Re: Dwarf Pike Cichlids

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

Hi Kaycy,

Sounds like you have Crenicichla regani.  Since you said the smallest ones
are only two inches, you may want to wait till they are a little bigger to
see if the females develop the dorsal fin spots.  Typically, you can see the
spots by the time they're 2 inches long.  If you are interested in keeping
these fish, you might want to give David Soares a call as he is sitting on a
large batch of these fish that he spawned a year or so ago.  He should have
a couple of females.

There are a few dwarf pikes that do not have dorsal fin spots on the
females.  Obviously, the compressiceps is one but a variant of C.
notophthalmus from the upper Rio Negro and Rio Uaupes area (highly unlikely
as there is very little export from there), C. wallaci, also unlikely for
the same reason.  C. urosema looks a little like C. regani but the mouth
shape is quite different but is rarely seen in the hobby.  There are a
couple of dwarf pikes in the Xingu but I am sure they havent made it to
Sacramento yet.

I have a couple of female C. regani  and I may bring them up to one of the
Pacific Coast CIchlid Assoc. meeting sometime.  I usually make it up there a
few times a year and I am the speaker for November '99, speaking on...what
else?  Pikes. :-)

Linke and Staeck has some info on them.  Konings' 'Enjoying Cichlids' is
pretty good.  Cichlids Yearbook 5 or 6 has an excellent article on them by
Frank Warzel.  Wayne Leibel's farewell issue of Buntbarsche Bulletin
(December 1992 issue # 153), an issue dedicated to pike cichlids has some
good info in it.  If you can read German, try Stawikowsk and Werner's
classic.  Cichlid News has a manuscript from me about these species but I
dont know when it will be published.  This issue of ACARA, Journal of the
South American Study Group has an article on them.  Frank Warzel is supposed
to speak at ACA'99 in Detroit, where he will no doubt share some info on
these fish.  I have some info on them at my page.  Check it out.  There are
some photos and some husbandry info

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


Hope that helps.

Vinny




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