lol forgive me. I can see now looking at the pic closer Gourami.. thing is your istlanum is very dark so at a glance I thought it was a female grammodes.. I'm keeping Grammodes's currently. Iv spawned both several times over time.
Thank you, yes this particular istlanum was very dark compared to most I've seen. Not sure why, possibly because of black background/gravel. Though the other fish were not unusually dark, so I am not sure.
Wow you have great tast in cichlids Gourami swami.. both them fish are defo half way up in my top 10 favourite cichlids of all time. Iv had Grammodes up to 9" they are pure power houses in my experiences with them! I'd put them pound for pound the hardest cichlids of all. If Grammodes got as big as dovii I'd say it would take Dovii's place at the top. Straight up. Fantastic fish.
There very easy to spawn..Cubans can tolerate a broad range in water parameters with no problems. Males are very gentle on the females once they pair! they form a very strong bond without risk of loosing the female. Not like in most other cichlids were using a divider is essential to eliminate the risk. These are my personal experiences breeding N tetracanthus a fair few times since 1994 with no fatalities..hope this helps fruju..also brother please would you show updates on the progress with tetracanthus! Would love to see how you get on. There a very rewarding fish to own in my opinion...
Also guys are there any of you keeping Cubans past or present.. pics would be very cool to see if you wouldn't mind?
there an aggressive fish over all and can hold there own with all but the largest and hard hitting cichlids (dovii-Umbee's long term that is) when young they were always seeing each other off and displaying aggressively at each other! Thankfully nothing further than that. If you look at Gourami swarmi's pic for example when kept with fish that can hold there own,all is well. Provide enough space for them to find a retreat when needed and enjoy a peaceful tank..
Thanks fruju. How's your little fellers doing! Have you got any updates on them yet?
