My Calvus Surprised me Today...

You could trade them as "hobby-strain" Calvuses...I don't think anyone would have too much of a problem with that unless they were afraid that someone would call them one race based on phenotype.
Yeah, that's exactly what I'm worried about. If they're obviously mixed I wouldn't have so much of problem with it, but if they turn out both black and white, I'd hate to have them end up at the LFS store labeled as something they're not. Mine may be hybrids for all I know, though they show good coloration for their respective strains.
 
hey afro i am like you as well on the hybrid issue but if you do have a few extra mutts i could take some off your hands and no i will not let them into circulation just a thought, mine are still way to young but i have the golds and blacks together in my 120gal and i have extra tanks for slow growing fry, yeah i thought you knew that calvus were shell breeders aye pretty cool and yes the male if he is able to poke his head in the shell he will grab a few eggs or fry if given the chance but usually the female acts as a wedge so he can not get to them, man thats awesome i cant wait til my calvus spawn, good job buddy..
I'd certainly be willing to come off some to people just looking for a few extra fish. We'll see how it goes, I'm sure I have room to raise a few in the main tank. Would be a few months down the road, I'm not good at target feeding my fry in the main tank, though they still grow faster than in my breeding tank.
 
cool deal buddy yep they are some slow growing fishes for sure and it would be like 2 to 3 months before you could do anything but yep i would enjoy a few fry from calvus i hope mine do in time, as for target feeding in a main tank yeah i dont do it either and you are so true it seems they grow faster in a main tank than a breeder tank, coolness my friend well if you need any multis let me know i can send you some.. later buddy..
 
Yeah, that's exactly what I'm worried about. If
they're obviously mixed I wouldn't have so much of problem with it, but if they turn out both black and white, I'd hate to have them end up at the LFS store labeled as something they're not. Mine may be hybrids for all I know, though they show good coloration for their respective strains.

I respect the heck out of hobbyists who go the extra mile to make sure that their fish aren't misrepresented! Here's hoping that they turn out to be an obvious mix, though, so you can sell a few. :)
 
Yeah I'm sure I will to an extent. I'll trade with hobbyists I know, but I just have to resist the urge to bring any to the LFS. I trade Brichardi and Geophagus offspring to them for food and supplies, but I don't trust them as far as hybrids go. They're good people and would no doubt tell prospective buyers if asked, but I don't think they'd offer the info otherwise. There's always a tank full of mixed Mbunas and Aulonocara there, and that just sucks. It's one of the reasons I switched to Tangs. Not that there's anything wrong with hybrids per se, but they do drive down the price, not to mention the fact that someday hobbyist tanks will be the only place to find some of these fish on earth... it's happened already.
 
yeah i thought you knew that calvus were shell breeders aye pretty cool and yes the male if he is able to poke his head in the shell he will grab a few eggs or fry if given the chance but usually the female acts as a wedge so he can not get to them, man thats awesome i cant wait til my calvus spawn, good job buddy..
You know, I've read breeding accounts on Calvus and had read that they spawn in the wild in shells, but I assumed that in aquaria they would just use the next best thing, cave or whatnot. I added that particular shell earlier this week when I cleared out the last remaining remaining Brichardi pair, and she moved right in. Pretty neat. Even having been captive for several generations they retain that instinct.
She needs a bit larger shell I think, as she can't remain inside this one very long. It's just large enough to fit in, but she's back out after just a few seconds. I'm going to find a few more today. I have an abundance of both apple snail shells and conch shells available here, just depends on whether I feel like cruising the beach or the riverbed. Which would be better for her? I've read that it's possible for her to become trapped inside, but I need something small enough to keep the male out. Fortunately, he's much larger than her. I'm just curious as to which shell would have the best interior design to accomplish both goals.
 
hey afro i have an assortment of shells whale eye, escargot and marine shells, i do have a lot of extras on hand with the escargot shells if you need some let me know i can send you some, my personal fave are the smaller conch shells for calvus and actually thats how i caught mine to move to the 120gal is scared them into the shell and removed the shell from my tank really easy at that point, i believe the escargot should work but as you mentioned may be too small later on, we have a hobby lobby that sells the small conchs at an affordable price, later buddy..
 
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