Finally found! Lamprologus Stappersi/Meleagris

I was so amazed and shock to see the scientific name "Lamprologus Stappersi" on the tank at Qian hu. I thought that these cute little fellas was near to extinction especially after i tried all sources and avenues to no avail of finding them.

The pair that i had seems to be the only pair in Singapore at least that was what i thought until i saw them for sale...i knew i had to grab them..and so i did...apparently not many people appreciated them...and it cost me $40 for 3 pieces...for such rarity, this price is like a "lelong" at the fish market...Its even cheaper than getting from local breeder even in the old days...

So its fated and i got them without a 2nd consideration...i guess it was a mixture of 1male and 2 females that i chose out of the tank...I wanted to get the whole tank but it doesnt make sense since they are from the same spawn and i've already got an old pair and 2x F1 from this pair which made it 4 in the tank...With these new 3 pieces, i believed spawning activity should get me a few new line of meleagris :)

So now, i mixed all 7 of them in a tank...with a lot of shells and added some oyster shells and rocks to break the tension!

The mother...still the most beautiful piece in the tank

One of the 2 F1 that came from the above female....they have grown up in size

Flaring and vying for shells

Something i love about them is that despite their size is that they are generally more braver than the bigger species...seldom hide in the shell and when flaring, they display nice little pearly spots all over them...For that, they are also called "Pearly Occellutus".

The is the new piece i got from Qian hu...and frankly speaking they seems to be of good genes...the colors and contrast on their body are much stronger than my F1. I guess they are pretty young judging from their built.

Dedicated a full 1.5ft tank for this species alone..lets hope some spawning activities will begin soon...

Oh..before i forget..the credits goes to Ms Petty for her generosity & Kindness in driving us all the way to Qianhu.. Of cos she wanted to go as well..but who in the right mind would drive a 40mins distance to such an "Ulu" place...just to see some fish when they dont keep an aquarium?

I mean, leaving that aside, she might have her own intention of visiting the place, i am still quite grateful for the trip...i doubt any of my friends would ever drive such a distant to this place...

So for that, i decided to be less mean and sarcastic to her...haha for a month maybe

And Qianhu has changed so much...from expensive fishes catering to wholesale to selling locally a variety of fishes at affordable prices, the strategy changes along with time..especially when locals are starting to have huge spending powers on their interest..They even make the place a weekend getaway for families..The kids are having so much fun from catching some longkang guppies and the adults doing fish spa....its definitely a nice place to visit!