Re: New Freshwater Tank... sel./sexing Rainbows
Neal/Crew:
Thank you for the quick and thoughtful reply. I looked at pictures of the Boesemanni rainbow, and they are indeed striking fish. I am having trouble, however, locating a good source for them. Live Aquaria can supply, but state that their fish are too young to differentiate between genders. I could wind up with a huge preponderance of one or the other. Any ideas?
Take my chances on gender selection? I like your suggestion about a large school in my 6-ft tank. Do you think that 20 would be a good number?
Thanks
tom
<Hi Tom. Sexing Rainbowfish is more of an issue where the males and females look different. Typically, people only (or mostly) buy males of species like Glossolepis incisus because the males are amazing (brick red) and the females are less colourful (silvery-green). But then they find the males don't develop their best colours and sometimes become aggressive. For M. Boesemanni, I think you're going to be fine "taking pot luck" because boys and girls look the same (particularly when young). A school of 20 would be superb, especially as they mature and develop full colours. Do make sure you give them a nice varied diet that includes algae and crustaceans, and these seem helpful for making the best colours. This species is widely used in the UK for fish tanks in shops and offices because they are so colourful and yet very hardy and easy to keep. Cheers, Neale.>