Top-imports february

Aseach monthwe present thetop 5fishimportssponsored byAquarium Glaser!

First PlacePanther crabs from Sulawesi

The Panther crabs (Parathelphusa pantherina) are for sure the most attractive of all freshwater crabs. They originate from Matano lake in Sulawesi, where they can be also found under roots etc. on the shore. The animals are, like almost all crabs, omnivorous. However, most food items taken are from animal origin. The maximum width of the carapace is about 5-6 cm.

Second placeXiphophorus hellerii Vienna Lyra

Even in wild living swordtails one can observe the tendency in females to mate only with the most impressive males. And so in swordtails the swordfin developed. This fin is obviously a pure luxury without any practical use, comparable best with the train in male peacocks. The only use of this is to impress the females.
Under human care even luxury genes can become established which are already inherent genetically in wild fish, but which cannot become established in the wild for several reasons. One of these genes is the lyra factor in swordtails. This gene leads to a prolongation of all fins (except the ventral fins) in both sexes – also in females! These females find lyra males very sexy, but their desire cannot be fulfilled by lyra males. For the copulation organ of male swordtails (the gonopodium) is also a modified fin (the anal fin) and thus much too long for use. You know the saying “have you ever tried to play mikado with cooked spaghetti”?
So one must use normal finned swordtail males for breeding. The offspring of the cross normal finned and lyra contains only in part lyra finned specimens. This makes breeding lyra finned swordtail quite elaborate.

Third placeGuppy Blue Sapphire

Once more the breeders in Asia have developed a new, very nice guppy sport. The name “Blue Sapphire” is well chosen, for the fish shine in frontlight bright blue. Technically spoken, the “Blue Sapphire” is a sport of the Moskow strain of Guppy.
One could name these little gems also “chameleon guppy”, for the males become deep black on the forebody during displaying. The pictures show the very same two males, each one in normal and in breeding condition. Astonishing, isn‘t it?

Fourth placeNannacara Neon Blue

For all aquarists that feel that Electric Blue Rams are too delicate and Rocio octofasciata “Blue Dempsey” too aggressive: here is an alternative breed from Singapore. The fish are sold under the name of “Nannacara Neon Blue”. Despite the fact that we are quite sure that these fish do not belong to the genus Nannacara at all: their coloration is really fantastic! The photographed fish are about 5 cm long and seem to be fully grown already.

Fifth placeSmall Neon Ricefish

For the first time ever we can offer now wild collected Neon Ricefish at a size of 1.5-2 cm. The charming fish are very lively and healthy. They belong to the species O. wolasi, which was known in the hobby as O. cf. woworae before its scientific description. The final size of the fish will be around 4 cm.


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