so, I've never had Killi's before...

[Magnum Man]

so I was just looking at these...

https://www.dansfish.com/product.detail/7201/Notho-boklundi-'Luangwa-Valley-ZAM-09-2'-Trio-(1M2F)-(Nothobranchius-boklundi)

which are $75.00 for a trio, but reading up on them, they were listed as an "annual" fish, & I understand that some live longer, but several varieties are listed as annual...

so do annual fish grow faster, & breed faster, to get their life cycle completed... do they really die in a year, or do they go a little longer in an aquarium???
the ones in the link, are listed at around 3/4 of an inch, so approximately how much of their "annual" life, is used up, growing to that size???
are annuals popular, or do most prefer fish that go longer than that???

Dan's has a tendency to stock a lot of Killi's...

https://www.dansfish.com/catalog.dive/19

so which if any make a good choice for a 1st dive into killi's???

 

[Colin_T]

Nothobranchius usually live 8-12 months but can live longer if you keep them cool. However, the most you will get out of them is 2 years maximum.

They do breed young (around 2 months of age) but the eggs need a dormant period before hatching. They usually lay the eggs in peat and you squeeze most of the moisture out of the peat and then put it in a plastic bag or container for a month or so. Then put it in clean water and the eggs hatch within 24-48 hours. They only lay a few eggs each day.

Nothobranchius are not a good fish to start with. Epiplaty or Aphyosemion are much easier to keep and longer lived.

You should breed the fish you already have before getting more.

 

[GaryE]

If I were starting with annuals, boklundi would not be my choice. It isn't an easy one.

Nothobranchius are major subjects for studies in cellular ageing, as they time out genetically.

I don't go in for annuals, as they are a very complex bunch. I'm an Aphyosemion keeper, and have kept quite a few fundulopanchax and Epiplays too. They can live 3 years, but usually make 2. I see striatum and gabunense there, both of which are great to learn with. Fp. gardneri as well. E dageti is good for beginners.

Now I transform into a serious old killie keeper, looking out from under white eyebrows. It is nonsensical to buy any killie at those prices unless you intend to breed them. They are too uncommon in the hobby, and frankly, too uninteresting for most people unless you roll up your sleeves and work on breeding them. They are beautiful, tiny ambush predators. They won't be bouncing all over the tank.

 

[Magnum Man]

so actually one I find interesting, is this one...
https://www.dansfish.com/product.de...-Killifish-Pair-(1M1F)-(Aplocheilus-lineatus)

in doing a little digging ( it was no surprise, that I found this article, originally posted on this forum... https://www.fishforums.net/threads/care-and-breeding-of-aplocheilus-lineatus.280783/
though I'm not familiar with the OP...

one of my main concerns, is the jumping aspect, as almost all my tanks are open topped, though, most of my tanks are "hedged" with terrestrial plants in hang on pots, around the edges, so a fish would really have to be going skyward, or hit an unlucky gap, to get out of the tank...

being where the fish I linked. comes from, it may be a natural for my Hillstream tank, and replace my mid sized Gourami, there are some small varieties of Hillstreams, but they would never be on the surface, sounds like the fish would occupy different zones... and since I had the strange appearance of a feeder guppy in this tank before... if these would work, a few more may have to find their way in???

 

[GaryE]

@Back in the fold - he's your lineatus guy to talk to.

 

[Back in the fold]

If you want the easiest of all Killifish to start with get a pair of Aplocheilus lineatus Golden Wonders . They will spawn in a well planted aquarium and you can scoop out the fry that will appear around the upper edges of the tank or you can get your hands wet picking eggs from the spawning mop . You should do both if for no other reason than to get the experience . Once you learn and try the picking eggs from mops method you’re ready to have a go at the really nice Killifish like @GaryE keeps . People recommend Fundulopanchax gardneri as a best first plant spawner but Aplocheilus lineatus is a killie you can’t fail with . Don’t buy any Nothobranchius or any other annual unless you are going to breed them . They have short lifespans and the real purpose in acquiring them is to propagate and distribute them . Don’t buy any Nothos from a dealer unless he can give you a date that they were hatched . I was set to buy the N . patrizii that Dan’s Fish has but he said they were a “few” months old when I called him . That’s iffy for me because some guys that really know Nothos said they can shrivel into old age and die fast . That would be my luck . Spend $100 bucks on fish and shipping and find out all I got was to be the nursing home for fish that only have a week to live .

 

[GaryE]

A young guy showed up at our club 3 months ago. I introduced myself, and he told me he was there to support his girlfriend because she was shy about going to a club meeting. She had a couple of tanks and was into the hobby. In the auction, she bought a pair of Aphyosemion ottogartneri that I had brought. He looked at them, but said he had no interest in fish.
Then last month, he told me he had bought a tank. He loved the killies and at that auction, bought a pair of Chromaphysemion poliaki.
Last night, he told me had five tanks he's picked up, but that the poliaki female had jumped. But, his ottogartneri had produced 8 babies. He's hooked. So he bought a pair of C. biteniatum Lagos Red I'd brought.
He's been reading everything he can find, and had good questions about killiekeeping.
I'll give him another female when we next meet.

On the cold dark drive home, I was thinking about what he'd said and asked. He wanted to understand the idea of species, and how they work. He was concerned with how rare and hard to find killies were, and he wanted to breed them. He liked the colours and beauty, and I think he's twigged on to how he could have 5 and 10 gallon tanks for them, and how he could keep a diverse bunch in limited space without heaters. He had also found reading about killies, on the American Killifish Association 'Killies of West Africa' site, and was interested in why certain information offered seemed important.
Ladies and gentlemen, I have met a new killie nerd.

He's caught the process. You study about the fish. You figure out how to breed it because you know if you lose it, you'll never see it again. That's a key concept. He likes watching how the young fish develop, and how the beautiful males grow into all those pigments. He was intrigued by similarities that remain different within species groups. He wasn't collecting killies, even though he has 3 species now of fish he had never heard of in September. He's figuring out, which means he'll probably enjoy the hobby for a while. Killies are a different kettle of fish, because they are rarely sold, and pricey when they are. They're fish for people who want to breed them.

Killies make you a breeder, or they vanish from your set up. They are DIY process fish, and once you get intrigued by all the things you have to do, you're in the cult. They make you an active fishkeepers, and if you don't learn, you fail. They are fish you can fail with. No cut flowers there - you have to garden.

 

[Back in the fold]

@GaryE You recruited another cult member ! The Central Committee will be pleased .