Re: apisto life spans (D. filamentosus)

[wrisch@uclink4.berkeley.edu (Lisa Wrischnik)]

Howdy,

Andy says:
>while we're on the subject of life spans, I was wondering if anyone has had
>any experience with Dicrossus filamentosus.  I have read that fry take a
>long time to grow out, and certainly my group is not setting any records for
>growth rate especially when compared to Apistos.
>
>How long have members kept these fish?

I've only had one batch of viable fry so far, and unfortunately all I can
say is that they appear full grown and have started to spawn at 14 months
(with one traumatic move in the meantime). I thought I could discern the
lyreate tail at about 1 1/4 inches or just over 3 cm. I didn't really care
how slow they were growing as long as they were still alive and healthy.
They were spawned and raised in approx. 78 deg F DI water supplemented with
a few liters of tap water (so 10-30 ppm) and Blackwater Extract (Tetra in
this case). I had 2 prs. in a 15L with live plants and driftwood. Mom did
not do well with the other filamentosus around, and I eventually had to
partition the tank. She also would "lose" her fry if I turned off the tank
light.

I have a question regarding all the "red ventral/anal fin mythology"
surrounding these fish. The female who spawned & raised fry was wild and
already had red ventral and anal fins when I bought her. After a few months
I knew she was spawning or at least thinking about it because her fins
began to just blaze red (primarily the anal fin, actually). That's when I
started paying attention and one morning found her guarding fry. Now I had
heard that the fins turn red in response to spawning, but my new generation
(including both my own fry and wild ones that I picked up rather small) is
laying eggs right and left (although eating them after a day or two - I had
14 of them in a 20gal breeder flat, so the density was probably too high)
and I havn't seen the blazing red finnage. I'm now wondering if the color
change doesn't occur until after brood care takes over for the first time,
or if the color is more related to age than anything else. What did you
see, Andy?

Lisa