Re: [Killietalk] ChiKA Annual Show 28-29March2009

["fishkillie" <fishkillie at gmail_com>]

Hello Scott,
Thanks for your kind response...I think my face has returned to its normal color.  You wrote that:

"Your interest in multiple pairs indicates a commitment to more than one aquarium for each of those species. While I quail at the idea of dedicating 6 to a dozen tanks to each strain (as those who show fancy guppies may do), you can line breed and at the very least, have insured that if one tank crashes, the strain is not lost to you."

I know it is probably not normal in the killie world, but I actually do dedicate 6 or so tanks to each species/location I keep, not including fry hatching containers, temporary breeding tanks, and such.  I don't truly line breed either, as I don't want the species/location to gradually degrade.  I generally keep three groups of each species/location and rotate breeding these together for genetic diversity, occasionally acquiring new stock to add to the genetic mix.  I also like to raise LOTS of fry, so each species/location gets a few 5.5 - 20 gallon tanks for the babies and a 40-100 gallon tank to grow out the juveniles.  

I've got carried away in the past and had only 1-2 tanks per species/location.  The result, for me, was a chaotic mess with lots of species kept but only a few fry produced and little chance of maintaining anything over the long term.  While my current method only allows me to keep a few species/locations, I maintain some genetic diversity and am better insured of being able to maintain them long term.  I am also able to raise lots of babies to distribute and have a wide selection from which to choose my breeders.

I'm not trying to knock the 1-2 tank per species method.  Many hobbiests do this successfully.  It's just not for me and, in my experience, sometimes leads to the loss of a species/location.  For example, I moved a year ago, and, as a result, I distributed my breeding stock.  I have now (finally) set up my tanks again.  I contacted the folks I sent my breeders to in the hopes that I could get some babies with which to restock my tanks, but most of them no longer have the species.  Its not a problem...no one was under any obligation to keep the strains going, but I think species/locations would survive longer in the hobby if more tanks were dedicated to each one.

Still, this is just a hobby, so to each his/her own!  We all enjoy it in our own way, I suppose.

Best,
Dan Hodnett
Join the AKA at http://www.aka.org/aka/modules/content/index.php?id=9.
Archives are at http://fins.actwin.com/killietalk/
Modify your subscription at http://www.actwin.com/mailman/listinfo.cgi/killietalk