Astatheros rhytisma

[cchhcc]

I have 4 little ones that are about 2.5" They have grown very slow for me and I've heard from others that they are slow growers. They are pretty shy and not real aggressive eaters. Mine are not showing much other then red on there dorsal fin and a few spots. I moved mine to my discus tank because the couldn't hang with some other SA/CA growouts of the same size and they seem to be doing much better with the discus. Once they get a little bigger I hope to move them to my 220g that has some other fairly peaceful SA/CA fish.

Good post!

Yes, they are definitely not aggressive eaters (as is the case with all the sifter types like rostratus, rhytisma, etc.). Putting them in you discus tank is probably a good idea at the moment.

Even when they are bigger, they will not compete at feeding time unless you put some serious thought into your feeding method. As I indicated above, it is imperative to feed them small particles and allow them to feed over a long while. In the wild they sift the sand/mud all day long in the hunt for tiny inverts and the like.

In mixed tanks it helps to target feed the aggressive feeders with floaters while at the same time feeding small sinkers to the rhytisma. Also, I feed small frozen foods (mysis, etc.) that will not allow the more aggressive feeders to hog. Heck, if the "pigs" ignore the small foods so much the better for the rhytisma!

 

[jgentry]

I always feed the tiny NLS pellets for such purposes. Nothing larger than 1 mm so that the hogs can't snap them all up. I even use the micro pellets for my sifters. They are much more comfortable eating over hours than wolfing it all down like a greedy Midas or the like.

Exactly what I do. I have some pig psittacus and severums in my big tank and the only way my robertsoni gets food is to feed the small and micro hikari sinking pellets. They are great for geo's and all sifters. My bigger fish just ignore them.

Does anyone have any thought on how my robertsoni is going to get along with the rhystima when they are big enough to move in? I have been really worried about this. It's taken quite a while to get my robertsoni were he comfortably comes out and feeds and he is just now really starting to show some great color. I'm afraid that since they are closely related he will not take well to them. I guess I'll just have to wait and see, they are doing good with the discus for the time being.

 

[peathenster]

I always feed the tiny NLS pellets for such purposes. Nothing larger than 1 mm so that the hogs can't snap them all up. I even use the micro pellets for my sifters. They are much more comfortable eating over hours than wolfing it all down like a greedy Midas or the like.

Excellent idea. I tried floating and sinking together but this should work much better

 

[cchhcc]

Exactly what I do. I have some pig psittacus and severums in my big tank and the only way my robertsoni gets food is to feed the small and micro hikari sinking pellets. They are great for geo's and all sifters. My bigger fish just ignore them.

Does anyone have any thought on how my robertsoni is going to get along with the rhystima when they are big enough to move in? I have been really worried about this. It's taken quite a while to get my robertsoni were he comfortably comes out and feeds and he is just now really starting to show some great color. I'm afraid that since they are closely related he will not take well to them. I guess I'll just have to wait and see, they are doing good with the discus for the time being.

I think it will all be related to tank size. I have kept rhytisma, rostratus, and altifrons together in big tanks and they did well. That said, they definitely "notice" each other and seem to ignore their species differences (i.e. they behave like conspecifics). I've found these fish do better in groups, so if you have several and have good tank space they should do fine........perhaps after a brief "settling in" period!

 

[jgentry]

I think it will all be related to tank size. I have kept rhytisma, rostratus, and altifrons together in big tanks and they did well. That said, they definitely "notice" each other and seem to ignore their species differences (i.e. they behave like conspecifics). I've found these fish do better in groups, so if you have several and have good tank space they should do fine........perhaps after a brief "settling in" period!

Cool, thanks for the info. The tank they are going into is a 220g. I might need to remove the robertsoni at first and let them settle in and move him back. I'll keep an eye out for a couple more at the the ACA. Maybe some rostratus.

 

[cornbread_5]

st what size do the max out and i have mine growing out in a tank with nothing else but some roseline barbs

 

[cornbread_5]

any pics?