# [Wet Thumb Forum]-Pencilfish species



## 2la (Feb 3, 2003)

After drawing inspiration from Ghazanfar and Jay's beautiful examples, I decided to pare down my collection of photos and keep only the best ones, in addition to exercising a LOT of patience (read: cursing) in capturing the new photos below. I'm also in the process of updating my photo album. Hope you enjoy!









Espe's pencilfish, _Nannostomus espei_


















Dwarf pencilfish, _N. marginatus_









Coral red pencilfish, _N. mortenthaleri_


















Not the clearest pic but a good one for showing color and fin-flaring during a dominance display.

 

[This message was edited by 2la on Sat May 24 2003 at 12:27 AM.]

[This message was edited by 2la on Mon June 02 2003 at 06:42 AM.]

[This message was edited by Vicki on Mon September 01 2003 at 06:36 PM.]


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## 2la (Feb 3, 2003)

After drawing inspiration from Ghazanfar and Jay's beautiful examples, I decided to pare down my collection of photos and keep only the best ones, in addition to exercising a LOT of patience (read: cursing) in capturing the new photos below. I'm also in the process of updating my photo album. Hope you enjoy!









Espe's pencilfish, _Nannostomus espei_


















Dwarf pencilfish, _N. marginatus_









Coral red pencilfish, _N. mortenthaleri_


















Not the clearest pic but a good one for showing color and fin-flaring during a dominance display.

 

[This message was edited by 2la on Sat May 24 2003 at 12:27 AM.]

[This message was edited by 2la on Mon June 02 2003 at 06:42 AM.]

[This message was edited by Vicki on Mon September 01 2003 at 06:36 PM.]


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## imported_aspen (Feb 20, 2003)

beautiful pics! i enjoyed them very much. is that a hundred hours of waiting to get those shots? it would be for me- after a thousand pictures.

rick


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## Vicki (Jan 31, 2003)

Thank you, 2la--absolutely gorgeous! Think I'll make a sticky out of this one. What better examples of fish that go well with plants could we have?

http://www.wheelpost.com


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## Guest (May 26, 2003)

> quote:
> 
> Originally posted by 2la:
> After drawing inspiration from Ghazanfar and Jay's beautiful examples, I decided to pare down my collection of photos and keep only the best ones


Hey thanks.

Your fish look stunning. I have to talk to my LFS about them and purchase few. What ratio should be good for 55G already stocked tank ?

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## 2la (Feb 3, 2003)

> quote:
> 
> Originally posted by Jay Luto:
> Your fish look stunning. I have to talk to my LFS about them and purchase few. What ratio should be good for 55G already stocked tank ?


Which species? The marginatus are the tightest schoolers of the three species, with the Espe's a close second. Both of those species should be kept in numbers of 7 or more for best effect. The mortenthaleri are social but do not school. They go off on their own to explore the tank as often as they interact with each other. I'd recommend a minimum of four, with at least two of those being male (redder) so that you can watch them display to each other. It's quite impressive!

 
(Click for pics)


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## Guest (May 26, 2003)

> quote:
> 
> Originally posted by 2la:
> Which species?


I was looking into N. mortenthaleri

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## JaredtheAquamaniac (Feb 3, 2003)

What kind of diet, parameters, etc are you keeping them at to show such sound consistant color?

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## Guest (May 27, 2003)

I can get these two for 10$ each. No S&H costs. What do you think ?

Red Coral










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## JaredtheAquamaniac (Feb 3, 2003)

If you don't take them send them my name *I'LL TAKE THEM!!!*









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## 2la (Feb 3, 2003)

Jay, I'd certainly take them at that price. (No shipping charge? That's madness!) But note that the fish in the link are NOT the same fish as the ones I have or even as the one in Mr. Melgar's picture--probably a subspecies/color morph or very closely related species. Less red throughout the body and fins but still beautiful in its own right. They'd probably redden up on you a little more, too, once you got them situated.

 
(Click for pics)


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## JaredtheAquamaniac (Feb 3, 2003)

What kind of diet are they on 2la? Anything fancy? They take to new foods well?

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## Guest (May 28, 2003)

For those who are interested in Coral Reds.

Check this out

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## 2la (Feb 3, 2003)

Jay, again be aware that the fish in MFJacobs' photo is NOT the same as the ones in the pics above it or the ones in my photos. I have a school of seven and I, too, am able to observe the differences in coloration, and under no circumstances do they fade to a coloration pattern similar to that of the fishes in MFJacobs' photo. It is a different morph/subspecies/variety altogether. With the true _mortenthaleri_, faded specimens will still show a uniform redness throughout the fins rather than red coloration only at the bases, as in the photo. In fact, the intensity of the red markings is actually stronger towards the _margins_ of the anal and pelvic fins in the true _mortenthaleri_. Also, the body behind the gills never becomes completely devoid of red coloration, as in the MFJacobs photo. I would make sure that Mr. Foxwell has the right fish before purchasing.

Jared, I feed them a variety of things: frozen bloodworms, live and frozen brine, Omega One First Flake, TetraMin flakes, TetraColor flakes, and New Life Spectrum for small fish. I wanted to try a 2-week trial of just New Life Spectrum, but I have bottom-strata fish that will not eat it and thus would be starving them. However, as the pictures hopefully demonstrate, they are far from being in need of color-enhancing food as is!

 
(Click for pics)


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## Vicki (Jan 31, 2003)

2la, since you're in Portland I assume you have soft water for these guys. What are the water conditions in their tank? Do you think they would prosper in moderately hard water (GH 10), or should I be looking at adjusting conditions to soften my water somewhat?

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## 2la (Feb 3, 2003)

Vicki, my water is near-0 dGH and about 4 dKH, pH 6.0 at last measure, temp in the high 70s. At the store they're kept in about 4 dGH. I honestly don't know how they would do at your hardness level, but I wouldn't imagine it to cause a problem. As long as the import is healthy, they're quite hardy and assertive fish (regularly pick at my arm hairs when I'm working in the tank). You might want to check with Mr. Foxwell to see how he's keeping them.

 
(Click for pics)


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## Vicki (Jan 31, 2003)

Thanks, 2la. My preference would be to acclimate them to my water, and I'm thinking peat filtration would create favorable conditions given my hardness. I'll definitely find out how they're being kept now. One more thing--(sorry to be a pest!)--how much light do you have over their tank? Do you think they'll tolerate 3 wpg well, given that the tank will be heavily planted? I've yet to come across any fish that wasn't perfectly comfortable under my light, but I've never kept pencilfish and I want to do right by these guys.

http://www.wheelpost.com


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## 2la (Feb 3, 2003)

I keep mine under 3W/gal, no problem. They are the most assertive fish in the tank and are less shade-loving than other pencilfish species. Ya pest.









 
(Click for pics)


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## Vicki (Jan 31, 2003)

ROFL! Thanks, 2la, I'm done--for now!

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## imported_Ghazanfar Ghori (Jan 31, 2003)

Nice! 
Nannostomus espei is on my list - but the
price is a detering factor. They're $10 each
and I want to get atleast 8 to try and spawn.

-
Ghazanfar Ghori


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## Tenor1 (Mar 3, 2003)

Nannostomus espei are $25 a piece in my LFS and they need to be kept in groups of 8 or more, ouch! They are pretty rare and not easily available. I will enjoy them from afar, lol.

Carlos

==============================
I try to keep the tank plain and simple but it never stays that way!


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## azet (Apr 6, 2003)

2la, could you post the pics once again please? cause i dont see any and id love to, i have som n.marginatus and i love them. 

25 bucks for a n.espei?! brutal price, will look for prices in slovak and austrian shops, i think their cheaper in europe...


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## Robert Hudson (Feb 5, 2004)

Tula, do you keep all these species together in the same tank? I think I would like to do that! Looks like an intersting specie tank

Robert
King admin
www.aquabotanic.com


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## 2la (Feb 3, 2003)

> quote:
> 
> Originally posted by azet:
> 2la, could you post the pics once again please? cause i dont see any and id love to, i have som n.marginatus and i love them.


azet, all the pictures should be working...at least they do for me. Is anybody else having problems with them?



> quote:
> 
> Originally posted by Robert H:
> Tula, do you keep all these species together in the same tank? I think I would like to do that! Looks like an intersting specie tank


Robert, I keep the Espe's and coral reds together in the same tank. As much as I'd like to put together something approaching a species or genus tank, I love fish too much but don't have enough tanks to do that. Thus a lot of different fish are put together in my community tanks--even more now that my Nanochromis transvestitus bred and proceeded to kill all but two pygmy rasboras. Thank goodness I managed to rescue the remaining dithers. Man, those fish are MEAN!









 
(Click for pics)


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## azet (Apr 6, 2003)

2la, i apologize, i tried it now from another PC and the pics work







so the problem was in the internet settings of my PC at work...btw, very nice pics


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## Robert Hudson (Feb 5, 2004)

Tula, I saw these red pencils at the Wetspot..$12 each!! I think I will wait...!
They also have cherry shrimp.

Robert
King admin
www.aquabotanic.com


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## 2la (Feb 3, 2003)

I know, that's where I got mine. You should also be able to get three for $30. It seems steep, but killie and cory aficionados pay just as much if not more for their respective species of interest. And, they seem practically bulletproof so far...

 
(Click for pics)


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## Vicki (Jan 31, 2003)

I'd pay that in a heartbeat if I could pop into my local lfs and get them! As you say, 2la, I've paid more than that for some of my cories, and my albino bristlenoses, too. And let's not even talk about the zebra plecos. LOL! If you think about all the money we spend on equipment--not to mention plants--it's amazing how many of us gasp if the price of a fish is in double digits, I do it myself. And I think for most of us (well, me, anyway!), it's to keep the fish that we did all that other stuff and spent all that money in the first place!

http://www.wheelpost.com


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