Tank-bred True Altums??

[jcardona1]

Dont know much about Angels, but I have heard true Altums are hard to come by, and hard to keep in captivity. I recently learned that Jeff Rapps received a small batch of captive-bred Altums, and has them for sale now. Did you guys know?!?! I didn't know that these were bred in captivity!!

http://tangledupincichlids.com/

pictured above: Pterophyllum altum - captive bred juveniles of the majestic Orinoco altum angels are now available in limited quantities

[Jennie]

Never heard of this person, I'd be more inclined to deal with a sponsor here though

[jcardona1]

Jeff Rapps is one of the most highly reputable vendors in the freshwater community. If he says their true Altums, I don't doubt him at all!

[Jennie]

Still..never heard of him.. why are you posting this, are you getting some?? If so, let us know how it goes

[jcardona1]

No I'm not, don't have the space for them yet! Just passing along the info, and wanting to know if tank-bred altums has been seen in the hobby before

[Jennie]

yes as here, at this site out of germany, but None here in US that I can see..
http://www.skalarezucht.de/

[Darrell Ward]

Jeff Rapps is one of the most highly reputable vendors in the freshwater community. If he says their true Altums, I don't doubt him at all!

Yep, he sure is. Been around for years. Everyone in the cichlid world knows the name. I think these fish are coming out of Europe, Can't say for sure, Jeff's not saying. It's interesting because captive bred Altums have never been for sale commercially, and was considered for years to be almost impossible, much like Heckles are. Several of the angelfish keepers on the angelfish forums are growing some of these out, so we'll know more about them in a few months. Wouldn't mind having a few myself, but I'm not in the mood to grow out any more fish right now.

[Jennie]

Darrell, is he going to try to breed/raise them here?

[Darrell Ward]

Jeff Rapps mostly imports wild fish to sell wholesale to LFS nationwide, and retail to hobbyists. I don't think he has any interest in breeding them. I'm sure he will continue to sell these as long as the availability is there, and interest is good.

[Altum Nut]

In my opinion...I think Mr Rapps fish are wild-caught altums and not tank bred.
Unless it is posted as who the supplier source - breeder...they will always be from the wild.
You don't have to agree...however i have my sources.

...Ralph

[Darrell Ward]

Well, here is what Jeff Rapps posted on another forum: " It's always been of my opinion that once captive bred altums were offered, they would be a totally different animal from the wild stock that many of us have tried very hard to maintain in our tanks.
I can offer that these fish were not bred here in the US and that they are of F2 generation."

I have always known him to be a stand up guy, and have bought, sold, and traded many fish that came from him in the past. Some were pretty darn rare. I know he wouldn't risk his reputation if he knew this was a hoax. Having said that, I have to believe him until it is proved otherwise.

[jcardona1]

I have always known him to be a stand up guy, and have bought, sold, and traded many fish that came from him in the past. Some were pretty darn rare. I know he wouldn't risk his reputation if he knew this was a hoax. Having said that, I have to believe him until it is proved otherwise.

Exactly. It's easy to be skeptical in this situation, but like you say, Jeff has a lot riding on his reputation. And in this business, getting a bad rep will ruin you. I have yet to hear about a negative experience with Jeff, from many different forums. Anybody who's after rare and hard-to-find fish knows that Jeff is the man. I have no reason to doubt what he says, and I don't think he'd risk it with a small batch of $45 fish.

[jcardona1]

By the way, looks like he's sold out. His stock list for the week of 1/17/10 doesn't have the Altums listed. That was fast!

[Jennie]

Well I went ahead and sent email. Let you all know what he says

[Altum Nut]

I would never doubted that Jeff is a reputable import supplier. I've had many friends that have dealt with Jeff with positive results. I question more the fish in the photo that look wild caught merely because of their condition.
At this stage where more breeders around the world are reporting F1,F2 upto F6 spawns the fry being offered for sale never seem to post the source (parents).

...Ralph