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The identification of many Piranha species is difficult. One of the earliest described piranha species and therefore with many taxonomic problems is Serrasalmus humeralis. Valenciennes was the first descriptor in 1850, but there is no question that he had received the type specimen, for which he states “Amazon” as the type locality, from Castelnau. In Valenciennes ́ description no picture is provided. Castelnau made up for this in 1855 and at the same time corrected the type locality to “Araguaia”. It must therefore be assumed that S. humeralis is found in the Tocantins system. Castelnau’s drawing is very true to detail and there is no reason to assume that it does not correspond to nature in the essential details.
The piranhas, which we now imported from the Tocantins as Serraslmus humeralis, correspond in all essential characteristics (shoulder spot, caudal fin pattern, body shape, coloration) to Castelnaus’ illustration, but have so far been identified in the aquaristic and scientific literature as S. eigenmanni. The latter species was described in 1929 on the basis of a specimen from Guyana. If S. humeralis and S. eigenmanni are identical, the valid name would be S. humeralis. However, we currently assume that both species are valid and only very similar.
Serrasalmus humeralis grows about 20 cm long. It belongs to the group of fin-eating piranhas, which are best kept individually in the aquarium on a long-term basis, if one wants undamaged specimens. For unpredictable reasons, Piranhas of the fin-eating behavior type – often after months of living together – look out and mob an individual of the group. The mobbed individual becomes marked with a bite mark directly before the dorsal fin. Usually the mobbed fish is eaten after some days by the remaining herd, independently of the available food supply. The attempt of a group-attitude requires by the way really very big aquariums, in basins under 150 cm length, such attempts are hopeless from the outset.
For our customers: the fish have code 292254 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
The pearl gourami (Trichogaster leerii, Trichopodus leerii) is one of the most popular aquarium fishes at all. It is probably not exaggerated if one assumes millions of individuals in aquariums all over the world. All these fish are bred ones. It is only little known that the pearl gourami belongs to the endangered species as a black water inhabitant in the wild, because the habitat is dwindling more and more. We have already succeeded in importing animals from southern Thailand (https://www.aquariumglaser.de/fischarchiv/trichogaster-leerii-wild/) and from Sumatra (Jambi), now also from Borneo.
We very much hope that interested enthusiasts will succeed in building up strains of this wonderful animal of known origin by the occasional import (a threat to the free-living stocks by such removals is excluded from a scientific point of view). This would be an active contribution to the protection of species. Already frequently, species or populations of small fishes could be saved from extinction by such hobbyist—based breedings. However, a possible return to nature may only be attempted with animals whose original origin is known.
For our customers: the fish have code 469513 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Where does a species start, where does the location variant end? This question is really difficult to answer for some groups of fish, e.g. killies and cichlids from Lake Malawi and Lake Tanganyika. In the case of Pseudotropheus sp. “Acei” from Lake Malawi, the species is not described scientifically. Mostly the light blue, yellow-fin “Acei” from the area around Msuli is in trade at the moment. (https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/pseudotropheus-sp-acei-2/). But the “White Tail” from the area around Ngara has been swimming in the enthusiasts’ basins for a longer time, since about 30 years. It is very dark, often almost black, to which the white caudal fin and the other light-coloured fin elements contrast wonderfully.
Like all “Aceis”, the “White Tail” is a hardly aggressive animal; in nature swarms with thousands of individuals have been seen. This species does not form territories. In the lake the fish feed primarily on algae, which they graze on trees that have fallen into the water. In nature these cichlids grow to about 12 cm (males) and 10 cm (females) in length, but in the aquarium they can become considerably larger. One should not feed these fish with a high protein diet, then they will remain more graceful and more colourful.
Like all cichlids from Lake Malawi the “Acei” also requires a pH-value above 8; otherwise the care is completely problem-free. Whether you keep more males or more females or even just groups of males is ultimately a matter of taste. But less than 5 individuals should not be kept in the “Acei”, otherwise the species-specific behaviour will not come into effect.
For our customers: the animals have code 568362 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The toadfishes a very odd creatures. A total of about 73 species exists which are placed in around 22 genera and three subfamilies. One of these subfamilies – the Thalassophryninae – is also known as the “venomous toadfishes”. Thalassophryne amazonica, one of the very few freshwater species of the family, is placed in that subfamily.
The Amazon Toadfish can be easily told apart from all other toadfishes in South- and Central America. It is the only species in which dorsal, caudal, and anal fin are connected with each other. Although there are reports of a small number of additional species of the Thalassophryninae that enter occasionally brackish and fresh water, Thalassophryne amazonica is the only species of the subfamily that lives exlusively in fresh water. Our specimens originate from Peru.
The Thalassophryninae are thought to be the fishes with the highest developed venomous apparatus of all fishes in the world, despite the fact that there are a lots of venomous fishes – just think of the stonefish (Synanceia), which can place deadly stings to humans, or the stingrays, or the weeverfish (Trachinus) which are responsible for unpleasant experiences of thousands of holidaymakers in the Mediterranean each year.
The venomous glands are placed on the base of two hollow prickles (derived from dorsal fin spines) on the back and two additional prickles on the operculum. There are no reports on accidents with Thalassophryne amazonica, but each year appear several cases with the closely realated marine and brackish species Thalassophryne nattereri which is very abundand in Brazil. The sting causes strong pain, inflammation and sometimes necrosis, but the venom has obviously no systemic components. There are no reports on fatalities.
In the aquarium, Thalassophryne amazonica, which can attain a maximum length of about 8-10 cm, are very interesting fish to study. They need sandy bottom in which they can burrow themselves. The fish are fed with small feeder fishes. Against each other and any other fish that does not work as food, Thalassophryne amazonica are very peaceful. Due to the fact that toadfish don´t move unnecessarily they can be kept in comparatively small aquaria. Toadfish are said to take care for the brood, but no details are published so far.
For our customers: the animals have code 296451 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Lexicon: Thalassophryne: means “sea-toad”. amazonica: means “coming from the Amazon”. nattereri: dedication name for the naturalist Johann Natterer (1787-1843).
The characins of the genus Pyrrhulina can be better compared to cichlids than to other characins in terms of their behavior. The males occupy small territories in the breeding season, color themselves splendidly and defend the spawn energetically until the young hatch.
The generic name Pyrrhulina means “small bullfinch” because the males of many species develop splendid reds in the coloring in the breeding mood, that remind of the red plumage of the male bullfinch. Also Pyrrhulina brevis from Peru, which we can offer just once again, has this characteristic. The males first get strong orange fins with increasing spawning readiness, later they develop additionally cherry red spots on the body.
Unfortunately our current imports are not quite so far (but it can’t take long anymore), so we add to this post, which – as always – shows animals from our current stock, also a picture of a young adult male and a splendid male from previous imports.
Pyrrhulina brevis grows to about 7-8 cm in length, eats all common fish food and has no special requirements on the water quality. The water temperature can be between 22 and 30°C. Apart from the territoriality of the males at spawning time, the species can be considered peaceful, plants are not damaged.
For our customers: the fish have code 286753 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Now the season for the very beautiful and much beloved orange blotch corys has started. There does exist a good number of different species and varieties, all have in common a brightly shining spot on the neck. Depending on light this glows from yellow to almosr red. This glowing spot helps the fish in the black waters of their homeland to stay together in a school.
In the past years it was often difficult for us to obtain Corydoras burgessi. Most often varieties reached us, for example spotted ones that were not as popular as the plain varieties among many of our customers. But now – finally – the pure stuff is available agian!
For our customers: the fish have code 225104 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
The magnificent pacus of the genus Mylossoma that reach at most approximately 30 cm of length (the average length in the nature amounts to approximately half of this measure), are only with difficulty determinable. The last revision from 2018 (Mateussi et al.) distinguishes 4 species south of the Andes (another species, M. acanthogaster, occurs in Lake Maracibo, i.e. north of the Andes): M. albiscopum and M. aureum from the Amazon and Orinoco basins, M. duriventre from the Paraguay-Parana-Uruguay basins, and M. unimaculatum from the Araguaia-Tocantins basin.
All Mylossoma species look the same in their youth dress. They are silver colored with an eye spot in the middle of the body. We have now received adorable, 3-4 cm long young animals from Venezuela. According to that they are either M. albiscopum or M. aureum. Since the difference between the two species can only be seen on x-rays and the name M. albiscopum is unknown in the aquarium world, but M. aureum is mentioned here and there, we decided to call the animals M. aureum. However, it is not excluded that it is a mixed swarm, consisting of both species.
Mylossoma are mixed feeders, which in nature feed on fruits, seeds and insects. They are regarded as white water fish; M. albiscopum is one of the most important food fish in the Brazilian Amazon, while M. aureum is less important in this respect.
The care should be done in the swarm in an accordingly large aquarium. The water temperature should be between 24 and 30°C. Mylossoma are usually peaceful among each other and against other fish. A planting is usually only possible with especially robust plants (Javafarn, Anubias etc.), sometimes however, also these are eaten. This can be counteracted by feeding green food (chickweed, salads, dandelion etc.). These Scheibensalmler do not have special requirements to the water composition.
For our customers: the animals have code 271001 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The genus Microphysogobio comprises more than 30 species of small (6-10 cm) gudgeons. Many species look very similar to each other and for many of them it became clear only by molecular examinations (DNA) that the comparatively small differences are in fact species differences. Aquaristically, these animals, which usually colonize fast-flowing, cool waters in nature, have not yet made a significant appearance. They look simply too similar to our native gudgeon (Gobio gobio). The most important difference to the native gudgeon is usually not visible: the underside of the mouth region of Microphysogobio is fleshy and has numerous papillae.
We just succeeded in importing a really spectacular species of this genus, which originates from the southern Chinese province of Zhejiang, where it is endemic (i.e., seen worldwide, only there) in the system of the most important river of this province, the Qiantang. This province is not located in the tropics, the climate is subtropical; in winter, temperatures drop to just below 10°C, in summer they rise to 30°C. Accordingly, one should not keep the fish too warm and especially at seasonally varying temperatures.
The males of Microphysogobio tafangensis have sail-like, bluish dorsal fins with reddish fin rays, which looks truly magnificent; the import of females is still pending. They are peaceful among each other and against other fish. One should keep them, according to their origin, with good current and clear water; the bottom should be gritty-sandy.
For our customers: the animals have code 430814 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade. Only available in small quantities and only males!
Once more we were able to import a new species of tetra from Venezuela which does not resemble to any species known to us. According to the supplier the animals were collected in small brooks in the surroundings of Puerto Inirida.
There are no doubts that our new imports belong to the Astyanax relationship in the broadest sense, most probably to the genus Jupiaba. However, the diagnostic character of Jupiaba – elongated, sharp pelvic bones – are not visible in life fish. But our animals remind in respect of the shape of the body in J. pirana and in respect of the longitudinal band in J. antheroides. Unique in our fish is the black pigmented lateral line organ and the prominent caudal spot which is accompanied by two brillant red spots. Currently the fish are about 7 cm long, very lively and with a slight tendency to panic. The settlement of the animals is so far without any problems.
For our customers: the fish have code 209353 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
The Cockatoo Dwarf Cichlid is one of the most popular members of the genus Apistogramma and found in petshops all over the World. Almost exclusively bred specimens of very colourful sports are traded. These do not appear in the wild.
However, “the” wild form of A. cacatuoides does not exist at all. Like so many other Apistogramma, this one is polychromatic in males. This means that even within one population males can look very different. The biological sense of the phenomenon is not understood at all. But the polychromatism is without any doubt the reason why in so many cases Apistogramma sports can be developed after only a few generations of breeding the fish.
Currently we have wild collected specimens of A. cacatuoides from Peru in our stock, where many males show a particularly high degree of yellow in coloration.
For our customers: the animals have code 617234 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
We received very nice, fully grown specimens of this only very rarely available species from Peru. This species of Corydoras is very variable in respect of the pattern. However, we think the darkest animals are the males.
For our customers: the fish have code 225215 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
About from the end of May to the end of September the season of the beautiful Golden Nuggets of the genus Baryancistrus lasts. Although the fish are considered to be extremely common in nature, are also found in shallow water and have been used as food fish since time immemorial, they were only scientifically described as Baryancistrus xanthellus in 2011.
Although L18, L81, L81n and L177 are all considered to belong to the same species from a scientific point of view, in the ornamental fish trade they have been assigned different L-numbers because they are differently colored. All Baryancistrus xanthellus come from the Rio Xingu and its tributaries. One can distinguish four color forms: L18, “the” Golden Nugget, has relatively large spots, it comes from the main river. L81, on the other hand, has much smaller dots, and apparently occurs together with L18 in the main river. The largest points of all are found in L177, which comes from a tributary of the Xingu, the Rio Iriri. Recently, a variety has appeared on the market that resembles L81 in terms of the dot size, but has a much broader dorsal fin seam and a stronger yellow coloration. Since there is no L-number available for this form yet, it is called L81n “New Stardust” (the “n” stands for “new”). Nothing is known about the exact origin of these animals, only that they too are said to come from the Xingu.
In all four of them the dot sizes, the width of the fin seams and the yellow portion in the coloration vary considerably, so that sometimes it is difficult to assign them to an L-number in single animals. When they are fully grown – all four can reach a length of 25-30 cm – they all look relatively the same and the spots are much smaller than in the young animals.
The breeding of the animals can also succeed in the aquarium. They are typical cave breeders. However, the special requirements of these animals mean that breeding successes are very rare.
First of all you have to know that the Xingu has relatively warm water all year round. The catfish are sensitive to temperatures below 28°C. Then they are extremely needy animals, which are adapted in nature to constantly take up a relatively nutrient-poor food. With one or two feedings per day these catfish do not get along. Finally, they are territorial and quarrelsome animals, which need space once they have exceeded the 20-cm mark.
In summary one can say that the Baryancistrus L18, L81, L81n and L177 are very beautiful and desirable fish, but the care and breeding in the aquarium can only be successful if their very special requirements are met intensively.
At the moment we have especially beautiful L81 and L81n in stock, of which we present you here current pictures.
The redtail barb Discherodontus ashmeadi originates from the tropical Southeast Asia. It can reach an overall length of up to 14 cm. They occur widespread in the Mekong and Meklong areas. In their appearance especially the dark dorsal fin spot and the strong red markings of the caudal fin stand out.
In their native country they inhabit streams and rivers with clear water, a moderate to strong current and gravelly ground. There, they live from insects and other invertebrates, that they look for in decomposing leaves at the water-ground. Lively swarm-fish of this size need spacious aquariums.
More robust representatives of the Asian fish fauna are suitable for a community tank with D. ashmeadi. Especially loaches (Botias in the farthest sense) or other barb-types come into consideration for it.
From Venezuela we could import Anodus orinocensis for the first time. As a young fish A. orinocensis often lives in mixed shoals with Hemiodus gracilis. The two species really look amazingly similar, but Anodus is a Aufwuchs eater, and also filters the water for small organisms and swims mostly in “normal” horizontal swimming position, while H. gracilis is a small animal eater and almost always swims in slanting head-up position. With a final length of a good 30 cm A. orinocensis becomes considerably larger than H. gracilis.
They are peaceful animals, which require an attentive diet with the smallest possible food (cyclops, fine flake food, small granules). The water composition is not important, but like so many species from the Orinoco, A. orinocensis needs warmth and should therefore be kept in the range of 24-30°C.
For our customers: the animals have code 205403 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
There are no blue paradise fish in nature, they are a cultivated form with a blue back (vs. red-brown in the wild form). When exactly and in whom the first blue paradise fish appeared is not documented. It must have been in the late 1940s or early 1950s, because from then on they were mentioned in the aquaristic literature.
We currently have very beautiful, fully grown specimens of the blue form in stock, some of which truly deserve the name “paradise fish”. Since paradise fish are rather quarrelsome, one rarely sees adult males that do not show any fin damage, because the large fins – especially the caudal fin – are the target in ranking fights. Missing pieces of fins grow back, but for a while many paradise fish males look a little plucked, which of course reduces their aesthetic value.
Our current blues are a laudable exception. Obviously the breeder has not only attached importance to good looks, but also to peaceful behaviour; because behaviour is inherited in fish similar to colouring and certain behaviours can be intensified or restricted by appropriate breeding choices.
For our customers: the animals have code 425804 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Unfortunately, Roloff’s Pygmy Barb – the popular name dates back to the 1950s and refers to the synonym Puntius roloffi – very rarely finds its way into our aquariums. The cute animal grows only about 3 cm long and its appearance is somewhat reminiscent of the Checkered barb, Oliotius oligolepis (formerly: Puntius o.). In contrast to the Checkered barb, which is a free-spawner, Oreichthys parvus attaches the eggs and spawns under plant leaves with its belly up. Roloff’s dwarf barb originates from Thailand.
The males of Oreichthys parvus get a vermilion-red dorsal fin, in which the otherwise typical black spot is hardly recognizable. The completely peaceful fish is excellently suited for well planted community aquariums; the species does not make any special demands on the composition of the water, medium-hard water and a pH value around the neutral point is particularly suitable for this fish that appreciates clear water with a light current. Every common fish food of suitable size is eaten.
For our customers: the animals have code 440752 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The sulphur head aulonocara, Aulonocara maylandi, is one of the most peaceful species of Malawi cichlids. The species reaches a maximum length of 12 cm (male) and 10 cm (female). In the wild these fish only live in two reefs of the south-eastern Lake Malawi, namely Chimwalani Reef (formerly Eccles Reef) and Luwala Reef (formerly West Reef). It is feared that the species could be endangered because of its small distribution area and over-collecting. However, there are always offspring available in the trade which can be bought without hesitation.
The 5-7 cm long offsprings, which we have in stock, are just beginning to colour, but are already very pretty. In adult males the pale yellow of the pale blaze is not only pale yellow, but yolk yellow – hence “sulphur head” – and in the large anal fin of the males very numerous egg spots develop.
The aquarium set up for these beauties should represent the border between rock and sand zones, because this biotope is inhabited by the fish in nature. A. maylandi must not be accompanied with aggressive and hectic cichlids, they will perish in such company.
Aulonocara cichlids are carnivorous fish, which specifically look for worms, insect larvae, small crabs etc. They are helped in this task by the large sensory pits on the underside of their heads, which are so sensitive that they perceive the electrical impulses emanating from the muscle movement of a buried worm as if they had an ECG.
The animals are mouth breeders in the female sex. They are most enjoyed when kept in a larger group of 3-4 males with 5-6 females. The aquarium should be rather dark, the pH should always be above 8. Regular and generous partial water changes and water temperatures between 22 and 26° ensure the fish feel well.
For our customers: the animals have code 502653 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Right now we have especially large and beautiful Betta coccina from Indonesia in stock. As the pictures show, this time the males have particularly extensive blue patches on their flanks; the females of Betta coccina generally do not have blue flank scales.
Betta coccina can be kept well in groups, but even these comparatively peaceful fighting fish have fire and during the ranking fights there is slight damage to fins and scales, but these heal quickly.
For the first time we have obtained this highly interesting, small spiny eel. The species rarely grows larger than 20 cm and inhabits China and parts of Vietnam. According to its origin, care in unheated aquariums is recommended. In Sinobdella the dorsal, caudal and anal fins are fused together, in Asian spiny eels this is otherwise a sign of large species. From all other spiny eels, the animals differ in the peculiar nose/nozzle region. For us aquarists, the shining white edge of the anal fin is an eye-catching characteristic.
The coloration of S. sinensis (there is only one species in the genus) is individually very variable. Among each other, the animals are peaceful, as one knows this from spiny eels generally. Small fishes are potential prey, other, bigger species are not considered further. One should choose soft sand as ground, in which the spiny eels like to dig themselves. If this possibility is missing, the spiny eels tend to get skin infections. Frozen and live food of suitable size is taken, especially worm food. We assume that settled animals also feed on granules, but there is still a lack of experience.
For our customers: the animals have code 455233 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
From Indonesia we have received extraordinarily beautiful and especially large Sphaerichthys vaillanti. According to our supplier they come from the vicinity of the Danau Senatrum National Park in the part of Borneo belonging to Indonesia called Kalimantan.
For more information about this magnificent animal see https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/sphaerichtys-vaillanti/
The magnificent panaques of the nigrolineatus complex have long been sought-after aquarium fish. All species seem to grow around 40 cm long. One of the most spectacular species comes from Peru and was given the L-number 418. It is probably identical with the described species Panaquetitan, but since this is not completely certain, the animal is better called P. cf. titan in the hobby. Characteristic for the fish, which exporters call “shampupa” after the river in Peru where they catch the animals, are the broad, light-coloured tail fin seam and the blue-green base colouring.
Shampupa is a very rare species that is always available only in very small quantities. Like all panaques they are specialized wood eaters, so plenty of dead wood is a must for the basic equipment of a panaque aquarium. However, numerous other types of food are also accepted.
All the specimens we have imported so far – regardless of size, although we have never received animals under approx. 14 cm and over approx. 25 cm in length – had the same colour (see https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/panaque_sp_l418_shampupa_en/). But all 6 specimens of the current import (they are 14-16 cm long) have an additional white-yellow zone in the caudal fin directly at their base.
For our customers: the fish have code 26480-L-418-5 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Lexicon: Panaque: after the native name of P. nigrolineatus in Venezuela.
Suggestion of a common name: Shampupa Royal Pleco.
Manacapuru is the third largest city in the state of Amazonas in Brazil. It is located about 80 km west of Manaus at the confluence of the Rio Manacapuru and the Amazon. A large, lake-like extension of the Rio Manacapuru near the city is called Lago Cabaliana.
From the surroundings of Manacapuru, especially the red-backed angelfish have become famous. But there are also wonderful local forms of other cichlids. One of them is the Heros sp. Manacapuru. “Technically” the species belongs most likely to H. efasciatus, but as the fine systematics of this cichlid species is not really understood, it seems more reasonable at present to use the locality name instead of an uncertain species name.
We currently have beautiful German offspring of this Heros in stock.
For our customers: the animals have code 682995 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The clown barb, Barbodes dunckeri, is a well-known and beautiful aquarium fish, but for decades it has been incorrectly called Barbus everetti, sometimes under the generic name Puntius, which is also incorrect for this species. The wrong name is based on a mix-up, the “real” Barbodes everetti is unfortunately almost never on the market (see https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/barbus_everetti_real__en/).
Barbodes dunckeri originally comes from the Malaysian peninsula, where it is at home in smaller jungle rivers with soft, acidic water. Due to the progressive destruction of these biotopes, the clown barb must therefore unfortunately be counted among the species that are highly endangered by extinction. However, it has been reproduced for decades in commercial ornamental fish farms, from where all the animals on the market come.
The peaceful schooling fish grows to a length of 10-15 cm and should therefore be kept in a larger aquarium. As far as food is concerned, the species makes hardly any demands, dry, frozen and live food of suitable size is accepted. Soft aquatic plants are also consumed. The bottom of the aquarium should consist of fine sand at least in places, so that the barbels can dig typically for the species. The water temperature should be between 20 and 28°C, some dead leaves, peat or alder cones bring the beneficial humic substances into the water. For the care pH-value and hardness hardly play a role (extremes should however be avoided), but for breeding you have to set natural water values (pH below 6, hardness below 5°dGH).
For our customers: the animals have code 369702 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
One of the absolute classics among the large fish, which have been an indispensable part of the assortment of zoos, show aquariums and also private large aquariums for decades, is the silver arowana, Osteoglossum bicirrhosum, which is widespread in the Amazon region and the rivers Rupununi and Oyapock (Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, French Guyana and Peru). The species grows up to 90 cm long and is an important food fish in its native countries. Arowanas practice brood care, the species is a mouth-breeder in the male sex.
In trade are both imported animals from Peru and Colombia – mostly young fish up to about 10 cm long – but also offspring from Singapore and Indonesia. From these breeding centres often larger animals are imported, sometimes also breeding forms which do not exist in nature. Since arowanas are identified with dragons in Asian mythology and dragons bring luck, among other things, platinum-coloured (https://www.aquariumglaser.de/fischarchiv/osteoglossum-bicirrhosum-platinum/) or albino arowanas are sought-after and also expensive fish.
We now have a few albino youngsters from Indonesia on offer. The ivory body lacks any black markings, only the yellow spots on the scales immediately behind the head, which in the natural form frame the black shoulder spot, and the yellow vertical stripes on the anal fin are present. The eye is not red, as is common in mammalian albinos; fish have more types of colour pigment cells than mammals, so albinism in them is not necessarily coupled with red-eye.
Here we show 7-9 cm long specimens of the same size of an albino from Indonesia and a wild form from Colombia, the differences are obvious.
For our customers: Albino Arowans have code 273242, wild code 273202 on our stock list. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
This beautiful freshwater goby was originally described as a subspecies of Stiphodon elegans. It originates from West Sumatra (Indonesia), where it lives in clear streams. Stiphodon ornatus feeds on an Aufwuchs, i.e. it feeds on algae and the small creatures that live in them. In the aquarium any form of dry, frost and live food is gladly accepted. Unfortunately, breeding in an aquarium is hardly possible, because the tiny juveniles develop in the sea and, as is well known, the rearing of marine fish is very demanding due to the difficulty of obtaining the correct food. But even without the possibility to reproduce them, Stiphodon offer many, exciting observation possibilities.
Males and females look so different in Stiphodon ornatus (and most other Stiphodon species) that one could think they are different species and in fact they are often offered as different species by the suppliers. The females of all Stiphodon species are white with black longitudinal stripes. One can hardly distinguish the females of the different (there are 37) Stiphodon species. Males grow about 6 cm long, females stay a little smaller. Stiphodon live in a flock, only to spawn single males settle down and establish a territory. They spawn in caves, mostly under stones. The male guards the spawn until the tiny larvae hatch. The water current drifts them into the sea where the larvae spend the first weeks of their life. Then they migrate into fresh water, which they do not leave anymore for the rest of their lives.
For our customers: the animals have code 456072 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Only in 2012 this pretty cichlid was scientifically described, before that it was known in the hobby as Krobia sp. “Xingu Red Head”. As the name suggests, the animal originally comes from the Rio Xingu in Brazil. However, the species is only available as bred ones.
This beautiful Aequidens relative is the ideal cichlid for beginners: there is hardly any other cichlid species that is so peaceful. Furthermore the animals are very attractively coloured and belong with less than 10 cm final size to the dwarf cichlids. This is true at least for specimens in the wild, old aquarium fish might become bigger. K. xinguensis are typical open brooders with parent family.
For our customers: the animals have code 683263 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
A very wonderful dwarf glassfish reached us from Indonesia: Gymnochanda flamea, the red filamentous glassfish. All Gymnochanda species (G. filamentosa, G. flamea, G. limi, G.ploegi and G. verae) are pure freshwater fish, you should never add salt to the water.
Only two species, G. flamea (South-Borneo) and G. filamentosa (Malaysia, Sumatra (?), West-Borneo) have thread-like long dorsal and anal fin rays, red in G. flamea, white-blue in G. filamentosa.
The care of the cute, maximum 4 cm long animals is not very difficult, but they only eat live food. Among each other they are very peaceful, even against other fish, but one should – if at all – only keep these treasures with other tiny and peaceful species. Soft, slightly acidic water (pH 6-7) and a temperature of 24-28°C are recommended.
The animals are egglayers without brood care. The eggs are deposited in fine-grained plants. As far as we know, no successful rearing of the brood under aquarium conditions has been reported so far.
For our customers: the animals have code 419642 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The history of becoming a domesticated animal is hardly researched for many species and is full of secrets, as it is with Betta splendens. There is some evidence that its true domestication only occurred after the collapse of the Khmer Empire in the 15th century. Before that, Betta splendens had been used for fish fights, but with specimens from the ditch next door. First secured evidence of a true breeding form (a short-finned fighter type with a lancet-shaped, pointed tail fin) only exists from the early 19th century. The Veiltails even originated in Thailand between the world wars, first imports into the USA and Germany took place in the 1920s.
In 1978 all types of fins (Crowntail, Double Tail, Half Moon, Veiltail, Pla Kat etc.), as they are admired and bred all over the world today, were known for a long time already, they were just called differently and in the trade they were not represented, only by a handful of specialists. In the trade one found only „Veiltails“ in their various colours. Only at the turn of the millennium this changed, a Betta-Hype developed and for the first Crowntails, which suddenly appeared in the general ornamental fish market, fantastic prices were achieved.
The Betta-Hype is still going on. Nice! But – and this is also nice – the well-known Veiltails did not fall into oblivion. If you take an unbiased look at the “completely normal” Veiltail shown here, it is easy to see why…
For our customers: Veiltail bettas in all colours have code 390003 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
There are many colour varieties of Apistigramma agassizii. The species – as it is currently understood – occurs in the complete Amazon river area in Colombia, Peru, and Brazil. The most wanted variety is probably the „Tefé“ variety. It is, however, not really proven that this variety really comes from the Rio Tefé, a right hand tributary of the Amazon in the Brazilian state of Amazonas. The trade name „Tefé“ was created at a time when a lot of money was payed for these fish and the people who collected them were not interested at all to share their knowledge about the collecting sites. The only thing that can be taken for granted in the Tefé-Agassizii ist that it is a blackwater form.
The Tefé-Agassizii is as variable in coloration as any other A. agassizii. A. agassizii is a polychromatic species. In the Tefé-Agassizii this polychromatism appears mainly in the individually changing content of orange or yellow in the fins and the neck. But all males of the Tefé-Agassizii have the typical zigzag-pattern on the belly. The females look almost like all females of A. agassizii, but can be recognized by the orange-red seam along the dorsal fin.
For our custimers: the animals have code 614833 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
From the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, more precisely from the upper Rio Guaporé, comes the pretty Corydoras caudimaculatus, which reaches 5-6 cm in length. C. caudimaculatus is the most round-nosed and high-backed species of the “tail-spotted armored catfish”, which all have a similar pattern, but without being closely related to each other. The evolutionary advantage of the similar pattern is that fish-eaters – birds, snakes, predatory fish, etc. – who have once tried such a spiny, armored fish, will avoid it in the future, because it scratches the throat considerably. This is how this colour similarity, which is often found in Corydoras catfish, occurs between different species living in the same area.
Corydoras caudimaculatus is a much sought-after species, which unfortunately can only occasionally be found on export lists. However, it is also easy to breed; many enthusiasts report that this species needs comparatively high water temperatures (26-28°C) to feel comfortable in the long term. Cooler kept animals are often shy and nervous.
For our customers: the animals have code 225604 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The Port Hoplo Megalechis thoracata – maybe the synonym (now invalid) name Hoplosternum thoracatum is more familar to some readers – is one of the earliest aquarium fish at all. The fish has only one real disadvantage: the maximum size, which is about 15 cm (or sometimes even larger). However, the species has a comparatively small mouth and so it fits quite well in a community tank with more robust and somewhat larger fish. Megalechis have a great fan community who calls them the „fighting sausages“.
Breeding Megalechis is very interesting, for male Port Hoplos build up a foam nest, similar to that known from anabantoids. Megalechis prefers to build it under a swimming item (breeders often use the covers of old coffee boxes, but this is hardly ever available in the wild). The male is very pugnacious while guarding the nest and will even jump in the keeper´s face if this curious person comes too close to the nest!
We have currently offspring of a particularly pretty, very contrasty variant in stock. Despite their small size – 5-6 cm – the animals are already sexually differentiated (sexually ripe males have greatly enlarged pectoral fin spines and the bone plates covering the breast are much larger than the corresponding bone plates of the females) and in the females you can see the orange spawn shimmering through the belly sides.
For our customers: the animals have code 250302 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
The pretty swordtail breeding form Xiphophorus hellerii Wagtail Red White is still young, it was only created in our millennium. The animals are descendants of the red and white “Koi swordtails”, which by the way are mostly born red and in which the white areas only develop with increasing growth.
These fish have less silvery scale dye (guanine) than “normal” swordtails, therefore the gill covers appear transparent, the blood-red gills shimmer through. The red body colour in the red-white Koi swordtails – and thus also in the black-finned Wagtail variant – appears for the same reason as a kind of transparent orange-red, which gives it its special charm.
For our customers: the animals have code 420043 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
In northern tributaries of the Amazon, namely the Rio Nhamunda (L475), the Rio Padauari (L499) and the Rio Uatumá (L500), there are very similar Hypancistrus, which have a relatively stocky body in common. In colour they resemble very much the Hypancistrus furunculus (L199) from the upper Orinoco. All four Hypancistrus are extremely variable in colour, there are many animals with nice contrasting black and white markings, but also many that – especially when they are old – are quite dark in colour.
Since L500 is currently only available as offspring, breeders naturally try to breed these attractive animals with a high white content in the basic colouring preferentially.
All four mentioned Hypancistrus are peaceful fishes, which reach sizes of 12-15 cm and can be kept like the other Hypancistrus.
For our customers: L500 has code 26480-L 500X-1 (3-4 cm) on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The Pygmy gourami, Trichopsis pumila, is one of the prettiest labyrinth fish. With a maximum length of 4 cm (usually it stays one centimeter smaller) it is a real dwarf fish. The species occurs in Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Although the species is an obligatory air breather, so would drown if you block its way to the water surface (which of course nobody would do), the Pygmy gourami lives more bottom-oriented. Often you can see the animals searching the ground for potential food in a 45° angle with their head down.
Also the foam nest is usually not built at the water surface but near the ground. The male likes to erect the usually walnut-sized foam structure on the underside of an aquatic plant, e.g. a Cryptocoryne.
The colouring varies enormously from one individual to another. A horzitontal band is always present, it can appear more or less as a dark stripe or be formed by a row of dots. The dots in turn can be round or oval. Above these central band there is a second band, usually formed by dots. The dots are brown-red, the scales are shiny emerald-green depending on the angle of the incoming light.
Unfortunately the sexes are very difficult to distinguish. The best way to do this is with the “see-through method”. In the back light the visceral sac of the males appears rounded at the rear end, that of the females appears triangular because of the ovaries rising to the back. Males can also be eavesdropped, because in T. pumila only the males can growl. With the other Trichopsis species the females, however, give strong answers.
For our customers: the animals have code 470803 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The driftwood catfishes enjoy an increasing popularity, since it succeeds regularly to reproduce them. All species have – as far as known – an internal fertilization, the females spawn later without the presence of a male. Most driftwood catfishes are active at night or twilight. Many species are known to hunt land insects that have fallen into the water by swimming just below the water surface.
Balroglanis (formerly Centromochlus) schultzi originates from the upper reaches of the Rio Xingu and Rio Tocantins in Brazil. The species grows to about 10 cm long; each specimen has an individual dot pattern. The downward pointing eyes are covered with a protective skin, which makes the eye appear clouded. The sense of this anatomical peculiarity is unknown.
For our customers: the animals have code 214684 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Silver Dollars, which are the piranha relatives that eat mainly vegetable food, usually grow quite large, most species grow to over 20 cm, some to 40-60 cm long. The smallest known species is Metynnis lippincottianus, of which we can offer sexually mature specimens. They are currently 8-12 cm long, more than 15 cm total length is not to be expected for this species.
Males and females of sexually mature animals can be easily distinguished by the shape and colouring of the anal fin. Metynnis species are free spawners without brood care.
M. lippincottianus differs from the similar, larger species M. maculatus by its more elongated body, M. maculatus is therefore more highbacked. M. lippincottianus is widespread in South America and occurs in Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia and French Guyana.
For our customers: the animals have code 267906 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
For the first time, we have this beautiful Corydoras, that was described already 1903 from Paraguay, as bred ones in stock. However, there is no possibility to distinguish the Corydoras aurofrenatus from C. ellisae, which was also described from Paraguay in 1940.
Therefore both species were synonymised by Axenrot and Kullander in 2003, the name C. aurofrenatus is older and therefore valid. According to this we know Corydoras aurofrenatus quite well in our hobby, because C. ellisae is a quite popular and well breedable Corydoras catfish, which we can also import from time to time (see https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/corydoras_ellisae_en/).
For our customers: the animals have code 223002 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Stoliczka´s barb, Pethia stoliczkanus, originates from Burma and was a popular aquarium fish until the 1960s, as the up to 6 cm long animals are very temperature tolerant and do not require heating in the aquarium. Later it was displaced by more colourful species and today it is a rarity.
Sometimes it is coincidence that determines whether a fish species can establish itself in the hobby. In the case of this Corydoras sp. Peru, a Corydoras fan noticed the fish when visiting a wholesaler; they were so-called by-catches that had been sorted out. Unfortunately, the wholesaler could not remember exactly where the animals originally came from, but believes it was Peru. The Corydoras fan took the fish with him and was able to breed them. So they first spread among Corydoras specialists. We have now received offspring from one of these specialists.
This Corydoras species does not really fit to any species known so far. It has a lot of similarity to C115/C116 (also from Peru), but the horizontal stripe on the middle of the tail, which is so typical for C115/C116, is missing.
Corydoras sp. Peru is in any case a very beautiful Corydoras catfish, which can be predicted to have a long aquaristic career because of its easy breeding.
For our customers: the animals have code 245548 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The short-tailed freshwater pipefish (Microphis brachyurus) has been described from Indonesia. For a long time it was believed to be a species with a worldwide distribution, which differed only slightly at the subspecies level in the various distribution areas. And so M. lineatus (code 430104 on our stocklist) and M. aculeatus (code 149104) were considered as subspecies of M. brachyurus for a long time. Today all three are considered as independent species.
As an adult animal M. brachyurus lives in freshwater, where the tiny young are born. However, these drift into the sea within 2-3 days, where they live for some time in plankton, until they migrate back into freshwater. The breeding in freshwater has not yet been successful – as far as we know.
Some specimens of M. brachyurus have a deep red stripe on the front third of the body. It is unknown what this stripe, which can occur in both sexes, means. The males can be easily recognized by the brood pouch on their stomach.
In our current import we could observe males during courtship. The snout and the brood pouch turn deep black in a flash. Just as fast the male can switch off the black color again.
For our customers: M. brachyurus has code 430115 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
This killifish from North America is one of the evergreens in the aquarium hobby and has delighted many generations of aquarists. Unfortunately it has become quiet around this attractive animal in the last years. But now beautiful and stable American Flag fish are available again from Southeast Asian breeders.
Jordanella floridae grows 4-6 cm long and is very temperature tolerant, which is why it is also well suited for stocking mini ponds in the warm season, where it reliably prevents the occurrence of mosquito larvae. Furthermore, filamentous algae are part of the food spectrum, which certainly does not annoy the pond owner. The eggs are also laid in algae cushions, the male defends the spawning ground against possible predators. In very small aquariums or miniature ponds, the American Flag is kept in pairs, otherwise group keeping is also possible without any problems.
Males and females are easily distinguished by the black spot in the dorsal fin, which only the females show.
As soon as the water temperature falls permanently below 15°C, you have to bring the American Flag into the house.
For our customers: the animals have code 327503 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
In great parts of South America there are large (up to 50 cm) piranhas, which usually become black when they are old. Another common feature of these piranhas is a red iris. It is currently common practice to refer to all these animals as Serrasalmus rhombeus because they are indistinguishable as adult fish. However, young and adolescent specimens look very different, depending on their origin. It is therefore not very likely that all of them are actually S. rhombeus. The “real” S. rhombeus comes from Guyana and is currently not available in the hobby due to the bad export situation of the Guyana countries.
There are some synonyms of S. rhombeus, but only one from the Peruvian Amazon: Serrasalmus immaculatus. This species was described by Cope in 1878 and in 1906 Fowler made a drawing of the type specimen. We have raised young Serrasalmus “rhombeus” from Peru and can now present here a development series documenting the various changes in colouration. These differ considerably from S. rhombeus from Guyana and are an excellent match for S. immaculatus. Therefore we think that it makes more sense to use the name S. immaculatus in future for the “Peru-rhombeus”.
Three specimens of 15-18 cm length from the experiment are now available for sale.
For our customers: the animals have code 292277 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
One of the smallest Ancistrus species is Ancistrus claro, which was known as LDA 8 before its scientific description. The catfish originates from clear water streams with a strong current in the upper part of the Rio Paraguay-Paraná river basin and becomes at most 6-8 cm long.
The sexes are not quite as easy to distinguish as with other Ancistrus species, because just like the dwarf women in Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings”, the females of the dwarf ancistrus have mighty beards…
For our customers: the animals have code 26480-LDA 008-2 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The cute blue-eyes of the species Pseudomugil gertrudae are actually always in our stock. We usually get them as bred ones from Indonesia. Originally they are found in northern Australia and southern Papua New Guinea.
At the moment we have fully grown, about 4 cm long animals in stock, which we received from a European breeder. The population Aru II is characterized by a high proportion of yellow in colouration. The Aru-Islands are located about 150 km in southern direction off the coast of New Guinea. The males of P. gertrudae are wonderful when they try to attract the attention of the – probably only in our eyes – inconspicuous females with their fins spread wide apart.
For our customers: the animals have code 446014 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
From Vietnam we have once again been able to import beautiful hillstream loaches of the genus Sewellia under the name Sewellia breviventralis. The species S. breviventralis exists and it is anatomically very similar to the imported animals, but there are differences in colouring compared to the live imported animals, whose exact origin is unknown, but of which it is suspected (like several other commercially interesting ornamental fish from Vietnam) that they are collected in the central Vietnamese province of Hue.
In the hobby such animals imported as S. breviventralis have been given the codes SEW02, SEW03 and SEW04. Occasionally they have also been associated with the species S. diardi or S. elongata. It does not seem to make sense to speculate about the name at the moment, also in view of the great colour variability that these hillstream loaches exhibit. We are therefore retaining the name Sewellia breviventralis used on the export lists, without claiming that it is really this species. Most of our currently imported animals correspond best to the colour form (or new species), which is called SEW03 in the hobby, but there are all conceivable intermediate stages to SEW04 and SEW02; therefore it seems likely that SEW02, SEW03 and SEW04 represent the same species.
Anyway: these hillstream loaches are beautiful aquarium fishes, which you should keep in an aquarium with strong current, with many stones, and well maintained, organically little polluted water. The temperature should be not too high: 22-24°C. The hillstream loaches eat all usual ornamental fish food, i.e. dry food, granules and frozen food, they are somewhat clumsy when catching live food. They are not algae eaters in the actual sense, however, the algae growth on the stone should be promoted by strong lighting, because these algae are often thinned by the hillstream loaches for microorganisms.
For our customers: the animals have code 455044 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The “universal dwarf shrimp for all occasions” also comes in green: Neocaridina davidi Jade Green. Indeed, some of the animals shine quite unbelievably, the comparison with Jade is in this case no flowery exaggeration. In terms of care and breeding, the dwarf shrimps are no different from their different-coloured conspecifics.
For our customers: the animals have code 485250 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The Congo Tetra, Phenacogrammus interruptus, sometimes also called the Blue Congo Tetra, is the only one of the approximately 350 tetra species in Africa that is always available in pet shops. This is of course due to its beautiful colouring, which shimmers differently on the flanks depending on the incidence of light, the reddish-brown back, and the long fins of the males. Nowadays, almost all Congo Tetras are bred ones, one of the breeding centres is Indonesia.
The peaceful animals should always be kept in a group of at least eight or more individuals. The sex ratio is not important, but there should be at least two males, because the males display against each other and encourage courtship. So if you only have one male in the tank, you miss this wonderful spectacle.
The Congo Tetra become sexually mature with a length of approximately 4-5 cm, they can become almost twice as big, however, and with each centimeter, the animals become more splendid. Congo Tetras are therefore kept in an aquarium as large as possible, where they can grow into splendid specimens.
In nature, Congo Tetras are mainly insectivores that feed on small flies etc. that fall from the air onto the water surface. In the aquarium, Congo Tetras are greedy eaters, who readily accept any commercial ornamental fish food, be it flakes, granules, frozen or live food. Plants are not harmed. Any drinking water is suitable for maintenance, but males develop much more elongated fins in slightly acidic water (pH 6 – 6.5) than in slightly alkaline water with pH above 7.5.
For our customers: the animals have code 159304 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The most popular squeaker catfish (Synodontis) by far is the upside-down catfish (Synodontis nigriventris) from the Congo. It is not the only species of the genus that often (by no means always) swims on its back, but it remains small (under 10 cm) by squeaker catfish standards and is one of the most peaceful representatives of this genus. It is important to keep it in groups of preferably more than 10 individuals, because the species is very social. Among each other these fish even communicate with creaking noises, which they also make loudly protesting when you catch them and lift them out of the water with the net.
The big eye indicates it: these catfish like it twilight. The aquarium should therefore not be lit too brightly, otherwise the fish will hide.
Concerning food and water values, upside-down catfish are unproblematic, they eat any usual fish food and feel comfortable in any tap water suitable as drinking water. The water temperature should be between 22 and 28°C. There are hardly any external sex differences. In animals of the same age the females are bigger and fuller from the time of sexual maturity (with 5-6 cm length). Upside-down catfish spawn hidden, they are free spawners, these fish practise no brood care.
For our customers: the animals have code 183402 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Pseudohemiodon laticeps from Paraguay belongs to the longest known mouth-breeding Whiptail Catfish in the hobby, even if this large (up to 35 cm) species with its species-specific broad, triangular head was confused for a long time with the very similar, narrow-headed species P. platycephalus from Brazil. Mostly one sees both species in a fawn-brown colouring with a darker wormline pattern; concerning the colouring there are actually no differences between the two species.
Through the imports of P. sp. “Chamaeleon” from Peru and P. apithanos from Venezuela, attention was drawn to the wide colour spectrum that can also be shown by Whiptail Catfish. We currently have a consignment of wild collected specimens of P. laticeps from Paraguay in stock, where some specimens show a dark coloration, which is so far unknown to us from P. laticeps. It is possible that breeders will develop a contrast-colored strain of P. laticeps from such animals – who knows?
These Whiptail Catfish require aquariums with the largest possible floor area, as little decoration as possible, fine sandy bottom and good water hygiene. All common fish feeds can be used as food, but large live bloodworm are an ideal food for the animals. Especially Pseudohemiodon laticeps can be kept in moderately heated aquariums due to its southern origin, because in its home country the water temperature drops to values around 16°C at least during certain seasons.
For our customers: the animals have code 284303 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
From Peru we occasionally receive beautiful young Metynnis. We have not yet been able to identify them; they either belong to a scientifically undescribed species or represent a local form of M. maculatus. They certainly belong to the species cluster around Metynnis maculatus and we think that the final size, similar to M. maculatus, is around 20 cm. Conspicuously at the young animals, which are 4-6 cm long at present, are the particularly large spots at the body. They also have a deep red anal fin and a strong orange-red zone on the gill cover. The larger the animals become, the more points they develop. However, we have not yet had these fish larger than 8-10 cm with us, so we do not know what the final coloration looks like.
It is absolutely necessary to keep these silver dollars in groups of at least eight – better more – specimens. They are lively swimming animals, which require a relatively large aquarium. Planting is usually not possible, as plants are generally seen by fish as a food supplement.
For our customers: the animals have code 268072 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
This archer fish that lives exclusively in freshwater originates from Burma. It has been discovered as early as 1860 and received its correct scientific name in 1892. Since then it has not been found anymore. Only in 2004 the first specimens appeared in the international trade and were celebrated as a sensation. These first specimens were extremely expensive, but nowadays the price is on a normal level and so any real fish enthusiast is able to keep this beautiful fish at home. Currently we received a shipment with really nice specimens of this extraordinary archer fish.
For our customers: the fish have code 468352 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade
Via Singapore we have once again received Nandus nebulosus in beautiful, fully grown specimens. The species can, like all other leaf fish, change its colouring very fast and drastically, furthermore each specimen has an individually different marble pattern. Some of our new arrivals have a head profile which is much more pointed than expected from N. nebulosus and therefore look like the species N. proxilus described from Borneo and have – like these – only 14 dorsal fin spines (15-16 in N. nebulosus). But there are also typical N. nebulosus in our import.
The short-tailed freshwater pipefish (Microphis brachyurus) has been described from Indonesia. For a long time it was believed to be a species with a worldwide distribution, which differed only slightly at the subspecies level in the various distribution areas. And so M. lineatus (code 430104 on our stocklist) and M. aculeatus (code 149104) were considered as subspecies of M. brachyurus for a long time. Today all three are considered as independent species.
As an adult animal M. brachyurus lives in freshwater, where the tiny young are born. However, these drift into the sea within 2-3 days, where they live for some time in plankton, until they migrate back into freshwater. The breeding in freshwater has not yet been successful – as far as we know.
Some specimens of M. brachyurus have a deep red stripe on the front third of the body. It is unknown what this stripe, which can occur in both sexes, means. The males can be easily recognized by the brood pouch on their stomach.
In our current import we could observe males during courtship. The snout and the brood pouch turn deep black in a flash. Just as fast the male can switch off the black color again.
For our customers: M. brachyurus has code 430115 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
From Peru we occasionally receive beautiful young Metynnis. We have not yet been able to identify them; they either belong to a scientifically undescribed species or represent a local form of M. maculatus. They certainly belong to the species cluster around Metynnis maculatus and we think that the final size, similar to M. maculatus, is around 20 cm. Conspicuously at the young animals, which are 4-6 cm long at present, are the particularly large spots at the body. They also have a deep red anal fin and a strong orange-red zone on the gill cover. The larger the animals become, the more points they develop. However, we have not yet had these fish larger than 8-10 cm with us, so we do not know what the final coloration looks like.
It is absolutely necessary to keep these silver dollars in groups of at least eight – better more – specimens. They are lively swimming animals, which require a relatively large aquarium. Planting is usually not possible, as plants are generally seen by fish as a food supplement.
For our customers: the animals have code 268072 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The Dwarf rasbora (Boraras maculatus, formerly known as Rasbora maculata) is the species of genus Boraras that is known for the longest time in the hobby. None of these species grows bigger than 2-3 cm and thus they are perfect candidates for the so-called nano-aquaria. All like to be kept in soft and acidic water, rather dark tanks, that should nevertheless be well planted (best use swimming plants), fine live food (although they also take readily dried food) and company of their own kind.
The Dwarf rasbora inhabits the malayian peninsula, southern Thailand and Sumatra. Initially it was often thought to represent the juvenile of the much larger growing species Rasbora kalochroma, but observations of the fish in aquaria and their successful breeding left no doubt on the validity of the species.
There do exist lots of varieties of the Dwarf rasbora which may proof to be different species one day. Typical for all of them is the large shoulder spot, which is in any cases bigger than the eye. The ground coloration of the body depends on the variety and can be light orange up to deep red. Some populations have an additional black spot (all Dwarf rasboras have three black blotches: one on the shoulder, one on the origin of the anal fin, and one on the caudal fin base) on the beginning of the caudal peduncle right above the anal fin.
Our animals currently in the stock, of which the photos for this post were also taken, come from Indonesia.
For our customers: the species has code 452702 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply to the wholesale market.
Among the largest loricariid catfish are some of the wood-eating Panaque species. Panaque schaeferi is one of them, the species will certainly grow to about 60 cm long. Since P. schaeferi was described on the basis of adult specimens, the assignment to the young animals belonging to it has never been scientifically confirmed. However, it is assumed that the Panaque from Peru, first named as L90c and later as L203, is the juvenile form of P. schaeferi. The adult P. schaeferi has received the number LDA 65.
Usually the juveniles of L203/L90c do not exhibit a spectacular pattern. Typical for the L90 relationship is a bright “window” in the colouring at the base of the caudal fin, which many of the juveniles show, but which disappears in adult fish. L203/L90c has – in contrast to L90, which is probably identical with the species Panaque bathyphilus – no long extended caudal fin filaments.
Recent shipments of juvenile P. schaeferi, which originates from the entry of the Rio Ucayali into Peru, contain exceptionally beautiful, very colourful individuals. The photographed animals have a size of 6-8 cm. Since each of the animals is drawn differently (some are also “normal” L-90c-typical), we assume individual colour variations and not a new collecting site variation or even new L-numbers.
For our customers: the animals have code 26480-L 203-1 (4-5 cm) or 26480-L 203-2 (6-8 cm) on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
Betta apollon was scientifically in 2006 and comes from forest streams in the hilly country west of Narathiwat in Thailand. The mouthbrooding species belongs to the immediate relationship of Betta pugnax. The fish was named after the Greek god Apollon, who stands for beauty and elegance among other things – an aptly chosen name for the only 4-5 cm (standard length without tail fin) long, peaceful species, which we can now offer in fully grown specimens.
For our customers: the animals have code 376503 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesalers.
There are three beautiful, very closely related, small (4-5 cm) armored catfish species on the Guyana Shield in South America, which look so similar to each other that they have already been seen as synonymous with each other in the past: Corydoras bondi, C. coppenamensis and C. sipaliwini. However, most lovers of Corydoras share the current view of the scientists working on them that these are three good, valid species. Nevertheless, their determination is a tricky matter.
Fortunately, the determination of the Corydoras sipaliwini, which we currently have as a top rarity in stock, was easy for us, because they are offspring of the world-famous catfish specialist Ingo Seidel and if he does not know the name of his fish, who does? Originally the species comes from Surinam, where it was first collected in the Sipaliwini River.
For our customers: the animals have code 245832 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Finally we were able to import once more this charming dwarf cichlid. The fish was known in the hobby under the name of Laetacara sp. “Buckelkopf” ( = humphead) before the scientific description. For more informations, please click https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/laetacara_araguaiae_en/
For our customers: the animals have code 603002 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Currently we import very pretty young Oscars from Brazil, which are offered under the name “Astronotus crassipinnis”. The species A. crassipinnis exists in Brazil, but there is no possibility to check if the species identification is correct. We suspect that the animals are bred ones.
The beautiful fish show the typical behaviour of all Astronotus children: they have a strong need to be with conspecifics. The conspicuous colouring of all young Oscars is in fact a camouflage. The animals form larger groups and swim so close together that they look like one big fish to a potential attacker.
The loss of the child’s pattern is indicated by the fact that the animals develop their typical eye spot on the tail root. From then on, the young Oscars begin to live rather individually (or in small groups). The eye spot is used to mislead attackers (who orient themselves by the eye of the victim when preying). Oscars from this size upwards prefer to eat small fish themselves, but in the aquarium they also take any other kind of strong food of carnivorous nature.
How these Oscars look like as adult fish, we do not know, therefore a safe scientific determination is not possible. However, it can be assumed with some certainty that this Astronotus species also grows to a length of about 25-30 cm.
For our customers: the animals have code 632302 (4-6 cm) and 632303 (5-7 cm) on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The number of scientifically described species in the genus Gymnotus increases rapidly recently. Since the last complete revision of the New World Knifefishes by Francisco Mago-Leccia in 1994 34 new species and 7 subspecies have been described, raising the total number of known species to 43. Members of the genus Gymnotus are cylindrical shaped and most often they have a quite attractive pattern. The maximum size that can be reached depends on the particular species. The smallest ones are said to reach only 10 cm, the largest up to 40 cm.
The Banded Knifefish (Gymnotus carapo) is the first species that became known to science and been described already back in 1758. The species has an enormous distribution in South America; however, one should keep in mind that many mis-identification probaly have appeared in elder literature. Gymnotus carapo belongs to the larger species of the genus. In 2017, 7 new subspecies of G. carapo have been described. The specimens from Venezuela, which we have currently in stock, belong to the subspecies Gymnotus carapo septentrionalis. In some specimens the banded pattern becomes a spotted pattern when they grow larger than about 20 cm. Smaller specimens are all banded. Maybe the pattern shows the sex in larger specimens?
Principically speaking Gymnotus carapo would make excellent aquarium fishes – despite the size they can grow. They species inhabits often swamp areas, has an accessory breathing organ and is very undemanding, has a very attractive pattern and swims – like all knifefishes – in a fascinating way. But sadly all Gymnotus are extremely aggressive against conspecifics. This makes it most often impossible even to keep a pair together. External differences between the sexes are unknown for Gymnotus. That is really a pity, because breeding Gymnotus would make a great project. Gymnotus are paternal broodcarer. From the wild, nest-building males have been described, in captivity they proofed to be mouthbrooders. Most probably sibling, but different speces were involved in the two studies.
Currently we have very nice specimens from Venezuela in stock. The fish are between 12 and 15 cm long and all banded, with one exception, a large spotted specimen, 25-30 cm long. Doesn´t that make a good opportunity to try the species?
For our customers: the fish have code 255204 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
This beautiful and interesting loach, which can attain a maximum length of about 12 cm, originates from Thailand. This type of loach is said to be sometimes very aggressive. Y. eos is considered as one of the most aggressive species of all. However, in most cases this is a mistake of the keeper. Y. eos is an extremely social animal. As soon as a group has been put in a new tank they animals fight out a hierarchy. These fights are performed by strong pushes with the body and by producing loud clicking sounds. The dominant alpha animal can be recognized by the bright red fins. Inside the social group of these loaches hardly ever serious injuries appear; only the finneage becomes a bit tattered, but this recovers fast.
If this type of loach is kept in only small groups or as individual animals they try to get the social contact from other tankmates. All these loaches (genera Botia, Chromobotia, Sinibotia, Yasuhikotakia) have a razor-sharp, erectible, sickle-shaped thorn under the eye. If that thorn is used against other fish it can produce very serious injuries. So one should keep this type of loach always in larger groups of 8-12 individuals.
For our customers: Y. eos has code 400512 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Lexicon: Yasuhikotakia: Dedication name for the Japanese scientist Yasuhiko Taki. eos: after the Godess of dawn, due to the bright coloration of body and fins.
From the Rio Tocantins in Brazil we received wonderful, 11-14 cm long Serrasalmus rhombeus. This species grows 35 cm, maybe even 50 cm long, making it one of the largest piranha species of all. One can recognize adolescent S. rhombeus quite well by the combination of ruby red eye, a shoulder spot which is not substantially larger than the eye diameter, the yellow anal fin and two dark bands in the tail fin, one of which is at the tail root and one limits the fin behind. Adult animals are uniformly black, see https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/gigantic_black_piranha_arrived__en/
The population from the Rio Tocantins is particularly colourful. In contrast to many other piranha populations, which are currently still assigned to Serrasalmus rhombeus, these animals have a beautiful red band on the gill cover.
These piranhas are solitary fish and feed in nature mainly on fins of other fish.
For our customers: the 11-14 cm long animals have code 292806 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesalers. Only available in small quantities!
Genetic investigations have shown that there is not only one harlequin barb, but several similar forms, which still need to be scientifically investigated.
We have been importing beautiful wild collected specimens from southern Thailand for several years. Their colouring differs significantly from “normal” harlequin barbs: a blue line above the wedge, an orange spot on the base of the tail, and the absence of the typical black vertical stripe behind the gill cover clearly show that these harlequin barbs are a different species.
This southern Thai species has now (May 2020) been formally described scientifically as Trigonostigma truncata.
For our customers. the animals have code 452953 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
Literature:
Tan, H.H.(2020): Trigonostigma truncata, a new species of harlequin rasbora from Malay Peninsula (Teleostei: Danionidae). Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, 68: 421-433.
The Croaking Gourami (Trichopsis vittata) is perhaps the most common small fish in South East Asia. It grows to 4 – 6.5 cm long. It can be found almost everywhere, except in strongly flowing waters and in the mountains. Freshly caught, the Croaking Gourami is usually very attractively coloured and shimmers in different shades of blue-green, red and violet, but this quickly fades away in the aquarium. Most likely this is due to the fact that in nature the fish usually live in very turbid water where the underwater visibility is only a few centimetres. In this “dirty broth” (the cloudiness usually comes from clay and is hygienically harmless) the fish need strong colours to be able to communicate with conspecifics. In crystal-clear aquarium water, however, the fish feel naked and defenceless and therefore switch the colouring to camouflage mode. Only during reproduction do the magnificent colours reappear.
Croaking Gourami are called that because they can produce easily audible creaking sounds. These sounds are produced when the fish strokes a bone over tendons that run across the air-filled swim bladder. Croaking Gouramis play the guitar, so to speak. The croak itself is powerplaying. The fish croak and the one who croaks the loudest wins. When mating, the males also show by croaking that they are very strong and great. But also the females croak in this species and are very emancipated.
Everywhere the Croaking Gouramis look a bit different. Probably it’s not just one species, but a lot of species that just look very similar to each other. But because there are so many of them, no one has ever dared to split them.
Our Croaking Gouramis come from Thailand and there from the Ratchaburi area. You should not mate them with Croaking Gouramis from other collecting sites, but always breed them pure, otherwise there is the danger of unintentionally breeding bastards that lose their reproductive ability after a few generations.
For our customers: the animals have code 471003 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Currently we have very nice zebra loaches, Botia striata, in stock. The animals have an ideal size, 3-4 cm. The maximum length the species can reach is about 6-8 cm. In many species of loach the generic name has changed in the past years. The Clown loach, formerly known as Botia macracanthus, is now Chromobotia macracanthus, the tiger loaches are now placed in the genus Syncrossus, the checkerboard loaches are now Ambastaia and most of the remaining southeast Asian species are placed in Yasuhikotakia. Only the Indian species (India in the broad sense, including Burma etc.) stayed in Botia. B. striata is one of them.
Zebra loaches are comparatively peaceful loaches. Several other species are known to be quite quarrelsome. So the zebra loach is a good inhabitant for community tanks. One should keep them always in groups (starting from 6-8 animals, more are possible), for these loaches are very social animals. Like all loaches of the former catch-all genus Botia the zebra loach is a good snail-hunter.
The zebra loach is a pretty common look for hobbyists, but one should reflect that it is classified as an endangered species (see Dahanukar, N. 2013. Botia striata. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013: e.T168591A6521075. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-1.RLTS.T168591A6521075.en). The species is known only from a comapartively restricted area in the south of India. Here it inhabits exclusively hillstreams with clear water. Deforestation an recreation activities in the mountains lead to erosion and pollution of the water. Collecting the animals for the ornamental fish trade is no threat for the species. On contrary: as long as collecting zebra loaches from the wild is at least a small local buisiness there is still hope that the ongoing destruction of the natural habitat may be stopped.
For our customers: the animals have code 405502 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Apistogramma bitaenata is one of the most beautiful species of the genus. And it is known for a very long time in the hobby already. Elder hobbyists will know the species maybe under the name of A. kleei, other, well known synonymys are A. klausewitzi and A. sweglesi. The species has a very wide distribution in Amazonia. It is known from Colombia, Peru, and Brazil. Most often wild collected fish come from Peru. A great number of local varieties is known.
We obtained now very beautiful wild collected A. bitaeniata from Brazil. These fish are not only very pretty but show a very unusual pattern in the caudal fin. This feature is rather known so far from the two close relatives of A. bitaeniata, namely A. paucisquamis and A. mendezi.
For our customers: the fish have code 615103 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
The tiger pleco was already imported and presented in 1988; since then, unfortunately, no scientist has yet taken a closer look on the beautiful animals imported from Rio Tocantins in Brazil for the hobby; therefore, this relatively small, maximum 12 cm long, peaceful loricariid catfish still has no “correct” name, but has to be content with “L2”; the occasionally used names “Panaqolus vermiculata” or Peckoltia vermiculata are wrong and denote a different species.
The care of L2 is easy, the animals are well suited for community tanks, but one has to keep in mind that wood is an important food component for the fish. Large amounts of faeces are produced, therefore a relatively strong filtration of the aquarium is necessary. Possible roommates must like this.
Apart from wood, these fish also eat food tablets and vegetables, meaty food should be avoided, as it can lead to life-threatening fatty deposits. Algae are not eaten, plants are only damaged if not enough green food (zucchini etc.) is given.
L2 is a typical cave-breeder with father family, but is not bred very often, because usually enough wild catches are available and the breeders therefore tend to occupy their always too scarce space with rare species, because they are not available from imports.
For our customers: the animals have code 26480-L 002-2 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The glass goby, Gobiopterus chuno, is a fascinating small fish (2-3 cm), which was originally described from the estuaries of the Ganges. Now we have received glass gobies from Thailand under the name G. chuno; they look slightly different from those we know from India (see https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/gobiopterus_chuno_en/); it may be G. brachypterus, a species originally described from Java, but also found in Sri Lanka. There are other Gobiopterus species in the Philippines, China, Australia, New Guinea and the Nicobar Islands, but there is no current revision known that would allow to distinguish these species. We therefore keep the name G. chuno for our current imports. The photos to this post show animals from Thailand.
For our customers: the animals have code 418133 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
One of the most beautiful squeaker catfish (Synodontis) comes from the Congo: Synodontis decorus. The slender species grows about 20-30 cm long and is relatively peaceful. One must always consider that all squeaker catfish have a hierarchy among each other, where “social biting” is absolutely necessary and not alarming, since it only comes to superficial, quickly healing wounds. One should therefore care for squeaker catfish in groups if possible; individual animals can (but don’t have to) become a plague for other fish if they try to take these as substitute partners. Small fish that fit in the mouth are also seen as food supplements by omnivores, so possible tankmates should not be too small. In the wild, adult S. decorus typically live in groups of 10-50 individuals, while juveniles up to about 8 cm long are solitary. Synodontis decorus is a diurnal species, which makes it particularly recommended for aquarium keeping. The animals live in rivers, but not in areas with strong currents.
The conspicuous pennant, i.e. the extended dorsal fin ray, and the very contrasting striped caudal fin are, it is assumed, a signal to conspecifics and serve the swarm cohesion. Small young animals under 8 cm length do not yet have an extended dorsal fin ray. In the Congo, larger Synodontis decorus are so common that they became a preferred prey of fin-eating characins of the species Eugnathichthys eetveldii. The Eugnathichthys have even developed an almost identical coloration as mimicry, which allows them to sneak up on the squeaker catfish unnoticed. On the Congo’s edible fish markets one rarely finds larger S. decorus with intact caudal fins, that’s how effective the Eugnathichthys are. Conversely, Synodontis juveniles are almost always undamaged, so hunting these loners is probably not worthwhile for the fin-eaters.
Externally recognizable sex differences are not known for Synodontis decorus, females are only more corpulent at spawning time. The spawning behaviour has not been reported so far, they are probably free-spawners without further care for their brood. In the aquarium, which should be a large one according to the final size of these animals, the animals are easy to care for, they do not make any special demands on the water composition and eat any commercial ornamental fish food. The water temperature should be between 22 and 26°C, occasionally a little above or below does no harm. Even if the animals are diurnally active, they should have as many roots etc. as possible at their disposal where they can seek cover.
For our customers: the animals have code 176502 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
We just have a tank full of fully grown rosy tetra (Hyphessobrycon rosaceus) of the breeding form “White Fin” in stock. These magnificent fish are a real feast for the eyes. Read more about this form of fish, which is also known as H. bentosi or H. ornatus in the hobby here: https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/hyphessobrycon-ornatus-white-fin-2/
For our customers: the animals have code 262014 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
For the first time ever we can offer this dwarf swordtail rarity. Our animals are German offsprings. At first sight the small, only 2-3 cm long animals remind of the also dwarf X. pygmaeus, but they are not so closely related to this species. Only in 1990 X. continens was formally described, first collected in 1984.
They are very pretty fish, which require attentive water care. They are inhabitants of running water and want low-germ, oxygen-rich water. Medium-hard water with a pH between 7 and 8 is best suited for care, temperatures can be between 20 and 24°C (occasionally a little below or above). Every common fish food is eaten when it is small enough. Without live food (2-3 times a week) the dwarf swordtails will wither; Artemia nauplii have proven to be very useful as supplementary food.
For our customers: the animals have code 476542 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Now in Indonesia, where several Polypterus species have been successfully bred for years, it has been possible to “crack” this species. We can offer very charming youngsters of this animal.
For our customers: the fish have code 162413 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Right now we have German offspring of Red Jewel Cichlids – probably Hemichromis guttatus – in stock, which have a very interesting history. They are descendants of wild catches from Hungary! In Hungary, more precisely in the Hévíz region, there is a thermal lake fed by natural hot springs. It is not known by whom and when, but Red Jewel Cichlids have been released there and they reproduce excellently here. Our breeder brought some animals from there in 2017, which is the origin of the strain we can offer now.
Originally these Red Jewel Cichlids come from Western Africa. However, there have been feral populations of Hemichromis guttatus in artificial and natural thermal waters in several places in Europe for over 40 years, e.g. near Villach in Austria, in the Gillbach near Cologne or in Hungary.
These red cichlids with their numerous blue spots (“Iriodophores”) are already very attractive in a neutral mood, but when they get excited – for example when defending their territory or caring for their brood – they turn a wonderful red and seem to glow from the inside out, fiery like the paprika in their Hungarian homeland!
For our customers: the animals have code 536412 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
This tetra originates from Brazil (Rio Sao Francisco and Itapicuru). It reaches a maximum length of about 7 cm. Currently we can offer German bred specimens of this attractive schooling fish.
For our customers: the fish have code 268613 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
The genus Crenicichla is with about 100 species one of the most species-rich cichlid genera at all, and yet there are numerous forms that, if we see them alive, do not really want to fit the described species. On the other hand, there are also described species of which we already doubted about their existence, as only similar but not identical fishes are exported from the area from which they were described.
One of the latter is Crenicichla notophthalmus, a dwarf Crenicichla from the Rio Negro near Manaus, which was described as early as 1913 and is easily recognizable. The males (not the females!) have long pointed first dorsal fin rays, which is not found elsewhere in the genus. The otherwise identical C. regani does not have this. Now Manaus is the main market for ornamental fish in Brazil, so it should be no problem to get these beautiful fish, which are only up to 8 cm long (females remain smaller), regularly? Puff pieces, almost always when we order them, come instead of C. notophthalmus C. regani!
But now we have finally got the “real” C. notophthalmus. The females may have one or two of the cherry red bordered eye spots in the dorsal fin, this is a variable feature. One should not be deceived by the small size of these cave breeders with parental family, they really have fire in their bodies and should therefore ideally be kept in aquariums of at least 80 x 50 cm floor space.
For our customers: the animals have code 671502 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
From Thailand we have received pretty snails under the name Neritina coromandeliana. Whether such names are correct, we usually cannot decide, as we have only ichthyologists (= biologists specialized in fish) in our team. Many German snail experts believe that these animals, which are characterized by their zigzag pattern and yellow triangles on a dark brown background, are a colour form of N. turrita, the zebra racing snail, others call them Neritina variegata. Our Thai friend Kamphol U., a studied biologist, who is in constant exchange with the zoologists of the university in Bangkok, however, believes that our snails belong to the species Neritodryas cornea, and we trust in Kamphol.
This question is not that important, what is important is how to care for the snails. And there is the good news: the care of the various „racing snails“ does not differ much from each other. They are euryhaline animals that live in the mangrove along the coast and are exposed to pure seawater at high tide and pure freshwater at high and low tide. Many animals can also be found far inland in pure fresh water. However, the tidal influence is always noticeable, because the larvae of these snails can only develop in the sea.
The water in the aquarium should be not too soft, the pH should be around 7 (rather a little above than below), otherwise you cannot do much wrong. The snails are eager algae eaters, but can eat neither blue nor filamentous algae, only the algae films of green and brown algae that grow on the glasses and decoration. They also accept fish food (flakes, tablets). In the beginning these snails tend to “emigrate”, which is still an adaptation to ebb and flow in nature, therefore the aquarium must be covered very well and absolutely gapless.
For our customers: the animals have code 485481 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The Panda Dwarf Cichlid (Apistogramma nijsseni) was an absolute sensation when it was first introduced at the end of the 1970s. The breeding was successful right away, but it took several years before it was understood that the – often extreme – male surplus observed in the offspring came from too high water temperatures during breeding.
Since this problem has been solved, the panda dwarf cichlid is almost always available as offspring and only very seldom wild caught cichlids come to us. Our animals currently in the stock are German offspring and very lively and stable.
For our customers: the animals have code 625003 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesalers.
We receive only very rarely imports of one of the unusual and stress-prone Leptodoras species. These thorny catfish are extraordinarily elongated and apparently live in flowing waters, while many other thorny catfish – think of the Platydoras, Agamyxis etc. which are common in the hobby – are more at home in dead wood or leaves in shore areas.
Leptodoras cf. cataniai originates from the Rio Nanay in Peru. The species probably reaches a length of about 20 cm, but our current imports are only about 7 cm long. Except for the area of origin – the species L. cataniai was described from the Rio Casiquiare, the connecting river of Orinoco and Rio Negro, the appearance fits very well to L. cataniai.
We recommend for maintenance a large aquarium with sandy bottom, little decoration and good filtration and current. The water temperature should be around 24°C. The chemical composition of the water is not important, but extreme values should be avoided. Any usual fish food of suitable size is eaten. The peaceful and sociable animals are a bit nervous and should therefore be kept in the company of some Corydoras or Brochis, whose calmness is transferred to the Leptodoras and takes away their shyness.
For our customers: the fish have code 266051 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Until recently, two genera of closely related whiptail catfish were distinguished according to anatomical features: the relatively short-nosed Sturisomatichthys with four described species and the relatively long-nosed Sturisoma with over 15 species. All species are popular aquarium fish because they are attractive and easy to breed. Unlike most other loricariid catfish they do not breed in caves, but lay their eggs openly (usually on one of the vertical aquarium panes). After spawning the male guards the clutch until the young hatch. As a rule of thumb one could say that Sturisomatichthys remain smaller (10-12 cm), while Sturisoma can be expected to be 15-30 cm (depending on the species).
But a recent study by Alejandro Londoño-Burbano and Roberto E. Reis showed that all species from Colombia, Venezuela and Panama are so closely related that they belong to the same genus – i.e. Sturisomatichthys -, while the species from the entire Amazon basin and further south to Paraguay remain in Sturisoma.
Regardless of this, the short-nosed Sturisomatichthys in the narrower sense are difficult in species identification. The first species to be imported and bred was S. leightoni in 1985. It disappeared again from the hobby, while two very similar species, which Evers & Seidel called S. sp. “Colombia1” and S. sp. “Colombia2″, were imported and bred more frequently from Colombia from the 1990s onwards. Then also “real” S. leightoni came into the trade occasionally. Since all three species are highly variable in colouration, and therefore it is not always possible to determine them, and since shipments from Colombia often contain several species mixed together, these three forms are usually not distinguished from each other in the trade and are referred to as S. leightoni – even in our company.
At the moment we have very well accustomed, adult, strong and mature animals in stock. Most of them correspond best to Sturisomatichthys sp. Colombia1, but for the above mentioned reasons they are listed as S. leightoni in our stock. In well acclimatized animals one can recognizes in S. sp. Colombia1 numerous spots and worm lines on the front body, which are missing in S. leightoni. Unfortunately these colour features fade to unrecognizability in stressed animals. The species S. guaitipan from the upper and middle Rio Magdalena in Colombia, newly described in December 2019, is very similar to S. sp. Colombia1, but the unique feature for S. guaitipan is that it has only 10 branched fin rays in the caudal fin, while both animals photographed for this post have 12 branched rays in the caudal fin.
For our customers: the animals have code 294403 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
Literature: Londoño-Burbano, A. & R.E. Reis (2019): A Taxonomic Revision of Sturisomatichthys Isbrücker and Nijssen, 1979 (Loricariidae: Loricariinae), with Descriptions of Three New Species. Copeia 107, No. 4, 2019, 764–806
The corona crisis has delayed the start of the pond fish/cold water season, but now we have at least a few native biotope fish in stock. The name “biotope fish” should not hide the fact that these are bred fish, which are intended for aquarium and garden pond keeping and must not be released into the wild under any circumstances!
The rudd is one of our most common so-called white fish – and one of the prettiest! The body colouring is silver, often with a nice touch of brass yellow, the fins are usually vermilion; the older the fish, the more intense the fin colouring. The rudd is the native fish with the highest proportion of vegetable food. This is why it is the only native fish species that is suitable for setting limits to the spread of filamentous algae and duckweed in garden ponds. But you should not expect miracles from it.
Usually the rudd grows to a length of 15-20 cm, the maximum size is about 50 cm. As the species is temperature tolerant and can also tolerate water temperatures up to 26°C without damage, it is very suitable for keeping in aquaria. Of course you should not heat your aquarium, but you don’t have to be afraid if the thermometer shows more than 20°C in midsummer – for some cold water fish already a critical temperature range. In the aquarium you should give flake food on a vegetable basis as staple food, plus frozen and live food of all kinds.
Rudd are schooling fish and very peaceful. They reproduce as egg layers, the spawn is released into finely feathered plants. Rudds do not care for their brood. Outer sexual characteristics are largely absent, males of the same age are smaller and more delicate than the females.
For our customers: the animals have code 878503 on our stocklist. Please note, that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Right now we can offer a very special delicacy for the friends of livebearers: a scientifically still undescribed wild molly!
It is a F1 offspring of a wild collected species from the Poecilia sphenops relationship. The parent animals were collected on a scientific expedition. The description of the species is in progress, so we have committed ourselves not to give any further information about the animals, in order not to endanger the scientific work. We have received about 50 specimens from our breeder. They are currently 4-5 cm long, but will probably grow a bit larger.
For our customers: the animals have code 280577 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Again and again we receive imports of Corydoras from the upper Rio Negro area, which differ in details from the well known Corydoras adolfoi, C. duplicareus, C. imitator, C. serratus & Co. It is difficult to classify them in such cases. Are these only colour variations that occur in large numbers somewhere? Are they geographically isolated populations? Or are they simply sorted out from the above mentioned species that occasionally occur in large numbers and thus give the impression that they are something independent? As a rule, we cannot decide that.
In the case of C140, things are such that these long-nosed animals, which fall into the variance of C. imitator except for the red spot behind the gill cover, have been appearing once and again for years. This is also the case now; by the way, the red spot is not always equally visible in every individual. It is not a red coloured zone, but an unpigmented spot through which the blood vessels shimmer.
For our customers: the animals have code 232305 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The gudgeon, Gobio gobio, is one of the smallest native fish. It usually grows to 8-12 cm, rarely over 15 cm long. The record is said to be 21 cm, but such giants are as rare as people over 2.20 m long. Because of its small size and pretty colouring (compared to the mostly silvery other native species) it has been kept in aquariums since the beginning of aquarium science, where it thrives very well. The water temperature can be in the range of 15-25°C, which can be easily realized in living rooms even today, avoiding long lasting temperatures above 22°C and aiming for a cool hibernation at around 8°C and 6-8 hours of light.
The gudgeon is a bottom fish that likes to swim in a troop with its own kind and is completely peaceful against other fish. It needs open bottom areas of sand and gravel where it looks for its food, which consists of small animals of all kinds (in the aquarium any usual fish food that sinks to the bottom). Vegetable food does not play a big role and is rather accidentally included. In nature, gudgeons are mainly found in clear, often flowing water. The aquarium should therefore be well maintained and have only a little mulm on the bottom.
The gudgeon is only suitable for the garden pond if it fulfils its requirements for clear, clean water and free ground surfaces with sand and gravel. The gudgeon cannot live in fully grown swamp ponds.
Gudgeons spawn in gravel; they do not care for their brood.
For our customers: the animals have code 819502 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
We have very nice and stable wild catches of the Orange Bushfish from the Congo in our stock. The bubblenest-building species grows to about 6-8 cm, currently the animals are 3-4 cm long.
The Orange Bushfish is a very interesting species. It becomes already half grown and sexually mature. With increasing age the fish becomes more highbacked. Males and females are best distinguished by the shape of their ventral fins. The ventral fins of the females are considerably shorter. Other fin development is also lower in females, but males of lower social rank can reduce dorsal and anal fin development, which makes them look similar to females and reduce their exposure to attacks by dominant males. However, the ventral fins always betray them.
The colour change ability is phenomenal. Neutrally mooded animals are reddish-brown with a greenish shimmer, dark vertical bandages run over the body. Sometimes the fish show a light longitudinal band along the entire body. With increasing excitement, the basic body colouring becomes brighter and brighter, the vertical bands appear intensively. The light red in the vertical fins is not affected by this colour change and can be seen well in every mood.
The fish are cared for in tanks with a rich structure at temperatures between 20 and 24°C. Only for breeding the temperature should be increased by 2-3°C, then the water should be soft and slightly acidic. Microctenopoma ansorgii is a bubblenest builder, the reproduction is similar to that of paradise fish.
It is important to know that these fish have a high feed requirement. They are not particularly demanding, but frost and live food is preferred.
For our customers: the animals have code 115501 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
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