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Commercial breeders, belly sliders & stuff



Ronnie wrote:

> 
> ** Wright **
> > From: Wright Huntley <huntley1 at home_com>
> > Getting killy "batches" is no more difficult than storing the eggs in
> > damp or wet peat ... That gives the bigger hatch and uniformity...

> Is that to say that peat incubation will result in better yield than water
> incubation? and how long can you 'peat-incubate' eggs from plant spawners,
> say... A. australe?  

Peat incubation doesn't increase yield, AFAIK, but it delays development
of the older eggs for a week or two so all hatch at the same time when
the most recently laid eggs are finally "eyed up" properly. By using
longer collections, the hatch after the delay can be larger. That allows
batch rearing with less cannibalism, etc.

Eventually, they *will* hatch in the peat and die, so it is a bit less
forgiving than with annuals.


> I understand that Nothos require some 6-8 mths
> (temperature dependent I think) for proper development of the frys.  Does
> that also have anything to with something called 'belly sliders' that was
> discussed some time ago?

Actually many (most?) Nothos will be ready in 4-6 *weeks*. The really
long-gestation ones are usually some of the rarer South Americans. 

Belly sliders can, apparently, be due to embryonic development problems.
Those in turn can relate to conditions during diapause. When someone
really understands it, though, I'll be happy to hear their explanations.

Actually, Robert Nhan wrote an excellent article in the most recent NCKC
newsletter that outlined at least six major observed causes of belly
sliders. For Nothos, he listed too-dry peat as the major cause,  or
too-wet peat (maybe) and keeping fish in bare-bottom tanks.

> 
> > IMHO, the real reason the Singapore hobbyist is deprived is breeder
> > greed and ignorance.

> That, Wright, is prevalent in almost any industry or trade... where the
> bottom-line is what counts.  Sad isn't it.

Fortunately for us, that is very far from true (despite "liberal" press
reports).

The stupidity really is sad. Fortunately, in this country we have a
strong tradition of highly intelligent businessmen like Dave Packard,
Henry Ford, James Cash Penny, Ray Krok, Sam Walton, and many like them.
They never conducted their businesses like that, for they understood
what they were doing. Hence it is *not* prevalent here, and we aren't a
third-world nation as a very direct result.

Unfortunately, we have a lot of "middle managers," and an incredible
number of bureaucrats and mandatory-government-school teachers who don't
understand that profit (i.e., the "bottom line") is an objective measure
of the difference between what has been taken away from a society (for
production) and what is returned (as products) by any enterprise. It is
tangible evidence of whether the subjective needs of the customers are
being efficiently met and investment in plant was worth while.

I think fish breeders have every right to keep secrets and special
"tricks of the trade" to themselves. I just think it is a shame if they
let *lack* of secrecy keep them from applying their ingenuity to raising
killies in quantity. They don't *need* secrets if they put forth their
finest skills and inventiveness. Currently they are skimming the easy
business, not realizing how much more is out there.

Lots of killy species are highly suited to the trade. I keep even
supposedly "nasty" guys like "Fighting Gauchos" (*Cynop. melanotaenia*)
in big gangs in a 10G tank in my family room. I never see a single
shredded fin!

In a culture conditioned to drink only Coca Cola, introducing a fine
Cabernet Sauvignon is not really easy. Right now, we have a few "tasting
rooms" in the local killy clubs. We are waiting for the Rothchilds,
Rutherfords and (yes) Gallos to provide product to a thirsty hobby. It
takes customer demand, first. It then needs distribution that reflects
demand back to the fish farms, and farms willing to learn new ways to
raise fish.

The huge growth in salt-water aquaria shows that the demand for
something more than the traditional few tetras, cichlids and catfish is
out there. I think we would do nature a favor by diverting some of that
business away from devastating reefs and selling (mostly) non-breedable
fish to propagating some more attractive killies, instead. Don't you?

Wright

-- 
Wright Huntley, Fremont CA, USA, 510 494-8679  huntley1 at home dot com

One big difference between a Libertarian and a Republocrat is the 
Libertarian knows it's not a waste to vote against a Demopublican. 
                   http://www.self-gov.org/
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