Wild caught Pelvicachromis taeniatus - Nyete

**Kadina** · 03-27-2009, 07:54 PM

I think the the supervisor at my lfs has convinced me to get a pair of Pelvicachromis taeniatus 'Nyete' instead of the Apisto Borelli I was originally looking at. They arrived late last week and I asked him to hold them for me until Sunday while I do some more reading about them. He assured me that they would be fine in a 37g tank with 7 Panda corys and 10 Bloodfin Tetras. Opinions on that?

Thanks!

**Dave66** · 03-27-2009, 07:57 PM

They'll be fine, unless they breed, which they sometimes do when transferred from one body of water to another.

Actually, you should have ordered eight of the Nyetes, since pairs usually don't get along. If you let them pair up naturally you'll have a lot more success with the species.

Dave

**Kadina** · 03-30-2009, 01:23 AM

Dave, I would have loved to order 8 of them, but the bottom line is I can't afford to put out $160 dollars right now. Hopefully the pair I get will get along ok. I observed them for about 30 minutes at my lfs, but they were just hiding in the driftwood.

I picked these guys up today and I am already worried about them. They both have colored up nicely but the male keeps poking at the female causing her to shake like a seizure for a few seconds. I thought maybe this was spawning behavior, but they have only been in my tank for about 6 hours and googling it is turning up nothing. Is he picking on her? Here is a video of the behavior. Look close at the very beginning and again at the end.

http://vimeo.com/3914684

Also, here are a few general pictures of them. The first two are of the female and the second two are the male.

**frank_zappa** · 03-30-2009, 02:17 AM

wow, i wish my camera would get nice close shots like that. yours look very nice. i looked at your video and i did see him take a quick nip at her but it did not look like very much to me, i didnt notice the twitching but im gonna look again...it sounds like some type of mating thing but it could also be her saying get the heck away from me, but i have never kept them before yesterday so what do i know? do they have a few different hiding spots/caves?
i just picked up a pair of them....from what i have heard it is very common for the males to fight with the females. mine do not seem to be fighting at all at the moment but my rainbow shark chases them around alot. i added a bunch of hiding spots for them and the shark. im not toooo worried about them...from what i have heard they are tough little fish and can handle themselves. i do get a liiittle nervous though watching my 5 dollar rainbow shark chasing them. they are still very little, only inch and a half maybe. i will be watching this thread to learn as much as i can about them...

**Kadina** · 03-30-2009, 02:13 PM

I have 3 different cavelike areas in the driftwood and rocks. I am not really a fan of the clay pots, but I will add one if it is necessary. They don't seem to be hiding at all, but have been swimming around exploring the tank and nibbling at the sand and plants.

I checked on them before work this morning but my lights don't come on until later so it was difficult to get a really good look at them. No one was stuck to the filter intake or floating though!

**Lady Hobbs** · 03-30-2009, 02:20 PM

They're really pretty. This "quivering" thing reminds me of my firemouths and angels who would do this to one another. It was a warning thing of sorts and my firemouths did it all the time to their fry. I think it's just a cichlid thing.

Hey, if they don't pair up it will just save you from a bunch of babies you may not want.

They will pick out their own caves. The pots may not be tight enough for them. Rocks might work better.

**Lady Hobbs** · 03-30-2009, 02:22 PM

Just thought of something......you could make the bottom hole in the clay pots a bit larger and put the large opening against the plass. Cichlids like tight area's that nothing else can get into.

**Northernguy** · 03-30-2009, 03:11 PM

Those are great looking fish!
Good luck with them!

**KingFisher** · 03-30-2009, 03:16 PM

Great pictures! I hope you enjoy the new fish very much.

**DCguy** · 04-02-2009, 12:06 AM

Nice Fish!

The behavior you are watching is completely normal and is part of the social interactions of the fish. The female will curve greatly showing her silvery middle to the male. This behavior establishes the female as a prospective mate. You will witness a lot of this as they communicate with each other.

As the pair approach breeding condition these displays will become more vigorous and the colors of the female will get much more vivid. She will dance and flutter before him in a very impressive display. All of the P. taeniatus forms are great fish and they will give you any hours of enjoyment.

DC