Threadfin Rainbowfish...

[Paradise3]

First of all sorry if this is in the wrong place these are my first ever egg scatterers(if i got that correct?)
Second can someone post a guide to the difference between sexes for this species, please? I have read on many sites that threadfins only grow to 1 1/2", is this correct?

Alessa x.

 

[Littlemonkey]

The males fan their lovely long dorsal fins, The females do not have these long fins and are quite plain in fact. I have three males and am looking for some females to join them. You will not have a problem with just all males and they will not grow more than 1 1/2". They are stunning to watch. Just a word of caution though best to have them with fish around their size and no fin nippers.

 

[Paradise3]

They are in with guppies and oto's.
Edit:
This picture is from google but this is the exact same as mine.
Is it male or female? Just been upstairs watching them and they did put a small dorsal fin up but not the long one underneath...


Alessa x.

 

[drobbyb]

Try this link. The ones pictured are males.

 

[Paradise3]

Mine are females then! I need at least one male.....

Alessa x.

 

[Paradise3]

Ok now i'm confuzled... I've just been watching my fish and was about to feed a small freeze dried tubifex that had been soaked in tank water to soften, when my threadfins started acting really weird. They weren't chasing but more like darting around the tank side by side with all fins up. One now has a small amount of red on the extensions on his tail so i'm certain that ones a male, but the other has longer fins and no colour so i don't get it. The one with shorter fins has a small amount of colour to all fins but the one with longer fins doesn't....

Alessa x.

 

[Littlemonkey]

Sound's like you have some young. The males fins are far more elongated than the females. Some have more colour than others. Guppies and ottos are abso fine tank mates. You will need more than one female if you want to breed.

 

[Paradise3]

They are only about 1" so i guess they are quite young... I'm planning on keeping a group of about 5-6 in the 12 gallon if this is possible and just taking the guppies out.
Edit 1:
Not getting my hopes up but done some research and now they are doing what is apparently breeding behaviour! The one with longer fins keeps flicking "his" fins up in front of the other one and now they are darting around the tank side by side again! Like i said not getting my hopes up because the chances are very slim. I'm really getting worried now....
Edit 2:
Got this from a website.
Breeding Information: Unlike many hardier rainbows, they can't be counted upon to breed themselves. Near-immaculate conditions, a slight cooling and a decent-sized water change may induce spawning behaviours. Males start the spawning process by displaying to the females and the spawning almost always takes place in the morning (though you can likely affect the time of spawning by changing the times at which the fish room is light). These fish will likely have eggs attached to plants. They may be induced to use a spawning mop but there is no guarantee that they would choose that over other plants in the tank. Microencapsulated fry foods are good starter foods, as are microworms. Anything much larger can and may cause serious damage to a fish whose mouth is large but throat is not. The male Threadfin Rainbowfish will court the female by displaying in front of her. He will extend his first dorsal and anal fins and “flick” them to look more impressive.
^ This is what the one with longer fins is doing and i cleaned the tank out yesterday.

Alessa x.

 

[drobbyb]

I breed and sell different species of rainbows. The behavior you are seeing may very well be breeding behavior, but it could also be the males establishing a pecking order. If you keep rainbows correctly, you can't stop them from breeding. All they need is good quality food and very clean water. The myth that it is hard to breed rainbows successfully is brought about by people not feeding them correctly or not changing enough or often enough water.

With them being in a new tank, I would say that they are establishing dominance. If you like to see them display, do at least a 50% water change a week. Feed them good food and keep their water clean and you will have huge success with them!

 

[Paradise3]

If i have 2 males, how many females would be ideal for me to breed them?
I may just take the guppies out of the 12 gallon tank so i can breed the rainbows. Will they need moss and spawning mops? I also have a 15 gallon hexagon tank... What could i put in this for egg scatterers?

Alessa x.

 

[drobbyb]

Everything you need to know about rainbows.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

If i have 2 males, how many females would be ideal for me to breed them?
I may just take the guppies out of the 12 gallon tank so i can breed the rainbows. Will they need moss and spawning mops? I also have a 15 gallon hexagon tank... What could i put in this for egg scatterers?

Alessa x.

Have a good read of that excellent site drobbyb linked to, but as a pidgeonhole sweeping statement, most if not all Rainbows should have at least two females per male

 

[drobbyb]

Yeah, at least 2 females for every male

 

[Gill]

Finally another person seeing just how stunning these gems are.
congrats and have great fun keeping these. I love these fish and will have them again when i have a bigger tank that they can display in properly.
Pity that the only shop that sold them has shut down, and the nearest stockist is over 30miles away and treble the price of coventry.
Just wait for the Males to mature and watch the colors pop. if you have a mix of colors then even better.
So Far I have Seen Males filament extension with>> Red, Black, Green, Yellow and Blue(Blue only Once)

 

[Paradise3]

They really are gorgeous and i think i've seen some blue on the first one but the other seems to just have some yellow on his dorsal fin. The one that stocks them near me is about 30 mins away. £3 per threadfin and they are in great condition. The shop i got them from is called middlestons and they are known to be a bad shop for fish, but since the old guy got fired the new one has really taken care and got to work fixing the fish back to health. Now they have 1 tank with a couple of ill goldfish in and that clearly says under treatment on it. All taks are spotless except the one that had the oto's in because they were eating the algae that was left behind for them.

Alessa x.