Re: systematics

[Mike & Diane Wise <apistowise@bewellnet.com>]

Greg,

I doubt that many apisto hobbyists have seen the true A. viejita. Most 
of the domestic, highly colored forms produced for the hobby are either 
A. sp. Red-flecked/Rotflecken (= "A. viejita" Color Form II in Linke & 
Staeck) or a cross between several closely related macmasteri-group 
species. The true A. viejita (= A. viejita Color Form I) only recently 
was reimported.

The cheek patch color really doesn't indicate anything on wild fish. 
Most males show some. All that it indicates is that your fish have been 
bred for color and that your feeding has enhanced the color. Wild 
females don't usually show any red color. What you have is a domestic 
fish, similar to the Red Helleri/Swordtail. This, too, is a fish that 
has been color enhanced by selective breeding & crossing with closely 
related species. If you like them, then I would just keep them, cross 
breed them, & be happy with them. Just realize what they are.

Mike Wise

Grzegorz Prusinowski wrote:

> Thanks Mike,
> That's some light on the subject.
> So it seems I have never seen a true A. viejita. Do the red
> dots on the cheeks suggest sth? The male has them, the
> female didn't have them (lost her some time ago), their
> offsprings have them regardless of sex. I also have 2 other
> females, of which one has those red spots.
> All the fish are from different sources, perhaps Czech
> breed.
> All have red tops and bottoms of the tail, and (aside of one
> female) reddish ventral fins.
> The male has slightly truncated tail, the offspring males
> don't present that, but they are less than 5 months old.
> They have more red on the tail.
>
> Now, that's a puzzle.
>
> Regards
> Greg
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Mike & Diane Wise" <apistowise@bewellnet.com>
> To: <apisto@v2.listbox.com>
> Sent: Friday, June 27, 2003 7:27 PM
> Subject: Re: systematics
>
>
> > With regards to the A. macmasteri vs. A. viejita question,
> it remains
>
> > somewhat the same. Domestic strains of both species are
> most likely
>
> > crosses of the 2 closely related species. Wild macmasteri
> rarely have a
>
> > lyre tail or red top to the dorsal fin. The real A.
> viejita has entered
>
> > the hobby in the past year and most experieced
> apistophiles can easily
>
> > see differences in it, A. macmasteri, & what has been
> called "A.
>
> > viejita" in the past. Then there are closely related forms
> (species?)
>
> > like viejita Color Form II that are as different from A.
> viejita as
>
> > viejita is from A. macmasteri. Right now many people
> consider viejita
>
> > (CF I) & CF II the same species, but if they are, then
> they should be
>
> > considered the same as A. macmasteri. More collecting is
> needed to
>
> > understand this problem. Until then I will consider them
> all different
>
> > from each other.
>
>
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