One reader is looking for advice on how to best re-home his Guianacara jatapu fry. Jeremy Gay advises...
Q) Please could give me some advice on how best to re-home my Guianacara jatapu fry? We have had a pair of Guianacara on their own in a 150 l tank for some time now and they have recently bred, leaving me with around 30-40 fry which are growing well. It’s my first major breeding success aside from two chance Harlequin rasbora fry in my 60 l tank. I am aware that they are fairly rare fish in the UK and I’m not sure what demand for them would be like.
IAIN MCLEOD, VIA EMAIL
A) JEREMY GAY SAYS: They are rare and desirable cichlids indeed. First of all, keep the young with the parents — if you take them away, they will spawn again. I think 30-40 is a good number and it’s not too many for rehoming.
I would try to off-load to aquatic stores first. Grow them up to 5cm or more if you can, as by that stage they will look like proper examples of their species, not fry, and will be more saleable. Some stores may offer you some credit which can be used on other fish, while others may offer dry goods in return. I would expect a maximum of a third of the sale price that the fish would usually fetch in form of credit, but if a store doesn’t want or need them, and you are stuck with them, you may get nothing.
Facebook has banned sales of fish but Aquarist Classifieds still lists fish for sale, so try advertising them on there if you get stuck. Failing that, try local fish clubs or join online cichlid groups and let people know you’ve bred them and they’re available.
