Re: [Killietalk] Convention Show - New Rules

[Brian Watters <bwatters at shaw_ca>]

Mark Delraso wrote:

>
> I guess that a pair of wild caught Nothos won't get judged
> either!
>

No, they would not.

>
> Anyone with experience working with wild fish knows
> that wild fish degrade when introduced to a closed system.
>

Well, I have had probably more experience with wild Nothos than anyone and I
can assure you that is not the case. You will rarely, if ever, see a captive
bred Notho that is superior to a wild specimen of the same species. If a
wild Notho survives the transport back from the wild into our fishrooms,
within 1-3 weeks they will be in a condition where they would knock spots
off any captive bred Notho in a show. Their deportment will also be as good
or better. Wild Nothos do not cower in a corner but show themselves. Many
times, when collecting Nothos in the wild we have commented on the fact that
the fish we were collecting would, without question, win first place in any
show in which they were entered. They have a brilliance of color and a size
that one never sees in captive bred fish. And, as I say, the retain those
qualities in captivity.

I have also collected a lot of wild lampeyes and the difference between wild
lampeyes, in terms of superior quality, and captive bred specimens is even
more pronounced than it is with Nothos. I made the same observation with the
few populations of Epiplatys that I have collected and I would guess that
the same applies for wild caught Aphyosemions and Fundulopanchax, although I
have no personal experience with wild fish of those genera.

I can't comment on NA native fishes as I have no experience with them.

>
> Furthermore, a newly caught, wild fish wouldn't show well
> anyway.  A good judge would notice that they would be stressed
> out - no color!
>

As I mentioned above that certainly does not apply to Nothos and lampeyes.
All it takes is a week or two to recover from the rigors of being in a
plastic bag without food for 2-3 weeks and they look just like they did in
the wild, i.e. with very few exceptions, superior to any captive bred
specimen of the same species that you are likely see.
___________________________
Brian Watters
6141 Parkwood Drive
Nanaimo, BC, V9T 6A2
Canada
Ph: (250) 760-0564
E-mail: bwatters at shaw_ca

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