Meeting Notes

October, 2009

43 people in attendance.
70 items in the auction.
New family membership, John and Jane Rini
Two registrations for Aquafest.

The meeting began with a mini-presentation from Ron Leftwich on the new auction procedures for Aquafest. Ron explained recommended bagging ideas for the group, and outlined new strategies for a smoother, more effective auction.

A call for volunteers and sponsors for Aquafest was sent out. Frozen food was the group order being picked up this month. The new 50th anniversary calendar was unveiled and put up for sale along with worm feeders and cones from last meeting. Club elections for 2010 officers are next month and the nominations for the new BOD were called out:

Sherry Mitchell, president
J.T. Thomas, vice president
Shawn Carlson, corresponding secretary
Paul Lord, recording secretary
Frank Cowherd, treasurer
Gerry Hoffman, corporate agent
Cristy Keister, at large
Mike Kaiser, at large
Ron Leftwich, at large
Susan Finley, at large

J.T. Thomas also presented a committee update on the Breeders Award Program.

Main Presentation: Chuck Hawks of The Angelfish Society visited from Minnesota to talk about Angelfish. Chuck's talk was divided into several sections: water, tanks, choosing fish, feeding, tank environment, optimum conditions, lighting and spawning.

Water: Warm, soft water has a difficult time holding oxygen, but colder water holds oxygen well. With warm water one must add enough air to agitate the surface of the water in the aquarium. Water quality is important and Chuck changes 50% of the water in his tanks each day. He uses RO water to keep and breed his angelfish in Minnesota. He said that neutral water is the best for breeding.

Wigglers are what the young fry are called as they are newly hatched. The new angelfish hatchlings go through a metamorphosis. They hatch from the egg, then use their sticky mouth to hold onto the surface while their lower lip develops. They cannot swim at first so parental care is important.

Angelfish parent a lot like discus and make very caring parents. They will feel the fry in their mouth to check the babies and vibrate their ventral fins as a warning for the fry to gather around.

When the fry are free swimming to dime size they are very sensitive to ammonia and changes in pH. Ammonia can deform the fry and make them grow much slower. Ideally, pH should be lower than 7.0, but many angels adapt to their water of higher pH.

Chuck showed pictures of "Ike and Tina", his most prolific angelfish and said that at one time they had 954 fry in a spawn which was his own "world record". Typically angelfish will have about 300-400 fry in a spawn.

Tanks: With angelfish, taller is better. Tanks of 29-55 gallons are great for raising fry, while a 55 gallon aquarium is ideal for up to six adults. The basic rule is 10 gallons per angelfish in a deep and wide (breeder profile) tank. Of course, angelfish varieties that attain a larger size, require 15+ gallons per fish.

For breeding, Chuck recommended a minimum of a 20 gallon high tank. A 55 gallon is recommended for a spawn, since the average spawn is 300-400 fry. Chuck said, "If you're going to breed angelfish, have tanks ready, because you're going to need them." Chuck went on to add that he changes 50% of the water every day on his tanks and has two Merlin RO units that make 720 gallons of fresh reverse osmosis water each day.

Choosing Fish: Chuck stated that there were plenty of "shelter fish" out there – fish that were not perfect, and he went on to say, "if you're breeding, then breed the best." He emphasized the importance of buying quality stock and showed members how to choose desirable body shapes and fins. The ideal body shape has a roundness and an almost diamond shape with a slight hump on the head. Fins should be straight from top to bottom with an erect tail and paired fins should be symmetrical. Chuck went on to say that breeding a good bodied fish to a good finned fish produces ideal results.

Feeding: Angelfish cannot digest plant or vegetable matter. They need a high protein diet with some fat. Veggies are optional! He cautioned about live food saying that quality and health of live foods is imperative. Chuck grows his own livebearer fry so he can be sure of the quality of the live foods he feeds his fish. He outlined a variety of foods for angelfish:

Live Foods: blackworms, daphnia, white or grindal worms, red worms (which are used for composting), livebearer fry, cherry shrimp.
Frozen: bloodworms, brine shrimp
Paste: Earthworms, brine shrimp, bloodworms, fish combos, krill
Flake: high density earthworms, shrimp flake

Chuck also added that he uses beefheart and hamburger to make his own food to feed his angelfish. He stated that angels love worms and that worms "really put them in the mood to breed." He said that he grows white worms in his refrigerator and feeds the white worms yogurt.

Tank Environment: Angelfish are comfortable in bare tanks, but also like long leafy plants in the tank. Long leafy plants such as vallisneria are ideal for the angels to hang out in as are broad leafed swords. Surface plants help to filter out high light and work well for darker fish. When keeping angels in a planted tank, Chuck said to clean the gravel well and vacuum right up to the base of the plants to keep the tank clean.

It's a fallacy that angelfish make great community tank fish. They will eat any fish they can get into their mouths. Cardinal tetras are generally too big for them to eat and a good fish for the tank, but neon tetras are frequently eaten. Chuck explained that the law of the tank is, "Eat me, eat you," and that angels are constantly on the prowl for food. Plecos are good companions in the angelfish tank as they hide, and cory catfish are good because they have armor. Ideal temperatures for angelfish may limit the type of fish and plants that can be kept in the tank. Temperatures should be between 82 and 84 degrees F for breeding, which many species cannot tolerate. A fish keeper can take the temperature down 78 degrees for plants and other fish which will accommodate the angelfish along with other fish and plants.

Sexing: Males are usually wider than 90 degrees from the ventral to anal fin, have a slight hump at the head and have a narrow V-shaped body. Females usually possess a 90 degree angle from the ventral to the anal fin, are pear shaped with a gravid body, and have no hump.

Optimum Water Conditions: Low conductivity, temperatures in the 80-84 degree range (change with slightly cooler water to stimulate breeding), and pH between 5.8 and 7.2.

Lighting: In the wild, angelfish live in dark, murky, turbid water. In the home aquarium, Chuck recommends indirect lighting, lighting one half of the tank, or some form of shading in the tank. Lighting should be subdued and not bright.

He went on to state that tank background and lighting are important to show the best colors on the fish. Koi angels show up better with a blue background and high light, while silvers and marbles prefer a shaded area of grasses. Black angelfish do best in a tank with a dark background with minimal lighting.

Spawning: Angelfish will spawn on most any vertical surface. The three spawning surfaces most commonly used are PVC, Slate and Discus Cones.

PVC: cleans easily, cheap, but not attractive
Slate: medium cleanability, excellent ahderance of eggs
Cone: hard to clean, expensive

Chuck shared one of his tricks: He stacks two clay flower pots in the angelfish tank, and when they lay eggs on the flower pot, he removes the top pot to a tank to raise the fry. He emphasized that the angels should not see the tank-keeper as the one who "steals" their eggs. Distract the angelfish then get the eggs out of the tank. This is easier for the parents and they will go back to make another batch of eggs.

Angelfish are very private parents. They must be totally comfortable in their environment in order to breed. When they are in spawning mode their color intensifies ("They absolutely glow," Chuck said.), they become aggressive with each other and clean areas of the tank to lay eggs. The female will swell and sulk. Her ovipositor will be apparent, as will the male's papillae. Their eating habits change. Chuck said that a rainstorm can really kick things off.

The pair of angels will clean a surface before laying eggs. The female will deposit a row of eggs while the male follows to fertilize them. The process usually takes 20-25 passes. Chuck laughed when he recounted all the places his angelfish have laid eggs (corners of tanks, intake tubes, leaves, places that are difficult to access, and one pair even knocked a pipe to the floor of the tank and laid eggs on the horizontal pvc pipe.)

Chuck ended his talk by talking about The Angelfish Society and how it was formed to create a standard and document genetic differences. He urged PVAS members to use the Angelfish Society's website (http://theangelfishsociety.org/) as a good source of information. He passed his card around, saying he was happy to field emails with angelfish questions and invited questions from the audience.

Chuck also donated four bags of his angelfish to the PVAS auction.

Sherry Mitchell