Taking Care Of Flowerhorn Fry..

How to feed flowerhorn frys.


Flowerhorn frys can be fed with a variety of foods. The important thing to remember is that whatever you offer your fries should be readily accepted, has high protein content and should cause minimal water pollution.
Start feeding  fries when they are freely swimming. Start out with hard boiled egg yolk and crushed flowerhorn pellets. I prefer to give humpy head only as it is cheap and the high protein content makes the frys grow fast. Other pellets would do as long as they are crushed. I have also tried Nutra fin Brine shrimp flakes, earthworm flakes and tropical fish color enhancing flakes. This flake foods are easy to give and are readily accepted by the fries. Frys grow faster  when they are given live brine shrimp and daphnia.
By the 3rd week introduce other live feeds like superworms and mosquito larvae. What I do is cut a superworm in half and squeeze each half to release the insides of the superworm. This method causes turbid water afterwards which would require you to do water change. Frys also have strong carnivorous instinct and will attack and eat mosquito larvae. Frys by this stage are already close to a centimeter  in lenght and will be showing the plum line and a little color usually a reddish hue.
By the 4th week I give them tubifex worm, mosquito larvae or frozen blood worms. I also add osterized beef heart or osterized market shrimps. These together with crushed pellets makes your fry grow faster and

How frequent should you do water change?

Check your water parameters every now and then in order to know when to make water change but the rule of thumb is do 30% water change every other day. Daily water change may be indicated if you have a large number of fries as compared to the size of your aquarium, if your water turns murky after feeding and if you notice a lot of sediments at the bottom of the tank after feeding.
When you do water change add a little salt, chlorine eliminator, and if you like water conditioner of your choice. I prefer using a water conditioner because aside from eliminating chlorine it also stabilizes water pH. Other water conditioner have an added feature of providing for balance electrolyte and vitamins as well.

What filter should you use?

For obvious reason the only filter that would be needed is a sponge filter. Overhead filters are a not used because the suction action is too great and could easily suck all your fries into the overhead filter.

Should I use a heater?

Heaters maybe used to maintain your water temperature at 28-30^oC. If you live in colder regions of the world then water heaters are a must. But if you live in warmer regions then water heaters are only indicated on colder seasons of the year.

Master's Secrets To Breeding Flowerhorn

Its every Flowerhorn hobbyist dream of breeding his flowehorn. The process is easy and can be a very fulfilling activity. Keep in mind that flowerhorns are the most passionate lovers. They love to do rough play before engaging in copulation. 

Here some pointers for you so that your breeding program will be successful.

Things you will need  during your breeding.

1.Aquarium should be around 50-75 gallons. The size of the aquarium is of utmost importance.If you try breeding your pair in a tight space your pair may end up having a marital dispute instead of a having honeymoon and pairing successfully.

2.Water Heater-Water temperature is important because it keeps your  breeding pair healthy and in heat. Get it heater and "in heat"? Set a nd maintain your water heater to about 30 deg.. 

3.A pottery dish or any flat surface like the rough side of a tile. This is where your breeding pair will nest and eventually lay her eggs.

4. Aerator-you need an aerator to serve two purpose.First is to keep the Oxygen levels in your water constant so have your aerator connected to an air stone. The second purpose is for filtering. Connect your aerator to a foam filter for this purpose.

5. Methylene blue.-Methylene will be used for your fertilized eggs to avoid fungal growth.

The Process of breeding your flowerhorn.

1.Selection and Introduction of breeding pair.

Choose the healthiest brood stock for you to breed. Healthy brood stock means more fertilized eggs and more fries to select from.

I introduce my breeding pair as early as 2 weeks before breeding. I place them in an aquarium with dividers. I do this so that the pair will be familiar with each other before their breeding hormones drive them crazy.

2.Getting your flowerhorn to mate. Your visual  cue that your breeding pair is ready is when the female starts to loose its color and turns darker and with dark stripes all over it.Once your flowerhorn are ready all you need to do is put them together and wait for them to mate.  You should however keep an eye on them while they are breeding, as flowerhorn aggressiveness can get out hand which would result in severe injuries or even death.

3. Getting your female to lay eggs. So how do I do that? Well the secret actually lies in you doing a 10% water change prior to bringing your breeding pair together. The water change changes the water temperature and chemistry  a bit which in turn induces your female to lay eggs. Water change also mimics rainfall which also induces your female to lay eggs. So what I do is when I fill the tanks again I use the water hose as a sprayer which would mimic rainfall.

4.Getting a divorce. After your female has laid her eggs and the male has fertilzed them. Its time for the pair  to part ways. Simply place them in separate aquariums and care for them as you usually do.

Some Interesting Facts About The Origins Of The Zhen Zhou/Pearly Flowerhorn

Zhen zhou flowerhorn or pearl flowerhorn is one of the main breed of flowerhorn.  They originated from the  original  luohans and through several crosses and line breeding were able to produce the pearly fish that it is today.

Whatever the strain of zz  it is generally believed that zz's have Amphilopus trimaculatus as a main ancestor.
Trimaculatus also known as the "rainbow cichlid"  is responsible for giving the zz's its flowerline, the body shape, the lip shape, and of course the fin shape. Trimaculatus was then cross bred with other central american cichlid  in order to produce the pearly zz's we have today.

As you can see below the picture of a trimaculatus and  some zz's.

Trimaculatus by Brent Smith

Some zhen zhous especially the low grade ones are more tri-mac in appearance. Of the classic zhen zhous it is Eastern maiden strain that closely resembles a trimaculatus.

The downside to having a trimaculatus as an ancestor is that the trait of having a weak tail and having  a small kok is passed down to the next generations.

The Trimacs were bred to Amphipolus citrenelum which gave the zhen zhus their koks and added to the zhen zhus color variety and the trailing fins. Some facial features of the midas cichlid were inherited as well.

Amphilophus citrenelus "Midas cichlid"

modern day zhen zhu

Amphilopus citrenellus by Bret Smith

The downside to having the midas cichlid as ancestor is that the fierce nature and territoriality of the midas cichlid is passed to the next generations and becomes genetically fixed. Male zhen zhu with bigger humps tend to be more aggressive than males with no humps. These males are known to kill their females and other fish,a characteristic which is observed with the midas cichlid.

Masters' Secrets To Caring For Kamfa/Jin Hua Flowerhorn

Kamfas are flowerhorns which originated from the luo han. As to the exact steps in breeding still remains a mystery. Today however most kamfas originate from a zhen zhou which has been crossed with a parrot fish. It is better to use class A mammon parrot as compared to a blood parrot.Since mammon parrots have bigger bodies, more intense redness, have occasional pearlings at the kok and have bigger kok females. The mammon parrot  progeny would present with a better kamfa qualities of: fan tail, wrap fins, small lips, unorthodux or more intense color pattern, more colorful pearls, and large kok and body. But wether you use a mammon or a blood parrot bear in mind that only 3% of the offspring will ever grow up to be high quality show type fishes plus most of the males from this breeding would be expected to be sterile. The only problem with your mammon parrot would be the price since a grade AAA parrot would fetch a few hundred dollars. The next best thing to a mammon would be your king kong parrot.

Nice pair showing a king kong parrot and a zz mating.

How To Take Care of A Kamfa.

1. Background of the tanks.  Kamfas love colorful background and they would usually show off their beautiful colors when they have beautiful background. If they are exposed to montone colors and dark colors they usually appear stressed with stress bars or appear darker than the color of their surroundings.

2. Substrate

The kamfa needs to have colorful gravel, ceramic rings and crushed coral. Ceramic rings and crushed corals are porous and accomodates space for good bacteria to grow on. They provide for stability of the pH and provides your kamfa a way to rub itself  free of parasites. Male kamfas also love to move gravel from one part of the tank to another part as a means of sanitation or as nest building.

                        My king kamfa in his tank with crushed corals and colored stones.
3. Tank
Tank  it is recommended that the fish has it own tank of at least a 50 gallon tank. Kamfas tend to grow large which make them need more bigger aquariums rule of thumb is to choose an aquarium which is at least 3x the size of your fish.Kamfas also requires a minimum of 15 inches in depth. They need enough room to swim about and to establish a territory which it would vigorously defend.

4. Heaters
  The water temperature should be around 85 degrees Fahrenheit for kamfas. This is to ensure optimal growth of their kok. Frequent fluctuation in temperature would hinder kok growth.The exact place of placing a heater would depend on individual preference. Personally i prefer to place the  heater in areas that would ensure faster distribution of the heat to all parts of the aquarium. I usually place my heater either near the aquarium pumps intake valve or where the water drops from the filter box.

5. Ideal pH will be around 7.5 for Kamfa / Jinhua. For some reason kamfas prefer a more basic pH. To make your water lean towards the basic part add crushed corals as substrate. To be sure make a water analysis first by using ph testing kits.

6. Lighting is also of importance, make sure that the tank is properly illuminated for at least 8 – 12 hours a day. Lighting has an effect on the color patterns of your fish and helps relieve stress.

7. Kamfa / Jinhua also requires a tank mate. To make your kamfas kok grow bigger and for it to display intense color. You can place  a blood parrot or any  unwanted flower horn together with your kamfa.  Be sure that they are smaller than the Kamfa / Jinhua. I prefer using a blood parrot as they have the ability to play dead, or hover out of view the kamfa thereby saving their own life.

9. Water change
The frequency depends wholly on the filtration system of the tank. Do only around 20 percent of water change each time. I personally conduct a water change to my Kamfa tanks once every 2 weeks. Some kamfas tend to be more hardy than zz's and can tolerate monthly water changes even if the filter is just your simple sponge filter. Kamfas generally prefer aged, aerated water to water that comes right out of your tap. To age your water simply place the water in a big container and let it sit for a day. Place an aerator and let it run while you are aging your water.

10.  Feeding
Feeding should be done around 3 times a day, and should be fed with a variety of food – bloodworms, feeders, and pellets (which also includes color enhancer as well). Blood worms are one of the kamfas favorite food. They give the kamfa nice color and make them grow big fast and make them develop more squarish body. You could also give your kamfa live feeders consisting of any well fed and parasite free fresh water fish or fish fry. Just make sure they are parasite free. I personally feed my feeder fish Humpy head or head enhancing pellet. Not because my feeder fishes  need to grow koks but because whatever secret formula is in the head enhancing pellets will be absorb into the body of the feeder fish and be readily available to the kamfa when he eats the feeder fish.  Never get wild caught fish and feed it to your flowerhorn as they easily get digestive disorder from parasite laden live feeds. And lastly if theres anything else a kamfa would love to have it is market shrimps. Just make sure to take out the head part. Most people would say that the reason for taking out the head part is for you to prevent injury to your fish. I have found out that this is not so. I have found out based on experience that kamfas are adept at removing the head part themselves. So the real rationale for removing the head part is so you wouldn't have to remove it yourself later on. Remember that left over food adds up to water pollution.

11.Location of aquarium tank.
Place the tank of the Kamfa / Jinhua in a low traffic area at home, especially for small to medium size Kamfa / Jinhua. Small and medium sized kamfa tends to be skittyish and  might injure themselves. For larger ones, they should have no problem in adapting quickly.  Always put your Kamfa / Jinhua in a tank where the tank is around 4 feet above ground.

If you got some secret which you would want to share just post it at my comment section. I'm willing to learn new things about caring for the kamfa.

5 Ways To Differentiate Between A Kamfa and Zz?

One of the most frequently asked question is how to differentiate a pearl lo-han(zhen zhou,zz) from a flower lohan (kamfa/jinghua). Here are the differences of each as conceptualized by the FH founders.

1.The forehead.

The head of the flower lo-han rises higher than the pearl lo-han.

 

                                     Flower Lo Han                     Pearl  Lohan

But some zz now a days have equally high heads.

2.The Black Mark/Dark Flower
On the side of the forehead we see that the Pearl Lo-han has a more conspicuous mark than the Flower Lo-han.

But some pearl Lo-han will have less conspicuous mark or no mark as they get bigger.

"Uber" Owned by Doc Wilson Photo by blue ice

"Fagioli" Thaksin zz

And some flower Lo-han may have conspicuous mark.

"Pag-asa" Owned by Howell

3.Mouth/Lips

The lips of the Kamfa is smooth and circular.

"MB" By sir Ernie aka Trojan

The lower lips of the ZZ is sticking/protruding out and the upper lips is shorter.

                                        "Twiggy" owned by Twigtwig

4. Eyes
The eyes of the pearl Lo-han are outstanding/bulge out.

Chianmai crossbreed club

The eyes of the flower Lo-han are hollow/sunken.

"MB" By sir Ernie aka Trojan

Nice king kamfa with prominent sunken eyes.

5.Finnage

The dorsal fin and anal fin of the Kamfa would wrap around the caudal fin and they would look like one whole fin.

Chan2009

Lamborghini diablo by Master Bejita showing nice wrap tail

The dorsal fin and anal fin of a ZZ would usually go upward and downward. The caudal fin of the ZZ is usually smaller also .

5.Tail

The bigger and older ZZ, it would have a droopy caudal tail.

P&P

This condition would not occur to the Kamfa strain because tail are stronger and more fan like.

                                                              "Pagkakaisa" by Denl

Just a reminder that these are guidelines that have been set by the masters. A newbie would be advised to patiently study these different traits and to see as many fish as he could see before being able to differentiate between a kamfa and a zhen zou. Other experts would say that a simpler way of diffentiating between a kamfa and a zz is that if the fish has features which are predominantly amhipolus trimaculatus then it is a zz. If it looks more like a vieja then its a kamfa.

Here is a picture of a zz and a trimaculatus.

Amphilophus trimaculatus regarded as the staple in creating the zhen zhou flowerhorn.

Fagioli modern day thaksinzz. Any resembalnce to the trimaculatus? How close to a trimac is he?

Vieja synspila regarded as one of the ancestors of todays kamfas.

Pagkakaisa how close to a vieja is he? Any resemblance to a vieja?