Ruby Red Peacocks

[wandj]

BTW, my LFS got these for me from Riverfront.

The cost was $300 for the 6 fish. ($50 per fish)

[Vallisneria]

6 peacocks in a 48g should be fine. IME ruby reds aren't as aggressive as some other peacocks(mine were constantly getting beat up in my tank, they were very peaceful). So they should be ok in a 48g, especially if you put loks of rocks and caves.

I"d stick to feeding NLS. This is the only food i feed to my africans and they are breeding, look great and have never had bloat. If you want to add something you can feed mysis or brine shrimp as a treat every once and a while but its not really needed.

Can't wait to see pics. Are they really red?

edit- you paid 300$ for 6 red peacocks??? For that price are they perfect show specimens?

[RD.]

Can I put all these fish in this tank?

Yes, but only the dom male will most likely show the best color.

$300 for 6 Ruby Red Peacocks? :ph43r:

[Tanker]

Maybe it was $15 each for 6 fish and $210 for air freight?

[RDFISHGUY]

$300 ... sounds like a real hose job to me.I paid $180 for 6 WC phenochilus 3-4". I think you got had. You'll have to sell a lot of fry to get that back. Hope you don't kill them like I did my phenos :bang1:

[wandj]

Well, as the story goes, I asked me LFS to order them for me. I know their source (Riverfront) so I called Wayne myself. He said he had 3 pairs coming. So I called the LFS, etc and arranged for them to pick them up when they go to Calgary to get their regular order. At no time was a price mentioned by anyone. Anyway, I picked them up and that's when I was told they were $300. I had no idea what the going price was because these are my first Africans, so I paid. I have paid a lot more for other fish mind you. I'm sure there was a markup for my LFS getting them for me and fish always cost a lot more when you "order" them. I will be babying them of course. I will post the pics as soon as the film is done. 16 pics left in the roll. Hmm

[Vallisneria]

Anyway, I picked them up and that's when I was told they were $300. I had no idea what the going price was because these are my first Africans, so I paid. I have paid a lot more for other fish mind you. I'm sure there was a markup for my LFS getting them for me and fish always cost a lot more when you "order" them.

This is why you always need to agree on a price before hand. You probably could hvae ordered them straight from riverfront and had them shipped for cheaper. I"d be interested to see how much riverfront was selling them for.

But anyways, not much you can do now. Keep us updated on how they are doing.

[wandj]

Gee, now you guys have me curious, but I would feel so cheesy if I were to call Wayne and pretend I was looking and asked about how much Ruby's go for.

But the LFS said they are really nice ones. She said they had smaller ones come before so perhaps it is the size that commands a higher price. I know the owners somewhat and I don't feel they would try to soak me, but I'm sure they have to add markup or what not. All their other prices on fish are comparable to Big Als and a lot of fish are even a lot cheaper.

"For that price are they perfect show specimens?"

The males look perfect to me. Mind you these are the first Africans I've had, but their fins are in perfect condition. Not a tear or anything.

The females look a little skinny and more beat up, but perhaps they have been harrassed a little by the males during their time with them. I fed them all a Red Wiggler this morning. The males were not very hungry and the little male finally ate his worm after it wiggling in front of him for 15 min. The other male bit one in half and I don't think the biggest even ate his.

Now the girls, within 2 minutes, one sucked one in, and the others followed suit in about 10 min. I wonder if they have ever been fed live RW's before, as they almost seemed to not know what they were....or they are still recovering from their shipping experience.

Fact is, the females were hungrier. They need a little conditioning.

Plan is, after one month, I'll put them in their perm home.

And yes Val, I see that they are pretty calm compared to my regularr JD's.

(When I first got my little regular JD's, about 2.5 inches, when I picked up the bag they were in, they fought and acted crazy, trying to swim downwards. I was amazed at their strength. I first had all 5 together in a 45gal Q tank, and slowly I had to separate them all till they all have their own tank right now because almost daily, there was anotehr one hiding in the fake plants due to harrassment) And even now they move so aggressively...swim like crazy when I come (they want food). HEY, I just remembered, when I had my hand in the tank yesterday, one of the big JD's BIT my finger! (No blood). I think he thought I put in some food.

My peacocks seem so gentle, so now I feel good about putting them in the 48gal together. I can already see a major difference in aggression.

Edited December 17, 2005 by wandj

[RD.]

A couple of quality males.

[Vallisneria]

Are your males a nice red or more of an orange/red?

I paid 72$ for a breeding group of ruby reds at the Ace auction a few years ago. The male wasn't very red, more of the orange variety. So if yours are actually red you might have a nice market in edmonton as all the ruby red aren't actually red up here.

[wandj]

I don't think they are as red as the pics, but it is not orange. I think it is a mix of orange and red if that makes sense. Geez I wish I had a digi cam.

[RD.]

The fish in the first pic is actually a sub dom male.

You can see the 'before & after' pics here:

http://www.cichlid-food-canada.com/gallery.html

Sometimes the color can be enhanced by diet, but genetics will play a major role in how red this species becomes as they mature.

[wandj]

Great link Neil!

Ok, I'm going to be honest here.....my 2 large males look like the fish on the left. In fact, they seem to have nice, dark blue heads, but the red is a bit washed out if that makes sense. The smaller guy has very nice colors.

I just fed them NLS, and I'm afraid they are not taking to it yet. The females are the most curious but I saw them spit it out. What does this mean? They have never had this food before? Well, they better get used to it.

On my days off coming up, I will be preparing their new home. Right now it is bare and no decor. 48 gal. Going to add that small gravel from Sil Industries, a couple of fake stumps, some fake rocks, some real rocks.

Should I add driftwood? I was not going to as I am sure it is not natural for them and it will just get slimy or something.

[RD.]

I wouldn't add driftwood, unless it's very well seasoned, as it will most likely cause a decrease in pH. It might also taint your water.

As far as the food, my guess is they have been raised on various flake foods, so they will need some time to figure out what those sinking pellets are. Once they do, they'll eat plenty good.

Go easy with the food for now, and allow them some time to settle in to their new environment. Once they take to the food (and they will in time) give them approx 30-60 days, then post back with the results. If NLS doesn't bring out the natural red coloration in the males, nothing will.

[dunl]

$300 for 6 fish.....they better be wild caught for that price.