blue panchax

[noelberg]

Got a m/f pair of blue panchax yesterday at the lfs - they're gorgeous in the right light.

I can only get bits and pieces of info on them, mostly they're good community fish and the lid should be secure since they're known jumpers.

So if you could gimme any extra info on them, especially in a community setting (with mostly tetras), I'd greatly appreciate it

...I'm thinking about getting another male and 1-2 more females.

 

[CFC]

Unless its a large tank (over 50 gallon) then i would suggest just one pair of panchax, they are territorial and keeping more than one pair may cause fighting. Panchax are mini predators and fish up to around 1" will be considered food, best foods for them are small insects and aquatic insect larvea, they may be fussy to take non live foods at first. They can be easily bred if kept in a small species tank with floating plants and are not fussy of water parameters. Apolocheilus panchax (Blue panchax) is one of the larger panchax species reaching around 3" when full grown.

 

[noelberg]

Thanks CFC! You are a maestro of fish info

I'll stick with just the pair of panchax. They seemed to like it better when my bubblestick was turned off (calm surface). I'm also thinking about getting a surface plant - any suggestions?

 

[noelberg]

Can i keep another pair of killis with Aplocheilus lineatus? Namely Aphyosemion Striatum (5-banded killi). Or will there be fighting between males?

I got bit by the killi bug

 

[CFC]

Aplocheilus lineatus is one of the largest killies with males reaching sizes of up to 5", they are very predatory and would make light snacks of almost all the Aphyosemion species. Killie fishes are best kept in small species tanks 1) to avoid cross breeding of species and 2) as they do not fare well in community type settings, small shallow tanks of around 5 gallons (18x8x8")(6 gallons (24x8x8") for the larger species) are perfect for a pair of killies.

 

[noelberg]

Thanks CFC.

They're both in my community tank right now. I'll keep an eye on things for the next month. I've got a 5 gallon ready for cycling, so that's good news. What filtration could anyone recommend.

Unfortunately I got two random fish instead of a breeding pair. Will the male show less aggression to the female in a species tank?

 

[CFC]

They will be fine together until the golden panchax grows big enough to eat the striatum (which wont take long). The filtration can be kept very simple, most killie enthusiasts run small sponge filters with several tanks all being powered by one large airpump.

Killies pair off easily so as long as you have a male and female you wont have any problems, remember they will not breed in community tanks so if you wish to breed them you will have to have a single pair to a tank.

 

[jams.alaskan]

Noelberg, I'd be very interested in seeing pictures of your new killis. Because of my location, they might just be a fish I can get mailed to me. (I'm thinking the eggs). I've been doing a lot of searching for information, there are some VERY good sights. Best of luck with yours.

ALASKA

 

[noelberg]

Hi jams.alaskan. Here's the thread where I posted a pic:http/fish.orbust.net/forums/index.php?sh...showtopic=27434

They're nice even though they're not one of the most colorful killis. I would love to eventually get either a lyretail or 5-banded killi pair.

I also noticed in your sig you have a tank in a special ed classroom. I teach adults with mental health diagnoses, and I talked my boss into getting a 55g for the classroom.