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| Cryptoheros Nigrofasciatus (convict).; *cichlid | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Oct 21 2005, 12:54 PM (1,447 Views) | |
fnesr
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Oct 21 2005, 12:54 PM Post #1 |
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....Beeracuda....
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CRYPTOHEROS NIGROFASCIATUS. ![]() Common names - Convict cichlid, Zebra cichlid. Natural habitat - Streams, rivers and lakes of Central America. Size - Males to 6" (15 cm) and females to 5" (12 cm). Temperament - Moderately aggressive and territorial. Variants - Commonly found colour variants in the hobby are barred, pink (white) and marbled. Recommended Tank size - 30 U.S gallons (115 litres)+. Required water parameters - PH 6.5-8.8 (7.0), 68-81°F (20-27°C), DH 4-20 (10). These are great fish with very interesting habits and behaviors. They are one of the most forgiving and hardy species of new world cichlid making them ideal for those wishing to keep or breed new world’s for the first time. ----- DIET - As with most cichlid species a varied diet is recommended. Being not a typically fussy species they will accept pellet and flake foods, crustaceans, worms, insects, insect larvae, algae, plant matter, vegetables, fish and many white or red lean meats. ----- TANK SET-UP - This cichlid uses all strata's of the aquarium but is mostly a low to mid strata dweller. It's preferred natural habitat is usually rocky areas, rooted areas or over hanging river banks and some cover should be provided to reflect that. This is a digging species and a small to medium sized substrate is preferred for the base of the tank. Typically a 1.5 - 2.5" (4 cm - 7 cm) substrate is needed to avoid the fish digging down to the tank glass. Plastic plants are also appreciated by this species to provide cover. This cichlid will often eat or uproot live plants though, and live plants will generally prove too difficult to maintain due to its habits. ----- FILTRATION SET-UP - Being relatively high waste producing, this species requires a high water turn over and good biological filtration. Ideally the volume of the water in the tank should be turned over 10 times per hour (through bacteria harboring media) when using filters such as 'hang on the back's', 'pre-filtered powerheads' or 'air-powered filters'. When using more advanced filter's such as 'canisters', 'wet /dry’s' or 'strait sump's' this turn over rate can be reduced to 4-5 times per hour provided the filter holds enough media. ----- KEEPING - Like many other Central American cichlids this is a high waste producing species. A maintenance schedule should be practiced, and partial water changes should be performed regularly to maintain water quality. With adequate filtration and an established tank you could expect to perform maintenance weekly - bi-weekly to keep this species successfully. ----- TANKMATES – They are a hardy fish and will often co-exist with other species of cichlid larger then themselves. All tankmates should be moderately aggressive though to avoid harassment from this species and smaller tankmates should be avoided. Tankmates should generally also be avoided if housing male and female pairs, this is due to their protective nature and raised aggression during spawning. ----- SEXING - Males will be overall larger, they will have longer fin extensions of the dorsal and anal fins. Some males when adult will also develop a pronounced nuchal hump on the forehead. They will typically lack any colouration apart from the normal colouration of the species (black, grey or white). Females are smaller overall and usually have a red, orange or gold colour on their stomaches (this colouration is used to attract broods of fry). The fin extensions of the dorsal and anal fins will be short, and these fins as well as the pelvic fins may display tints of blue, green, orange or gold. The female’s forehead is more of a straight slant from their snout to dorsal fin and they do not display the pronounced hump. ----- BREEDING - ![]() Being amoung the most prolific species of cichlid, no specific water parameters are needed to induce spawning. They are a cave spawning species and will often prefer caves or rocky areas to spawn. They will however breed in an open area in some instances if required, and are not overly fussy in choice of a nesting site. Both Male and female may participate in preparing a surface in which the female can lay her eggs. The female will then fan the eggs to keep temperature stable and provide a flow of water current around the eggs. At this time the male will defend the perimeter of the nest site from intruders. If the eggs have been fertilized successfully by a male they will appear an amber or brown colour, unfertilized eggs will remain a distinct white. Hatching will occur in around 3-5 days and parental care once born is typically around 4-6 weeks or longer. Fry will not require feeding during the wriggler stage after hatching and are self-sufficient until free swimming. Once free-swimming fry can be fed on baby brine shrimp (frozen or live), commercial liquid fry foods, egg yolks, microworms or finely crushed flake and pellet foods. Note: Inbreeding will occur easily with this species and varied bloodlines should be combined to avoid deformity. COMMON BREEDING ISSUES - * In the initial attempts at spawning often one or both of the parents may eat their own offspring or eggs. This is a typical occurrence with a newly formed pair and is generally overcome within the second, third or fourth attempt at parenthood. * Often the male within an individually housed pair will show aggression toward a female that is caring for a brood. This is generally due to the male wishing to spawn again whilst the female is still concerned with the parental role. If this occurs it is best to split the pair, or split the pair and remove the fry before reintroduction. * Parents may spawn whilst still caring for fry. If this occurs the current batch of fry should be removed immediately. The parental role is equally as strong with every new batch of fry and any remaining fry from a previous spawning will be viewed as a threat to the new brood by the parents. ![]()
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12:36 AM Jul 12