In early August 1993, I was fortunate enough to see displayed for sale, aParosphromenus species. Although marked as P.deissneri,
it was not until they settled in their new home that I could see that
they, in fact, fitted the description outlined in 'Labyrinth' 62, for a
newly-described species,P.anjunganensis, from Kalimantan
(Indonesian Borneo). The fish are extremely attractive, male and female
both show the typical tan and brown-striped markings on the main body.
Sexual differentiation is difficult but given ideal conditions, the
differences become apparent. Males show a solid red colour in the
dorsal, anal and caudal fins, with a fine crystal-blue outer margin.
The ventral fins are blue. Females sport a similar colour scheme but
lacked the depth and intensity of the male. A
pair were housed in a 3.5 gallon aquarium, furnished with fragments of
terracotta plant pots and upturned coconut shell. No gravel substrate
was included, although groups of stone were arranged to give additional
cover, as were fronds of Java fern and Java moss. In spite of using a
small corner filter utilising aquarium peat and filter wool, the pH
remained neutral while the temperature was maintained at 78°F. The
fish, although shy, had settled down within a short space of time and
their behaviour strongly indicated that they were a true pair and
although still juvenile, the male would display to the female and try
to entice her into a suitable spawning site. All his attempts however,
remained in vain. To obtain a
successful spawning, I was well aware that I would have to lower the pH
of the water considerably. This problem was to be solved by
pre-treating water which filled a collapsible water carrier. A generous
amount of aquarium peat was added and allowed to steep for a few days,
after which a pH of 4.3 had been achieved. I had intended to carry out
a number of water changes in order to bring about a gradual reduction
in pH but after several water changes, the pH was unchanged.
Questioning the inertness of the terracotta plant-pots and stonework, I
decided to remove them, also for good measure I changed the filter
medium for some fresh peat. A 50% water change was carried out using
the pre-treated water which was added gradually, to prevent unnecessary
stress on the fish. The effect was
noticeable overnight and whereas before I had thought that the fish had
appeared well enough, they now positively radiated health. The male was
resplendent in breeding colours and recommenced to court the female
within a couple of days. She had lost her striped patterning and had
become uniformly brown with the fins showing a reddish tinge. An egg
spot was also seen, protruding from her papilla. On
21.09.93, I discovered that a spawning had taken place. The spawning
site was a cave formed by a fragment of coconut shell at the front of
the aquarium. A pH reading gave a value of 5.1. The male was n
attendance at the nest and had driven off the female, who was still
close at hand and was showing a slight interest in the nest site. Her
approach, however, was not tolerated by the male. Although a few of the
large opaque eggs could be seen in the roof of the cave, no nest was
apparent until the next day. By this time the male could also be seen
venturing to the surface, to collect air bubbles to add to the nest. It
was also noted that, during the following development of the eggs, the
male remained very attentive, constantly fanning and mouthing the eggs. By
Friday, 24.09.93, the fry looked more fish-like. It was not until the
following day that the young fishes' eyes were apparent. The female
remained in the aquarium and now actively sought out the male who had
begun to be more tolerant of her presence at the spawning site. On
the morning of 29.9.93, the male was observed taking air bubbles into
the cave. By mid-day spawning occurred, both fish embracing in typical
fashion and the eggs sank to the floor of the cave. Both fish took an
active role in retrieving the eggs and placing them on the roof of the
cave. By 7 p.m., spawning was complete and the female was driven from
the cave. The nest now contained both fry and eggs, although some fry
were beginning to stray, only to be collected and returned. The
constant activity seemed to be to much for the integrity of the nest,
which appeared to have collapsed. On
30.09.93, some 24 eggs could be seen on the floor of the cave, along
with fry scattered throughout the cave. By 1.10.93, few fry could be
seen and the eggs were in disarray. At this point I thought it wise to
remove the male. The eggs were duly siphoned into a 1 pint glass jar
and hatched artificially. Fry from the first spawning were now
free-swimming and ranged throughout the aquarium and could be seen,
hiding in the foliage and attached to coconut shells. They readily
accepted newly-hatched brine shrimp and were weaned onto microworm. Development
of the second spawning followed a similar pattern and they were
free-swimming by 9.10.94, when they were allowed to join their older
siblings. At this point the total number of fry was estimated at 20.
Although the fry remained very shy, their subsequent care and rearing
posed no problems. As for the adults, spawning continued, pretty much
on demand. However, my initial success was not to be repeated, with
eggs disappearing by the second day even though great care was taken to
carry out brief periods of observation and to shade the aquarium from
bright light and external distractions. An
attempt to hatch the eggs artificially, also met with limited success
with only 6 fry hatching from a clutch of some 125 eggs. Because
of the demanding nature of these fish, I found that, in achieving some
small degree of success, the results paid back are definitely worth the
effort put in!