Fascinating observations, Icthisapian. Thanks! I never paid attention. But what do you think on the planiceps parental involvement that's in question here?
Try to Id this guy
- Thread starter bradharm18
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I think I know what you mean. I've been watching lately and it's almost as if he has been carb loading and there has been some definite color changes to dorsal fin and the stretch to the tail. His appetite comes in bursts that last about a week then he eats normal portions just like my rtc. But I already see a lot of growth and he was about 12" when I first got him. Ended up naming him kraken. Lol it was a toss up between that and holy diver. The wife picked haha
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Also I have him on the same diet as my rtc whole raw prawns heads still on soaked in paprika and garlic extreme. He loves it and the paprika really makes that tail light on fire
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If you will, would you please elaborate on both points - the rumors (just trying to gage how possibly trustworthy they are) and the spots (why are they the indicator)?
Both rtc and the hybrid have great red coloration since I switched their diets to the natural coloring that is found in paprika that can be broken down by the fish it also helps with digestion from what I've read
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Well as for the parenting i feel this cat is 100% hybrid. Just doesnt have the pattern/ features of a driftwood. And again, IMO, he has very distinct shovel nose features...the slim wedge shaped face. I assume its possible to breed rtc x dwc hybrids, but i havent seen or heard of that. As i hope we all know, a hybrid is unable to reproduce do to chromosomal mismatching, which also makes them gain hybrid vigor. with that said i feel a hybrid of all three would be impossible to come by, not sure if that was a question involed in this thread or not.
As for the "dots" being a growth indicator its a really cool process:
Stage 1- tail and fin extension/ stretch
- My cats grow abnormally and obviously larger tails before they grew. This can be backed up by thinking in terms of the fish, they need a larger tail/ fins to move a larger body, and it makes sense to grow them first because it takes massive calories to grow the next two stages.
Stage 2- head, mouth, should growth
- Again, my cats then grow dispropotionat, like they were squished in the middle and tails and heads were larger. In terms of the fish, they can now find faster/ larger prey, and thier mouths can now swallow larger prey. increasing thier calorie consumption on each meal. its important to remember these are WILD animals and dont realize the difference between river and tank
Stage 3- body growth
- Now that they can catch, and swallow larger prey, they need to expand thier stomachs, so thier body grows and thier organs grow. Mine went from eating a few 2-3" long silver sides to being able to take quarter or more of fish filet, about 8 or so silver sides worth.
As for the patternign it shoudl progress liek this
stage 1- dots appear in white behind pectoral fins. dots small, background white, stage one completes when dots directly behind pectoral fins begin to enlarge.
stage 2- dots enlarge along entire length of body. dots should be the same size as those on already present in the dark. dots enlarged, background white. stage 2 ends when white skin under new dots begins to darken
stage 3- skin under new dots begins to tunr black/ ashey in color. this stage takes some time as the entire body is growing/ elongating. at the end of this stage the "cycle" is complete. no dots on white background.
each stage varies in length based on diet, habitate, and even on each fish. One of mine completes his cycle long before the other, even though they live together and eat the same food. i have found if you want to really grow and get them going fast, fresh foods is the way to go. This is fairly simplified but its the easiest way to explain the dots and growth. Let me knwo if yours act the same. i'd be really curious to know.
i should note, when i say hybrid/ standard hybrid, i mean the common rtc x tsn hybrid.i also screwed up, not a driftwood, but firewood. either way, i feel it is a standard hybrid due to the large verticle bars behind the dorsal, just like a tsn has.
