I need some input and idea's of keeping & breeding Altolamprologus calvus please?

ok, I will give this a shot, however believe it or not AP has actually been very successful breeding both comps and calvus. Yeah its crazy- he couldnt breed yellow labids- but he bred alto's blinky

Finding a pair...
Its best to find calvus of the same age, the male is substantially bigger than the female at the same age. Usually two years and up is when they will breed for you.
They are egg layers, so find a shell that the female can get into. She will lay the eggs and disappear for a few weeks inside the shell. The male will stand guard outside and allow nothing to come near the opening of the shell- not even a fish net. As with most egg layers, the spawns are large, usually 50+

Alto's grow extremely slowly, so when you grab a pair, you may want to shoot for adult's to start with (male 3.5" and up, female at least 2.5" and up) Fry grow moderately quickly to about 3/4", then they seem to take forever to grow. Warm temps, multiple daily feedings, and the more water changes- the better- to accellerate their growth.

Calvus will thrive in a species only tank or with other smaller tangs such as shell dwellers, cyprichromis and paracyprichromis species. They are often slow moving and prefer cracks and crevices. This is why its not advised as a fish to incorporate into a mbuna tank as they will most likely be stressed by the activity of the malawians and become shy and reclusive.

Calvus are fairly resilient against hostile fish due in part to the scales on their sides. They will arch their bodies in a "C" shape which raises their sharp body scales. As a result the attacking fish may incurr some abrassions on their mouth.

Sorry if I sound like a text book, I probably forgot more than I remember about the fish that I have had since taking a break from the hobby
They are cool fish, hope that helps

Yes it helped Les, Thank you. I thought either yourself or AP would answer this Tres Bien!

I am doing my homework for many fish i have in mind and CF makes it sound much harder than you just explained.

CF is tough sometimes. It didnt start out that way but it's evolved into that. You get lots of members who think they know everything because they have egos

While that forum has lots of activity, there is a higher percentage of "internet hobbysists". What I mean is, they are hobbyists who talk as if they know what they are talking about, but in reality they have read more about other people's experiences on forums and just repeat that- as opposed to actually having the years and experience under their belt.

Dont just take my word on that- ask some of the members who have been around on boards for the last 5 years...Ask Klaus for instance.
And before I offend anyone with my opinion, I think Kim keeps that place on level ground sometimes

Breeding calvus is super easy- trust me. Give them a shell and it just happens

Yes i understand what you mean Les. I have been reading many different websites these few days...way too many :FAINTLY:

Also have contacted many fish exporters in the world for my order and things are looking very good Tres Bien!

By the way Les what types of shells are you talking about? Sea shells, shells from Lakes or any shells?

Cheers!!!

I wonder where AP is Hmmmm

AP is at work, but he is a machinist- so he has no access to email until the evening, Tonight he may be on late, he sometimes comes over my house after work....and I have lots of fish work to do tonight Tres Bien!

ummm...what works well is a sea shell- something like this is what both AP and I have used:



They actually make breeding things for alto's to spawn in, they have a tear drop shaped opening...but unless you just want to spend money, they are unnecessary.

Ideally, try and fins any kind of a shell similar to what I have posted that the female can go inside of, she will lay the eggs and stay inside with them.

Often times, you wont see the female and not know she has spawned- until you see the male start standing guard at the entrance.

These shells work with many fish, even my pleco's use them, note the orange eggs inside the shell. After I snapped the first pic, the male pleco even guarded the entrance. Calvus will protect their eggs inside the shell as well

Good info and nice pix Tres Bien!

Well "Gee",,,looks like Les has covered most of the basics.

Always remember though,,,this shell can only be big enough for the FEMALE,,,and NOT the male. The male/female will do the "chicken dance" in front of the shell,,,when the male releases his "milt' the female then fans it into the shell and disappears for a while only to stick her face out when she sees food. Sometimes she will come out for a quick swim around while watching her shell,,,,if she senses a fish going to it,,,,she will dart,,,and I mean DART back to the shell and ward off whatever is trying to get in. The male will protect the shell as well. Trust me,,one time when I was cleaning and moving somethings around in the tank,,I moved a rock from in front of a shell,,I didn't even know they were next to it,,,WHACK,,,,the male bit me and drew blood. That hurt.

If your looking to breed right away,,I would recommend you get adults. This way..if you were to wait and let them grow a bit,,you may have to get at least 3-4 fish depending on the size. Les is right when saying the male will be bigger and more "elevated" or "wider" bodied from bottom to top,,not exactly from nose to tail. They also have longer fins than the female. In the name Altolamprologus,,,Alto.-means "high".

"Gee",,if you decide to start with smaller ones,,,they are like any other fish pairing off. They will swim together and chase away any unwanted companion. Usually this fish will be forced to hang out at the top of the water level. IME.
Two males will compete like any other fish,,,then the dominant one will have the better colors, and his fins HIGH.

Feeding,,,I feed all my fish Brine Shrimp Flake and Veggie Flake from Kens Fish.
They love it. And if you have other egg layers in the tank,,,they'll get them too. These Altos are like mice,,,if they can get their nose in it,,the they can get their body in it. The can get into even the smallest and thinnest crevices.

"Gee", if and when they breed,,I'll tell ya. The fry are VERY sensitive to water changes,,,you may not want to do water changes for a couple weeks when they are free swimming. But,,,when you see the parents doing the "chicken dance", maybe do a 25% water change and that's it. Let them go. Tres Bien!
And the eggs,,,well you WONT see them as she fans them all the way into the back of the shell. Almost like the "shelf" part around the back of the Conch Shell.

Furthermore,,,I have learned that the parents are excellent parents,,you can leave the fry in the tank with them. Unless you have other fish in there,,,sure the parents will protect them,,,but its hard to save all out of 80-110 fry from becoming snacks for bigger fish. And the fry,,,smallest fry I have ever seen.

Protecting themselves,,,this is very interesting to see. As Les mentioned, if they are "bullied", it is because they seem to be "shy" and "weak", but I'll tell ya,,,when they arch their bodies at a nibbling fish,,that fish will have abrasions on it's lips. So dont be alarmed if you see it looking like it is have an epileptic fit,,it's only pertecting itself.

Which brings me to another surprise. When the pair is ready to "dance" the male WILL,,and I mean WILL,, "attack" the female. Spearing at her,,biting,and nose diving at her. Only to let her know he's ready. You'll notice that he'll try to coax her next to the opening of the shell,,and he'll keep doing it until she gives in.

"Gee", don't let anybody tell you that you CANNOT keep multiple Calvus or Comps together in one tank. IME,,,,I have kept more than 3-4 pair of each in a 55gal. with no problems. Common sense,,you had to aquascape accordingly,,,lots of rock work,,plenty of shells for all pairs,,a couple plants to "separate" the tank,,and a watchful eye.

Have you considered Compressiceps. These IMO,,,have more of a variety to choose from. But all have the same characteristics.

Keep us posted. AP.

Here are a couple pic I had a while ago. enjoy.

AP, I hate reading alot! but that was so interesting that i wished it didnt finish Bouncy

About the Compressiceps i'm not sure which are available at the moment but the guy i am emailing at the moment said he can get me any Cichlids i want Now this should be good! ...i just hope its all good!

So you think i should put Altos and Comps together? How many? and what size tank do you suggest?

Cheers!!!

Your pix sort of showed up after i just posted and i can see a Kendalli with the Altos? are they?

I know,,,sorry,,but these Altos are what I have had most. And when I start writing about what I have exp. with,,I dont shut up. idunno


Thats a Transcriptus Bemba.

Well,,it all depends on how many you want and tank size????? Adults or Juvies???

It can be done,,but I caution,,you are finsihing up a very big fish room and I am assuming you are looking to fill alot of tanks. So maybe you should start with one specie per tank??? This way you can keep them seperat and be able to not worry about them being together.

Although I have had them in together,,,I only had three tanks to watch. Tres Bien!

Curious though,,,,you looking for WC or tank raised???????

And who are you e-mailing with if I may ask?? Does he ship to the States????

Well all my tanks in the fishroom are one water cause i'm using a central filtration. I am going to be housing mostly Malawi in them and not sure about mixing Tanganyikan in the same water parameters, still doing my homework. I am going to be adding around 4 seperate big tanks for the big fishies i have in mind and might also add another few smaller ones...crazy i know but i want so many of these fish :FAINTLY:

Another thing is that nobody in Bahrain has ever done a fish breeding project so i will be the first. Also i always think if you want to do something then do it right...or BIG blinky

If some of the things i am saying dont make sense then thats cause i am sitting here with my good friend JD & Coke and its around 4am and very tired twitchy

Ooops looks like i forgot to write the rest dumb dumb

WC or tank raised i'm not sure yet as i said i will get back to him after i made my list. I think they ship worldwide, will check and let you know.

OK then,,,,after learing about these Altos and knowing what I know now.

I would start with WC adults or if you can find big enough tank raised,,,get them.

1. Do an all species tank with 1m/4f. with as many shells as females.
2. A 55 gallon tank will be fine for at least 8-10 of them if you choose juvies..or 2 adult males 8 adult femalest They'll pair off and go their own way.
3. You can limit the Calvus or Comp to a pair if you choose adults and add dither fish. (Cyps., even Yellow Labids are fine., Acei,)

He ships worldwide???? UH OH,,,the possibilities. I have NEVER purchased any fish on-line and had them delivered. The risk and looking for a legitamate source always scares me away from that route.

You know "Gee",,,you can even put a couple Calvus or Comps in with Frontosa.
Both fish are very timid and dont bother much others. Thats a nice looking tank to have.

Very helpful stuff my friend. Fronts are on my list too and i was going to have them in their own 200 Gallon tank...might mix.

Alto's can be somewhat timid, with that characteristic in mind, you might want to look for some tank raised ones to start off with. In my experience, they seemed a bit more confident.

One other thing to keep in mind, if you add fronts to your alto tank, just know that its fairly important to start with adult size altos, otherwise the fronts will grow much more quickly and you might have a situation on your hand. Its not uncommon in large tank for a 2" front to grow to 5/6 inches or more in about 8 months.

I wish you were in the states, I would give you all the fronts you want Tres Bien!

I think in the beginning,,,it would be as good idea to mix. This way,,IMO,,you'd be able to relax a bit and enjoy the tanks without worrying about which fish are getting along,,which fish are going to pair up. If you mix tanks, obviously you would not have multiple pairs, male fighting over females and possibly losing some. (make sense)? So when you see them paring off,,,then you'd have it easier when you want to put them in their own tanks...

Keep us posted.

By the way 'Gee",,,this friend of yours,,,iif he can get Calvus or Comps that I HAVEN'T had,,,,or cannot find around here,,,YOU BETTER NOT FORGET ME!!!!!!!!! Tres Bien!

Cheers guys. AP, yes makes sense and dont worry i wont forget.

Hey AP which fish are you interested in? Let me know and i will ask. I have got another contact that also has rare fish.

Bouncy Bouncy Bouncy Bouncy ,,

Interested in:

"Gold Face" Comp.
Fire Fin Comp.
Kasanga Gold Head Comp.
Mutondwe Island Comp.
"Black Pectoral' calvus
"Black Zaire' Calvus
Yellow/Gold Calvus

And this one I cannot find a name for????

AP, i'll see what i can do. I will let you know when i get some info, it might take a week or two. I still need more homework done before i contact the guys with a list.

Absolutely,,,if I can wait for Calvus or Comps to grow,,, worry wart!
I can wait a couple weeks.

Hey "gee",,,on a side note:

I have NEVER purchased an order via "on-line", or had anything shipped.
Reason being,,,I don't trust just anybody. We have had "sponsors" on other forums that made promises, promisies, promises to people that were interested in purchasing fish from. But with alot of unsatisfied members,,,makes it harder to 'trust" anyone.

Besides,,,not ever getting anything "on-line",,,I wouldn't even know how to pay.
I don't have paypal either. Makes it even harder,,,what do I do??

How do I start? Where do I start?

Am I better off asking a LFS to get things for me???? I just dont want to pay the extra for a "special" order???? Would it be cheaper?

AP, you can use my pay pal account. When you order your calvus, just pay pal them.

While you are at it, you can pay pal- Performance Accessories for my body lift kit for the truck too Drooly

I have never ordered online either AP but this is my only choice. I am not ordering from a guy with a fishroom, these people have big farms. I never paid online for anything before and dont intend to, i always send money by bank transfer/wire. Do what you would like to do AP...if you want just get it from your LFS my friend idunno

'Gee',,,I AM going to wait and see what your connections can do first.

I appreciate your help and will be waiting patiently. Tres Bien!

We'll see what happens Les,,,maybe I'll just start up my own account. idunno
Then I wont have to bother with you and I'll be able to order without wondering. Hmmmm

Hi Guys,

I have just read your post since I also have Altolaprologus Compressiceps Gold Head, WC and was curious to learn more about them. Thank you for the great info. So far I have only one WC pair, probably fully grown. They are seating in my tank for about a year already, but so far they are not breeding. They are in my 75 gallons with several other cichlids - many from Lake Malawi and a few from Tanganyika. They don't seem to shy, particularly male. The female has to keep her distance from him or he is beating her up.

The male keeps attacking the female. Maybe they need a smaller shell.
They have 2 pretty big shells, but the female is not interested in any of them.

Regarding keeping shelldwellers with them, I would not recommend it. Once they had arrived I had in this tank one Ocelatus Gold male. He was doing very well there, but my Comp male has immediately attacked him and was chasing him away and beating him up so much that I have to move my Ocelatus out of this tank the next day.

Also later I have read somewhere that actually they don't go well together, but I guess it might depend on the size of the tank, number of hiding places, the distance between fish etc.

Good luck with breeding your fish.

I don't keep these species but I just wanted to comment that this is what makes Cichlid Haven so valuable. Multiple really knowledgable people sharing their time and experience unselfishly with people who ask good questions.

All without condescending or being critical, or anyone trying to out-do each other.

Great job on this thread, you guys -- you rock.

Don

'cichlidland",,,,how many Malawians are in the tank with them? It's possible that the tank is a little to active for them to breed. idunno

And,,,you say the male is "attacking' the female. Well thats a sure sign,,IME,,that the male is ready to breed and the female may be "teasing" him.
You may want to find smaller shells now,,big enough for the female only. Then keep us posted. Tres Bien!

If you have a smaller tank or another one that is not overly active,,,you may want to try that.

Heres a silly question,,,,,,,are you sure they are m/f?
You have any pics?

Hi,

Thank you very much for your reply. There are many Malawi cichlids in this tank, as well as a few catfishes, Daffodils and now since a few days also 2 goby cichlids. I know the tank is pretty crowded and that's maybe one of the reasons why they are not breeding.

However this is my biggest tank - 75 and the next tank in size is 32. This one is pretty empty - just 5 Paracyprochromis Nigripilis, a few cory fish and a few catfishes, 1 goby male. This tank is only 32.5" long and seeing how aggressive the male is towards the female, I am afraid he will kill her immediately when I will move them there.

This tank is very quiet and much more suitable for breeding, but probably too small for these fish. What do you think? Maybe I can give it a try?

Regarding the sex of those fish, in fact I am not 100% sure she is a female. She was vented by someone who knows very well the fish, so I hope she is indeed a female. I am attaching two pictures to this post - one is of the male and it is at:
http://s249.photobucket.com/albums/gg201/c...le-DSC04639.jpg

The second is my female at:
http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg201/c...DSC06881-cr.jpg

Maybe you can tell me if she is indeed a female.

From what I have read she looks more like a female - probably lower in the body height and a bit smaller than the male.

I would very much appreciate your insights and advice in this matter. Thank you.

if the smaller shell thing doesn't work, you might consider moving the "female" to the 32 and leaving the male in the 75.

I am going to tell you the truth. And no disrespect to yours or your friends opinions. Tres Bien!

I cannot tell them apart unless they are in the same pic. Honestly,,,from individual pics,,,,they both look to be males. The reason being..

1. They appear to be the same size?
2. The (female) pic? appears to be a stressed out male. (very light in colour.) & (less dominant)?
3. It could also be the reason neither of them is using the shell.


When I had these,,,and from all the info I put in other post in this thread. IME,,,
even when the male was "attacking" the female,,,,she still had her true colours.

HTH,,,,keep us posted.


AP.

http://www.unclenedsfishfactory.com/Bullet...opic.php?t=3102

Here is a couple for you AP!

Now this should be good!

Nice looking fish but ouch $$$$$$ .

WOW Dave,,,,thanks for sharing.

The GH is uncredible.

The Calvus,,,well,,looks very "old".

The prices are comparable to the ones I have seen, although, I am looking for harder to find Calvus or Comps other than the "common" ones I find around here.

Keep up the good work. Tres Bien!

how about yellow calvus and black comps??
you can try for black comps since they are cool.

Yes Multies,,

I am looking for the Yellow Calvus, (adults only),,,they are rare around here.

And the Black Comp. was a new one to me until I googled it. Interesting looking too. Thanks for mentioning that. Tres Bien!


Heres what they look like, this is now on my wish list!!!!!!
I love the dark "dull" look of this fish.

i have only been burned once.

OK,,,I bring this thread up again to see how you guys are doing with your Altos.

"Gee",,,it's been a while since we last posted and I known your still working on the fish room. But hows the search for those Altos coming along????

Cichlidland,,,any updates on yours too? Are they breeding yet?

Pseudospecialops,,,Thanks for the kind words. Tres Bien!


Me,,,well I am still looking for my wish list,,, idunno ,,I lost it somewhere in here. Giggly


Next.


AP.

Hi Guys,

Here is my update regarding my Altholaprologus Comps. Golden Head Kasanga, WC.

I have exchanged one since the one, which looked usually more pale was probably a male. I have exchanged for another fish of this kind, which is smaller, looks less colorful and is probably a bit less afraid of my male than the other one. This fish is also WC.

Still my male likes chasing this fish and they are not breeding. It looks nice, but has some translucent part of the mouth. I wonder if that's normal - just behind the lips a little part is translucent. Maybe it was fighting with other fish in the pas and the skin there got damaged or maybe it is normal for this fish.

Regarding buying fish on line, have you tried to buy from Darius in Toronto at: http://www.aquariumshop.ca/ ? I have bought several fish from him in the past and I was so far always very happy with my purchase. The fish look great and he is selling I think only WC or F1 and maybe occasionally F2, so very high quality fish.

I personally pick up fish from him, but I know that he can also ship the fish. However there is a minimum order amount required to have the fish shipped to you. Besides shipping could get pretty expensive. Maybe you can share your order with someone who lives in your area to save on shipping cost.

Good luck with you fish search.

Regarding my compreciseps, I hope they will start breeding and if not, I guess that's fine too, as long as they don't fight too much and are healthy.
However it would be nice to see them breeding since they do it in a different way than other fish I had so far.

I would appreciate any suggestions in this matter.

By the way, is it possible to sell the fish via this forum and if so, how to do it? i can not find any place to post "for sale" ads on this website. I am trying to sell 4 of my catfises and on goby cichlid - Tanganicodus Isacae Moba (F1).