# Saulosi



## Kylie (Nov 28, 2015)

Hi guys, I'm new to this forum and to both frontosa and saulosi.

A few days ago I was fortunate enough to aquier a breeding pair of saulosi and 13 of their fry, a colony of six Burundi Fronts and a pair of feather fin catfish, their 5ft tank, stand etc and entire setup. The fronts are in a tank of their own and I have the saulosi and featherfins in their original 5ft tank and have popped the fry into their own rearing tank as the previous owner had them simply (vulnerably) mixed into the community tank.

So I didn't know this when I brought them home but I have read now among my research that the saulosi are highly endangered in the wild?

Just want to see if there is anyone here who has these guys and can shed some light on them? Of course I'm doing my own research but I love to hear first hand experience from others who know about these guys and the successful rearing of the fry. Im concerned about the high possibility of the female being a hybrid and if so i will disscontinue keeping them together...i do not want to contribute to the hybrid population and even more so with the situation these guys are in in the wild 

The fry range around 8-13mm currently. Is it normal for the fry to vary so greatly in development or is it likely to be two lots? Some fry are really well developed and are already showing slight barring. I've taken photos of them and will load them shortly.

I'm currently watching them "do their thing" wiggling quickly in circles, the female obviously watching for dropped eggs but every time I try to get close enough to see if he actually is dropping eggs they dart away  so I don't know if he is or isn't but her mouth isn't getting any bigger so presume not?

The male is absolutely stunning, deep blues with about 6 bars on his body and two on his face but doesn't have the bright white beak/lips like I've seen on photos, more like a silvery white. Neither does the female really. The female that I have here is much duller then what I've seen on videos, more like a baby yellow then a Fluo yellow?? Both are around 10cm and seem healthy, solid in body size and active tho...but the color of the female is really bugging me due to rampant hybridization. To give you a good idea she looks like a male in disguise ... but i have the babies to prove otherwise....Their previous owner said he got them from a pet store when they were about 3cm....

I'm worried about the fry. I've never raised fry before and really want to keep the best to eventually reintroduce to the parent tank if i can determine they are not hybrids. How big would they have to be to be safely reintroduced to the parent tank and how quickly do they grow? They are currently in a 45 x 25 x25 cm tank on their own, eating well, active and seemingly healthy...im on the hunt for a larger tank for them right now so for the moment they will have to suffice in the small tank.

The guy I got them off didn't mention or didn't know that they were endangered in the wild and I just want to be sure I'm ok to be breeding these guys if they are not hybrids??

Any info will be highly appreciated!

Thanks in advance!


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## Kylie (Nov 28, 2015)

ummm....how do i upload photos on this site?


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## Kylie (Nov 28, 2015)

i just read that i need to contact a moderator to be granted access to post a photo...???? !!


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## zimmy (Aug 13, 2010)

Photo posting instructions.


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## Kylie (Nov 28, 2015)




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## Kylie (Nov 28, 2015)




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## Kylie (Nov 28, 2015)




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## Kylie (Nov 28, 2015)

Thanks zimmy


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## noki (Jun 13, 2003)

Those fry are not very good examples of Saulosi. Can't see them all that well but I probably would not regard them as worth propagating.

P. saulosi only comes from one pile of underwater rocks which Westerners call "Taiwan Reef" because it was described by a local (hyperbole) as as far away as Taiwan. Saulosi are a schooling small Mbuna, and since they come from such a small area nets were able to catch almost all of the Saulosi in the wild. It is hoped that they will rebound and grow in number... they have even breed some juveniles are released them at the rocky reef. There are Youtube videos about this attempt to add captive bred Saulosi back into the Lake.


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## Kylie (Nov 28, 2015)

thanks noki. I took the photos on my phone which has a terrible picture quality but i wouldn't have said mum was a very good example either ... i know very little about these guys and what they SHOULD look like but i do think the mum is dull in comparison to what iv seen on videos... that was why i asked the question about possible hybrid....

how would one find out for sure if the breeders were a hybrid? These fry came from a community tank kept in very poor condition from the previous owner, as did the parents and the frontosa (all fish were in very poor condition and living in utter filth when i took them over and im working hard to bring them back to even average health)... ill still grow them but unless they grow into something like what they should look like, and if i can find out for sure somehow if mum is a hybrid as she is very dull compared to all others *** seen on the internet...


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## tanker3 (May 18, 2015)

1) Your going to need more female Saulosi. IMO, at lease 4 females for each male.
2) Those babies (fry) do not look like Saulosi fry. Saulosi fry are all yellow (and very yellow)= And No stripes. IMO--sorry, but do not give them away.
The Female Saulosi probably bred with some other Mbuna (or maybe even a peacock).


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## Kylie (Nov 28, 2015)

thanks tanker. the babies came out of a tank with the two supposed saulosi pictured above, 6 burundi frontosa and 2 featherfin catfish.... nothing else...


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## Kylie (Nov 28, 2015)

im starting to wonder if i just put them back in the tank for some live food for the parents, get some better females and start from there... It wasnt my original plan to breed the saulosi but they came as a package with the colony of frontosa that i wanted... i really want the saulosi tank for natives....


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## tanker3 (May 18, 2015)

If the original tank "only" had those fish, I wonder if the Saulosi are pure.


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## noki (Jun 13, 2003)

some very nice videos to learn about Saulosi in the wild...


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## Kylie (Nov 28, 2015)

Tanker - yeah thats what i wondered too... the guy we got them from sold us his entire set up and said he had only had the above named fish from day one...we took all his fish, tank filters everything and other the the fronts there was no other cichlids.... id say dad is a good example of the males but mum... well she is a very dull girl indeed. im currently looking for some better females and maybe, to help keep what might be produced good specimens make good use of mum in the food chain... or just pop her in a mixed display tank as even tho she is dull *** grown quite fond of her lol

noki - they are some lovely vids on the release of the saulosi. Its heart warming to know such a good effort is being put back into returning these guys to their natural state...what a shame it would be to loose them forever


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## chptunes (Jul 19, 2011)

I saw some of your questions, so I thought I'd chime in here. I have an adult group of Saulosi in a 75g tank along with a group of Phenochilus Tanzania (Star Sapphire). My Saulosi breed regularly.. I have about 30 frye in my 20g tank right now. Some of them are about 1 month old and some are about 2 months old. I see the adult males courting the females several times every week.. when a female is ready, they circle each other in an open area on the sandy floor to fertilize the eggs. As soon as they're done, it is easy to see that the female has a mouthful.

Here are some pictures of the frye and the adult group:


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## tanker3 (May 18, 2015)

I cannot tell you what to do with the fry, but just do not let them out. The fry with the strips look Victorian, not even Malawian. You can keep that female if you are fond of her, just do not save any of HER **** (if we suspect she is not pure). 
PS--I agree, the male does look Every bit Male PS. Saulosi.


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## Iggy Newcastle (May 15, 2012)

Fry should be very yellow, even at 1/2."

The female you have is under some very blue lighting it seems. I find heavy blue/actinic washes out yellow and orange.

Here's a short video where I talk about my experiences with Saulosi, including some spawning action. Females should be a very bright yellow to yellow gold. 





It is a real beauty from the lake and hopefully the lakeside efforts prove successful.


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