banji cardinal

[butwa20]

can anyone tell me if this guy is a male i think it is because i bought 2 at the same time they were ok for a couple of weeks then the other one went missing think he killed it. If anyone has a female if this is a male at is a year or older please let me know i would like to try and breed these guys.http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d38/Rentarox123/1323818662.jpg

[Regric25]

I know pennies2cents (Eve) has had continuous success breeding these guys. You might send her a pm or maybe she will chime in. From what I understand it's very similar to African cichlids (Mbuna) specifically. Goodluck to you!

[FSU]

To my knowledge there really is no distinction between male and female. Most people add several (I only did 3 this time and got lucky) cardinals and wait for 2 to pair off. A good indication is when one fish starts chasing another. My male chased the other male and kept him a good ways from the female. The two stayed mostly together while the third basically was confined to about 3 inches of space by the first return line. When that happens, removed the odd fish and you should be ok.

I am no expert and I know there are a group of people on here that know quite a bit....these are just my experiences.

[Pennies2Cents]

This would be a male, from the looks of the picture and comparing to the two I currently have. When looking for a female bangaii, you should look for higher more pointy dorsal fin at the front of the fish. Another note both female & males will be pretty much the same size until they begin to breed. The male will hold the eggs and while holding he will not eat which will result in a small male. Once eggs are hatched and he releases he will begin to eat alot and gain weight. Almost never to be the same size of the female. She will be the bigger of the two. Good luck on your breeding, if you have any questions please feel free to message me. :)

[Pennies2Cents]

Also, like FSU mentioned it would be easier for you to buy a group of 3 or so and see which will pair off.. Always remember your chances are 50/50.. lol.. You could end up with all males like I did. :( Until finally we got a female. :)

[butwa20]

yea i have been looking at the lfs but all they seem to have are smaller ones i cant find any largers ones how long does it take for them to start breeding like a year?

[Pennies2Cents]

Not really sure on the time frame when they begin to breed, but i would guess 1 year or so.. Maybe less if the conditions are right.

[FSU]

I got mine from the local fish stores and were small too. Mine only took about a month after they paired to breed.

[butwa20]

hey penny i just bought 2 more cardinals in hopes my male would pair off with one he killed one (assuming another male) of them and the other one stays hidden but the male dosent bother (hoping its the female) what would do you think?

[Pennies2Cents]

hey penny i just bought 2 more cardinals in hopes my male would pair off with one he killed one (assuming another male) of them and the other one stays hidden but the male dosent bother (hoping its the female) what would do you think?

keep a look out for any differences (little ones) in the two fish, old compared to new fish. Is it bigger of the two or they the same size? How does the top fin look? If it is a female, you will notice them hanging around together once they get to know each other. :) If another male, sometimes if your tank is big enough they will not bother each other.. (one on each side of the tank) or one will kill the other.. (Territorial Issues) :( Keep me posted, post some pixs. :) I think this is the beginning of a cool thread: How to find the perfect mate! lol...