Questions about P. kuhlii & P. oblonga as Tank Mates

[LVKSLoachlady]

This is Probally too long for anyone to want to read it all the way though!

Anyways please read and answer my questions... thanks.

I recently put 2 adult, Pangio kuhlii's in my 20 Long Natural Planted Tank, I had these two in a 10 gal NPT by themsevlves or with guppies for 18 months prior. There were already 1 other sub-adult, Pangio kuhlii; 1 adult and 2 sub-adult, Pangio oblonga and one I was told could be a cross breed between kuhlii and oblonga all living in the tank for 7 months. There is a small Kribis, Pelvicachromis pulcher, a pair of guppies, and a 3 inch very shy Botia lohachata, I'm waiting til hits the 3.5+ inch mark then he's in with the rest of them. Also some mystery snails and ramshorn snails.


IDK how to put pics on here, nor do I see this guy enough to take a pic of him, but I will do my best to describe him to you... He has a mother of pearl or light cream colored belly all the way from nose to tail, his top side is a little lighter brown then P. oblonga but not by much, he has two brownish glod stripes that do not extend to his belly, like P. kuhlii near his head with a dot between the two stripes. I bought him from a pet store this march. The kid had no clue about why this fish looked so diff. One guy said it could be a cross breed?? Are P. kuhlii and P. oblonga capalbe of inter breeding?? Or is he a completly diff. spieceis all together?


I dont know the sexes of any of these, for sure, not even the 2 adult kuhlii. I think they are female because they both got really fat a few times, and I never saw any babies! The adult oblonga I belive to be male cuz he has never gotten as fat as the 2 adult kuhlii's in the 6 months I've had him and he eats like a pig! The other 4 are either too small to tell still or I never see them enough to tell... Is there any other way to tell other than the females getting really fat? And what are the odds I've got a good male female raito?

I'm not trying to breed them per se just wanted to make them happy by having a larger shoal of them and lots and lots of hiding places!

OK one more thing and then I'm done!


The 2 adullt kuhlii's and the 3 oblonga's will swim like crazy in the front right conner of the tank, which is the south east conner of the tank. The other two NEVER do this...well I've just never seem them.. Why do some do this? And not others?

[Martin Thoene]

The usual suspects that kind of fit your description are here:

http://www.loaches.com/species-index/pi ... ed-_-small

Martin.

[LVKSLoachlady]

No he is none of those, He has just the two stripes and one dot! All those have no stripes at all! If anything he looks closer to Pangio cuneovirgata than any of them in the link.

[Francois van Brederode]

I have one P. Myersi with only a few yellow dots on his back.
Pangio's have a very varied pattern.

[cybermeez]

Do you have any photos of him? P. cuneovirgata are very small, even fully grown adults are rarely attain 3 inches from noste to tail. There is so much varriation in markings between individuals it can be very hard to determine species based on markings alone. The most usual suspect is P. semicincta because they are the most readily available of the striped Kuhlis and they tend to have the greatest variety of markings. Still, if you have a photo we may atleast be able to help narrow it down.

[LVKSLoachlady]

I have no clue how to put a pic on here...can some one help me with that too? And in any case I almost never see this fish, so it's gonna take me awhile to get a pic...

He is really small but so is the other one that almost never comes out! Almost all the food is gone before they come out, and I'm pretty sure that why he's so small still, but he was tiny when I bought him...

So since no one seems to think this guy is a cross breed I'm assuming they dont inter breed?

[LVKSLoachlady]

I have no clue how to put a pic on here...can some one help me with that too? And in any case I almost never see this fish, so it's gonna take me awhile to get a pic...

He is really small but so is the other one that almost never comes out! Almost all the food is gone before they come out, and I'm pretty sure that why he's so small still, but he was tiny when I bought him...

So since no one seems to think this guy is a cross breed I'm assuming they dont inter breed?

[LVKSLoachlady]

WTF! SORRY for the Double!

[cybermeez]

So since no one seems to think this guy is a cross breed I'm assuming they dont inter breed?

They can, but captive breeding of any Pangio species is rare. When it has happened it's usually completely unexpected. If you don't already, you may want to add algae wafers and other sinking foods to their diet to be sure your Kihlis get their share of the food.

[LVKSLoachlady]

I put bloodworms or brine shrimp in even night when I turn the lights out, plus I put sinking shripm pellets in there sevral times a day...Plus the guppies never eat all the flakes I put in there...So they must have eaten something at some point cuz they are still alive I just never see them eat...ok almost NEVER!!


Next time I see him I'll try to get a pic...