Re: Microgeophagus Ramirezi

[huntley@ix.netcom.com]

Kevin Goodman wrote: 
>
>Hi All,
>
>I have some questions about general information for breeding Microgeophagus
>Ramirezi. I just got two Rams (the golden morph). I'm hoping they are male
>and female, but this could be wrong. The basic difference between the two
>is the dorsal fin on what I think is the mail is longer at the back, and 
>the caudal fin is longer (and also slightly tattered). Right now I have the
>Ph down at about 6.5 and I'm trying to slowly lower it to the 6.0 to 5.5 range.
>I've got the two of them in a 20 gallon tank, all alone except for one zebra
>danio. In the tank there are some plastic plants, one large 'hiding place' rock,
>and a few small flat rocks intended as potential spawning sights. 
>
>My basic question is: Does this setup sound like a place the fish would try and
>breed? Should the zebra danio be moved to another tank? How do I lower the 
>Hardness of the water? (right now its about 120-140 ppm (about 6-8 dH)). Are
>my Ph goals sufficient? I'm using a chemical to lower my Ph, would I have 
>better luck with peat Moss?
>
>I Know these guys are only close to apistos but I figure someone out here
>should know. Thanks in advance for the advice.
>
Hi Kevin,

I may be the last person to advise you on Rams. I have been searching for some 
decent "wild" type Rams for over 2 years, so my breeding experience is zip! Based 
on my general Apisto experiences, here are a few tips that may (or may not) 
apply. Free advice is always worth every penny.

In general, South American small cichlids have some things in common, and one of 
those is (unlike African rift-lake fish) a love for real plants and some humic 
acids in their water. Plants soak up ammonia almost instantly, so we never see a 
tank "cycling" as the pet stores love to tell us. The chemistry of the tank is 
automatically stabilized, and may drift a bit in the acid direction if water 
changes are too late. Usually not a big deal.

Much "aquarium" gravel is collected with shells or limestone in it, and the 
harder you try to acidify it, the more the stuff dissolves and pushes your pH 
back toward the 7+ side. Pour a bit of pool acid on some of the gravel, and 
observe closely for fine bubbles (vinegar generally is too weak to work). The 
same is worth doing to any rocks you add. pH adjustment with chemicals is highly 
questionable, for many contain some form of phosphate that will encourage algae 
bloom of the worst kind. All tend to be bad for soft-water fishes. These guys are 
supposed to *like* pH of about 7, anyway, so don't push too hard to get below 6.5

Your water is almost soft enough. If it gets much below about 80ppm of tds, it 
often gets squirrely about pH because there are few things left to buffer it. A 
small neglect in water change can push the pH down below 5 almost overnight. I 
let that happen to my agassizii, and damned near killed them when I moved them to 
my normal pH=6.5 water without acclimatizing them. Of course I neglected to 
measure it *before* the move. :-(

If you want to soften the water a little, and acidify with the right stuff at the 
same time, it's hard to beat putting a sack of boiled peat in your filter, and 
monitor hardness and pH until you are about where you want to be. The water may 
get a slight golden color, but many of us think this is the way So. Am. fish 
should be displayed, anyway. You could also soften by using about 5G of bottled 
distilled, DI or RO water from the store (not "spring" or "mineral" water, of 
course).

The zebra is probably a good dither fish to make the Rams feel at home. You may 
want to yank him before they spawn (as soon as they start cleaning a site) 
because danios *are* egg eaters, and the Rams will be kept very nervous keeping 
him away.

AFAIK, the characteristics you mention are not too useful in sexing these guys. I 
find the shortened second ray of the female's dorsal and her red belly and 
ovipositor (when about to breed) are more reliable indicators. What do I know, 
tho, for I don't even have any yet! [I have *inspected* a lot, though.]

That said, I have a question for the experts on this list. What is the correct 
name for these guys now? I *thought* it was Papiliochromis Ramerezi, but I got 
that from Baensch and Reihl's Aquarium Atlas, among others. The Germans are 
notorious for ignoring the ICZN, so I'd like to know the *correct* name, for a 
change. Any one know?

Regarding not being an Apisto: The early discussions certainly include these guys 
in this group, so fire away.

ttfn

Wright


-- 

Wright Huntley (408) 248-5905 Santa Clara, CA USA huntley@ix.netcom.com