Blue Rams... hormone treated? Too often so. Sel.    11/3/07
Hey, I enjoy the website. Tons of info. It's great!
I have a question about blue rams. I searched on your site and didn't find the info. How can I tell if a blue ram is hormone injected?
Thanks
Ed
<Hello Ed. You really can't be sure. But in general, if the fish are being kept in generic water conditions in a retailer's tank and brightly coloured, assume they're "juiced" with hormones. Healthy Mikrogeophagus ramirezi only develop full colours in very warm, soft and acidic water when kept under quiet conditions and fed suitable foods. Thrown into a regular temperature, hard water, alkaline generic community tank they tend to look a bit pale (and eventually, die). Price is another indicator. Quality Mikrogeophagus ramirezi are expensive; here in the UK, I'd expect to pay around £20 ($40) for a pair of wild-caught fish, and maybe a bit less for something tank-bred by reputable breeders. But if the Mikrogeophagus ramirezi on sale cost the same as, say, fancy angelfish, assume the worst. Mikrogeophagus ramirezi are not the sort of fish that can be cranked out to a high standard *and* cheaply both at the same time. It's one or the other. Fish from the Far East are especially poor quality, while fish from Central Europe is generally considered the best. Ask your retailer where his come from, though be street-smart and don't lead him to the "correct" answer! Cheers, Neale>

Re: Blue Rams, sel.  11/3/07
Thank you for the quick response. Whenever I ask the staff at my LFS, they say when they order from the distributor, the distributor doesn't tell them where the fish came from. What should I do? Also, does 15 us dollars seem like a price that you would pay for quality rams? Also, is it advised to stay away from blue ram "varieties"? Such as long fin ram?
Thanks you so much for your time,
Ed
<Hello Ed. I'd answer this question this way: Are you an experienced cichlid keeper? If the answer is yes, and you're ready to set up an aquarium with clean, slightly acidic, low carbonate hardness water at a well above average temperature (28C upwards), then by all means have a flutter with Mikrogeophagus ramirezi. Avoid the inbred forms: anything with long fins or "all-gold" colouration; these are notoriously difficult to maintain for any length of time. Look for fish that are as close as possible to the wild type, and pay particular attention to the shape of the fins and body; there's a lot of poor stock out there with tubby body builds and deformed fins. These are classic signs of inbreeding, and you don't want them. Let someone else waste their money on 'em. Find a retailer who keeps said Mikrogeophagus ramirezi in clean, soft water aquaria away from generic community tropicals. Don't waste your money on Mikrogeophagus ramirezi that have been treated like Danios or Blue Gouramis -- these will have been too cold to maintain their immune systems properly and will likely be incubating all sorts of fun bacterial and protozoan parasites for you to play with once they get home! Ideally, find a local breeder via your a fishkeeping club or similar: if you can get Mikrogeophagus ramirezi that only travel between their breeder's aquarium and your aquarium, so much the better. If you can't do any of these things, then honestly, skip Mikrogeophagus ramirezi completely. Opt for Mikrogeophagus altispinosus instead. This fish may not be quite so colourful as Mikrogeophagus ramirezi, but it is a better aquarium fish in oh-so many ways: wider range of water chemistry values, does well at regular temperatures, hasn't been inbred yet, is much less shy, and doesn't get nearly so plagued with things like Hole-in-the-Head and Hexamita (which may be one and the same things in terms of causative agents). It's actually about as easy to keep as something like a Kribensis really. It isn't a "showy" fish in a retailer's tank, but once settled in and properly fed on a mix of algae flake and crustaceans, it colours up very nicely and will live for many years given reasonably good conditions. Mikrogeophagus altispinosus is, simply put, a great aquarium fish; Mikrogeophagus ramirezi is, by contrast, usually a very poor investment and apt to disappoint the average fishkeeper who winds up with dead fish within a few months of purchase. Do also read around the entire dwarf cichlid subject: there are a whole host of excellent species out there, from Orange Chromides to Nannacara anomala to Laetacara curviceps -- all massively overlooked despite being colourful, easy to keep, and very well behaved even in community tanks. Cheers, Neale.>
Thank you so much!!! You are the only one who gave me straight answer. thank you thank you thank you!
Ed
<Happy to help. Good luck with whichever fish you go with. Cheers, Neale>

Planted tank question... set up, Ram spp. sel.   – 10/28/07
Hi there, I have tried researching in the forums for info and couldn't find specifics. This website is great by the way! I just got a 29 gallon tank that I would like to setup as a planted tank eventually. Due to financial costs I have to get the equipment a little at a time and purchase the plants at a later date. I wanted to know:
1) Can I put 2 inches of Eco Complete with 1 inch of aquarium gravel on top, on the bottom and then begin to cycle my tank without putting plants in it right away (for a few months)? I am wondering if any nutrients leak out of the EcoComplete causing things like algae growth and if its necessary to put plants into right away..
<Hmm... I think you'd need to plant right away or else algae certainly will take advantage of the good conditions in the tank. If you're limited on funds right now, some cheap fast growing species like Cabomba, Elodea, Hygrophila and Vallisneria could be pressed into service. These would keep the algae at bay, and could be replaced in due course. Alternatively, floating plants could be used and then thinned out once you start serious planting. It's hard to fault Indian Fern, Ceratopteris cornutus for this. It's cheap, hardy and practically indestructible.>
2) After my tank is cycled I would like to put in a pair of either German Blue rams or Bolivian rams, are they ok with just either no plants/fake plants in the interim? Will they die if they have no live plants around?
<As far as commercially bred fish go, they couldn't care less. They are commercially spawned in practically empty tanks with little more than flower pots for shelter and some floating plants above for shade. What cichlids don't like is bright light. So they do need shade and hiding places. But beyond that, real or man-made makes no difference.>
3) I've read so much conflicting info on Germans or Bolivian rams...your personal opinion, which is better personality/hardiness wise?
<Mikrogeophagus ramirezi (including the "German blue" variety) is hugely variable in quality. You get what you pay for. Cheap stock is often only brightly coloured because of heavy use of hormones and colour-enhancing food. Once you get them home, they gradually fade away to drabness. Internal bacterial infections seem to be rife among them to, and again, it's the use of antibiotics on the fish farms that keeps them alive, and once they hit the retailer's tanks, they gradually weaken. Wild Mikrogeophagus ramirezi are expensive and not widely available, but they are much more consistent if given precisely the right conditions: very warm (~28-30 C), soft (< 10 degrees dH), and acidic (pH 5-6) water. Mikrogeophagus altispinosus (the Bolivian ram) is altogether a hardier fish simply from the get-go, and while quality varies, these fish are never quite so poor as Mikrogeophagus ramirezi. They are also less demanding in terms of water chemistry, requiring average temperatures (25-28 C) and neutral to moderately hard water. Given that relatively few aquarium plants like the conditions favoured by Mikrogeophagus ramirezi, Mikrogeophagus altispinosa definitely makes a better all-round choice, though this will of course depend on your local water chemistry.>
thanks so much and keep up the great work!
cheers
Terri
<Hope this helps, Neale>