Killie with a nonsensical name

[timebomb]

Hi, fellas,

When I was at Kingfisher Aquarium yesterday, a young man turned up at the shop and asked Ian, the owner if he was interested in buying fish. Ian asked him where he was from and the guy said "Malaysia". His van was parked behind the shop and when Ian went to take a look, I decided to tag along too.

Mostly, what the guy had were Apistos. They were packed in pairs and some were very beautiful. Ian was lifting the bags one at a time for close examination and when he lifted a bag of Killies, I was immediately interested. There were 5 pairs in the plastic bag and they looked like some sort of Fundulopanchax. The males do not look identical although they appear to be similar.

Ian wasn't interested in the Killies but when I told him privately that I will buy the whole bag, he took it from the guy. I asked but the guy said he wasn't sure of the name. He said he will check with his records kept in his van. I waited for him at the shop and when he returned, he announced sheepishly that the fish were known as "King Kong Killies" . I didn't think it was appropiate to ask for the collection code

I'll post a picture later but in the meantime, I have to say it's only a matter of time before the "Jin Gang Killie" appears in the market.

Loh K L

[hwchoy]

congratulations, you are the first customer to create a market for the killie hybrid which is specially bred for their hump heads.

[Piscesgirl]

Where are the pictures?

[RonWill]

I don't know whatever happened to the mindset of leading by example but it's inevitable that when there's a demand for something, there will always be someone willing to supply. [It's no secret that those who previously traded in Lou Hans are desperate for 'new products']

Folks,
It has taken lots of time and effort to try educate/share the conservative ideas of killie-keeping but like I've always said, what one individual or a small core-group, can do is very limited.

I'll cut to the chase; the day when 'Godzilla', 'Formula Red' and 'Jin Gang' killie becomes common thoroughfare, that's the day I'm hanging up my towel. I can't see the logic and expense in acquiring true strain specimens only to be corrupted or used for line-breeding by those who don't care.

BTW, those 'King Kong killies' may well be fallax o/e. At this point, anybody's guess is as good as mine.

[TyroneGenade]

Still very eager to see the picture...

If this is a hybrid then please race back to the petstore and tell the clerk the fish you got were real shitty and he shouldn't get anymore of the killies from this guy. By buying those fish you created a market and that market is going to grow... best kill it ASAP with a bad reputation.

We can't have blatant inter-species hybrids running around. Its just not cricket.

tt4n

[timebomb]

Still very eager to see the picture...

Well, I finally had time to take the pics. Here they are:





Can anyone tell if they are hybrids? But even if they are, I won't return them to the fish shop. I understand that hybrids are undesirable to serious Killifish hobbyists but as far as I'm concerned, the fish are innocent. As far as I'm concerned too, they're beautiful fish to me. Too bad if you don't think so.

Loh K L

[Piscesgirl]

I agree the fish are innocent!

What pretty colors, too -- do you keep them by themselves or are they with other fish? Do they seem to be somewhat non-aggressive or friendly.

[timebomb]

do you keep them by themselves or are they with other fish? Do they seem to be somewhat non-aggressive or friendly.

I don't keep them with my other Killies, Deborah. Hell no . As it is, some are already unhappy that I bought the fish. I really don't want to be seen as someone who hybridises fish too.

They're probably a species or hybrid of the Fundulopanchax so I think they are pretty aggressive fishes. They bicker among themselves but it's nothing serious. I don't know how they will react to other fish though but they seem to leave the Otos alone.

Loh K L

[hwchoy]

go back and grill Ian where he got that fish from.

[stormhawk]

They look like a cross between Fp. gardneri gardneri and Fp. scheeli, or they could just be aquarium-bred crosses between different Fp. gardneri gardneri populations.

[TyroneGenade]

My psychic powers suggest Fp. gardneri Lafia... Go have a look here.

My opinion, put them in a comfy planted tank, feed'em, love'em and see what the babies look like. I suspect they will not end up looking very different from the parents.

As regards distribution: don't dare sell'em as Lafia... Perhaps "Singapore CI 04". They do look so pretty.

tt4n

[hwchoy]

My psychic powers suggest Fp. gardneri Lafia... Go have a look here.

if you are right then their original home maybe gone by now

[stormhawk]

if you are right then their original home maybe gone by now

The same applies to several other species and also populations of some species.

[TyroneGenade]

Certainly things are getting festive in Makurdi... Go see here. No, just a joke. But that neck of the woods is very volatile and we never know for what reason(s) some of out favourite fish may cease to exist.

While we have them we shoudl work to keep them.

tt4n

[keehoe]

Loh, Lovely killies you have there. I think they looks good in your display/ planted tank. I also think they looks good in mine too
Most important thing is you and the fish are happy. Everyone of us have the right to live and to be happy. Same goes to the fish too. I do not let my parent/ grandparent decide who i should marry. Only god can decide how i should live my life and who i spend the rest of my life with.

Who trying to be god here?

[PohSan]

Who trying to be god here?

No one.

Regards,
Ong Poh San

[stormhawk]

Please do not veer too much off topic. Thank you.

[whuntley]

No, not playing God, but where would you be without your chief bloviator?

IMHO, the fish pictured is probably a GAR and not likely to be a hybrid. [Loss of fertility of subsequent generations will quickly tell if I'm wrong.]

It's interesting that the general spotting is slightly more than normal for most GAR, but about the right distribution. The unpaired fins have colors like Akure Yellow above and N'Sukka below. This could be an intermediate form, or even a crossing of those two popular strains of GAR.

I cannot tell size from the pics, but if it is in the right size range, then I bet it is GAR.

Wright

[timebomb]

Perhaps "Singapore CI 04".

I thought maybe KKK (for King Kong Killie) would sound nicer but then, that name reminds me of scoundrels wearing white hoods .

I cannot tell size from the pics, but if it is in the right size range, then I bet it is GAR.

Does that mean it's alright for me to keep the fish? :smile:

Hey, thanks a lot, Chief. You don't know how good it makes me feel to know I'm not doing anything to hurt the local Killifish scene. I just want to keep lovely Killies, that's all. The fish are in their own tank and won't be mixed with my other Killies. I have no intention of selling or distributing them. They are for my own pleasure. Here's a pic of the tank where they are kept:



Choy, I would love to know where exactly they are from too but it would be futile to ask Ian. He doesn't know either. In my conversations with many fish shop owners, they all expressed the same opinion that although they are aware that location codes, pure strains and all are important to hobbyists like us, they can't afford the luxury of only selling fish with known lineages. If they do, they're be out of business in no time. Market realities are such fish shop owners have no choice but to go along with the general trend. And the fact is, the general trend is people just want to keep lovely fish and they don't give a damn about location codes.

Loh K L

[TyroneGenade]

Those of you with a ROTOW will have to check my facts here but from what I recall 'Akure x N'Sukka' yields sterile offspring as with all the other crosses between gardneri gardneri, gardneri clauseni and nigerianus.

tt4n