How do you tell these guys apart.theirs a recent wave of them I'n a few shops here i bought the reddest one i could find. Buddie at the shop claims that the females turn amazing red when the are larger and the male not so nice.i did some research only to find out that certain pikes actually go very red I'n coloration when larger.these fish are labeled I'n the shops here as atabapo " fire pike" .any thing i should know ?? How can i tell the apart at that size both type and sex?
Atabapo I &II differences at 6-8"
- Thread starter calgaryflames
- Start date
Cr. sp. "Atabapo I" will be the reddest of the Atabapo pikes. It is also less common. When young they have the classic Lugubris group pattern and shape. Beige body, head to tail horizontal mid body stripe & lightly spotted face. These are a little bit older and are showing some color but you get the idea.
When mature these are probably the reddest pike known.
Cr. sp. "Atabapo II" also known as the "fire pike" ot "ladder pike" is not nearly as red when mature. Juveniles have a very distintive pattern of vertical body stripes that cover only the top half of the body. There's no mistaking these for any other pike.
These used to be quite rare but seem to be the most often imported large pike right now with the exceptions of Cr. lenticulata and Cr. sp. "Venezuela"
Pictures of adult Atabapo II are few and far between for whatever reason. This is the best I can find.
Here's a shot of two adults from each specie showing the differences. Both fish are stressed and not looking their best but it helps.
Hope that helps.
When mature these are probably the reddest pike known.
Cr. sp. "Atabapo II" also known as the "fire pike" ot "ladder pike" is not nearly as red when mature. Juveniles have a very distintive pattern of vertical body stripes that cover only the top half of the body. There's no mistaking these for any other pike.
These used to be quite rare but seem to be the most often imported large pike right now with the exceptions of Cr. lenticulata and Cr. sp. "Venezuela"
Pictures of adult Atabapo II are few and far between for whatever reason. This is the best I can find.
Here's a shot of two adults from each specie showing the differences. Both fish are stressed and not looking their best but it helps.
Hope that helps.
interesting. it was sold to me as an atabapo and was marked at store as “red tapajos “ pike not like they couldnt be wrong. but it is pretty disappointing if its the venezuela pike.
Problem is that Atabapo has several different pikes in the river system. You have the red atabapo (atabapo 1 in Rapps picture), ladder atabapo (atabapo 2 in Rapps picture), C. sp Venezuela, C. lugubris, and C. lenticulata.
It's quite young, but chances are really high that it's C. sp Venezuela since they would be the most profitable species at that size.
It's quite young, but chances are really high that it's C. sp Venezuela since they would be the most profitable species at that size.
i see. that is rather disappointing. its tail markings do look similar to the venezuela. i paid around 60$ for him isnt that a bit much for a venezuela?
I would say so, even for an atabapo red. I've seen 4-6" atabapo red sell for $45-50 USD nowadays.
You could still luck out and end up with either Tapajos Red or Atabapo Red. Your pike hasn't even reach the sub-adult color stage, where the dots on the face disappear.
okay and what specifically am i looking for to differentiate the two because i looked up the venezuela pike and there seems to be allot of color variants.