While I was in Ohio in November, I picked up a dozen Lepidiolamprologus nkambae around three to three-and-a-half inches in length. I have had these Tanganyikan cichlids in the past and really like them. I'd been longing to keep them again, so I didn't waste the opportunity to obtain some. My plan is to keep about four to six of them for myself and sell the remainder. They are probably around four months from sexual maturity. Maybe more. In any case I hope to breed them again. Enjoy these photos of the fish and be sure to check out the species specific article.

 The video below is a mashup of footage of my breeding pair of Neolamprologus nigriventris. I say breeding pair, but they have not spawned in some time. I just put them back together after a two month separation due to over-the-top aggression from the male, the Black Ghost.
 I hope to have some near-future success from them again. Time will tell.

  Here is a photo of the dominant male Cyathopharynx furcifer Ruziba in my small group. This isn't a great photo, being kind of grainy. I shot it with the flash on, because it is very difficult to catch this fish's color without the flash. I typically don't use the flash at all. In any case, this spectacular color is exactly why people like the Tanganyikan feather fins.
  By the way, I will be at the Quad City fish swap in Davenport Iowa  Sunday, April 15th.

 I made an impulse purchase of sorts this past Saturday. Here is a video showcasing the exLamprologus ornatipinnis I picked up. There was a pair that was behaving favorably toward one another in the pet store aquarium, but once the net went in they became indiscernible from a third fish in the tank. So I bought all three. This pair is displaying to one another minutes after I added a few shells to the tank. I am fairly certain I will have fry within a couple of weeks.

 I did not take a photo of the shell an hour later when the entrance was completely blocked with a pile of sand. I wish I had. The following day it was once again back to normal and one of the fish is inhabiting it. I believe this is a female. I suspect the third fish is also a female as the attitudes of the others are not combative toward it.

 You may have noticed in the Currently Keeping page that I have some Altolamprologus sp. 'compressiceps shell' Mpulungu fry. These are photos of them. They were born in December, just a few short months after I purchased the parents at a Greater Chicago Cichlid Association rare fish auction.

 Here are a couple of shots I took recently of some of the fish.

Altolamprologus sp. 'compressiceps shell' Mpulungu male peacocking for his lady friend.

A Paracyprichromis nigripinnis male.

A glowing exLamprologus ocellatus "Gold". I believe this is a male, though I am not 100% certain.

 The Black Ghost has returned to form. He is once again a rich velvety black color. He and one of the female Neolamprologus nigriventris spawned recently. You can see a young one in the video below.

 I added a few Cyprichromis photos to the Photo Gallery. Take a moment to check them out.

Updated 09-08-17: I apologize to anyone who searched for the photos mentioned above, but didn't find them. I assure you all, they are there now.

 I understand that this will come as bad news for some of you, but I am no longer attempting to fulfill the waiting list for Neolamprologus nigriventris fry. I still have the adult fish, but they have been extremely fickle spawners. Those few of you who managed to get some of the fry, rejoice. The last four or five spawns have had very minimal hatch out rates - and that for what are already small batches of eggs. Several of the spawns disappeared days after the eggs appeared. I suspect the adults ate them, though I cannot say why.
 To make matters worse, one of the males gave his female partner a terrible beating following a water change in the tank. She nearly bit it, but managed to revive in a solo tank. She is now with the Black Ghost (pictured above) in a 75 gallon aquarium. Hopefully I will get some more activity out of them, but I can't say. If I do manage to raise some additional fry, I will post them when available. My apologies to those of you waiting patiently on fry. Sometimes things just don't work out. Unfortunately, this is one of those times.

 A somewhat tame spawning video of Altolamprologus calvus "Yellow" for your perusal.