Re: [Killietalk] give linneatus its proper name - and some more

[scott douglass <scottdouglass2000 at yahoo_com.au>]

Karl,
Yeah I know exactly what you mean. For that I dont
really have an answer. For every good store I have
seen I have seen a dozen that really make me cringe.
I could say educate them better, but that has not
helped in the last 50 years. Or I could say find
better stores to pass/sell the fish onto but that is
also avoiding the issue.  
I really dont know the answers, I guess I was just
trying to highlight some of the problems. You know the
old line, cant fix it till you admit there is even a
problem.

Scott.


--- Karl Doering <kilikarl at bignet_net> wrote:

> Scott & all once I took male N. melanospilus & N
> whitei & they sold them as 
> pairs.
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "scott douglass"
> <scottdouglass2000 at yahoo_com.au>
> To: "killifish discussion list" <killietalk at aka_org>
> Sent: Saturday, December 03, 2005 12:40 PM
> Subject: Re: [Killietalk] give linneatus its proper
> name - and some more
> 
> 
> >I agree with you guys totally, proper naming is
> > crucial not just for killies, but through out the
> > entire hobby. I really get the feeling that some
> store
> > owners just make up the names as the fish come in,
> > whatever sounds good. And I also think it seems to
> be
> > getting worse, not better after being unable to
> pass a
> > fish shop in many different countries now for 25
> years
> > without taking a look.
> > I dont know about the states but even golden
> wonder is
> > a recent one to me, I think they used to be sold
> as
> > golden panchax or something but that is probably a
> bit
> > too technical.
> > The only time I really see stores displaying
> > scientific names is with the Cichlids and the
> catfish,
> > and they somehow have managed to make it accepted
> -
> > and popular.
> > Plenty of idiots (and some clever people I know)
> still
> > have no problem on spending a fortune on L46 or
> > whatever L it is, or a dozen Tropheus at 50 bucks
> each
> > etc. (although i have to admit to being tempted
> also,
> > but way out of my price range..)
> > I really get the feeling Killifish have a real
> > marketing problem, even in the past when I asked
> the
> > occasional shop keeper about Killies, I always got
> two
> > answers - very hard to keep, and very expensive.
> And
> > in most cases neither is true.
> > So ideally I would think it best to always stick
> with
> > scientific names and somehow rework the entire
> > marketing of killifish.
> > Unfortunately having been involved in most aspects
> of
> > the aquarium hobby over the years, most other fish
> > keepers really do view killifish keepers as
> something
> > different altogether. To them we may as well be
> > keeping cows or something.
> > So Wright brought up a very good point, I know
> there
> > is a lot of good relationships built up in the
> killi
> > world - and I have made many good friends ( and
> > probably p&*&*d a few off) , but I am sure
> everyone
> > has seen some new guy or girl really shot down
> over a
> > name or something similar. How many of those
> people
> > think well to hell with that?
> > I think we are all guilty of that to some degree
> which
> > is the price we pay for being passionate about our
> > fish, but definitely some more patience- tolerance
> -
> > guiding (not I am the king mentality) would also
> > benefit the hobby in general.
> > In my time I have also come across a few - not
> many -
> > but enough killikeepers who have refused to sell
> fish
> > to people in their area for whatever ego based
> reason
> > and similar issues.
> > And I have heard on many occasions in private talk
> -
> > "I would rather flush my fish down the toilet than
> > pass them to the local fish store."
> > So while the Keeping Killies is a wonderful hobby,
> all
> > is not as rosey as it seems. For anyone new it
> must
> > often appear as a secret club, and we have all
> heard
> > the stories of the new guy sitting there at a
> meeting
> > looking dumb. Is that really his or her fault?
> > I know Killies are not Cichlids or Catfish, but if
> > they can manage to be popular and also rigorous in
> > naming, then surely that says something is wrong
> with
> > the public image of killifish.
> > And personally i think killies are generally much
> > easier to keep than the above and my killi tanks I
> > dont need scuba gear to get in and clean them, not
> to
> > mention killies must be the most spectacular
> looking
> > of freshwater fish.
> >
> > Sorry for going a bit off topic but I think it is
> > relevant and sorry for my bitching - it is just
> one
> > opinion. But if you want to make things better
> then
> > you have to look at the bad as well as the good.
> >
> > Scott Douglass
> > A global wanderer...
> >
> >
> > --- Wright Huntley <whuntley at inkmkr_com> wrote:
> >
> >>
> >>
> >> Edd Kray wrote:
> >> >
> >> > I'd like to politely make a suggestion to the
> list
> >> and admittedly it
> >> > shows me to be an old "phart" and a curmudgeon.
> >>
> >> No argument so far, Edd. :-)
> >>
> >> >
> >> > I notice MANY using the term "golden wonders"
> when
> >> speaking of their
> >> > first experiences with killies. We are
> speaking,
> >> of course, of the
> >> > Aplocheilus lineatus tank-bred strain
> displaying
> >> the un-natural gold
> >> > coloration.
> >> >
> >> > Nevertheless they ARE Aplocheilus lineatus and
> I
> >> humbly recommend that
> >> > they be referred to by their appropriate
> species
> >> designation.
> >>
> >> Now we come to an interesting point. While I
> >> heartily agree with you,
> >> there are many who do not, and many of those are
> >> newbies to killies who
> >> have no concept of how many different species and
> >> sub-species we have to
> >> deal with. [We even have had some long-term,
> active
> >> breeders who refused
> >> to use collection codes or locations when they
> >> distributed fish or eggs.
> >> We have numerous "aquarium strains" now, thanks
> to
> >> their refusal to
> >> buckle to the nomenclature nazis.]
> >>
> >> There are similar problems with Rasboras and
> Bettas,
> >> in that a "common"
> >> name that is easy for the trade can be very
> >> misleading. Likewise, other
> >> multi-species groups like catfishes have outgrown
> >> the 19th-Century
> >> pet-shop name system. The killies get the most
> >> bitching in this
> >> department, partly because we have so damned many
> >> names to learn (the
> >> species list alone is approaching 1000!), but
> mostly
> >> because we have to
> >> be self-supporting in the breeding dept. Crossing
> a
> >> /Fp. gardneri/ with
> >> a /Fp. nigerianus/ often produces gorgeous fish,
> but
> >> downstream
> >> fertility problems will likely crop up.
> >>
> >> Our only recourse has been to be starchy about
> using
> >> the correct
> >> scientific (Latin) names and attaching accurate
> 
=== message truncated ===



		
____________________________________________________ 
Do you Yahoo!? 
Take your Mail with you - get Yahoo! Mail on your mobile 
http://au.mobile.yahoo.com/mweb/index.html
Join the AKA at http://aka.org/modules/tinycontent0/index.php?id=9
Archives are at http://fins.actwin.com/killietalk/
Modify your subscription at http://www.actwin.com/mailman/listinfo.cgi/killietalk