African Tiger Fish (Hydrocynus) ID and Care Guide 3.0
- Thread starter Chicxulub
- Start date
Big eye ?
Vatf complex, almost certainly H. vittatus sensu lato; in other words, an off chance it's big eye or stout vatf, but I'm fairly certain it will proof out to just be a nice vatf.
I personally think these are not vatfs. I think these are batf. I'll just grow them out and come back with the result months later haha
They've got two scales between the pelvic fin and the lateral line. One of them has three scales.
Beyond that, they have zero characteristic traits of being a Sahelian species. These are absolutely in the vatf species complex.
You've got a far better chance of having true tatf on your hands with these fish than you do of them being batf. Even then, without a firm collection point, we can't really say for certain that it is a tatf until it's big enough to get really pedantic with scale and ray counts. Your fish that looks just like a vatf which displays vatf ID characteristics is almost certainly either a vatf or something closely related to a vatf.
You've got something unique and special there to be sure, possibly even something new, (there are after all genetic lines that we've likely not seen in the hobby yet) but it is not a brevis.
Beyond that, they have zero characteristic traits of being a Sahelian species. These are absolutely in the vatf species complex.
You've got a far better chance of having true tatf on your hands with these fish than you do of them being batf. Even then, without a firm collection point, we can't really say for certain that it is a tatf until it's big enough to get really pedantic with scale and ray counts. Your fish that looks just like a vatf which displays vatf ID characteristics is almost certainly either a vatf or something closely related to a vatf.
You've got something unique and special there to be sure, possibly even something new, (there are after all genetic lines that we've likely not seen in the hobby yet) but it is not a brevis.
Well. It's that enormous adispose fin that makes it a batf to me. As for the scale count I can't even count it cause I can't see it clearly. I'll try to take a good pic of its scales. It's a batf to me. Just my opinion tho.
Often but not always larger than other ATF species. Even if we agreed that your fish has an unusually large adipose fin (it doesn't, it's fairly typical for vatf), you're still missing the other key adipose trait for brevis: the grey stripe on the outer edge of the black fin. The tank is set up in such a way that your fish has nice, rich colors. You've got a decent camera that can get clear pictures. The fins, to include the adipose fin, are dark. Your fish shows exceptionally good contrast. There's no reason that this stripe would be missing if it was brevis.
Combine that with the fact that it just flat doesn't look like a brevis, and it's pretty clear you have a vatf complex fish. You can't pick and choose one whole trait, especially a trait that is caveated with "often", while ignoring everything else proving you wrong and say you've got a species that doesn't match the traits of said species.
On top of ALL of that, we have the fact that this fish is part of a shipment of fish that contain vittatus. Vittatus come from the Congo region, and south and east of there. Brevis are most often imported from Nigeria, sometimes from farther west and north. They do not share a range.
Full stop.
You're effectively claiming that a brevis somehow got mixed into a shipment of vatf, which is, at absolute best, placing a contaminant brevis a thousand miles outside of it's native range.
Regardless, we shall see. Expect me to correct you everywhere I see you make this claim. You've got a fairly obvious vatf complex fish there sir; one that is gorgeous, exceptionally well cared for, and almost certainly something just as unique and unusual as a brevis- a stout vatf.
Appreciate what you have, don't make it something it's not.
I know it's a vatf. I just have a slight feeling that it might be a brevis. Cause the shipment came from Cameroon and I saw the other atf species that was same batch to my fish. My fish is a 99.9 percent vatf. It's just that the 0.01 percent is bugging me
I know it's a vatf. I just have a slight feeling that it might be a brevis. Cause the shipment came from Cameroon and I saw the other atf species that was same batch to my fish. My fish is a 99.9 percent vatf. It's just that the 0.01 percent is bugging me
I get that.
I really respect and appreciate your enthusiasm for this genus. It's been a shot in my arm in this hobby, and I thank you for that
The only genus I'm interested and investing money haha! Oh btw I took a picture of one of the vatfs. 3 scale count ? maybe I have 6 stout vatfs ???I get that.
I really respect and appreciate your enthusiasm for this genus. It's been a shot in my arm in this hobby, and I thank you for that
