Dear Pam,
I have four Cichlasoma argentea and am trying to breed them. They are from 6" - 9.5" and I am unable to sex them. Do you have any information on sexing and breeding? My current set up is 8' X 2.5' X 2' containing various Central American Cichlids, pH 7.5, temperature 80 degrees F. The fish are fed various food but have shown no sign of spawning even with an increase in temperature to 86 degrees F. Also, their water is changed twice weekly of approximately 30%. Look forward to hearing from you. Thanks,
Tony
Vieja argentea
Moderator: Pam Chin
Dear Tony,
Vieja argentea is the valid name for this fish after it stopped being "Cichlasoma", At any rate, you might want to find a copy of "Cichlids of North and Central America" by Don Conkel. I know that you can get it by mail order. It isn't cheap, however, if you are into "Cichlasoma", it is a must. There is only one page on V. argentea, but quite a bit of info on many Central Americans. Conkel says that the females are smaller than the males, and they don't have as much black speckling on the body. The males also get a nuchal hump when breeding.
You may have to separate the V. argentea to get them to spawn if there are a lot of other fish in your tank. I would probably use the egg crate separation method, where the female can get away from the male before he trashes her. Then, when she is ready, she can go over to the male's side. I haven't worked with Central American Cichlids much, so I sent your questions along to my friend Ferdinand Velasco. Ferdi is a certified Cichlasomaniac, here is what he has to say....
Dear Tony,
I have not personally bred this species in captivity. I suspect that captive propagation is similar to that of other larger Vieja species. Most of the big Viejas do not achieve sexual maturity until they reach a considerable size (. 8" TL), unlike most other Central American Heroines. It is quite possible that your fish are not yet sexually mature.
Also, it is sometimes difficult getting some Cichlids to spawn in a community setting, particularly if there are more aggressive tank mates present. If you have got some Amphilophus or Nandopsis in your tank, the V. argentea may be too intimidated to exhibit spawning behavior.
If you have a known pair, then I would suggest housing them in a separate spawning tank (at least 40 gallons, preferable larger). I would keep them in separate compartments as Pam suggests. One of the problems with the big Theraps is that there is not much sexual dimorphism in terms of size, so you can't really use a divider that allows the female to go back and forth between her compartment and the male's. Rather, you need a complete divider that allows the pair to see each other and is porous enough to allow the male's sperm to fertilize the eggs laid by the female.
There is an article in the July 1996 issue of Tropical Fish Hobbyist magazine on Vieja argentea. It is by Jeff Rapps who I know personally to be a very good aquarist and a large Cichlid specialist.
Good luck with yours.
Ferdi
Vieja argentea is the valid name for this fish after it stopped being "Cichlasoma", At any rate, you might want to find a copy of "Cichlids of North and Central America" by Don Conkel. I know that you can get it by mail order. It isn't cheap, however, if you are into "Cichlasoma", it is a must. There is only one page on V. argentea, but quite a bit of info on many Central Americans. Conkel says that the females are smaller than the males, and they don't have as much black speckling on the body. The males also get a nuchal hump when breeding.
You may have to separate the V. argentea to get them to spawn if there are a lot of other fish in your tank. I would probably use the egg crate separation method, where the female can get away from the male before he trashes her. Then, when she is ready, she can go over to the male's side. I haven't worked with Central American Cichlids much, so I sent your questions along to my friend Ferdinand Velasco. Ferdi is a certified Cichlasomaniac, here is what he has to say....
Dear Tony,
I have not personally bred this species in captivity. I suspect that captive propagation is similar to that of other larger Vieja species. Most of the big Viejas do not achieve sexual maturity until they reach a considerable size (. 8" TL), unlike most other Central American Heroines. It is quite possible that your fish are not yet sexually mature.
Also, it is sometimes difficult getting some Cichlids to spawn in a community setting, particularly if there are more aggressive tank mates present. If you have got some Amphilophus or Nandopsis in your tank, the V. argentea may be too intimidated to exhibit spawning behavior.
If you have a known pair, then I would suggest housing them in a separate spawning tank (at least 40 gallons, preferable larger). I would keep them in separate compartments as Pam suggests. One of the problems with the big Theraps is that there is not much sexual dimorphism in terms of size, so you can't really use a divider that allows the female to go back and forth between her compartment and the male's. Rather, you need a complete divider that allows the pair to see each other and is porous enough to allow the male's sperm to fertilize the eggs laid by the female.
There is an article in the July 1996 issue of Tropical Fish Hobbyist magazine on Vieja argentea. It is by Jeff Rapps who I know personally to be a very good aquarist and a large Cichlid specialist.
Good luck with yours.
Ferdi