got some more Tang! ;)

[Overawed]

I am all excited! I traded in 7 Red Zebras for a juvie A. Calvus yesterday!! :dance:

I think he/ she will be a black one too!

Hes in a holding tank now with about 13 Red Eureka juvies and one battered up Placidochromis Phenochilus juvie. They all seem to be getting along fine.

I was a bit worried last night because this Calvus had a sunken belly, but now after a few feedings he/she seems to be fine.

I have always wanted one of these beauts. Please excuse my squelings. I just had to tell someone!

Does anyone know how to tell the diff between a male and female? I know females are smaller, but are there any other clues besides venting?

[SGypsyMermaid]

how exciting!! i think that those fish are sensational! can't wait to see the pics once he/she is fattened up.:D

[aharris]

According to what I've read, females will tend to be more bullet-shaped and less high-bodied. If all the fish you choose from are the same age, choosing one larger one and several smaller ones is supposed to be about the best you can do (but mine are 1"+ and have years to go). And that was information on Altocomps; I assume probably wrongly :oops: that that info would hold true for calvus?

Although, congrats! I just adore my Mwelas. Perfect little tigers one and all.

[merlyn2221]

:party:

How cool!!! I love those guys. Oooo, maybe it's an "inkfin." They are beautiful!
Just be careful to make sure he/she eats at feeding time. They aren't usually aggressive eaters and sometimes miss meals, hence the sunken belly of yours.

I have an Alto. compressiceps "mwela" which is similar to your calvus. The calvus' fins are a bit higher and broader. As aharris mentioned, you cannot really tell the sex difference, but every source I have read about them states the males to be higher bodied, higher fins, and larger than females.
I've been dealing recently with a man who has kept calvus and comps for years and he told me that it is nearly impossible to tell who is who until they grow fairly large 3+ inches, and that pretty much takes forever since they grow so slowly. Then he can vent them. He did mention though, the more expensive way to tell if you have a male is to put it in with other suspected males and see who gets killed off (since they will systematically eliminate all other males), but of course he doesn't recommend this! (Obviously that was his feeble attempt at humor.) :rolleyes:

[Overawed]

I could use it as an excuse to get more Calvus :cool:

I am worried about the little scutter today. He did not eat. He went up to the food and did not eat it. This happened before with a Moori I got from the same store. The Moori passed after a week.

Last night the Calvus ate very well, but this morning nothing. I am keeping a close eye on him and keeping my fingers crossed.

[stefanos.f]

Well I wish u good luck with your Al.calvus but I wouldnt worry about him/her that much, I also have 5 Al.calvus ''Congo Black Fin'' in my big tank and two of them seem not to eat for over two months now but they are still doing fine! To give you a litle hint about the questions you have check these pages... http://members.madasafish.com/~fishyweb/Tang/a_calvus.htm or www.ohiexchange.com/armke/fishpages/fpage_alto_calvus_blackfin.html or www.acay.com.au/~amarsh/breeding.html or http://ftp.apci.net/~m83/docalto.html or http://members.ozemail.com.au/~gregure/calvus.htm or http://petsforum.com/cichlidroom/askpam/p077.html Hope I helped.

[Overawed]

Wow thanks for all the links Stefanos. Good to see you back posting!

http://ftp.apci.net/~m83/docalto.html provided me with all the info I needed. I had the temp up too high on that tank for the battered Plcidochromis, I have since lowered it.

Thanks as well for your take on my Calvus. I will keep a good eye on him. He ate well last night. This morning he/she went for food but did not take it in. Perhaps he/she prefers more brine shrimp. The calvus is swimming around fine and does not seem to be bothered by anything else. I just hope he/she makes it.

[Overawed]

he/she is actually eating now. He was waiting out for the good stuff, IE: brine shrimp.

I've got a spoiled fish on my hands. ;)

[merlyn2221]

Apparently his mamma didn't raise any fool!:D

Good for him...he will grow big and strong! :)

[Overawed]

:( He/she passed last night. I don't know what happened. The temp in the tank dropped down to 76 F, it was at 80F. I don't think that was it though. As I mentioned he was not eating that well, even the brine shrimp was consumed slowly. Its all speculation, but having had a Moori from the same store die the same way, I have to think its internal parasites.

Really sucks, but I will just have to get over it and hopefully find another Calvus.

[merlyn2221]

:bawl: That sucks!
If you should get another, I would treat it for internal parasites, anyway, just to be sure. I always worry about that issue since I really think stress brings it on.

[Boilermaker]

Sorry about your loss Overawed:(
I don't know Florida but you've got to be in fish heaven there, with all the fish farms, will they sell to you or do they only do commercial sales?

[Overawed]

Thanks everyone, I really wanted a calvus. The whole tank at the LFS were I got my guy from died as well, so something was up. I am very sad because I sold many fish to this store and all of my babies are dying because they have not kept their tanks up. :mad: :mad:

Plus, I changed too much water on his tank a day before he died. And I mentioned the temp drop. So all of those things in combo with his stress killed the lil guy. :(

Boilermaker, yes FLA is fish heaven. I have a farm right down the street from me in fact in a residential neighbohood. The guy is very secretive and says he wants to get to know me better before he will invite me over.

Many of the farms here suck from what I've heard. They let too many fish cross breed and bad stuff like that. The place Pet Smart gets its fish from is a bad one. I can imagine that down south of here there are better farms. I've heard of a good one from Tampa, but have not bought any from them.

[merlyn2221]

Originally posted by Overawed
I have a farm right down the street from me in fact in a residential neighbohood. The guy is very secretive and says he wants to get to know me better before he will invite me over.


:rofl2: Sorry this just stikes me as being very funny!

Does he think you are practicing fishspionage? Or does he just breed some really exotic fish? Are the fish secrect government weapons? Pardon my joking manner, but I really don't understand why a person with a "fish farm" in his backyard would be so secretive, unless it is illegal to have one there?

[Overawed]

:rofl2: It probably is illegal.

sir I am with the FBI and we would like to see your back yard

[SGypsyMermaid]

yeah...you usually can't run commercial enterprises in residential neighborhoods.

[jonah]

It probably would depend on what kind of enterprise you're running. Lots of people run home businesses, but a fish farm might be pushing the limits of the local zoning ordinances.

[merlyn2221]

Wait, OA, I got a great idea...

I'm with the Florida Fish and Game Department, and I'll need to confiscate any fish you are illegally farming, especially those cichlids. We've been getting reports that they are very aggressive and could pose a public health hazard.

Then you can stock your tanks and start your own mail order business at the same time.

Just don't forget your friends at the Cichlid Forums!


:sygypsy: :rofl2:

[Overawed]

I'll build an army of cichlids and take over the world :twisted: muha muhaha muwhaha *cough cough*

[merlyn2221]

Glad to see someone else out there is as crazy as I am! :dance:

:rofl2:

[Boilermaker]

Lol :rofl: that struck me as being funny also, probaly dealing other stuff also or use too. :nervous:

[aharris]

What are we going to do tonight, Brain?

The same thing we do every night, Pinky. Try to take over the world!!