Vaillantella Maassi - Rare Loach

[Bloo]

Hi I was wondering how your Vaillantella Maassi are settleling in. I brought some last Friday & have not seen them since the first day I’m not so bothered about this as it was what I was expecting, so I was wondering how yours are inter acting in your tank now that you've had them a few weeks?

They've settled in nicely now and though they were absolutely nowhere to be seen (apart from a little mouth barely visible sticking out of a cave in the wood) - and I now often spot them darting around a bit. They are super stunning though I have to say and I'm dead chuffed to have found some.
I have a massive piece of bogwood (2ft x2ft) that's floating in the tank at the moment - so once that settles there will be loads more hiding spaces that should make them feel even more at home and secure.
How about yours ? How many did you get ? They are expensive though aren't they

Thanks madcaow

 

[rfisher]

Hi,

That has got to be the most stunning loach I have ever seen. I thought my Kuhli Loach were stunning but this beats them hands down. still love my kuhlis though.

Rich

 

[jarmado]

how much is it?
not as expensive as a polka-dot loach, i hope.

 

[Bloo]

£26.99 each or 3 for £65
So a tad (!!) more expensive than Botia Kubotai.

 

[jarmado]

£26.99 each or 3 for £65
So a tad (!!) more expensive than Botia Kubotai.

yaiikks...
that expensive
how big are they and their max size?

 

[Bloo]

Forgot to say - I got a 10% discount because I had a TFF card (Tropical Fish Finder).

Quoted from PKF:

Common name: Forktailed loach
Scientific name:Vaillantella maassi
Origin: Malaysia, Borneo and Brunei on the north coast.
Size: Around 12cm/5"
Diet: Not known. Probably insect larvae, crustaceans and detritus. Try offering bloodworms, artemia and astaxanthin-rich dried foods to enhance the orange dorsal colours.
Water: Neutral or slightly acidic is probably preferable. These ones were doing fine in hard water.
Aquarium: I'd guess that these things are found in quite fast-flowing water, so a decent flow rate would be good. Like Khuli loaches, these are fairly secretive and tend to hide among the decor most of the time. To make them feel at home, place plenty of smooth pebbles and stones in the tank so they can hide easily. Avoid nippy fish which may attack the large, soft dorsal fin and the long tail.
Notes: This is probably the rarest and most sought after species of loach there is. These fish don't look that colourful at the moment, but they can turn chocolate-brown and develop a bright orange stripe which runs along the entire dorsal surface. Adults are stunning! A few have turned up in bycatch with other loaches before (especially Kuhlis), but we're not aware of a whole batch of these turning up in one go. They're one of many rare species which appear on import lists, but never arrive up when ordered. The global demand is probably high, while the supply is limited. They're fast movers and we can't imagine that they'd be easy to catch in the wild, which may explain the price.
Similar species: There are two other Vaillantella in the genus, V. cinnamomea and V. euepiptera. Check out the brilliant loaches.com and FishBase for more details on these ones.
Availability: These fish, which are probably the only ones in the UK at the moment, were imported by Tom Halvorsen Ltd (0797 7098127; www.tomhalvorsen.co.uk).
Price: This is the ultimate fish for loach fans, so expect to pay up to about £40!

 

[jarmado]

thanks
too risky for my filter.

 

[CFC]

£27 was a bargain price for such a rarely seen fish, i would have expected the price to be more around the £40-50 mark

 

[cane76]

nice find bloo and a bargain too

 

[Bloo]

Thanks CFC & cane76 I was rather surprised too, but not complaining - and they're even a lovely young adult size too!

 

[The-Lion]

How about yours? How many did you get? They are expensive though aren't they?

Apart from the first day when they were out having a good look around their new home, I’ve not seen em apart from like you say just a mouth or fin sticking out from the rocks. I got the 3 for £65 deal expensive yes but didn't give it a thought, I saw these on loach.com some time ago & have wanted them ever since had a good look around at the time but to no avail. Then I was gutted when I saw this post, as at the time I never had room for any more fish. I thought they'd be gone before my new tank was ready so imaging my joy when I saw them still available i may see if there is any left as I was wondering whether they'd be better in a bigger group like my Khullies.

 

[CFC]

£65 for 3 rarely seen fish is not expensive, i'd call that a steal. Take a look at the prices of some of the catfish and oddballs next time you are in Wildwoods, it will make you feel much better about spending just under £22 per fish

 

[Bloo]

£65 for 3 rarely seen fish is not expensive, i'd call that a steal. Take a look at the prices of some of the catfish and oddballs next time you are in Wildwoods, it will make you feel much better about spending just under £22 per fish

I totally agree. My jaw just dropped when I saw those thanks - I wanted them ALL ! (ended up walking about with a £50 L091 as well ).

I was tempted to have more (loaches) too but I didn't want to risk so much so soon for a fish that is wild caught and feeding on live food only. And potentially end up with 3 dead loaches because I don't feed enough live foods or the right variety. But (touch wood) so far so good.

I've also added a powerhead to my (already massively overfiltrated tank) because as I understand they come from fast flowing streams. And just about all my other fish are loving the current too

 

[OohFeeshy]

Bah, that's a steal, I would gladly have sold one of my kidneys on the black market for a group... How are they for hiding compared to kuhlis? I find my kuhlis love to hang out in the plastic carpeting plants you can get (like the pygmy chain sword), you can see them fairly easily and they're right near the food at feeding time.

 

[Bloo]

mmmm difficult to say I think. My kuhli experience has also varied greatly. As I've only had them a few weeks, they are definitely still shy - but I hope that in the next couple of months or so, they will feel more at home and secure and I'll see them more. And if they're still going strong a few months down the line, I'll definitely let Wildwoods know that I'd like some more!