Hi all, after months of procrastinating and a lot of you guys asking I have finally set up an Instagram page! You can find it here: instagram.com/jasonscichlids
Thank you! Looking to bring Calvus into my fish room. Really appreciate your level of detail and compassion. Just found you and immediately subscribed. Thanks again.
I have had my Calvus for about 6.5 years was almost full size when I bought him. It’s in a 6x2x2 with some Frontosa’s and loves hunting the Frontosa fry when the females spit the fry. As you can tell I don’t purposely breed the Frontosa it just happens and usually 2 or 3 from every spawn survive. Good to see an Aussie fish keeper. I am based in Canberra.
here in the states.. i use Arm & Hammer baking soda ( Sodium Bicarbonate) ( table spoon per gallon) and Magnesium sulfate( epsom salts) (teaspoon per gallon).. my Juliodchromis Brichardi, Kendalli and Eretmodus loved it .. and spawned.. a long time ago...
To the point and precise. I do love these fishes. We are in lockdown here in Italy, as soon as the situation improves I shall give a go to a little tank with these beauties.
Thanks Matteo. They are an awesome, angry looking fish. I really hope things improve in Italy for you soon. Hopefully things return to normal soon and you can enjoy keeping these guys.
Such an amazing fish…..so happy to have 5 of these in a tank on their own……they are super elusive though…..I’ve barely seen them since I’ve put them in very recently. Wish me luck……I’d be over the moon if I can get them to spawn. Great video man…..very informative…. Nice one
They are mate, my favourite fish in the fish room. They do take time to get used to their new aquarium and are pretty shy fish. If you have the room, I would recommend you add some dither fish in their aquarium which will make them feel more at ease. Glad you enjoyed the video and found it informative!
Such a great walk through of your experience breeding calvus - really appreciated the detail and your own reactions to each part, really great story and video, thanks!!
great profile....great idea with the syringe.....got a lot of those around here hahaha....use em all the time for stuff....have a great week and good luck with continual breeding!
Thanks heaps guys! Yeah the syringes come in real handy! They are handy for target feeding fish, breaking up fish food for fry and also sucking up small fry to put them in other tanks. And thanks for the good wishes! Hope you guys have a great week too!
Nice video. Well done. I am just keeping Altolamprologus compressiceps ´Mandarin`... Also a gorgious/stunning fish!! Just one small advice... The lightnings of/in the fish tanks are much too bright/light. Especially if you use almost snow-white sand and less dark rocks in the tank. Means too much reflections/too much light. In general, most fishes prefer subdues lights.The fishes feel more comfortable, safe and they loose faster their shyness. Best regards from Germany!
Thank you very much Frank. Wow I looked up the Mandarin Compressiceps. Incredible! Absolutely beautiful fish. Thanks for the tip too mate. The lights I have a pretty narrow units (8cm) and don't have a full front to back coverage of the aquariums as the tanks are all 2 foot wide. For most of the day the fish room is lit up by only 4 of the 15 lights I have. They other thing is the exposure on the cameras I use isn't always an accurate representation of how bright the tanks are, so that might be misleading. Thanks again for your suggestion, as like you say, most fish don't like bright light. Cheers from Australia!
Congrats Jason. Great guide as usual 👌 I have just had to take my White Calvus back to the store as my Gold Occelatus have been trying to spawn the the Calvus was hanging around the shell trying to poach eggs. Really my fault for not doing enough research. If I had seen this guide before hand perhaps I wouldn't have bought him. On the up side, my Ornatus have just had theure first lot of fry. Im absolutely pumped. I have the same issue as you, I am goimg away on holiday next week so won't be able to spot feed them 😑 Anyway, keep up the good work mate 👍
Thanks mate, muh appreciated! Oh that's a shame you had to return your Calvus. But wow, fantastic news that your Occies are in the process of spawning! And fry from your Ornatus too, they looked like they were forming a good bond in that video so makes sense that you now have fry from them. Nice one mate. Damn, not great timing for a holiday but hopefully the parents will be able to defend their fry. I have a breeding pair of Regani who have been spawning frequently in a 4 foot tank with my Ventralis, Brevis and and other Reganis, and they haven't lost any fry. So hopefully you'll come back to them with no loses mate! Thanks once again ✌
My Gold Calvus spawned yesterday it just took almost a year and a half. I think the female took the longest to reach maturity. I am happy though that it finally happened.
Great info as usual!! I always confused the 2 almost to where I could not tell them apart thanks for the great comparisons of features to distinguish the two. Also its kind of interesting that the fry were so fragile being frightened so easy makes me wonder how they would survive in the wild . Congrats on the 500 subs!!
Cheers David, glad you enjoyed the video mate. It surprised me that they get so startled from the glass lid being moved, but yeah not opening the lids saved them. I guess in the wild they don't "hear" such "sharp" sounds like glass clinking. I need to do more checks on it and see if anyone has done research on similar things. And thank you David! Really pleased to have so many people supporting me. It means a lot!
Fantastic! And congratulations! Ty so much for this information and sharing the breeding process. I’m thumbs up #85 and subscriber # 742 10-23-20 thanks again!
Awesome video, provided a lot of info and footage. Never seen one of these at any fish shop but i wanna try to keep one now. Would a Jack Dempsey be too aggressive as a tankmate?
Thanks heaps, glad you liked it and want to try them out! Although I hope you haven't put them with a Jack Dempsey! Firstly, they require completely opposite water parameters. And secondly, yes, the Dempsey is far too agro for calvus. You'll have to get a second aquarium for the calvus mate
@@ilhammamduh2877 That is a shame. Hopefully your pair will learn to look after the eggs. Otherwise you could try pull the eggs out and raise them up in an egg hatchery. But that will be very difficult to do if she laid them in a shell.
@@JasonsCichlids Awesome thanks! I knew my generic escargot shells from Amazon for my Multis weren't going to cut it for Comps or Calvus (haven't decided which to get yet)
It certainly does. Their colour depends on their mood. What colour calvus did you get? White can turn very dark if they are stressed. And Black calvus can turn very light when stressed.
Hopefully you will be able to find some without having to buy them. These would not have been cheap if I purchased them. It was one of the areas I saved a lot of money with my fish room build. That said, if you only need enough rocks for one aquarium then it won't be too bad.
Hi Jason.I had one more query. Can I start with group of 10 calvus and 10 comps...1 inch size.?? In one tank. What all do I need to keep in mind in short and long run as they mature. Your advice would be very helpfull..
Hi David, a couple thing with this. Firstly, I wouldn't do this (not saying it can't be done) but I would prefer to keep the Calvus and Compressiceps separate as they can hybridize. That is the main concern and I just recommend you don't do it based on that. I encourage everyone to do their best to keep bloodlines pure. Secondly, I believe Compressiceps are a little more aggressive than Calvus and could potentially kill the Calvus off. Lastly, it also depends on the size of the tank you intend to keep them in as you would want it large to accommodate them as they grow to adulthood. I really hope that helps you with your decision, I personally wouldn't do it. Cheers mate.
@@JasonsCichlids Sounds good. Do you find this adequate for 1 breeding pair? Would you go bigger if you could? In your existing 2x2x14 would you attempt to keep multiple females with 1 male? (is there enough floor space for other females to get out of the way and hide when not breeding)
Ik have 3 cichlid fishtanks , 2 mbuna fishtanks and 1 peacock/hap tank , have a 4th fishtank set up wanted something different a tanganyika tank my choice was first neolamprologus tetrocephalus , but now ive seen this video some rest and peacefull fish that made my mind goes to calvus now lol
I guess they could but the female guppies I selected were huge females. That said, some of the guppy fry began to grow in the tank with the calvus as the calvus wouldn't always just eat them. But they helped ease the calvus nerves.
@@JasonsCichlids usually the genus is Ancient Greek and the specific name is Latin. The reason for this is because these are both considered “dead” languages, ie they don’t change anymore because nobody really uses them in everyday life so using them for scientific names would mean it is less likely the meaning of the scientific names will change with the evolution of language.
They are difficult to tell apart unless they are adults. The males dorsal fin is more pointed than the females and males grow larger than females. Apart from that, venting is the other way to sex them.
Hi all, after months of procrastinating and a lot of you guys asking I have finally set up an Instagram page! You can find it here: instagram.com/jasonscichlids
Thank you! Looking to bring Calvus into my fish room. Really appreciate your level of detail and compassion. Just found you and immediately subscribed. Thanks again.
THE BEST Tanganyikan Cichlid Channel! Cheers from your neighbor above!
Wow thank you for the very kind words there mate! ✌✌
Just found this channel! Wow great content
Thanks Alan, glad you like it!
Really thinking of getting a few of these! Amazons video and set up for them. Thanks!
very entertaining - and informative. Good onya mate. I think I've fallen in love with this fish.
Cheers mate, glad you found it informative. Glad you love these fish now too! They are my fave
Wow! Well done! Tanganyika fanatic here! 🙂👍
Cheers! Great to hear from other Tang fanatics! 👍✌
One thing for sure. They are a beautiful fish 💕
Cheers. I agree, love calvus!!
Yeah information is helpful nice video friend love that video❤️👍
Cheers for that! Glad you found the video helpful!
I have had my Calvus for about 6.5 years was almost full size when I bought him. It’s in a 6x2x2 with some Frontosa’s and loves hunting the Frontosa fry when the females spit the fry. As you can tell I don’t purposely breed the Frontosa it just happens and usually 2 or 3 from every spawn survive. Good to see an Aussie fish keeper. I am based in Canberra.
That would be interesting behaviour to see the calvus hunting, just like they do in the wild. Cheers mate, nice to hear from fellow Aussies!
here in the states..
i use Arm & Hammer baking soda ( Sodium Bicarbonate) ( table spoon per gallon) and Magnesium sulfate( epsom salts) (teaspoon per gallon).. my Juliodchromis Brichardi, Kendalli and Eretmodus loved it .. and spawned.. a long time ago...
That's great, keep doing what you're doing as it works.
Stunning
Cheers!
To the point and precise. I do love these fishes. We are in lockdown here in Italy, as soon as the situation improves I shall give a go to a little tank with these beauties.
Thanks Matteo. They are an awesome, angry looking fish. I really hope things improve in Italy for you soon. Hopefully things return to normal soon and you can enjoy keeping these guys.
Lots of great info! Thanks for sharing.
Not a problem, glad you found it useful ✌
Love your content, it's f*****g awesome. So well researched. Thanks mate
Cheers for that! Really glad you enjoy the content so much!
Thanks a lot for your video, really enjoy your Calvus story.
Cheers for that, glad you enjoyed the story!
Awesome video 👍
Cheers, glad you liked it mate
Such an amazing fish…..so happy to have 5 of these in a tank on their own……they are super elusive though…..I’ve barely seen them since I’ve put them in very recently.
Wish me luck……I’d be over the moon if I can get them to spawn.
Great video man…..very informative….
Nice one
They are mate, my favourite fish in the fish room. They do take time to get used to their new aquarium and are pretty shy fish. If you have the room, I would recommend you add some dither fish in their aquarium which will make them feel more at ease. Glad you enjoyed the video and found it informative!
WOW! Both Altolamprologus are one of my favorite african cichlids. I have the black pectorals
I agree Max! Such an awesome looking fish! The black pectorals have such a striking contrast.
Such a great walk through of your experience breeding calvus - really appreciated the detail and your own reactions to each part, really great story and video, thanks!!
Cheers Mike, glad you enjoyed it! Really appreciate hearing that ✌
great profile....great idea with the syringe.....got a lot of those around here hahaha....use em all the time for stuff....have a great week and good luck with continual breeding!
Thanks heaps guys! Yeah the syringes come in real handy! They are handy for target feeding fish, breaking up fish food for fry and also sucking up small fry to put them in other tanks. And thanks for the good wishes! Hope you guys have a great week too!
Nice video. Well done.
I am just keeping Altolamprologus compressiceps ´Mandarin`... Also a gorgious/stunning fish!!
Just one small advice... The lightnings of/in the fish tanks are much too bright/light. Especially if you use almost snow-white sand and less dark rocks in the tank. Means too much reflections/too much light.
In general, most fishes prefer subdues lights.The fishes feel more comfortable, safe and they loose faster their shyness.
Best regards from Germany!
Thank you very much Frank. Wow I looked up the Mandarin Compressiceps. Incredible! Absolutely beautiful fish. Thanks for the tip too mate. The lights I have a pretty narrow units (8cm) and don't have a full front to back coverage of the aquariums as the tanks are all 2 foot wide. For most of the day the fish room is lit up by only 4 of the 15 lights I have. They other thing is the exposure on the cameras I use isn't always an accurate representation of how bright the tanks are, so that might be misleading. Thanks again for your suggestion, as like you say, most fish don't like bright light. Cheers from Australia!
THANK YOU FOR THE INFO!! I just bought the last 3 the pet store had :)
Not a problem! Hope it helps you. Congrats on your purchase mate! Great choice!
Congrats Jason. Great guide as usual 👌 I have just had to take my White Calvus back to the store as my Gold Occelatus have been trying to spawn the the Calvus was hanging around the shell trying to poach eggs. Really my fault for not doing enough research. If I had seen this guide before hand perhaps I wouldn't have bought him. On the up side, my Ornatus have just had theure first lot of fry. Im absolutely pumped. I have the same issue as you, I am goimg away on holiday next week so won't be able to spot feed them 😑 Anyway, keep up the good work mate 👍
Thanks mate, muh appreciated! Oh that's a shame you had to return your Calvus. But wow, fantastic news that your Occies are in the process of spawning! And fry from your Ornatus too, they looked like they were forming a good bond in that video so makes sense that you now have fry from them. Nice one mate. Damn, not great timing for a holiday but hopefully the parents will be able to defend their fry. I have a breeding pair of Regani who have been spawning frequently in a 4 foot tank with my Ventralis, Brevis and and other Reganis, and they haven't lost any fry. So hopefully you'll come back to them with no loses mate! Thanks once again ✌
My Gold Calvus spawned yesterday it just took almost a year and a half. I think the female took the longest to reach maturity. I am happy though that it finally happened.
Congratulations mate! Glad your patience with them paid off. Hope you have loads of fry!
Great info as usual!! I always confused the 2 almost to where I could not tell them apart thanks for the great comparisons of features to distinguish the two. Also its kind of interesting that the fry were so fragile being frightened so easy makes me wonder how they would survive in the wild . Congrats on the 500 subs!!
Cheers David, glad you enjoyed the video mate. It surprised me that they get so startled from the glass lid being moved, but yeah not opening the lids saved them. I guess in the wild they don't "hear" such "sharp" sounds like glass clinking. I need to do more checks on it and see if anyone has done research on similar things. And thank you David! Really pleased to have so many people supporting me. It means a lot!
Bought 5 around March 1, 2023. Spawned yesterday.
Well done! Hope they are still spawning for you!
Fantastic! And congratulations! Ty so much for this information and sharing the breeding process. I’m thumbs up #85 and subscriber # 742 10-23-20 thanks again!
Thanks for the sub mate! Much appreciated. Glad you enjoyed the video
"They also have very large mouths and *strong jaws* for their size."
Something I am reminded of every time I put my hand in the tank.
Damn, that's not very nice! I haven't ever had mine bite me. I've had the male have a go at the net when I'm catching fry. But never my actual hand!
Awesome video, provided a lot of info and footage. Never seen one of these at any fish shop but i wanna try to keep one now. Would a Jack Dempsey be too aggressive as a tankmate?
Thanks heaps, glad you liked it and want to try them out! Although I hope you haven't put them with a Jack Dempsey! Firstly, they require completely opposite water parameters. And secondly, yes, the Dempsey is far too agro for calvus. You'll have to get a second aquarium for the calvus mate
Congrats on 5 hundy 👏👏
Cheers Blake! Can't believe it mate!
@@JasonsCichlids well deserved
Really awesome, would love to successfully breed my shell dwelling Comps and raise out fry.
Hope this helped. I suggest watching some of my more recent calvus videos too. Good luck with your Comps!
Thanks dude,I inspired by this vidio, because I try to breed altolamprologus compressiseps in Indonesia
Not a problem mate! Very happy to hear I inspired you to try breed them! Good luck ✌✌
@@JasonsCichlids thanks mate,last month my female compre has lay eggs,but few days later the eggs has gone 😂
@@ilhammamduh2877 That is a shame. Hopefully your pair will learn to look after the eggs. Otherwise you could try pull the eggs out and raise them up in an egg hatchery. But that will be very difficult to do if she laid them in a shell.
which is the Inkfin Calvus? I have that one.
Would this info help with sumbu shell dwellers?
Just so you know, I might have yellow calvus on my new list release if interested
Oh yeah? Keep me updated if you're in Sydney.
@@JasonsCichlids list will be out 17/8 on the face book page
@@hookdonfish1880 cheers will check it out
Hello Jason what’s the name of the shells?
Any tips on what shells to use for compressiceps?
At the moment I am using Ton Shells. They have a nice wide opening which I believe minimises the risk of fish getting stuck in them.
@@JasonsCichlids Awesome thanks! I knew my generic escargot shells from Amazon for my Multis weren't going to cut it for Comps or Calvus (haven't decided which to get yet)
Hey Jason, does dominance play a part on the Calvus’ colors? Got a shipment of 15 yesterday and trying to learn more about them
It certainly does. Their colour depends on their mood. What colour calvus did you get? White can turn very dark if they are stressed. And Black calvus can turn very light when stressed.
@@JasonsCichlids white! These are my first lake Tan fish. I can stare at them all day haha
Your first Tangs! Nice mate, they are quite a unique looking fish aren't they? I love their shape!
what food?
Hi Jason where did you get the rocks from which are in the pairs tank
I collected the rocks, which is slate from an open quarry
@@JasonsCichlids thanks jason uk aquarium store have rocks but not slate like your but now I know what they are I'll buy online
Hopefully you will be able to find some without having to buy them. These would not have been cheap if I purchased them. It was one of the areas I saved a lot of money with my fish room build. That said, if you only need enough rocks for one aquarium then it won't be too bad.
I just don't think there's extra bigger shell for them in the market at all, I guess diy big shell or alternative homes might work?
There are bigger shells but they aren't exactly cheap. Google "calvus cave", they make great alternatives
@@JasonsCichlids
It's say you go full cichlid farm breeding style,
Could you use large pvc pipe and tubes,???
I can't see why that wouldn't work
@@JasonsCichlids eh,
Now I need fish, do you have a ebay account???
No mate I don't sorry!
Hi Jason.I had one more query.
Can I start with group of 10 calvus and 10 comps...1 inch size.?? In one tank.
What all do I need to keep in mind in short and long run as they mature.
Your advice would be very helpfull..
Hi David, a couple thing with this. Firstly, I wouldn't do this (not saying it can't be done) but I would prefer to keep the Calvus and Compressiceps separate as they can hybridize. That is the main concern and I just recommend you don't do it based on that. I encourage everyone to do their best to keep bloodlines pure.
Secondly, I believe Compressiceps are a little more aggressive than Calvus and could potentially kill the Calvus off.
Lastly, it also depends on the size of the tank you intend to keep them in as you would want it large to accommodate them as they grow to adulthood. I really hope that helps you with your decision, I personally wouldn't do it. Cheers mate.
@@JasonsCichlids Thanks Jason....Maybe then ill go for calvus alone along with some other Tang like leulupi or Julis...
Thanks for advice
Not a problem David, that sounds like a more suitable combination mate.
Hi , how many could I keep in a 20 gallon? Thank you
I recommend a max of a pair. Its on the smaller size unfortunately.
Thanks for the video, detailed explanation. What is the preferred tank size for a group of 6 calvus ?
Cheers Francis, I would say a 4 foot tank minimum, bigger the better for 6 adults.
@@JasonsCichlids thanks man. I've 4 different varieties of calvus. What is the size of your tank which had the parents and fries?!
If they are in the same tank just ensure they don't cross breed mate. My breeding pair are in a 2 foot by 2 foot by just over a foot deep tank.
@@JasonsCichlids they're still juveniles got them a month back, im setting up seperate tanks for them... Thanks for sharing your knowledge, Cheers.
Hey Jason, what size are the shells ?? Whats the preferred size for breeding pair?!
hi, what brand , model (k rating) lighting is on this tank?
They are unbranded lights off ebay. Just search on ebay for "aqurium LED lights" and you can't miss them
Is it possible for
Me to purchase some
Of
Your Calvus
What size tanks do you use for breeding calvus ?
The tanks are 2 foot long by 2 foot wide by 14 inches high
@@JasonsCichlids Sounds good. Do you find this adequate for 1 breeding pair? Would you go bigger if you could? In your existing 2x2x14 would you attempt to keep multiple females with 1 male? (is there enough floor space for other females to get out of the way and hide when not breeding)
Hi what shells do you use.?
For calvus and compressiceps I use Ton Shells
How much calvus fish can you put in a fishtank together ?
Depends on the size of the tank. An adult pair would be perfect in a 100 litre tank.
@@JasonsCichlids i have a 180 litre fishtank that i want to put calvus in but kinda worries how much calvus is possible to put in
I wouldn't add any more than 6. 4 will be good.
@@JasonsCichlids sounds great cheers , thank you for youre time and anwsere and i loved youre video about breeding calvus !
Ik have 3 cichlid fishtanks , 2 mbuna fishtanks and 1 peacock/hap tank , have a 4th fishtank set up wanted something different a tanganyika tank my choice was first neolamprologus tetrocephalus , but now ive seen this video some rest and peacefull fish that made my mind goes to calvus now lol
🙏 Great video bud!
Thanks for that mate
I feel like they would eat the guppies before they spawn no?
I guess they could but the female guppies I selected were huge females. That said, some of the guppy fry began to grow in the tank with the calvus as the calvus wouldn't always just eat them. But they helped ease the calvus nerves.
Lamrpo - Bright
Logus - writing
Refers to the bright spangles on the sides of the body in the nominate Lamprologine
Interesting is that on Greek?
@@JasonsCichlids usually the genus is Ancient Greek and the specific name is Latin. The reason for this is because these are both considered “dead” languages, ie they don’t change anymore because nobody really uses them in everyday life so using them for scientific names would mean it is less likely the meaning of the scientific names will change with the evolution of language.
secuse me, by appearance (without delicate sexing) how to tell the differences between male and female?
They are difficult to tell apart unless they are adults. The males dorsal fin is more pointed than the females and males grow larger than females. Apart from that, venting is the other way to sex them.
@@JasonsCichlids ok thanks
So, I want to keep both in my tank. And I do. If they hybridize, oh well. I don’t sell fish nor am I a sophisticated breeder.
What male and female i am brazil
I have the yellow Calvus, but it doesn't have much yellow. ugggh
Nice mate, Yellow Calvus are the rarest out of the Black and White Calvus. Hopefully you will be able to get them coloured up nicely soon!