# Other Aquarium Forums > Freshwater Fauna > Killifish >  Nothobranchius rachovii Beira 98

## turaco

Guys(locally), 

A show of hand how many of you are still breeding the above mentioned fish? I found mine degrading in it's colouration. Too much in-breeding I guess. As this is suppose to be our 'mascot' killi, it should always be available to all newbies(Actually I personally find it not the easiest to start off with). I don't distribute this fish any more though I still have some eggs in peat. Guess it's time to bring in new blood. 

Need your thoughts- Is it alright to let go these 'not so beautiful' fish under the name of 'aquarium strain' for newbies to have their hands on?

I started off 'aquarium strain' killies like the australes. I'm currently working on some species with location code(one species turned out to be all males  :Mad: ), so meanwhile I don't have anything to offer.

Gan.

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## joker

hi

i have notho. rachovii beira '98 too ... at the moment eggs in peat - 3 portion. i must wet them in april and may. if you are looking for new killis take a look to my breederlist. it´s on my website http://www.killifische.at. it is in german so go to the menue "züchter" ... there you can find some breeders and their lists ...

greets
markus

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## imported_lily

> Need your thoughts- Is it alright to let go these 'not so beautiful' fish under the name of 'aquarium strain' for newbies to have their hands on?


Hi Gan,

I am very new into killies too and I do have the above-mentioned breed. I do agree with you that most newbie like us start with the rachoviis and to date, I have many other species and I think they are all very beautiful. 

I think its unfair to use the not so beautiful term on the rachoviis because even there are too much in-breeding, they are still very beautiful to me .. :wink:

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## timebomb

> I think its unfair to use the not so beautiful term on the rachoviis because even there are too much in-breeding, they are still very beautiful to me .. :wink:


Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, I guess :smile:. But I think the first few generations of _Notho rachovii_ were more beautiful than those I see now. Inbreeding is probably the cause. Other than getting in some new genes, I don't know how we can solve this problem. 

Here's a pic of my very first rachovii. It was taken with a cheap camera but the beauty of the fish is undeniable.



I would have lost this picture when my computer crashed a while ago but fortunately, this pic was uploaded to a web site I created about 2 years ago. 

Loh K L

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## turaco

> if you are looking for new killis take a look to my breederlist..


Hi Markus, 

I don't understand german. However, I can roughly figure out some nice species you guys have :wink: . Can you private message me of the species you have which I can buy from you? 

Guys, 

It's there any way to translate Markus's website to English? Thank you. 

Gan.

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## hwchoy

> Guys, 
> 
> It's there any way to translate Markus's website to English? Thank you. 
> 
> Gan.


The Babelfish usually do a good enough job. Those who know where this fish came from, hands up please  :Exclamation:   :Exclamation:  :wink:

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## timebomb

> Those who know where this fish came from, hands up please   :wink:


Choy, are you referring to the _Notho rachovii_? The collection code "Beira" should tell you where it's from. WE had a short discussion about this recently and someone pointed out that Beira is a town somewhere in Mozambique, Africa.

Loh K L

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## hwchoy

> Originally Posted by hwchoy
> 
> Those who know where this fish came from, hands up please   :wink:
> 
> 
> Choy, are you referring to the _Notho rachovii_? 
> 
> Loh K L


Nah, who knows where the Babelfish is from?

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## turaco

Choy, thank you for the direction. Now I can understand german :wink: .

Gan.

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## hwchoy

It will also do Japanese  :Smile:  now you can go read RVA's website :P

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## kc

Gan,
I have 3 tanks full of Rachovii (any taker?)  :Smile:  The colour of the rachovii from 1 of tank is much striking than the rest. The reason is partly because this tank is select for breeding. I'm will try to experiment with my theory that Rachovii in this tank (outdoor) brings out better coloration that the other two. The other 2 tanks are in my Living room away from the window. 

Do not expect instant change in their colour if you will to put them at the balcony. The change will be very gradual.

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## stormhawk

Probably been ages since this post re-appeared. Anyway, I took some fresh images of the RAC Beira 98 in my possession. Thanks to Andrew for raising them and to Ron for having babysitted them for me for the past 2 days. Also a big thanks to Kenny for having passed the initial eggs to Andrew. Brought home 6 males and 1 lone female. Keeping the 2 largest and nicest males with the female for breeding and the rest are in a separate tank. Very greedy fellas. Immediately whacked the tubifex just seconds after introduction to their new setups.

Colours not fully out yet, probably still stressed but they were damn beautiful when I was scooping them out of a holding container.  :Very Happy: 





Oddly enough, these critters are my very first rachovii in the time that I've been keeping killies. A milestone for me at least.  :Laughing:

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## RonWill

> Brought home 6 males and 1 lone female


Only one female??... think I need to revise my prescribed lenses.

Jian Yang, I have a bunch of RAC that's female heavy. Let these grow and fatten up first, then I'll give ya a holler.

Gan, I now hold 2 pairs from Andrew and a brood of 2cm juvenile (both of the same line). If you need to cross and renew the gene pool, let me know.

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## turaco

> Gan, I now hold 2 pairs...


Ron, my RAC had long turned to ashes. Strange to read such an old tread that JY had dug out. Thanks for the offer, never like notho any more.. In fact, too busy for killies lately. Did I lose the bet?  :Rolling Eyes:   :Laughing:

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## timebomb

It's an old thread but the _Nothobranchius rachovii_ is still one of my favourite Killifish. I remember the first time I saw a _N. rachovii_ in one of Ronnie's tanks, I was so smitten with the fish. The colours are absolutely brilliant. I don't have any adults at the moment but I hatched out some eggs last week and there were about 55 fry. They grow fast so I should have plenty of adults to distribute around in a few weeks' time.

I find it's easier with the _Nothos_. For one thing, our warm weather doesn't seem to trouble them.

Loh K L

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## RonWill

> Strange to read such an old tread that JY had dug out


 Good grief! I hadn't realize how old the thread was until you mentioned it but I'm sure you're glad to have lost the bet. I won't claim the wager now but will take a raincheck until I have available tank space.

The Beira 98 and the Simp magnificus were the first 2 annuals that graced my tanks during the early killie keeping days but the RACs broke my heart when I lost tankfuls of of colored-up young adults. Velvet was something I didn't know how to treat effectively but from then on, I'm mostly a 'non-annual' keeper.

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## stormhawk

The lure of the annuals is too strong..  :Laughing:  

Besides, the RAC is a wonderful species.. Hmm.. probably time for MOZ 99/3s? The Beira are spawning as I'm typing this.  :Very Happy:

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## CM Media

I've tried the RAC MOZ99/3 and MOZ99/9. These 2 strains are more difficult as compare to B98. I like the MOX99/9 more as the fish have more intense colour as compare to MOZ99/3. :Laughing:  

I still have some eggs of the MOZ99/3 after the pair finally decided to leave the earth for Wonderland..  :Wink:  

Both the MOZ99/3 and MOZ99/9 are black in colour and do not have the strond orange colour like the B98.

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## hobbit6003

The RAC Beira 98 is also my favourite Notho too. I think Kwek Leong aptly chose this fish as the fish to front this website.

Although this wasn't my first beginner killie (that title belonged to the N. guentheri Zanzibar), I told myself that I must have them. So, I went on to Aquabid and bought myself a bag of 50 eggs.

Strangely, that bag yielded only 2 normal frys, while 20 odd of them turned out to be belly sliders. Unfortunately, the frys grew up to be females.

Luckily for me, Au was kind enough to pass me a male, and the trio gave me some spawns before the male went belly up too. But that was enough to produce eggs, which subsequently gave me so many frys that I manage to start 2 spawning groups of 3 males and 5 females each, and plenty more to flood my neighbour's tank and Ronnie's tub. These spawning groups are producing an average of 150 eggs every week each.

Thanks to Andrew too, who bought some eggs from me, and now that the adults have been passed on to Jian Yang and Ronnie. 

Hopefully, this strain will not disappear locally, as it is still, IMO, the one Notho that rules them all!  :Very Happy: 

Kenny

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## stormhawk

Au, I understand the difference between MOZ 99/3 and 99/9 is that one has an orange crescent in the tail and the other does not. Am I right? I find them quite appealing actually.  :Very Happy:  

On another note, has anyone kept the RAC Nhangau MT 03-4? Its of a collection by Filipe Torre.

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## stormhawk

> The RAC Beira 98 is also my favourite Notho too.


Ahh, my first killie and very first notho was the KAF Kayuni State Farm from KL himself. Didn't succeed with those but I'll try them again in the future.  :Cool:  

Nonetheless, my favourite notho is the fuscotaeniatus and I've ordered some eggs. I know it isn't easy but I suppose its worth a try.  :Wink:

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## hobbit6003

> Originally Posted by hobbit6003
> 
> The RAC Beira 98 is also my favourite Notho too.
> 
> 
> Ahh, my first killie and very first notho was the KAF Kayuni State Farm from KL himself. Didn't succeed with those but I'll try them again in the future.  
> 
> Nonetheless, my favourite notho is the fuscotaeniatus and I've ordered some eggs. I know it isn't easy but I suppose its worth a try.


JY,

If you are willing to wait for another 2-3 months, I may have some KAF eggs for you to try again.  :Very Happy:  I've just bought some KAF Kayuni and Nega Nega eggs, and are due to hatch in 2 weeks' time, mostly eye up already.

Abt the fusco, the bag of eggs gave me 3 veeery slow growing frys, and I don't think they're doing well at all, although they still eat. It's already more than a month, but they look like a week old GUE fry, about 10-12mm in length.

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## stormhawk

> JY,
> 
> If you are willing to wait for another 2-3 months, I may have some KAF eggs for you to try again.  I've just bought some KAF Kayuni and Nega Nega eggs, and are due to hatch in 2 weeks' time, mostly eye up already.


Thanks for the offer. Hopefully when the time comes, I have enough tank space since 3 species are heading my way.  :Laughing: 




> Abt the fusco, the bag of eggs gave me 3 veeery slow growing frys, and I don't think they're doing well at all, although they still eat. It's already more than a month, but they look like a week old GUE fry, about 10-12mm in length.


I suppose Ron and Au can tell you more on the slow growth rate of this species. However, the colours and the beautiful patterns of the male and female are worth any amount of time spent waiting for them to grow up.  :Wink:

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## stormhawk

Thought I'd share this link:

http://www.killi-foto.de/nothobranch...taeniatus.html

Take a look at the image on the webpage.. one of the best shots of the fusco I've ever seen.  :COOL!:

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## stormhawk

An updated image of one of the breeding RAC Beira 98 males from Andrew. The pic's quality is nowhere close to Au's image hosted on his personal site but the male's colouring up very nicely. They are breeding alright since I see some peat thrown out of the shallow bowl I gave them and the peat in the bowl is all messed up.  :Very Happy: 

Will be checking for eggs tomorrow when I collect the peat from all of my tanks so will update via this thread.

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## hobbit6003

Hey JY,

U surely can take a much better pic than me! So, it proves once again, the man behind the camera is more important than the camera itself!  :Very Happy:  

Kenny

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## stormhawk

Gimme your camera and I'll see what I can do.  :Razz: 

This shot was taken in total darkness with only a small torchlight providing the light source for focusing and my camera's flash that did all the work.

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## hobgoblin

Guys,

I feel pangs of heartache as I read all the posts on RAC Beira. Haha, I got to thank Kenny for the eggs, albeit a bad hatch rate due to inexperience. But it's been one of the memorable experience I had raising Killies. I came to recall the failures I had with the non-annuals such as Australes and Fundulopanchax GAR. It's slightly more than a week before I enlist, apart from my fishes, I'll miss you guys also. I doubt I'll have much time in the days to come, and I'd better do it now-

To Mr Loh, thanks for getting me on the right track and a starter package (pairs of Australes) to begin with, Jian Yang, for his constant advice on MSN messenger (he's like a 911 call centre for me). To Ron for the many things I 'kapo' at his place (mostly live specimens), and also, Kenny for eggs and advice on breeding the RAC Beira.

I traded all my existing RAC Beira with Ron for zebra shrimps and ramshorn. At this moment they're doing well, and I finally got to see cluster on Ramshorn eggs in the tank.

As for the many other members in this forum I've yet to meet and know, the opportunity will come one day. So, in the meantime all the best to you folks, and continue to raise more frys, (haha, maybe we should have a slogan for killies.com along those lines).

Au revoir and take care,

andrew

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## stormhawk

Andrew, don't worry about the RAC. They're in good hands.  :Very Happy:  

Take care of yourself during BMT and it was a pleasure to be of help.  :Wink:

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## hobbit6003

Dear Rec. Andrew,

Go forth and serve the country, and don't worry about us, as we'll always be around when you've the time to come back to fishkeeping.

As promised, when you're ready, I'll have a batch of notho eggs ready for you to hone your fry raising skills.

Cheers,

Cpt. (NS) Kenny Poh

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## timebomb

Andrew, 

I hope this forum will still be around when you have completed your national service. Actually, there's no reason why it shouldn't but just in case it no longer exists when you leave the army, you can still look us up. Make the best of your time in the army. I know many young men think national service is a waste of time but how you spend the 2 years there is all up to you.

Loh K L

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## stormhawk

Quick update, collected the first peat from the reverse breeding trio. Very few eggs (saw only 3 or so) and they're quite small. I suppose the female's not fully mature yet.

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## stormhawk

Did a check today after a few days of incubation and it seems the eggs are no longer in the peat. Shucks. Another try I guess.  :Sad:

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## RonWill

Andrew,
While I can't promise that the Beira 98 line will be maintained indefinitely, be assured that your fishes will be 'well fed' and here's 2 pics that you can print out (to keep in your wallet??)

 

Being enlisted is when boys become men and be enlightened, in more ways than one. Take care of yourself and call on me when you're ready to get those fingers wet again.

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## stormhawk

With reference to Kenny's post in the nigripinnis thread, I wonder if the female rachovii are really unmarked. I browsed through some images online and yes, the females do come across as plain with no discernible patterns on the body and having hyaline (colourless) fins.

I was surfing Killi-Data just awhile ago before I posted this and an image of an aquarium strain female by J.F. Fels shows some red on the body of the female.

Nonetheless, the theory of sleeper males does occur with many fish species and it might occur with the rachovii too. That said, I'm wondering if these sleeper "males" are actually functional "females" that just happen to exhibit some male-associated patterns.

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## hobbit6003

Hi Jian Yang,

As far as I know, the parents come from pure RAC strain, although they're from separate breeders. 

The females that I have and are laying viable eggs, have no colour or markings on the body or fins.

The ones like what you've described, suddenly spring to life recently and developed and exhibited full RAC Beira 98 colours. One thing I noticed though, is that these fishes are relatively smaller size than their male counterparts, and I've always regarded them as runts. But recently, as they colour up, they experienced a growth spurt as well.

If the female looking fishes aren't females, then I can say that the batches from the parents are extremely male heavy, as only 1 in 10 are females.

If these fishes are indeed females, then I better trace the roots back and se if they are not what they are supposed to be, hmm....

Haha, I suppose another way to tell that they're females or not, is to see if you can collect viable eggs from them.  :Smile:  

Cheers,

Kenny

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## stormhawk

Ah, it's confirmed. The "female" that I have is indeed a male. It developed pigments in the anal fin and is apparently a sleeper male as suspected. Shucks.  :m:

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## RonWill

Kenny,
I'm not convinced there isn't even a single female in the Beira 98 growout tank, so in went a breeding bowl and guess what... they're having an orgy of a time!!! 

Let's see if there are any eggs by tomorrow, before I consign the whole lot to EcoCulture.

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## hobbit6003

> Kenny,
> I'm not convinced there isn't even a single female in the Beira 98 growout tank, so in went a breeding bowl and guess what... they're having an orgy of a time!!! 
> 
> Let's see if there are any eggs by tomorrow, before I consign the whole lot to EcoCulture.


Hi Ron,

Show me the eggs and we'll talk.  :Wink:  

Kenny

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## stormhawk

Kenny, you'd be surprised but I did a quick check on the RAC tank and found eggs scattered on the tank bottom! It could only have come from that supposed "female"!  :Shocked:   :Laughing:

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## hobbit6003

JY,

I'll be damned!!!  :Shocked:  

So, what's the deal here?  :Shocked:  

Kenny

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## stormhawk

Beats me! I'm boggled as well.  :Laughing:

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## RonWill

> Show me the eggs and we'll talk.


 I found eggs, so did Zul. We could discuss about this further. Need not be damned, just buy me dinner... your treat?  :Twisted Evil:  (there are females in the batch... told you so)

Anyway, the whole lot is going to EcoCulture tonight. Those who are in need of mates, now you know where to find them.

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## keehoe

With the kind of feeding we all been used to. Even female will colour up like a male. But guys, thats not a good sign. Female might die faster or stop producing eggs if they started to colourup.

Thats the experience that i had with my F* N.Rachovii Nicuadala. I was collecting viable eggs until it colour up and die.

Kenny, i can't show you the egg. I can only show you the fish. The eggs from the previously dull colour female had grown into adult male. Do you happen to have access to lab personel or test equipment for hormon related food item? I got feeling that it is what we feeding the fish make made that happen.

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## stormhawk

Okay bad news. Lost the breeding trio along with some of my other fishes. I managed to get one collection of peat and hopefully that will yield some eggs that I've not been able to spot yet. I still have the two young males. Whoever wants them for breeding let me know, otherwise they'll be part of my community tank.

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## RonWill

Kee Hoe,
Due to changes in work schedules, I no longer feed my fishes as much as I used to but diet has basically remained the same, ie. tubifex and daphnia, once daily and 'fasting' on Sundays. If the females still color up, then there's not much I can do about it and no, I didn't gut load the tubifex with asthaxantin or other hormonal stuffs. The RACs didn't take to Tim Addis's pellets either.

I collected a small batch of eggs from the breeders and only time will tell if these eggs are viable and/or whether the females still 'color up'.

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