C.melanotaenia

[Azaezl]

I'm sooooo happy, I finally got myself some more C.Melanotaenia yesterday after searching for over a year, I was hoping to find some in a lfs as I really don't like the idea of fish in the post but it had gotten to the point that I was desperate for some and made enquiries about getting them online.

Well went to maidenhead aquatics yesterday and they had some in(hoorah!) they are wild caught and much bigger & broader then the ones I already have or maybe my older ones mickey & malory have alot of growing to do. I wanted to take alot longer acclimitising them then I normally do as they were used to softer water then mine but 2 of them were really really stressing themselves out in the bag, I was worried they were going to panic themselves to death as one of them started going pale,turning upside down and breathing very rapidly, so in they went after 45 mins, and all 3 are doing great!

It's funny seeing them all together, mickey & malory(the 2 I already had) look so little compared to them. It's amazing how mickey & malory were instantly drawn to the new melanotaenia, they are all sticking together now, mickey & malory always stuck togther, they would mingle with the bronze but there is a noticeable difference already not only with the way they stick with the new melanotaenia but the fact they have become even more outgoing, esp. mickey, he was always very very shy but he's been too busy with the new additions to even notice my mug looking in their tank. Here's some pics, not the best i could get but I didn't want to stay next to the tank too long and scare them, they'd had enough stress already, will try to get some better pics later.

This is mickey;

Here's malory;

Here's mickey next to one of the big ones, you can really see the size difference

Here's another where you can see just how much bigger the new ones are;

Blurry pic of Malory & one of the new one's having a face off lol, you can really see how much darker the new cory is in this pic;

Here's one of them hiding under some bogwood with a trilli near it;

Put some bloodworms in after a few hours just to feed everyone, didn't expect the new corys to be interested as I figured they would be getting used to everything still, but no I was wrong all 3 have very healthy appetites!!

I really had to resist the urge to get some other corys they had as well, 'albino pandas', the label said rare, not sure how rare they are but they were very interesting and I love pandas. Must say they didn't look that much different, just paler and with beautiful interesting eyes. I'm very very tempted, hopefully they will still have some when I upgrade all my tanks and once the old 'regular' pandas are in their new tank their old tank can be for some albino pandas. Does anyone know how rare albino pandas really are? I had a look around planetcatfish and only saw one post regarding them and that made me think that perhaps they are quite rare.

 

[jollysue]

Your original 2 are really light! Mine are darker too. I also have two groups that came together. Both groups are wild caught.

While my melanotaenia are and have always been very shy--except for a brief time when I first added the second group--another member's that were aquarium bred he said are very outgoing. Hard for me to imagine!

I have heard of albino Pandas, but I have never seen any or seen any on AquaBid either. So I would say they are not generally distributed. Most likely they are still mostly available through private breeders. Maybe you can get some and breed them. I imagine there is a market. My only hesitation is that the distinctive markings of the panda are one of it's endearing features.

 

[Azaezl]

Your original 2 are really light! Mine are darker too. I also have two groups that came together. Both groups are wild caught.

That's why I was so unsure about exactly what type of cory they were, people kept telling me they were C.Melanotaenia but all the pics I saw were much darker then mine, but out of the 3 new one's 2 of them have stayed very dark and one of them has become alot lighter and looks identical to mickey & malory, just on a much larger scale.

While my melanotaenia are and have always been very shy--except for a brief time when I first added the second group--another member's that were aquarium bred he said are very outgoing. Hard for me to imagine!

Mickey & Malory were very very shy when I first got them, they came with a second hand tank that had a gourami and a huge geophagus in it that was a real bully so you can imagine what a scared life they must have led before I got them. They perked up alot when I moved them into their own tank and added some bronze. The bronze were always much more outgoing but they slowly become a little more adventurous, Malory has always been quite outgoing wheras Mickey didn't often come out with the lights on, but he's been out constantly since yesterday.

I have heard of albino Pandas, but I have never seen any or seen any on AquaBid either. So I would say they are not generally distributed. Most likely they are still mostly available through private breeders. Maybe you can get some and breed them. I imagine there is a market. My only hesitation is that the distinctive markings of the panda are one of it's endearing features.

You could tell they were pandas, they still had slight panda markings, that's what I was drawn to, I spotted them and thought they looked a little odd(at first I thought they were pandas but very stressed or ill or something). When pandas go a little pale, that's sort of what they look like but with really crazy looking eyes, not quite pinky coloured like albino aeneus but with the same sort of weird look to them. Sorry not very good at describing things like that, I promise to get a pic next time I go(or maybe buy some as they were lovely).

 

[Azaezl]

I finally got a half decent shot of two of them together(minus the blurry bronze whizzing past), here's malory and one of the darker new ones;

As you can see they are quite different but have similar features(which don't show up as well in this pic) but they both have the yellowy fins. I love malorys eyes, with that blue tinge to them.

 

[jollysue]

Yes, I have to say that I am taken with your original two.

 

[ICEEGRL]

From what I have learned... most of them (fish) can change colors a little to try to blend with their environment. Mine got much darker when I changed to the black substrate.
Having white/light substrate may be part of the reason for them being lighter. Your darker ones may eventually lighten up some.
I love the color of the first 2 you had. I can't tell much about the colors of the darker ones. The new ones are really big though.

 

[Barracuda518]

Which Maidenhead Aquatics did you go to? If its the one I think it is, then you are very lucky to be able to shop there. They have very healthy fish and a knowledgeable staff.

Nice Fish

 

[Piltdownpaul]

yesss. Catfish rule..... and they smile better than the queen!

 

[Azaezl]

Which Maidenhead Aquatics did you go to? If its the one I think it is, then you are very lucky to be able to shop there. They have very healthy fish and a knowledgeable staff.

Nice Fish

The maidenhead I went to is in Crowland, Peterborough, only a 15 min drive for me. I only discovered the shop a short while ago but won't buy fish from anywhere else now, it's a great shop!

 

[Barracuda518]

Which Maidenhead Aquatics did you go to? If its the one I think it is, then you are very lucky to be able to shop there. They have very healthy fish and a knowledgeable staff.

Nice Fish

The maidenhead I went to is in Crowland, Peterborough, only a 15 min drive for me. I only discovered the shop a short while ago but won't buy fish from anywhere else now, it's a great shop!

Yep, I think thats the one. Did they have a lot of loaches for sale?

 

[Azaezl]

Yeah they more or less have a loach section(must be at least a dozen tanks with different loaches),It's because one of the guys who works there is a loach fan so the section he takes care of is predominantely loaches, it's great