NEWS112
12
Laemolytataeniata
Formany years only odd specimens of the
Striped Headstander, which looks like the
big brother of the Golden Pencilfish
(
Nannostomus beckfordi
), have been
imported, but recently we received a
consignment of somewhat more than. 30
specimens from Peru. The species is a
typical headstander in itsbehavior,andcan
grow to somewhatmore than20cm long.
Hitherto the species has only rarely been
mentioned in the aquarium literature, and
when it has, under the incorrect name
Anostomus taeniatus
. These fishes are
Aufwuchs-feeders which have to adopt a
belly-up position in order to graze the
micro-algae and the small organisms it
Laemolyta taeniata
is alsoknownas
Anostomus taeniatus
in theaquarium literature.
Portrait of theStripedHeadstander.
Male ”El Tigre”
EndlerGuppy"ElTigre"
One of Aquarium Glaser's breeders in
Thailand is particularly fond of the wild
forms of small livebearers, and is now
supplying the "El Tigre" variant of
Poecilia
wingei,
the Endler Guppy, to Germany for
the first time.This isapure-strain wild form
of the Endler Guppy that was originally
collectedat ElTigre inVenezuela.Obviously
these fishes are variable in terms of their
coloration, but they all have the
characteristics that make the Endler so
desirable: small size, lively behavior, and
attractive coloration that intensifies even
moreduringcourtship.
Themost recent taxonomicworksquestion
thevalidityofthespecies
Poeciliawingei
and
see it as merely a synonym of the Guppy
(
Poecilia reticulata
). It is also a well-known
fact that Endler and "normal" Guppies can
be freely crossed with one another,
although that isnoargument against them
being separate species, as nobody would
question that the Platy and Swordtail
(
Xiphophorus maculatus
and
X. hellerii
) are
distinct just because the two species have
been merrily interbreeding for around a
contains, as its upward pointing mouth
doesn't permit it to feed from the bottom
otherwise.
These fishescanbesomewhatquarrelsome
among themselves.Hence it is advisable to
keep them in as large an aquarium as
possible,with thedecorprovidingplentyof
cover. The tender shoots of aquatic plants
may be nibbled, but these fishes aren't
noted foreatingplants.
