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Diapterons

GaryE

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I just received notice that 20 eggs of Diapteron georgiae are headed my way, starting in the Czech Republic.

Diapterons are a little corner of the killie world, which in itself is a tiny corner of the aquarium hobby. Diapterons generally stay under an inch, but are brilliantly coloured. They are hard to breed, but not impossible. I had a pair of Diapteron cyanostictum many years ago, and simply didn't know what I was doing with them. Now, with more appropriate water and lots of better foods, I have a chance. I've been close to their native habitat, though we didn't quite get there with the time we had. I think I know how to do this...
I've been looking for some for a few years, but prices have been too high for my budget. I got lucky in an Aquabid auction last week, and now I wait.

In a perfect world they'll be here in 8 or 9 days. I have 14 to play with safely. If they hatch, I'll have two tanks of soft tannin stained moving water for them. Fish like this need the insurance of more than one tank - all these eggs aren't headed for one basket.

It isn't an exciting story, as in the best case, I won't even know exactly what they'll look like here for a few months, assuming the mail doesn't kill the eggs. I know the shipper, and he's good. So hopefully, I'll have a new project soon. The best things in this hobby revolve around becoming informed and being patient, so as the story unfolds, I'll keep anyone who reads this posted here.
No photos since I don't have the fish, but here is a good link.

 
So far, so good. The eggs arrived yesterday evening, after 8 days in the mail. I was unable to find any eggs in the peat, but knowing the power of my eyeballs and not knowing if the eggs were brown or not, I put them in a 2.5 gallon/10 litre aquarium with a bubbler. Hatching eggs is the only thing I do with tanks that size.
This afternoon - I spotted the first fry, diving for cover when they saw me. I believe I have 3. Over the next week or so, I'll see how many hatch.
They're tiny, but they ARE!!!
I'm glad to meet them.
The game is just afoot, as now I need both sexes. Time will tell. This is a fish to learn with. It's pretty too.
 
A little heavier bodied than a rainbowfish fry, but not a lot longer. I'm going on the assumption they can't eat newly hatched artemia - not even by taking them down in a few bites like my lampeye fry do. A lot of Aphyosemion fry can eat artemia nauplii from the get go. I'm thinking these guys will take a few days.

I'm glad I saw them, because I can't see them now. They are lying low in the peat they were sent in.
 
I moved them yesterday. I only got 4 from the 20 eggs. This is great, as I thought I had only 3. Fry are great at hiding, and I had to strip the tank to find them. Now, I figure it'll take 2-3 months to see if I have both sexes. They've grown well so far, but they aren't in a rush.
 
I moved them yesterday. I only got 4 from the 20 eggs. This is great, as I thought I had only 3. Fry are great at hiding, and I had to strip the tank to find them. Now, I figure it'll take 2-3 months to see if I have both sexes. They've grown well so far, but they aren't in a rush.
Do you have any idea what they will look like ? I did a quick internet search on them to see if it was the killie I was thinking of and found pictures showing a great color variation in locations . Let’s hope the odds are in your favor and you have a pair .
 
Diapteron georgiae. PEG 93/14

This is the dull part with buying eggs, You grow them, and they grow, but not much happens for a while. Maybe never, if they are all one sex...
 
Yup. Just four. My odds are so so. Buying eggs is really a gamble. They travel so far, and the mail can be such a harsh process. It really takes patience to see how it pays off, or not.
 

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