Dwarf festae..... (pic)

[Eli173]

Look it the small one in pic it was bought wit 9 others n all the other 9 are big like the bigger one in the pic..... Is the small one always gonna be small are will it eventually get the same size as the rest.... Thanks in advance....




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[Eli173]

I dont know y its so small afraid it might get eaten by rest of them....


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[Decker504]

Its not a DWARF so to speak. Males generally grow faster than females and some fish just grow faster than others. The same thing is happening w/ my rio tumbes festae from Dan.

 

[Eli173]

Its not a DWARF so to speak. Males generally grow faster than females and some fish just grow faster than others. The same thing is happening w/ my rio tumbes festae from Dan.

Ok that makes some sense... Hope i dont have only one female wit 9 males..... What a mess that would be.....


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[BlesOne]

Thats not always the case at all, in both my experiences with growing out festea its always been a female that outgrows the rest and is dominant...
This has more to do with that fish being at the very bottom of the pecking order and is not developing at the same pace due to stress and lack of feeding rights ime.

 

[Stratoquarius]

I have a female GT thats grown 1cm in about 4 months. its currently just under 1.5" all the other fish I got with it are nearly 5". some fish are just dwarfs

 

[mikehagan]

Thats not always the case at all, in both my experiences with growing out festea its always been a female that outgrows the rest and is dominant...
This has more to do with that fish being at the very bottom of the pecking order and is not developing at the same pace due to stress and lack of feeding rights ime.

+1 Yeah he or she is most likely the wimpiest of the group. Most likely doesn't get much food. That happened to me and I only had 2. Mine didnt make it .

 

[BIG-G]

I read an article a while back that theorized fish of the same species kept in close quarters would release chemicals that would cause lesser dominate individuals to be stunted. Thus making them less of a threat. I will see if I can find it.
Dont know if I buy it, but it was interesting.

 

[ryansmith83]

I read an article a while back that theorized fish of the same species kept in close quarters would release chemicals that would cause lesser dominate individuals to be stunted. Thus making them less of a threat. I will see if I can find it.
Dont know if I buy it, but it was interesting.

This has been a myth around discus forums for years. I don't think it's ever been proven and it's purely speculation. Discus form a hierarchy, and the fish on the bottom of the pecking order almost always ends up being stunted in growth. I think a similar thing happens when you buy other cichlids in groups. The fish who are on the bottom of the totem pole are usually going to end up being smaller.

IMO the fish in the picture looks like a runt. If you moved it to a separate tank and tried to feed it, it might put on some size and catch up. This is doubtful, though (IMO!).

 

[RD.]

I believe that the term you are looking for is GIS (Growth Inhibiting Substances).

Stunting can occur in aquariums, as well as in the wild. This much we know for fact. But the jury still appears to be out as to whether this is caused by pheromones, increased levels of cortisol (from stress) or whatever.

Either way, that fish is a runt & will probably remain so unless you do as Ryan suggested and move it to a separate tank.