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RE: [Killietalk] Lampeye Mania
First of all regarding the AUS, I have never tried seriously breeding them.
I usually just rent them. When nobody else bids on them at my local club
auction I will usually go the two or three bucks to pick them up. I enjoy
them for a month to a few months and resell them at auction for at least
double what I paid. I'm not sure why it works for me, but it just does. I
really should think about breeding them myself. My friends that do AUS tell
me that they like it warm. Supposedly, they prefer temps at or above 78 dF.
As my friends seem to have abundant AUS I guess they might be right.
With regard to lampeyes, you are luckier than most. The venerable Mr. Brian
Perkins, our distinguished new and rare species chair, member of your own
club and grand wizard of most things lampeye is also the 'uhrsprung' or
primary source of many, if not all, the P. aberrans "DKG - red" that are now
circulating throughout the continent lives right in your neck of the woods.
The P. aberrans "DKG - red" is a brilliant fish with blue green and lavender
iridescence accented with nice orange/reddish coloration yellow retractable
gill spikes and patterning in the fins. I might well add that this is also a
rather large fish reaching almost 3 inches in length. In other words, you
can't miss it. It is about as durable as any killie gets. Mine hide their
eggs in in the slots of a lustar box filter. The eggs hatch pretty well with
the addition of acriflavine to the hatching water.
It is an active fish. It makes for fun watching right from the start. It
will not color up until it reaches maturity. So don't panic if you get young
fish or fry and they appear rather plain.
Set up the tank like you would for Giant Danios or other active swimming
fish, leave plenty of open swimming room. They seem to appreciate a few
floating plants and some obstacles to swim around, but will spend most of
their time in the open water area of your tank. Remember with lampeyes
lighting is important for good presentation. I like the fluorescent trident
bulbs. Indirect ceiling lighting or natural day light also adds to their
presence especially when they come right up to the glass to display for you.
They will flare their fins and extend their gill spikes and you will know
what all of the work was for.
Lampeyes are best kept in groups. First the fish keep each other occupied
and secondly they look even more impressive in numbers. A 15 gal tank
should be adequate for a small group of adults.
I imagine that you may be able to come to an accommodation with the ven. Mr.
Perkins to acquire these fish. I have fry, but I am on the right coast and
it is too cold to ship. If you can't come to an accommodation with Brian,
let me know, come spring we can work something out or I may be able to put
you in touch with someone who can.
L. Kassenjiensis are also nice lampeyes. They are less colorful (silver and
yellow with a blue irridescent stripe), slightly more reclusive and slightly
less durable, but at 1 inch in length you can fit more into a 15 gal tank.
On the other hand they are not the best for distant viewing or for those
with mature eyesight. P. similis is another pretty common lampeye that
reaches about 2 inches in length and is also relatively durable. They are no
slouches when it comes to iridescence either. Brian might have some of
either of these lampeyes also.
There are probably several other nice species going around. Some will be as
easy and may be as attractive to you as the ones I have mentioned, but
exercise caution when approaching a lampeye you do not know. Some are either
brackish or from rift lakes. L. tanganicus for instance will reach 6 inches
in length and is a real show stopper, but will not do well without its
native water conditions. If you meet their special needs, you should have
little trouble with most lampeyes. But not knowing what they are, could get
you and your fish into serious trouble.
Peace,
~RJ~
-----Original Message-----
From: killietalk-bounces at aka_org [mailto:killietalk-bounces at aka_org]On
Behalf Of Tom McLean
Sent: Saturday, November 08, 2003 2:05 PM
To: killietalk at aka_org
Subject: [Killietalk] Lampeye Mania
RJ:
I enjoyed your recent post. Will written and very interesting. Your
description and Brian Perkins pictures have convinced me to try some
lampeyes. I'm new at this. Would you suggest a couple of species that a
beginner might have success with? I have successfully raised a half dozen
Ap. ausrtle but haven't been able to breed them. My eyes are old so bigger
is some better. I have a bunch of 15 gal tanks and lots of qualified help
here in the Northwest.
Tom McLean
AKA, NWK
NANFA
To join the AKA see http://www.aka.org/pages/join.html
To join the AKA see http://www.aka.org/pages/join.html