Apisogramma paucisquamis

[skoram]

Sorry for all the ID requests. Korean fish stores have a reputation for sometimes being less-than-honorable in their business dealings.

http://www.aquawiz.com/view.php?num=26253&tb=&count=&category=2550r02r01r05&pg=1#

 

[Mike Wise]

Yes, it looks like A. paucisquamis to me. The black spot at the anus is a diagnostic feature for this species. The price (US$140.00) is rather typical for Asia. Last time I was in Korea I got 385 Won/$. Does that date me?

 

[skoram]

Mike, thanks for the confirmation!

Now to begin the debate on whether or not I should purchase a pair. They are on my wishlist of species to raise *someday* - I didn't expect to find them so soon. Don't know if I should wait or pull the trigger ... my guess is they are available in Korea at most once per year.

385 won per dollar is incredible ... right now that is the equivalent of about 40 cents. (about 1,100 won per dollar) Are you sure it wasn't 1,385 won? Historically the dollar has always been more valuable than the won with the won edging closer to the dollar as the Korean economy improves.

For reference, the 1,000 won note is essentially the same as the 1 dollar note. At any rate, my guess is that it's been at least 20 years since you were last here. Sounds like it's time for another visit! I know some people in the local fish community (including myself) that would die to meet with you.

 

[skoram]

One more question ... in the pictures I've seen of paucisquamis, they usually have a red sheen with red in the caudal fin as well. On this store's site, the red is replaced with yellow. Is this perhaps a different color form of the paucisquamis?

 

[Mike Wise]

Yes, 385 Won/US$ - in 1967-68. I'm sure this was before you were born! I still have some bright, shiny 1 Won coins in my collection! I bet they don't exist anymore.

As for A. paucisquamis, there are at least 2 color morphs commonly recognized:

White morph: light (white) interstitial area in the caudal fin, with orange color in the dorsal fin and lower part of the body.
Orange morph: orange edges on the upper and lower margins of the caudal, with almost no color on the body.​

A. paucisquamis is definitely not a 'beginner's fish'. They are a true blackwater species that needs extreme blackwater condition to successfully reproduce. They tend to be a bit more aggressive than the average apisto, even if they are a smaller species. Because of this, they need a slightly larger aquarium than normal and don't do well with other cichlids - or most other fish for that matter. In smaller tanks, they often end up as 1 fish (or none, if with other larger fish). They do best in species tanks.

 

[skoram]

Thanks for the advice Mike. I knew they were blackwater but I wasn't aware of those other aspects. I will pass for now then. To be honest I prefer to go with something a bit easier for my next Apisto.

 

[skoram]

I am very curious what brought you to Korea at that time, Mike. Unless I am mistaken (you're right that I was not alive then), Korea was a very underdeveloped and unstable country at that time. Some would say that Korea was underdeveloped and unstable all the way up to about 1990.

P.S. the 1 won coins to my knowledge do not exist - I've never seen them anyway. I wonder how much that would fetch if you tried to sell it?

 

[Mike Wise]

Yes, when I was there, Korea was very underdeveloped. It had been destroyed by war only 15 years earlier. Still, even as a kid (19-20 years old), I felt that the Korean people would succeed just by observing their drive and industriousness. What brought me to Korea? The taking of the USS Pueblo by the North Korean navy and the assault on the Blue House and president by North Korean commandos. I was in the US Army at the time and it reassigned many soldiers to Korea that would have been sent to Viet Nam.

Somethings you might like to see from my coin collection. Maybe your father or grandfather might remember them:

 

[skoram]

If you were 20 years old in 67/68 then you're about the same age as my father. I did a little searching and found that your Korean currency was designed and produced from 1962 to 1966 and only lasted about 10-15 years. Korean currency has actually been redesigned 3 times since then to its current form, apparently to deal with huge shifts in exchange rates and counterfeiting.

Anyway, that's a pretty fascinating bit of personal history - most Koreans are familiar with both of those historical events. Were you interested in fish back then as well?

 

[Mike Wise]

Anyway, that's a pretty fascinating bit of personal history - most Koreans are familiar with both of those historical events.

It really didn't feel 'fascinating' at the time.

Were you interested in fish back then as well?

No, I really didn't get into fish (other than fly fishing) until I was in Graduate School.