Bolivian Rams...

[Lonewolfblue]

Here's some pics of my new fry. I've had major success this time. My count is over 100 fry, and none have died yet. No dead bodies on the bottom, they are all wiggling and even swimming some. Here's what I did different....

I moved the eggs to a 10G tank with a sponge filter. I ran a powerhead until they started hatching, then turned the powerhead off. I used straight RO water from Safeway, and the temp is 87-88 degrees. All looks happy, and I'm starting to have to feed them. Yippeeeeee......

As for the pics, I'll try to get better pics. But with them being so small, I'm having a hard time getting pics.....

[SparKy697]

CONGRATS!

Nice to see such a high survival rate! So you think it's the RO? Or the temperature? I have read that a higher temperature is a good idea in a number of articles.

[Lonewolfblue]

I think it's the combo of the 2. Did more reading on it, and one guy says he keeps his temp up above 86 degrees, and has near 100% success rate. Also, with the RO, I don't have to deal with nitrate levels for a short while as well. The only additive I also added was a Blackwater additive. I also dosed Hydrogen Peroxide daily until I started seeing the first eggs hatch, and then stopped dosing that.

[bs6749]

I think you may want to add some minerals to that water. I used RO water with my GBR's, temps around 82ish, and only 3 of the 90 plus are still alive today. It MAY be the temps though...that sure would be sweet. EASY to keep the temp up that high if that's all it is.

[Lonewolfblue]

That's why I also added the Blackwater additive, to add some stuff to the water. Will slowly ween it to tap water as they grow with small water changes.

[Zagz]

Congrats LWB! Great to see such a success rate so far!

[Lonewolfblue]

Will post pics as things progress...

[black hills tj]

That success rate is amazing. I hope I can pull that off when my GBR's pair up and spawn.

[Lonewolfblue]

I should have tried it when I had my GBR's. May get another pair and try it. I just don't like the short lifespans they have in my tank.

[Jchillin]

Congrats LWB, that is an amazing rate of success, I cannot recall anyone ever hatching out 100%, let alone getting them to free-swimming as well.

Now, since these guys are probably the best Bolivians I've ever seen, how do you feel about shipping to NY?

[Lonewolfblue]

If I continue with this rate of success, I'd be more than happy to, lol. And this batch is fromthe parents that I have listed as my main Bolivians that are 3yrs old, my most colorful ones.

Also, I went to Spokane today. Went to Aquarium Solutions. Small selection of fish, but the selection was awsome. A few of your regulars, but also a nice selection of harder-to-get fish. Especially plecos. She's got about 12-14 different types, including mangos and snowballs. She also has a FW stingray as well. It wasn't for sale yet, as she said she just got it and doesn't sell any fish she gets for 2 weeks, to make sure they are all ok. She's also offered to buy any and all of my Bolivian babies. Only requirement is they have to be a minimum of 3/4", I think that's what she said. But I had a great time. Funny thing, I didn't realize they were closed on Mondays, and they were just in their doing some maintenance and feeding. When we pulled up, they were just turning the lights out. And when we said we were from 3 hours away, they said, Come On In, lol. They more than welcomed us with a big smile. It was awsome.

Update tonight, looks like a couple might be dead, but I would say 99.9% are still wiggling, and about 20% are swimming. Still a little heavy from the egg sacks, but they are catching water and swimming a ways, and drift back to the bottom, lol.

[black hills tj]

that sounds like a pretty **** good LFS if you ask me!

[Lonewolfblue]

Very good.... They also cater to more natural settings as well, staying away from imitation decor and sells all kinds of driftwood and rock, as well as caves. She does planted tanks as well. They got some huge driftwood too. I'm picking up one the next time I'm there, lol. She's also going to try and hook me up with a BN breeder cave for my male and 2 females. Would like to try and see if I can breed them too, lol. The lava caves aren't working, lol. She said it's because the cave should only have one enterance in which the male can plug the opening. Mine have a large opening on the front, and a small one in the back. If not, they won't breed. I've had mine about 18 months, and no signs of breeding yet either.

The store is really small though, not a real big selection of fish. But of the fish they have, in my eyes it's an awsome selection, lol. Many hard-to-find fish.

[black hills tj]

Ooo...keep me updated on the BN pleco breeding if you would. I'm actually growing 10 ABN juvies right now hoping that a few pair up and breeding.

[Lonewolfblue]

Quick update....

There are so many free-swimming, I can't even count them all, lol. It's quite the site. Will try to get pics after work tonight. I just got done feeding them again, and they are hungry, lol.

[Jchillin]

They are gonna eat you out of house and home/tank.

[Lonewolfblue]

Originally Posted by Jchillin

They are gonna eat you out of house and home/tank.

Boy, I'm wondering if I'm making enough money to feed them, lol. haha...

Came home from work on my lunch now and checked the tank. Boy there's lots of free-swimmers, lol. I think 100 is an understatement, lol. 200 might even be in the ball park, lol. Will get pics tonight.

Edit....
And the parents haven't even layed more eggs yet. They are sitting in the corner of the tank, and I'm just wondering if they can actually see the fry, lol. Kind of looks like they are eyeing them, lol.

Hey, Jchillin...
What's the lifespan of a Bolivian Ram? I've read several places that it's about 3 years. I bought mine when they were 2 inches, and it takes almost a year to get to that size. So if I've had mine a little over 3 years, then it makes then roughly 4 years old, maybe a little older. Any thoughts on it?

[Jchillin]

Originally Posted by LWB

Hey, Jchillin...
What's the lifespan of a Bolivian Ram? I've read several places that it's about 3 years. I bought mine when they were 2 inches, and it takes almost a year to get to that size. So if I've had mine a little over 3 years, then it makes then roughly 4 years old, maybe a little older. Any thoughts on it?

I've seen 3/4 years tops, never anything more than that. I figure this is an average life span based on what has been found in natural environments. As you know, GBR's are given 2/3 years and mine are 4 years old. I won't say that your Bolivians are past their lifetime as mileage seems to vary a bit with SA cichlids.

[Lonewolfblue]

Originally Posted by Jchillin

I've seen 3/4 years tops, never anything more than that. I figure this is an average life span based on what has been found in natural environments. As you know, GBR's are given 2/3 years and mine are 4 years old. I won't say that your Bolivians are past their lifetime as mileage seems to vary a bit with SA cichlids.

Oh, and also to say, they are still laying eggs and breeding, lol. They are full grown, but are just as active as the young ones.

[Zagz]

Perhaps the parents are eyeing the swimmers and saying ,"what have we done? there are so many!" LOL