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Mystroe_TheMyst

Mystroe_TheMyst

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Dec 16, 2002
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I have learnt that people often don't bother with threads with boring names. that aside, how to breed keyholes? I have a male and female, i'm assuming the man at the lfs was right, he is a good mate of mine. Male is dark and bigger, whereas the female hardly ever shows darkness aroun the body.

they are in a 30", main questions are what sorts of housing do they prefer, and what type of dithers (if any) should be with them.

Atm they are with a gourami and 2 kuhli loaches.

:) Thanks
 
I would worry about aggression toward the gourami if they spawn, but they may also do just fine. I would worry more about the kuhli loaches eating the eggs and wigglers before they were old enough to escape. I think keyholes are subsrate spawners that will lay eggs on flat rocks and depressions in the substrate (easy to defend against a sigle slow gourami, but a couple of loaches could down a lot of eggs in a hurry). Feed them a variety of frozen foods (live if possible). If they don't spawn on thier own, then do a larger than normal water change using water that is a few degrees colder than the tank water. Depending on the hardness of the water, you might have to use water that comes from reverse osmosis or has been distilled. Not sure of thier exact preferences, but most SA dwarfs prefer a hardness below 100ppm (25-50ppm would probably be ideal). Good luck mate!
 
I agree with the previous post, and the keyholes like planted tanks, with floating plants included. They are shy fish. The plants can be real or plastic - I would go with plastic if you're not 'into' live plants, the fish won't care. Most hobby fish come from Florida or Singapore (unless you know they were wild-caught) and are somewhat less fussy about exact pH or GH/KH numbers. They are more concerned with cleanliness, in my humble opinion
 
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Agreed, good clean water is imperative, but this can be provided with regular water changes and nothing more than a sponge filter. However when spawning is concerned, a GH that is too high can keep some SA dwarf cichlid eggs from becoming fertilized. High gh causes the outside layer of the egg to harden and makes it imposible for the sperm to fertilize the egg (No proof on this, just forum lore). Not sure how low keyholes need it. If anyone knows please let us know.
 
thanks guys for your reply, sorry it took so long for you to have feedback. I did a larger than normal water change because i built a new fish stand and moved tanks, so it might take them awhile to settle in again. my male is looking better atm more healthy and such. as with flat surfaces for egg laying, what colour do you propose? i have a ceramic sugar bowl in there that is white and blue, a brown pot and a cement pipe and some drift wood. I am going to turn off the heater soon its getting warmer over here in oz so maybe that will help. I will keep you guys posted, thanks a l ot fo the info
 
Checking the literature I have it stated that the Keyhole (Cleithracara maronii) is from Surinam - Rio Maroni. It suggested that keyholes are very shy and need lots of hiding spaces and quiet dither fish.
The soft, slightly acid parameters seem to indicate a pH of 6 to 6.5. DH 0 to 80 ppm calcium carbonate. 0 to 50 ppm is considered very soft and 50 to 100 ppm is considered moderately soft. No values for GH were given, but it was implied as around the same values.
It also mentioned they are moderately difficult to breed and are "notorious" spawn eaters.
Just wanted to add some more info. The book is from "The Fishkeepers Guide to ..." series.
BobC
 
calcium carbonate, i thought that was for more hard water species, like african cich's etc. i don't have any of that, but i can soften the pH right down though. My tap water is pretty hard i guess. So next water change i'll lower the pH slightly and gradually introduce them. My keyholes aren't into hiding that much they always are wondering around, maybe i'll put some more caves in if i feel they are bored with the tank.

not too sure about my GH and KH, i think they sit above 0 cause i get that hard white caking on the lids of my tank. I think that is how you tell it is higher than supposed to be. (for soft pH fish anyway)
 
Calcium carbonate in ppm is a measure of the waters kH (Calcium hardness in german degrees, they spell calcium with a K) This is how most hobbiest test kits measure buffering capacity (how much your water resists changes in ph). If you have high kH then it will be very difficult to lower your ph. gH is general hardness. You will need to find out what your values are and if neccesary mix RO or distilled water with your tap water to lower the hardness. Peat or other additives can lower the ph, but will do little to lower hardness.
 
ahh i see, well taking all the into account, how does the general pH down stuff works? Its just like what seems like acidic powder, so will that lower pH and keep all the other KH and GH parameters the same then?
 
It will not alter gh (the most important factor for apisto fertility). It will use up your kh (buffering capicity) in order to lower the ph. The only way to lower gh is to cut the water with distilled or run it through an RO filter. Grocery stores here in the US have "Culligan Water" machines that use RO. I take a 5g bucket in and fill it up. It costs about .35/gallon. Not to steep when your just doing water changes on 10g.
 
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