Praecox Rainbowfish Pictures! - Aquarium Advice

madasafish · 02-25-2004, 08:27 PM

As promised, here are my Rainbowfish pictures. Some *really* cool pictures here if you have even remote interest in mating behavior...

First: some pictures of the fish themselves. The best pictures I could take (and it tooks half an hour to get these pics!).

Second: A picture of a male Praecox flaring at the other males. Note that the dorsal (small fin at the middle of the back), adipose (large fin behind small dorsal), pelvic (ventral fin in middle) and anal (behind pelvic fin) fins all flare simultaneously. This gives the male fish a completely different body shape--rather than being streamlined and slightly odd, they are magnificent and threatening. The mouth also opens completely, allowing the premaxilla and maxilla to extend outwards, creating the tube used by many Teleost (most advanced) fish for suction feeding.

Third: Truly stunning to me. These males were competing so furiously for the females that they started to display mating colors. And these are still Juveniles!!! They're only an inch long. The males (have a more red tail than the females) first developed a green sheen on their sides, then came out with a highly unusual yellow streak all down their head from their dorsal fin to their mouth. This color shocked me, as I've never seen a completely unrelated color appear on a fish. This appearance can be likened to the bright purple mating female Kribensis show, but is much more shocking, as Praecox have no other yellow on their bodies.

You be the judges... I think these fish are quite extraordinary.

Alright, pictures in the next three posts...

madasafish · 02-25-2004, 08:34 PM

1st: Praecox males swimming contentedly

Not Hump-head on 1st Male. This is a sign of a more mature fish. They eventually all develop quite pronounced humps, as do many Rainbowfish species.

Sati · 02-25-2004, 08:34 PM

HURRY UP!

madasafish · 02-25-2004, 08:35 PM

Hold your horses. I'm using my g/f's computer, and have to navigate!

madasafish · 02-25-2004, 08:36 PM

2nd: Male flaring fins.

Sorry that the pic's a bit dark. I hope you can make out the tubular mouth and spread fins.

Sati · 02-25-2004, 08:36 PM

*Taps foot*

madasafish · 02-25-2004, 08:37 PM

3rd: Males with mating coloration.

Sorry that the pics are a bit blurred. These guys were going crazy.

madasafish · 02-25-2004, 08:39 PM

Ok, that's it for now. Sorry I can't figure out how to cut the images so you can see more fish and less background! Also, don't quite know why the first 3 images are showing up as files and the last 2 as thumbnails. Maybe it's just this computer!

madasafish · 02-25-2004, 08:41 PM

When you click on the images, make sure to expand them (at bottom right-hand corner) so you can see the picture slightly larger.

Oh, and

now you can see how bad my algae problem was getting last week!

Enjoy!

Sati · 02-25-2004, 08:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by madasafish

3rd: Males with mating coloration.

Sorry that the pics are a bit blurred. These guys were going crazy.

Ooo, awesome coloring!

I don't understand the whole file/thumbnail thing at all. Try using irfanview to crop photos. It's a small file and very easy to use. I disable the Windows image resize option so that I can always see pics at full scale

Thanks, Jon! Those are great. Can I ask what kind of setup they're in and with what other fish?

02-25-2004, 08:27 PM	#1
madasafish Aquarium Advice Addict Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: NY, NY Posts: 2,260 Images: 73	Praecox Rainbowfish Pictures! As promised, here are my Rainbowfish pictures. Some really cool pictures here if you have even remote interest in mating behavior... First: some pictures of the fish themselves. The best pictures I could take (and it tooks half an hour to get these pics!). Second: A picture of a male Praecox flaring at the other males. Note that the dorsal (small fin at the middle of the back), adipose (large fin behind small dorsal), pelvic (ventral fin in middle) and anal (behind pelvic fin) fins all flare simultaneously. This gives the male fish a completely different body shape--rather than being streamlined and slightly odd, they are magnificent and threatening. The mouth also opens completely, allowing the premaxilla and maxilla to extend outwards, creating the tube used by many Teleost (most advanced) fish for suction feeding. Third: Truly stunning to me. These males were competing so furiously for the females that they started to display mating colors. And these are still Juveniles!!! They're only an inch long. The males (have a more red tail than the females) first developed a green sheen on their sides, then came out with a highly unusual yellow streak all down their head from their dorsal fin to their mouth. This color shocked me, as I've never seen a completely unrelated color appear on a fish. This appearance can be likened to the bright purple mating female Kribensis show, but is much more shocking, as Praecox have no other yellow on their bodies. You be the judges... I think these fish are quite extraordinary. Alright, pictures in the next three posts... __________________ [acronym:3ff24413a5="Malaysian Trumpet Snails or Multiple Tank Syndrome, depending on context"]MTS[/acronym:3ff24413a5] is a blessing, not a disease.

02-25-2004, 08:34 PM	#2
madasafish Aquarium Advice Addict Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: NY, NY Posts: 2,260 Images: 73	1st: Praecox males swimming contentedly Not Hump-head on 1st Male. This is a sign of a more mature fish. They eventually all develop quite pronounced humps, as do many Rainbowfish species. __________________ [acronym:3ff24413a5="Malaysian Trumpet Snails or Multiple Tank Syndrome, depending on context"]MTS[/acronym:3ff24413a5] is a blessing, not a disease.

02-25-2004, 08:34 PM	#3
Sati Aquarium Advice Addict Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Sweden Posts: 1,184 Images: 3	HURRY UP! __________________ Holly ~ I love the fishes cause they're so delicious.

02-25-2004, 08:35 PM	#4
madasafish Aquarium Advice Addict Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: NY, NY Posts: 2,260 Images: 73	Hold your horses. I'm using my g/f's computer, and have to navigate! __________________ [acronym:3ff24413a5="Malaysian Trumpet Snails or Multiple Tank Syndrome, depending on context"]MTS[/acronym:3ff24413a5] is a blessing, not a disease.

02-25-2004, 08:36 PM	#5
madasafish Aquarium Advice Addict Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: NY, NY Posts: 2,260 Images: 73	2nd: Male flaring fins. Sorry that the pic's a bit dark. I hope you can make out the tubular mouth and spread fins. __________________ [acronym:3ff24413a5="Malaysian Trumpet Snails or Multiple Tank Syndrome, depending on context"]MTS[/acronym:3ff24413a5] is a blessing, not a disease.

02-25-2004, 08:36 PM	#6
Sati Aquarium Advice Addict Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Sweden Posts: 1,184 Images: 3	Taps foot __________________ Holly ~ I love the fishes cause they're so delicious.

02-25-2004, 08:37 PM	#7
madasafish Aquarium Advice Addict Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: NY, NY Posts: 2,260 Images: 73	3rd: Males with mating coloration. Sorry that the pics are a bit blurred. These guys were going crazy. __________________ [acronym:3ff24413a5="Malaysian Trumpet Snails or Multiple Tank Syndrome, depending on context"]MTS[/acronym:3ff24413a5] is a blessing, not a disease.

02-25-2004, 08:39 PM	#8
madasafish Aquarium Advice Addict Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: NY, NY Posts: 2,260 Images: 73	Ok, that's it for now. Sorry I can't figure out how to cut the images so you can see more fish and less background! Also, don't quite know why the first 3 images are showing up as files and the last 2 as thumbnails. Maybe it's just this computer! __________________ [acronym:3ff24413a5="Malaysian Trumpet Snails or Multiple Tank Syndrome, depending on context"]MTS[/acronym:3ff24413a5] is a blessing, not a disease.

02-25-2004, 08:41 PM	#9
madasafish Aquarium Advice Addict Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: NY, NY Posts: 2,260 Images: 73	When you click on the images, make sure to expand them (at bottom right-hand corner) so you can see the picture slightly larger. Oh, and now you can see how bad my algae problem was getting last week! Enjoy! __________________ [acronym:3ff24413a5="Malaysian Trumpet Snails or Multiple Tank Syndrome, depending on context"]MTS[/acronym:3ff24413a5] is a blessing, not a disease.

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