Letters

From Microcosm Aquarium Explorer

---

[edit] Succulent Worlds

Re Microcosm Aquarium Explorer Newsletter
It must be Tuesday! I've met the Royal Panaque. I'm drawn in by the beautifully written, attractive, succulent world. I greatly look forward to my Tuesday morning trip to someplace far away, outrageously colorful and incredibly mystifying and dreamlike!

Caroline Biddle McKenzie
Burlington, Vermont

[edit] African Clawed Frogs

I have two 50-gallon tanks, and one of them (which is a menagerie of the fishes I bought when I started out in this hobby) has four albino African Clawed Frogs. At first I was hoping they were African Dwarf Frogs, but a friend of mine confirmed what I have long suspected, that they were African Clawed Frogs, which grow to a maximum of 5 inches.

So now, I am planning to set up a third tank to house these frogs. But I would like to give them some tankmates. I've asked in online forums dedicated to fishkeeping and have received contradictory reactions: some advised me to keep the tank solely for the frogs; others suggested that I choose non-aggressive fish that are similar in size to the mature frogs.

May I ask your opinion (and maybe suggestions) on what would be appropriate tankmates for the four albino African Clawed Frogs? At the moment, I am thinking of getting a pair of Sturisoma panamenses and a Clown Pleco, thus making this tank a frog-and-catfish community. My concern now is on the middle-level swimmers; I wanted the Glass Catfish but it seems that it grows to only 3 inches, which would make them easy prey to mature clawed frogs.

Am I going in the right direction?

— Edgar Javison,
The Philippines

We are each of us angels with only one wing, and we can only fly by embracing one another. — Luciano de Crescenzo, The Philippines

If you've got time, do drop by my weblog at http://elj.tiddlyspot.com/

When Frogs & Fishes Don't Mix

I have heard of many sad accidents with African Clawed Frogs (Xenopus laevis) during my 21-year tenure answering aquarium questions. Usually the problems occur in a community setting the moment the frog gains enough size to consume tankmates.

These frogs have pretty amazing appetites, and this is part of their charm, but not if it is at the price of a favorite Betta or Goldfish. Though the adult African Clawed Frog may measure only 5 inches at maturity, its capacious mouth makes it threatening to fishes very nearly that size.

Yes, it can happen that some of the larger armored catfishes, a larger Clown Loach (Chromobotia macracanthus) or a larger Goldfish could be kept with the frogs, but why? A well-covered species tank of these frogs is likely to be far more interesting than one with fishes. Where either the fish or the frog is threatened in its own aquarium, it can never be a source of pleasure for its keeper.

Consider also the matter of water quality. African Clawed Frogs are heavy eaters and produce copious amounts of waste. Keeping aquarium water sweet enough for fish is an art in itself, doing so for fishes of the size to compete with the frogs, and in the presence of the frogs could be quite a challenge.

Please try to enjoy the frogs for their own sakes and amuse yourself by handfeeding the greedy little beasts. They’ll eat right out of your hand, shovelling bits of food into their mouths with their little “paws.” If you must add fishes to the mix, make them the large armored catfish, but don't expect the frogs to leave even them alone. If you choose big cichlids, you could even see frogs being chased as food. I don't like communities with African Clawed Frogs.

Do be sure to cover the frog tank very carefully. They are notorious for leaving their tanks to tour the neighborhood, often to find that this is a hazardous proposition.

If these frogs had been the Dwarf Frogs, Hymenochirus spp., as you had hoped, we would be having a different discussion, and I would be planning with you the many fishes I would recommend as tankmates.

Sorry, Edgar, but still I believe you will get great pleasure from the company of these animals.
—Mary E. Sweeney,
Senior Editor

---

[edit] Endangered Fish by Country

I am Sabari Krishna from Tamilnadu, India . I am an aquarium hobbiest and also running a pet shop.

I would like to know the list of rare species of fishes in India which is endangered.

Thank you.

Sabari Krishna.G

The Editor replies:

We usually look first at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) site:

IUCN Red List

IUCN maintains a "Red List" of species (birds, amphibians, mammals, fishes, invertebrates, plants) that are threatened or extinct. This is a work in progress and the lists change frequently.

Your regional IUCN office is here and may be able to provide the list you seek:

ARO - IUCN Regional Office for Asia
N 63 Sukhumvit 39 Soi Phrompong
Sukhumvit Road, Wattana, Klongtan
Bangkok 10110
Thailand
Tel: ++66 (2) 662-4029
Fax: ++66 (2) 662-4388
Email: iucn@iucnt.org
www.iucn.org/asia/

---

[edit] First Captive-Bred Mandarins

Re: Breeding the Green Mandarin by Matthew Wittenrich

I enjoyed meeting Matt Wittenrich recently and received an autographed edition of his wonderful book.

I want to mention that most articles on mandarins and mandarin breeding overlook the article I wrote on the subject for FAMA back when I was living in Alexandria, VA.

It was titled Baby Mandarin and described the story of how I raised one from a captive spawn.... I believe I was the first to do it; this was back in 1989.

I know that Robert Brons and Bill Addison did it a few years later, and I am not sure when Wolfgang Mai first raised them. Obviously many people had spawned them, but the first rearing probably was in a small apartment in Alexandria Virginia.

It is interesting to compare Matt's experience with mine. I recall that I could not get them to survive on rotifers alone during several attempts. It was only when I made an infusoria culture using wild seaweed collected from Ocean City, MD that I succeeded. The main food was apparently copepod nauplii, but it may also have included some protozoans. The growth rate in mine was much slower.

It will be interesting to see how quickly Matt's achieve marketable size. My experience, and that of Bill Addison and Robert Brons showed a growth rate of little more than one inch per year. At that rate the wild harvested specimens would appear to be 3-4 years old. Perhaps weening them onto artificial diets could produce a faster growth rate. In any case, tiny mandarins are a potential gem for nano tanks, something I've pointed out to breeders for years.

Julian Sprung,
Miami Gardens, Florida

---

[edit] Wild Mandarin Realties?

Re: Breeding the Green Mandarin by Matthew Wittenrich

Very interesting.

Of course, until the price to wholesalers of mandarins rises WELL above $2 ea., aquaculturing them will not be economically viable.

Collecting wild zooplankton is just too labor intensive to justify all but rearing of the most expensive fishes.

Aloha!

Charles Delbeek,
Waikiki, Hawaii

---

[edit] Class vs. Mass

The Editor replies:

You are right, of course, about captive breds costing more.

Funny thing, though, here in Vermont people are paying $35 for captive-bred Banggai Cardinals, and the local store (which dominates this market) won't sell wild-caught specimens of this species.

They often can't keep the CB Banggais in stock. (I believe they are coming from ORA.)

Class vs. mass, I guess.

JML,
Editor

---