# Placidochromis sp. "Phenochilus Tanzania" Question



## fishing12 (Dec 15, 2012)

Can anyone tell me if the amount of White speckles that a Star Sapphires gets is based on their order in a tanks Hierarchy? Also do they have the ability to suppress these marks at will or once they color up they are permanent? My male is about 4-4.5" currently and he is showing minimal speckles. He also seems pretty comfortable in the tank, maybe he has to grow more before they increase?


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## DanniGirl (Jan 25, 2007)

It's genetics. The marks will be permanent once the fish matures. I'd give the fish a year or two before the speckles cover the entire body.

It also depends on the tank mates and tank maintenance. The stock in your tank is fine. Low nitrates are the key.


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## gverde (Mar 3, 2010)

It will take 3-5 years before a male is completely covered with speckles. I have a 6" breeder male that is maybe 3-4 years old and is only 1/2 to 3/4 fully speckled. When he is in with the females in a species tank all his speckles are showing and he has a nice blue coloring on him. When he is in my show tank he is a darker gray blue and his speckles are hardly visible. There is also a 8" fully speckled male in there with him along with larger predator haps. I purchased the 8" male a couple years and he was already fully speckled and stays that way no matter what. I am using him now as my primary breeder male.


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## fishing12 (Dec 15, 2012)

Thank you both for the replys. I got him at about 2" and he has doubled in size in the 5 months or so I had him. He is a great looking fish even without the speckles. He has some starting on his gill plates but nothing on the body yet. I will be patient and let him mature. I just didnt know what to expect with it as I have never kept them before. Thanks!


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## chiroken (Sep 25, 2007)

fishing12 said:


> Can anyone tell me if the amount of White speckles that a Star Sapphires gets is based on their order in a tanks Hierarchy? Also do they have the ability to suppress these marks at will or once they color up they are permanent? My male is about 4-4.5" currently and he is showing minimal speckles. He also seems pretty comfortable in the tank, maybe he has to grow more before they increase?


This is the one fish I for sure have on my list of fish still to get. Only ever seen 1 about 4 months ago in a city 3 hrs away. Couldn't drop the $56 for him (3+ inches), sorta wish I had now...you are lucky to see this fish every day!


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## gverde (Mar 3, 2010)

"This is the one fish I for sure have on my list of fish still to get. Only ever seen 1 about 4 months ago in a city 3 hrs away. Couldn't drop the $56 for him (3+ inches), sorta wish I had now...you are lucky to see this fish every day!"

chiroken, If you were located in the US, you would have no problems finding them. They still are not as abundant as some species but are still fairly easy to find. I myself breed them. They go for $25-30 for 5-6 inches around here.


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## Chester B (Dec 28, 2012)

Nothing on the mainland? They are pretty easy to find in Ontario, especially at the larger stores. About $10 for a 2"-2.5" fish. There are a few canadian suppliers that will ship.


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## fishing12 (Dec 15, 2012)

Will the U.S. suppliers not ship outside of the country or is cost the issue? Is customs an issue? I purchased mine for $10 when he was about 2". The LFS had about 15 of them in the tank and he was the dominant Male. I hope you can find one chiroken they are beautiful, I wish you luck!


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## fishing12 (Dec 15, 2012)

gverde said:


> "This is the one fish I for sure have on my list of fish still to get. Only ever seen 1 about 4 months ago in a city 3 hrs away. Couldn't drop the $56 for him (3+ inches), sorta wish I had now...you are lucky to see this fish every day!"
> 
> chiroken, If you were located in the US, you would have no problems finding them. They still are not as abundant as some species but are still fairly easy to find. I myself breed them. They go for $25-30 for 5-6 inches around here.


Is your Avatar your male Breeder?


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## chiroken (Sep 25, 2007)

"They go for $25-30 for 5-6 inches around here."

Wow, I should be so lucky! Like I said, I've only ever seen 1.

"Nothing on the mainland? They are pretty easy to find in Ontario, especially at the larger stores. About $10 for a 2"-2.5" fish. There are a few canadian suppliers that will ship."

I was just on the mainland a few weeks back and hit up 3 different stores (1 of them being a very large store)...terrible selection for haps and only the typical few peacocks. Very disappointed. I even asked on our provincial forum what stores to go to. My LFS has sunshine peacock males 2-3" for $34 and female OB's for $16. 2+" venustus $18. Found 1 shipper out of Manitoba, I'd pay the $40 for a 3" male fish but the shipping is probably $75. Most of my current fish I got shipped from Vancouver, excellent fish, excellent prices, excellent shipping price (flown for $35 total). These fish are not even available on the Island other than maybe in Victoria (3 hr drive).

"Will the U.S. suppliers not ship outside of the country or is cost the issue? Is customs an issue?"

Cost is the issue. Shipping is very expensive from the US to Canada, even within can be expensive. Need to order lots of fish to sort of spread out the shipping cost over several fish. I can't find anyone local (include pet stores) to share shipping.

Sorry fishing12, I've highjacked your thread! But seeing as you got your answers to your original post and you've posted questions to me yourself too I guess I can't be too prosecuted! :wink:


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## fishing12 (Dec 15, 2012)

No worries  Hope it works out where you can find one. Any local hobbyists clubs or breeders near you that may want to split up a shipment of fish perhaps?


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## chiroken (Sep 25, 2007)

I've tried unsuccessfully in the past. Maybe worth trying again. We've got 2 Vancouver Island specific forums and 1 facebook page locally but no luck. I would love to get one of these beauties for my tank! Fingers crossed.


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## gverde (Mar 3, 2010)

chiroken,
Yes my avatar is my breeder male. He is 8" and is stunning. If you were in the US I would just send you a juvie male.


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## chiroken (Sep 25, 2007)

gverde said:


> chiroken,
> Yes my avatar is my breeder male. He is 8" and is stunning. If you were in the US I would just send you a juvie male.


sounds like a road trip is in order then!! lol
I may have to see if a can get a store to specifically order one in with a shipment as it just isn't stocked. Very poor selection locally, they cater to tetras/liverbearers/barbs/cories and goldfish


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## Pj755 (Jan 15, 2017)

Do female Phenos speckle?


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

No.


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## caldwelldaniel26 (Jun 11, 2017)

No they do not


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## Pj755 (Jan 15, 2017)

Great, then I have 3 males.


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## chiroken (Sep 25, 2007)

no


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## Iggy Newcastle (May 15, 2012)

But some may develop some nice blue. This is a picture of a female.


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## mysticjeteye (Apr 29, 2017)

Iggy Newcastle said:


> But some may develop some nice blue. This is a picture of a female.
> 
> how big do they have to be to start showing enough color to be able to tell if they're male or female? i have a group of 7 that are 2 inches long. they all look pretty much the same. some are a little darker, and i noticed yesterday that i could see a light blue tint to the top fin of 1. i'm assuming that this one will be a male. but, this is my first experience with these guys. so any help would be greatly appreciated!


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## Iggy Newcastle (May 15, 2012)

If you have them by themselves you should see something when they're 2.5" or so but it's not definite. I have some around 2.5-3" and there are individuals displaying an overall blue background. Others are grey/dark blue, which have a higher likelihood of being girls.

If you keep them with other species these young fish color down. They're quite timid, and the most chill Malawian fish I've kept.


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## mysticjeteye (Apr 29, 2017)

ok cool. thanks for the info. i do have them with a couple of young ob peacocks. the obs are actually smaller, but seem to be a tab bit aggressive. at least one of them. so i will move them around so that they're alone again. i never figured that it may cause a problem with their color development. 
thanks so much for your help!


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