what's the biggest salvini you've seen? Got any pics of 5"+ salvinis? Keep any yourself?
I have a 7" male salvini in my 200g. He's the 2nd largest fish in the tank, after a 8"-9" tinfoil barb, and he rules over all the other fish (unsurprisingly). I got him at 3" about 20 months ago. He's my favorite fish, and I'm quite fond of just staring into the tank, admiring him. Like the rest of the tank's inhabitants, he's not very shy around me, but he and the other CA cichlids are very shy around strangers (such as my parents).
He regularly cruises about the tank, and I'd have to say he's very active... which stands in great contrast to others' reports that their salvini are very reclusive. I've been meaning to give him a name (He'll be the first fish I've officially named)...
He's an avid eater, subsists mostly on kensfish pellets, but occasionally he and the others will get to hunt down danios or guppies or tetras or some other gourmet food fish.
If I gave the tank better lighting, I do think my salvini would have a good chunk of red coloration to show off along his abdominal region.
I have a frontosa in the tank that is starting to approach the salvini in size, and believe it or not the salvini has started giving the frontosa a little flak. The only other fish the salvini throws his weight around with are the two 6-6.5" Jack Dempseys in the tank. HOWEVER, there is a 5" P. acei (type of african mbuna) that tries giving just about anyone a hassle when they approach his particular rock, and not even the tank overlord is fully immune to an occasional tail-bite. Sometimes the salvini just coasts off and leaves the little grubber feeling victorious, other times the salvini will flip charge after the acei like a rhino, and these encounters account for most of the aquascape-damage in my tank.
I have a sand substrate, and the salvini does enjoy doing a little digging every now and then to make a desired cave a bit more accessible.
I used to have a 9" texas male in the tank, but the texas bullied the sal too much, so the texas went back in his 55g after a few months of 200g-fun. Once I took the texas out, the salvini quickly took to bullying the texas mate, a 7" female uropthalmus, in the same exact manner. So she went to the 55g too, and that couple is still experiencing a healthy relationship (they've bred twice).
Unfortunately, I have no recent pics of this fish (or of any of my other fish for that matter). I plan on alleviating this problem within the next 4 months or so, by saving up for a digital camcorder.
I have a 7" male salvini in my 200g. He's the 2nd largest fish in the tank, after a 8"-9" tinfoil barb, and he rules over all the other fish (unsurprisingly). I got him at 3" about 20 months ago. He's my favorite fish, and I'm quite fond of just staring into the tank, admiring him. Like the rest of the tank's inhabitants, he's not very shy around me, but he and the other CA cichlids are very shy around strangers (such as my parents).
He regularly cruises about the tank, and I'd have to say he's very active... which stands in great contrast to others' reports that their salvini are very reclusive. I've been meaning to give him a name (He'll be the first fish I've officially named)...
He's an avid eater, subsists mostly on kensfish pellets, but occasionally he and the others will get to hunt down danios or guppies or tetras or some other gourmet food fish.
If I gave the tank better lighting, I do think my salvini would have a good chunk of red coloration to show off along his abdominal region.
I have a frontosa in the tank that is starting to approach the salvini in size, and believe it or not the salvini has started giving the frontosa a little flak. The only other fish the salvini throws his weight around with are the two 6-6.5" Jack Dempseys in the tank. HOWEVER, there is a 5" P. acei (type of african mbuna) that tries giving just about anyone a hassle when they approach his particular rock, and not even the tank overlord is fully immune to an occasional tail-bite. Sometimes the salvini just coasts off and leaves the little grubber feeling victorious, other times the salvini will flip charge after the acei like a rhino, and these encounters account for most of the aquascape-damage in my tank.
I have a sand substrate, and the salvini does enjoy doing a little digging every now and then to make a desired cave a bit more accessible.
I used to have a 9" texas male in the tank, but the texas bullied the sal too much, so the texas went back in his 55g after a few months of 200g-fun. Once I took the texas out, the salvini quickly took to bullying the texas mate, a 7" female uropthalmus, in the same exact manner. So she went to the 55g too, and that couple is still experiencing a healthy relationship (they've bred twice).
Unfortunately, I have no recent pics of this fish (or of any of my other fish for that matter). I plan on alleviating this problem within the next 4 months or so, by saving up for a digital camcorder.
