Lake Malawi Species • Chipokae species tank?

[nzen111]

Has anyone tried anything similar with melanochromis chipokae?

According to this care sheet, you may be able to keep a colony of them in a 180 gallon.
https://www.malawi-guru.de/malawisee/fi ... pokae.html

Might be a worthwhile project concerning they are very endangered in the wild.

[sir_keith]

That would be an awesome project. Try to start out with fishes from at least 2 or 3 different sources to maximize genetic diversity; or even better, include some WC stock, if you can possibly find them. Good luck.

[DJRansome]

If they are endangered, would it be ethical to buy them freshly caught?

Or would you ensure they were WC but caught long ago?

[DJRansome]

If they are endangered, would it be ethical to buy them freshly caught?

Or would you ensure they were WC but caught long ago?

I'd be doing captive bred stock from multiple sources. Not sure if you can find wc chipokae in the hobby.

[sir_keith]

If they are endangered, would it be ethical to buy them freshly caught?

Or would you ensure they were WC but caught long ago?

If they are WC individuals from an endangered population, the only ethical choices would be (1) to reintroduce them into the wild as part of a carefully thought-out repopulation program, a choice that would not be feasible for most hobbyists, or (2) to use the wild fishes as breeding stock in order to increase the number of genetically heterogeneous specimens in captivity, so that such individuals may be available for repopulation efforts in the future. As the OP suggested that he was interested in a project whose aim is entirely consistent with the latter, I see no reason to raise objections to this project on 'ethical' grounds.

[sir_keith]

I'd be doing captive bred stock from multiple sources. Not sure if you can find wc chipokae in the hobby.

Excellent plan.I wish you luck, and hope you will keep us informed of your progress in the future.