Neets

[toddnbecka]

Went to the CCA meeting, and did an impulse buy on a bag of 4 1" Neetroplus nematopus. Brought them home and put them in the 40 breeder with the brown BN pleco's that also produce albino, calico, and even a few super red offspring. Then I started doing some belated research. Seems they're Nicaraguan cichlids, and uncommon in the hobby. Males grow to about 4", females 3", and they're tougher than convicts when they pair off and spawn. (Will trash other cichlids much larger than they are.) The good news is that a 40 breeder was the recommended tank size for a pair, if I do end up with (a pair) the other two will probably be killed before I can move them out. Overall they're quite unremarkable-looking little grey fish with a single oblong black spot on their sides, and unlike most cichlids their pattern doesn't change as they grow. I suspect that, along with their hyper-aggressive disposition, explains why they're uncommon. When they show spawning colors the grey becomes black and the spot becomes white, and they look similar to Tropheus duboise, which is why they're called "poor man's tropheus".
Feisty little buggers, no sooner were they in the tank than 3 of them started arguing over a terracotta cave. Not nearly big/mature enough to spawn yet, and they're already sizing up the first cave they saw. I LOL'd when I read that in the wild they chase nicaraguense cichlids out of their nests and take over their territory. The nicaraguense are remarkable for the fact that they also care for dovii cichlid fry along with their own. It seems that adult dovii are the main predator of the neets.