• We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo

Paratilapia sp Andapa

Thanks Jose & Jim, very sage advice as always!

My female Paratilapia Bleekeri is about 6.5 inches now. I've had her for over a year and she was about 2 inches upon arrival. I've only kept one because of tank space & focusing on my Tarantsy and Dambas, but will have more room soon after an upgrade. If I were to obtain more, would she be ok/accepting of juvies of her species?
What are your thoughts regarding pair bonds? Specifically the strength of their bond during non spawning periods. I find this behavior particularly fascinating and would love to hear more about your experiences.

Sent from my Nexus 10 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
 
LS2012 said:
My female Paratilapia Bleekeri is about 6.5 inches now. I've had her for over a year and she was about 2 inches upon arrival.
If I were to obtain more, would she be ok/accepting of juvies of her species?
What are your thoughts regarding pair bonds? Specifically the strength of their bond during non spawning periods. I find this behavior particularly fascinating and would love to hear more about your experiences.
Click to expand...
The bond between a pair of Paratilapia, regardless of the species, is fragile if you keep just one pair in a tank. The make will focus on the lone female a chase her even if they have mated before, ultimately one if them jumps or dies at the hands/fins! of the other. If you keep more than a pair, males will display against one another and leave the females alone.
The best way to get them to breed in a small tank, is to provide lots of cover, natural plants work well or plastic ones too- you need enough to loose sight of the back of the tank- alternatively, caves where only the female fits are useful too. I used lots of natural plants once with great results, a little trick I learned from our friends in France and Greece- George Reclos- look him up on an old web site- Malawi home page- can't remember the name exactly.
I once had a male that I got a while after I had acquired my first female- he was 1/2 the size of the female and hit it off great. The display of mating Paratilapia is like no other, male and female will circle each other, shake their caudal fins vertically in rapid succession. They move from place to place all over the tank until a pit is dug and spawning ensues. They may have frontal displays in a variety of angles with lateral shakes. It is really exciting to see ☺️.
My make ended up killing the lone female once he was bigger after about 3 spawns. So pairing is never a guarantee that your male interest for the female is only to live in peace.
Unfortunately, there are tons of hybrids as people mix fish if the have small or large spots without regard for the place of origin. Paratilapia bleekeri was described as a species but to my understanding was never available to the fish trade. It is now extinct or it has not been collected since it was described. Not sure if anyone knows otherwise-so I would try to find out place of origin if possible, otherwise, enjoy your fish- maybe a cool mix of spots will show up. Mine were hybrids when I started long ago so my fry were nice looking but because I've become more focused on keeping "pure" strains, I removed all of them.
 
Jose, so you are doubtful that fish marketed as bleekeri are pure?
I have been under the impression that some reputable breeders have kept them without hybridizing x polleni.
 
petspoiler said:
Jose, so you are doubtful that fish marketed as bleekeri are pure?
I have been under the impression that some reputable breeders have kept them without hybridizing x polleni.
Click to expand...
What I'm saying is that bleekeri was never in the hobby and folks called "Paratilapia large spot" bleekeri regardless where it came from. There are 8 or more described species so it's not enough to call them large vs small spot as most people do. Often small spot Paratilapia are mixed together though they may be different species. It may be less of an issue with the "large spot" since there are only 2 species in the US-
 
Thank you very much Jose! Yes, were familiar with George & Marina's admirable work. They were one of the first resources we found and will revisit their material. The MCH portal has a wealth of information. We've been in touch with them as well through MADFISH ~ that's actually how we first learned of your extensive knowledge :) Our Paratilapia was obtained from Jeff Rapps here in NJ. If I'm remembering correctly, she was listed as large spot 'marakely' and I think that's Central highlands? I will reach out to Jeff to see if he has more specific info regarding place of origin. Following your path, were not interested in creating hybrids with any species and desire "pure" strains. I'd imagine it will be difficult to achieve, but hopefully not impossible!
Regards,
Laurie

Sent from my Nexus 10 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
 
Stunning specimen .......
 
So I've kept Polleni for a few years now and I'm aware of Bleekeri, but Andapa is a new one for me. What are the biggest differences between the Andapa and Polleni/Bleekeri etc.? To be honest, the more I read on them, the more confusing it seems.
 
dent20 said:
So I've kept Polleni for a few years now and I'm aware of Bleekeri, but Andapa is a new one for me. What are the biggest differences between the Andapa and Polleni/Bleekeri etc.? To be honest, the more I read on them, the more confusing it seems.
Click to expand...

The issue is actually more complicated than people realize. Paul Loiselle, the expert on Malagasy cichlids, published a nice excerpt in the ACA sanctioned Buntbarsche Bulletin #267 Dec 2011. There he lists 11 species.
The problem is that when Paratilapia are preserved in alcohol the large spots shrink dramatically so Paratilapia polleni actually is a large spot Paratilapia and Paratilapia bleekeri has not been available in the aquarium trade.
Paratilapia sp Andapa I'd a very large spot Paratilapia with a bright yellow margin in the dorsal fin. For more pictures and discussion, refer to the work by Dr Loiselle, it is impressive.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top