Flowerhorn at Thai LFS

[islandguy11]

Just wanted to make this thread so I could occasionally update it with pix and show how Flowerhorn are currently looking in Thai LFS.

As you can see nearly all the FH in shops on this island are ZZ Red Dragons, and to a lesser extent Thai Silks -- Kamfa for example are very rare to find at most LFS in the provinces outside of BKK, though Chatuchak Market itself has some shops with awesome Kamfa. The fact is though most nicer Kamfa or FH-Texas mixes are sold to overseas buyers, who pay a lot more for the fish than most locals would.

Compared to a few years ago they sure are coming out more red and with already quite pronounced humps, even at 4"....

 

[islandguy11]

Btw for reference 1,000 Thb is about US$31, which is the average price for 4-5" ZZ or Thai Silk.

 

[RD.]

Barrett, do you recall how much the fish in the last 2 pics was priced at? Just curious, thanks.

 

[islandguy11]

Barrett, do you recall how much the fish in the last 2 pics was priced at? Just curious, thanks.

Hey Neil, if I recall the tank wasn't market yet -- if he's still there next time I go to the shop I'll check; in the meantime I would guess he would be about US$75-$90, maybe $100 tops -- you've got me curious now too.

 

[Man-made Monsters]

Hey islandguy11 it is awesome to see a fellow hobbiest over in Thailand who is relaying such great info from one of the main sources of these fish in Asia. I personally like the fish labeled for 750, I would buy him for $25.00US any day of the week. If only I didn't have to spend $100.00 to ship him here. But anyway, I'm surprised that so many of the fish you are seeing look like your normal ZZ/Red Dragon hybrids. Guess I was expecting to see a little more diversity on the fish. I would love to see the Kamfas you described in "the market" I often wonder what the current state of Thailand Kamfas are looking like. Some of the Kamfas my buddy imports have pearls that almost seem holographic in color. Keep those pictures coming dude!!! Thanks again for sharing!

 

[islandguy11]

Hey islandguy11 it is awesome to see a fellow hobbiest over in Thailand who is relaying such great info from one of the main sources of these fish in Asia. I personally like the fish labeled for 750, I would buy him for $25.00US any day of the week. If only I didn't have to spend $100.00 to ship him here. But anyway, I'm surprised that so many of the fish you are seeing look like your normal ZZ/Red Dragon hybrids. Guess I was expecting to see a little more diversity on the fish. I would love to see the Kamfas you described in "the market" I often wonder what the current state of Thailand Kamfas are looking like. Some of the Kamfas my buddy imports have pearls that almost seem holographic in color. Keep those pictures coming dude!!! Thanks again for sharing!

Welcome WM -- and yeah shipping costs can be a deal breaker.

But yes that's the case with local stock being almost entirely ZZ/Red dragon hybrids -- I was both super surprised and super lucky to find my Kamfa-Red Texas here on the island, I'd never really seen similar here before.

I got to thinking about it and realized it's probably not only a profit or cost thing but also because of another reason: superstition & Feng shui.

Thais are arguably even more superstitious than Chinese, and in both it's a big part of their culture. And as we know, it's one reason why many people like Fortune Fish such as Flowerhorn. So maybe it's not surprising that local Thais would prefer ZZ/Red Dragon's given they have bigger humps that more closely resemble the Fat Buddha, so the bigger the hump the more prosperous and longer-lived you will be.

ZZ's also generally have more distinct flowerlines, which can be another sign of good luck.

Not scheduled to be back in Bangkok until next month, but will surely stop by Chatuchak then and get some snaps of some really nice Kamfa I saw at a couple of shops which specialized in them (and some gorgeous Golden Bases too if I remember correctly).

 

[Mitchell The Monster]

Flowerhorn are cool from a distance for me. The only ones i would be really tempted to buy would be a "Thai Silk." Cool thread though

 

[islandguy11]

Flowerhorn are cool from a distance for me. The only ones i would be really tempted to buy would be a "Thai Silk." Cool thread though

Thx MTM, yeah personally nowadays I'd also get a Thai Silk before a ZZ -- though in fact I prefer Kamfa because I'm not really into the huge head thing, Kamfa's humps don't get so crazy big as ZZ's.

 

[RD.]

Today's Kamfa are pretty dang sexy.

 

[islandguy11]

Today's Kamfa are pretty dang sexy.

Yep -- I just wish they weren't getting more and more prone to health issues due to weak genetics