Re: Spawning N. Parilus

[Frauley/Elson <fraulels@minet.ca>]

AEIGPHD@aol.com wrote:
> 
> Hi Folks,
> 
> I have a pair of N. Parilus that I picked up yesterday at the LFS. They are in
> a 10 gallon quarantine tank with a couple of small tetras.  I am going to set
> them up in a 30 gallon tank which has just finished cycling.  My plan is to
> have plenty of round rocks and hiding places along with a few spawning caves.
> Filtration will be a sponge filter with powerhead for some current.  My
> questionis what should the hardness and ph be?  Linke and Staeck are not
> definite. They say soft water and alkaline ph (7.5?).  How would you go about
> setting up a breeding tank for N. Parilus?
> 
> Thanks
> Andy
Hi Andy,
I used to have a lot of luck with parilus using soft acid water. The
eggs didn't develop in harder, pH 7.4 water. They'd spawn every 2 weeks,
but nothing would come of it. My theory is they are caught at low water,
when things are harder and more alkaline, but spawn when the rains come.
They love to dig, which makes round rocks a problem, as they'll go under
them to make caves. I used to bury rocks under sand, with flat rocks
lying above them. The parilus would dig under the flat rock, which would
settle onto the buried rocks making a nice neat cave. Making their own
home seemed to stimulate spawning.
The same trick worked with transvestitus. I'm looking forward to trying
it with other nanochromis, if I ever get hold of them :-).
-Gary


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