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YORKSHIRE
ASSOCIATION OF
AQUARIST SOCIETIES
Photograph courtesy of A. Kenworthy and Y.A.A.S. website
NEWSLETTER
SEPTEMBER 2016
DAVID’S PIECE
Welcome to the September edition of the Y.A.A.S. Newsletter.
It is great to be back on track following recent computer problems.
A quick reminder that the YAAS Delegates Meeting will be held on Saturday
1st October at the usual venue of Bradford Academy. 1.00p.m. starting time. Please ty to
arrange for your affiliated Society or Group to send along a representative.
As part of the December Newsletter we will be publishing a ‘Memory lane’ article,
written by Steve and Trish Jones, all about a memorable visit to a Betta Show on the
European Mainland. Should you have any fishkeeping memories that you would like to
share with the Y.A.A.S. membership then I would love to hear from you.
At this point I remind all our readers that YOUR diary dates, articles, memories of
Y.A.A.S. events and folk, fish photographs, jokes, newspaper clippings and comments
are needed to fill the pages of YOUR Newsletter.
For all contributors my contact details are: Postal address - 16 Potter Hill, Pickering, North Yorkshire, YO18 8AA
Telephone - 01751 472715
E-mail – [email protected]
Best wishes David Marshall
Next Newsletter - December 2016
All Societies are sent two copies of the Newsletter. If more are required, then they can be
supplied at cost plus postage.
News, views and opinions printed in this Newsletter are not necessarily those of the
Y.A.A.S. or the Editor.
FRONT COVER
Our front cover photograph was taken by Jamie Horne and
shows a pair of Poecilia butleri. The male is the fish on the
left. I hope that you will enjoy the special feature about these
amazing livebearers.
NEWS DESK
A REPORT ON THE CASTLEFORD AQUARIST SOCIETY
CATFISH AND LOACH SHOW, 2016
Date - Sunday 10th July Venue - Lock Lane Centre, Castleford
Text by David Marshall
Photographs as credited
Once again I was thrilled to be asked to Judge at the Castleford Catfish & Loach Show.
This year Brian Walsh of the FNAS was my judging partner for the day. We would have
a great time in ‘catfish heaven’.
For the National Catfish Championship, where fish which have scored 85 points and over
at an Open Show during the past 12 months are eligible, we only had three fish to judge
this year. And what fantastic fish these were! After much discussion between Brian and
myself we awarded 1st place to a Anadoras grypus, 2nd place to a Leiocassis hosii and 3rd
place to a Jaguar catfish.
Left - This beautiful Anadoras grypus won the National Catfish Championship with
86.5 points.
Right -Second runner-up was a Jaguar catfish with 85.3 points.
Photographs by David Marshall.
Both of the catfishes above are well cared for by Mike Kirkham of
the AAGB. Here we see Mike (on the left) collecting show prizes
from Castleford Show Secretary Steven Grant. Photograph by
Jamie Horne.
Left - The Leiocassis hosii that was runner-up in the National Catfish
Championship with a score of 86 points. Photograph by David Marshall.
Right - This catfish is much loved by owner Roy Blackburn of Castleford A.S. Here
we see Roy collecting prizes from Steve Grant. Photograph by Jamie Horne.
This year the 21 Open Show Classes drew
a total of 103 entries. Here we see a snap
shot of the show benches. Photograph by
David Marshall.
There were catfish and loaches large and
small to be seen on the show benches and
with thanks to Steven Grant and David Marshall we can show you a variety of these
Left - At the end of the afternoon the Best Loach award went to this Serpenticobitis
octozona that scored 87 points. Photograph by David Marshall.
Right - The Best Loach is owned by Stuart Brown of the AAGB. Here we see Stuart
collecting prizes from Steven Grant. Photograph by Jamie Horne.
Left - The Best Catfish, a female Trachelyopterichthys anduzei, also scored 87 points.
Photograph by David Marshall.
Right - This amazing catfish is owned by Steven Grant and here we see Steven
receiving prizes from Steve Jones. Photograph by Jamie Horne.
At the same time as the Show was judged an auction of catfishes, loaches and dry goods
was held. 18 ‘lots’ were entered. Sue tells me that there was an amazing selection of
Corydoradinae and loricarins for sale and that even though the number of people in the
audience was down on previous years, most of the fish were sold. Sue had my ‘wants
list’ so a small number of these catfishes came home with me.
Auctioneer Mark Walters and
assistant Steven Grant had a
busy afternoon.
Finally, well done to the
Castleford members for another
enjoyable afternoon.
A REPORT ON THE N.E.Y.B.K.A. OPEN SHOW 2016
Date - Sunday 24th July
Venue - Wigginton Village Hall, York
Report and photographs by David Marshall
For many years this has been the premier killifish event in Northern England.
A small selection of fish seen on the show bench.
Left - Exhibitors benching their fish.
Right - YAAS ‘A’ Class Judge Mick Price (standing) prepares to judge some of the
exhibits.
The Open Show consists of around 15 Classes devoted to the various family groupings of
killifish. Although the NEYGBKA Committee were a little disappointed to find that only
57 exhibits had been benched there were some amazing fish to see that included
Aphyolebias peruensis, Nothobranchius chochamandai, Fundulopanchax avichang,
Hypsolebias comazonius and Epiplatys togolensis.
This year Bill Drake
(Manchester Group BKA),
Mick Price (YAAS), Kevin
Webb (YAAS) and Gordon
Templey (NEYGBKA) were
invited to Judge the exhibits.
They awarded Best in Show to
this beautiful Fundulopanchax
deltaensis.
Normally the Killie Only Auction is run in three sections and more or less these are
identical. However, today, sadly, the number of fish for sale was down on previous years
so the Auction was condensed into two sections only. Before each section is auctioned
potential buyers are able to view the fishes in their poly bags. There was another really
good selection of killies for sale that included Rivulus mazaruni, Aphanius vladykovi,
Epiplatys singa, Rivulus letatia, Fundulus lacustris, Nothobranchius capriniensis and
Rivulus xiphidens.
Left - Killie fans looking over the fish for sale.
Right - Then discussing potential purchases. The team of Peter Riley, a gentleman from Buxton and Geoff Bell did a sterling job of
auctioneering. It is sad to report that number of people sitting in the auction was down on
last year.
For the Sales Table people bring
along a variety of non-killie fishes and
various dry goods. David Armitage
were in charge this year. Some
excellent fish were offered for sale
that included Moscow Guppies, Lace
Gourami, Aspidoras, Ram Cichlids
and various Platys.
Left - Phil Blackburn was present with the Fishphilosophy stand selling a wide
range of fish foods and accessories. As you can see Phil had good help from young
Ollie.
Right - New to the event were Guppy Fish Trading. True to the name they were
selling an assortment of Guppy varieties plus Neon tetras and Bronze Corydoras.
On the accessories side they had a good selection of JMC products.
At this event I take the opportunity to catch-up with ‘old friends.’ Some of these people
are now only seen here these days. I had an enjoyable afternoon.
Friends of Yorkshire Meet Again
Text and photographs, unless otherwise credited, by Dr. David Ford
The annual ‘Friends of Yorkshire’ Open Show was held at the Village Hall
in Stockton on the Forest, York on Sunday 14th August 2016.
YAAS Judges
Kevin Webb,
Patricia Jones,
Steven Grant
and Mick Price
had a very busy
afternoon.
This Open
Show, which is
held in the main
hall, is run to
Yorkshire Association of Aquarist Societies rules and standards. There was a total of 211
exhibits. YAAS affiliated clubs Bradford, Ashby, FAST, Ryedale, Otley, Castleford and
the Anabantoid Association of Great Britain were all represented. From outside the
region fishkeepers from Workington and Southend & Leigh brought along fish.
Our thanks go to Steven Grant for sharing with us six images of fish on the showing
benches: -
The Best in Show
with 86.75 points was
a Mesonoemacheilus
guentheri,
a rare Hillstream
Loach from India,
shown by Jamie
Horne of Castleford
AS. On the left is the
winning Loach. To
the right Jamie
collects show prizes
from Steve Jones.
Best Exhibit came from the Egglaying Pairs Class and this was won by Roy
Blackburn, also from Castleford AS, with a pair of
Bunocephalus larai, a banjo species of South American
Catfish, that have won awards for Roy at many other
Shows. Roy was thrilled to receive his prizes.
A special award that is at the FOY event is the Hildred
Trophy for the best Anabantoid. Cliff and Maz Hildred
were great supporters of the FOY and this trophy is in
their memory. This year it was won by Mike Kirkham of
the AAGB with a Red Betta splendens.
In the smaller hall the
4th Leg in the Fancy
Guppy UK League took
place. Their judges use a
statistical method to
choose the Best in Show
and from the 25 entries
two Guppies scored an
equal 83 points - so there
were two Best in Shows!
Left - Best in Show Guppy 1 was this Broadtail Fancy Guppy owned by Henry Smith of
FGUK.
Right - Best in Show Guppy 2 was a Roundtail Fancy owned by Stan Collinge of FGUK.
An auction plays a big part in
the day. Auctioneer Steve
Jones and assistant George
Baker (Ryedale A.S.) had a
busy time selling fish and
aquatic items to an audience
of 70 people. The most
unusual thing sold was
freshwater seaweed.
There were two trade stands at the Show. On our left Editor David Marshall was
telling visitors all about The Aquarium Gazette CD magazine and David is seen
again on our right purchasing items from Phil Blackburn on the Fishphilosophy
stand.
Finally, Trevor Douglas, on behalf of the FOY Committee, asked me to thank everyone
from the YAAS and TTAA who helped today, to thank exhibitors and people who
brought along fish and auction items and to the folk who donated raffle prizes etc.
FUN TIME
What do you call a lady who is good at catching fish?
Annette.
It's September and two geese are chatting in a farmyard. One says to the other, 'What do
you do now that summer is over and you begin to feel lonely?' The other one replied, 'Oh,
I just have a gander around.'
Why did the Plec go to the Doctor?
Because he felt a bit flat!
DIARY DATES
Wednesday September 14th - Talk by Mr. David Armitage ‘Fish collecting in Burma’, at
the meeting of the Ryedale Aquarist Society. Mill Suite, Pickering Memorial Hall,
N.Yorks. YO18 8AA. 7.30p.m start. All welcome.
Sunday September 25th - Sheaf Valley Aquarist Society Open Show, Rockingham Centre,
Sheffield.
Wednesday October 5th - Talk by Dr. David Pool, ‘Fishscience fish foods’, at the meeting
of the Ryedale Aquarist Society. Mill Suite, Pickering Memorial Hall, N.Yorks. YO18
8AA. 7.30p.m start. All welcome.
Sunday October 15th - AAGB Members Day, IBIS Hotel, Rotherham. Guest speakers
will be David Gamble (‘Fish Collecting in the Far East’) and David Marshall (‘A
magnificent 7 labyrinth fish’).
Sunday November 13th - Bradford & District A.S. Open Show, Bradford Academy.
2017
Saturday April 1st and Sunday April 2nd – AAGB Members Weekend. Details to be
announced.
Sunday April 16th - Castleford A.S. Open Show, Lock Lane Centre, Castleford.
Sunday 18th June - Ryedale Aquarist Society Open Show, Kirby Misperton Village Hall,
Malton.
MEMORIES OF POECILIA BUTLERI
Adapted from a feature article that was published in The Aquarium Gazette CD
Magazine Issue 38
Text by David Marshall
Photograph by Jamie Horne
When Jamie’s photographs of Poecilia butleri arrived at the TAG office, they brought
back fond memories of the time that I kept this beautiful molly so I decided to put
together a small article about my experiences with these fish.
Many moons ago I purchased a male and two female Poecilia butleri from the late Derek
Lambert. Derek told me that the common name of these lovely patterned fish, which
belong to the family Poeciliidae, was Pacific Molly. Native to Mexico, there are also
rumours that persist about feral populations of this fish occurring in the North American
states of Florida and Texas.
With this species, males grow to an average size of 55mm and females 50mm. Males
have the brightest body patterning of the sexes and are easily distinguished from females
as their anal fin is modified to form the ovoviviparous breeding organ known as a
gonopodium. In the wild, the males pay for their brighter colours as they fall prey to
fishing birds and other creatures much faster than females do.
I placed my trio into an aquarium of 60x30x30cm. The base was composed of fine
gravel and had a décor of rocks, plastic plants and broken flower pots. Although most
populations of Poecilia butleri are found in freshwater rivers, streams and ponds, Derek
told me that the parents of my youngsters came from a brackish environment. With this
in mind, I followed Derek’s advice and added two teaspoons of Supa tonic salt to the
aquarium. Each time a water change was made the tonic salt was topped-up. The
temperature was maintained at 26 C with a pH of 7.
Thankfully, feeding was an easy task as herbivore flake and small amounts of granular
foods were eaten with great gusto. Small sized frozen foods were also quickly
swallowed down.
Although Derek had enjoyed great success in mixing Poecilia butleri with Goodeids, as
the viviparous livebearing method used by the latter prevents the production (in theory at
least) of hybrids, I kept my trio on their own.
The male needed no encouragement to court any females in his aquarium. When kept in
the same aquarium males will ‘feud’ over the right to mate with all of their female
companions and sometimes fight an unseen ‘war of attrition’ that, sadly, can lead to the
deaths of weaker males in the group. Although not as bad as with their Limia cousins
males will drive the females relentlessly in the pursuit of reproducing their own kind.
As a result of a successful mating the female holds the males milt in her body. This
enables her to give birth to a maximum of six broods of fry with the number of fry
increasing with each brood. At brood six there are reports of female Poecilia butleri
releasing as many as one hundred fry.
As our photograph reveals
the fry of Poecilia butleri are
large in size and at birth are fully
formed little fish.
Sadly, both my females
produced small broods of fry
that never exceeded twenty in
number. The females had been
moved to separate aquariums
upon looking gravid and when
the birth process was complete
were returned to the main aquarium while the fry remained in situ.
The fry took microworm and then newly hatched brine shrimp without any problems but
somehow never thrived in great numbers. There were problems with youngsters that
developed bent spines and others that just did not grow at the rate at which I had been
told to expect. At the end of the day I raised enough youngsters to greatly increase my
population but never enough to be able to pass any youngsters/adults onto fishkeeping
friends.
When the space was needed for a new Guppy project, I stopped moving gravid females to
a tank of their own. Although enough fry made it to adulthood, within what was now a
90x30x30cm Poecilia butleri community aquarium, in order to keep the group going for
a good while, the lack of intense care, probably coupled with no influx of new blood,
eventually resulted in the loss of my stock.
Looking back, I wish I had made more of an attempt to keep a population of Poecilia
butleri in my fish house as they are excellent mollies that have kept the vast majority of
their wild type colour patterns through a number of generations of aquarium stock.
FINALLY
Please remember that David is always pleased to publish the details of YAAS events in
the pages of Aquarium Gazette magazine.