pH crash followed by Laetacara spawn

["V Kutty" <kutty@earthlink.net>]

Hi People!

The pH in my 60-gal. Rio Negro tank crashed - it used to be in the mid to
upper 5s.  My Pinpoint pH meter now reads 2.98 to 3.10.  Yes, it is
calibrated. This evening I found a clutch of 250 or so eggs from my second
pair of Laetacara sp. Orange Fin from Rio Negro!  Who'd have thunk it?!
Everybody looks happy, except the other nervous pair of Orange Fin just a
foot away, guarding about 60 six-week old fry.

I set this tank up with mostly RO water and threw in the two pairs to breed
them.  I wanted to study their broodcare behavior when exposed to a)
conspecifics (members of the same species) and b) two different predators
from their natural habitat namely Crenicichla notophthalmus (dwarf pike) and
a Hypselecara coryphaenoides juvenile (the other Chocolate cichlid).

I've been keeping a log titled 'Attack sorties by broodcaring Laetacara sp.
Orange Fin' where I've broken down the parents' aggression into posturing,
biteless rushes and bites etc.  The  Chocolate cichlid is the least
harassed, the second pair of Orange Fins in between and the dwarf pikes have
been mercilessly attacked.  The second pair could have spawned further away
from the first pair with the fry but the other end of the tank is dominated
by a mean dwarf pike.  Looks like they'd rather spawn next to each other and
risk competition rather than spawn next to the pike's lair and risk getting
eaten!  Of course, these are just my thoughts but I'll tabulate all the
details/numbers and publish it in the ACARA, Journal of the South American
Cichlid Study Group.  For more info on the study group, check out my web
site, Mostly Cichlids:

http://www.geocities.com/NapaValley/5491/

Anybody else get a spawn right after a major pH crash?  Was it also a
blackwater species?  BTW, the Water Sprite (yeah, I know it is not from Rio
Negro) is still hanging in there.

Oh yeah, I remembered, finally, to scrape off a few eggs for Ron Coleman's
Cichlid Egg Project.  Go to cichlidresearch.com and check out what it is all
about.  It's pretty neat.

Vinny
kutty@earthlink.net


-----Original Message-----
From: Russell E. Stevens, III <topgun3@gte.net>
To: apisto@majordomo.pobox.com <apisto@majordomo.pobox.com>
Date: Friday, December 18, 1998 7:55 PM
Subject: breeding microgeophagus ram. and kribenses


>i am a novice both at using this site an beeding these fish...would
>appreciate any help incl ph, hardnes and best food to "condition"
>my breeding pairs (blue rams + krib)
>
>
>thanks very much for your help, russ
>
>
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