POTO Conditioned Red Spot Cardinals (Apogon Parvulus)

[Pieces of the Ocean]

Available in groups of five. Click image to buy!



[video=vimeo;117074189]https://vimeo.com/117074189[/video]

 

[Shep]

How long have you had them in your tank? I love these fish but have heard that they really do not do well in tanks

 

[reefwiser]

Nice love cardinals.

 

[Pieces of the Ocean]

How long have you had them in your tank? I love these fish but have heard that they really do not do well in tanks

4 weeks. And fair concern. They are not the easiest to keep but they can be successfully kept provided with the right environment and fed properly. They have spawned in captivity for some including myself. So they are not impossible to keep in tanks.

 

[rholguin]

If you don't me asking. What do you feed these fish.

 

[Pieces of the Ocean]

If you don't me asking. What do you feed these fish.

Not at all I am feeding them LRS Fish/Reef Frenzy and PE Mysis.

I thought I had to mash up the larger chunks but amazingly they are able to take down pieces as big as their head, as seen below. (Excuse the subpar quality of the pics - they are extremely nimble swimmer)

 

[Aquaph8]

A huge mouth seems to be a cardinal thing, they can all eat large food items.

 

[buddythelion]

4 weeks. And fair concern. They are not the easiest to keep but they can be successfully kept provided with the right environment and fed properly. They have spawned in captivity for some including myself. So they are not impossible to keep in tanks.

I'd love to know what the right environment/care is for them. I've always wanted to try them, but have been discouraged after reading so many failed attempts.

 

[ReefFrenzy]

Very cool!

 

[Vanmo92]

I've kept these fish for a while now and the only one I have lost was to jumping out of the tank. I feed them frozen brine and mysis shrimp as well as flake food. I've never had any issues getting them to eat anything. They do have huge mouths for their size. When I got them they fattened up nicely in less than a month. I have heard stories of them not doing well, but as far as I can tell they are no more difficult to keep than any other cardinal.

 

[Pieces of the Ocean]

I'd love to know what the right environment/care is for them. I've always wanted to try them, but have been discouraged after reading so many failed attempts.

Infrequent feeding to me is generally when most perish. Ime the following hold true when they thrived:

1. Keep with peaceful tank mates, unless tank is large, or at least when first introducing them. They may be seen as food.
2. Keep in groups to reduce stress and induce appetite.
3. Feed daily. Twice a day if possible. Frequency trumps quantity.

To show it's not impossible to keep these fish, below is a 4-yr old video of mine when a male red spots was holding eggs in a 40g breeder. I lost them when I broke my own rule of not QT'ing a new fish.

[video=youtube;XB6dkzNPTDg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XB6dkzNPTDg[/video]