Bichir thread #39 - PBB craze

[WiNd.feNg]

Nice bichir! even though i do not know what's that it's fat and nice!

My I/D knowledge still remains in the era where there is senegals, delhezi, ornate.. when endy and lapradei are still the most expensive around.

[Schmike]

My guess is lapradei. The skull is quite short n for that size, it's too slender to be a pbb.

Originally Posted by Schmike

My guess is lapradei. The skull is quite short n for that size, it's too slender to be a pbb.

Not Lapradei.

[Schmike]

So it's the turkana you talking about? Seems like I need to see more fish/pics to improve my ID skill.

OK.
The above fish, is one of only 15 known WC PO. Bichir Bichir from Turkana that is in captivity outside of Africa.

Price?

....
....
....¥300,000. (about $3500 us)

Fish comes with certs, export papers and history of the fish. (all in Japanese, but below is a rough translation of the history booklet)

History:

Fish is female and came from the Kamihata "Turkana expedi 2008".
This was an expedition which involved Kamihata and a few other companies access to lakes on the Ethiopian side of the Turkana lake, in return for the companies setting up and teaching local tribes sustainable drinking water and sustainable food fish farming.

It was under strict UN regulations, and since tribal conflict re-arising in the region has now been abandoned.

This means until the UN regulations are redefined, the projects can not continue, and Kamihata Industries "Expedi" is no more.

Unfortunatly for us, the Turkana Bichirs tend to mainly populate this area of the lake only, due to human fishing and drilling in the other parts of the lake.

Local people fishing not even in but near the disputed border have been fired upon by local militia.

So pretty interesting stuff. And Tama-san from AquaArt, pretty much says that a pair of the wild Turkana have bred before and Kamihata have sold this batch. They have since not spawned again, but the breeding project continues.
So, My CB Turkana must have come from this brood, so if anyone buys a CB Kamihata Turkana, I can tell you roughly what size it should be, and can compare with mine.


And the way to tell Turkana and Chad apart?
This is where it gets interesting!

Head and face look VERY similar to Chad.
Colors are dark from juvenile up to 1 year, where it fades right out sometimes to the point of almost white.

On all specimens so far, dorsal finlets have been no less than 16, and up to 19.
As the color fades into adulthood, the dorsal finlets show a clear black marking almost like a dot on most or all finlets. This is the main way they are differentiated from other locales.

Of the caught fish patterning (and even coloration) has varied, so these are not used alone for ID.

They are thought to grow bigger than from other areas, reportedly up to 90cm. (Though this has not been proven)



So there you have it guys, im interested, and excited BUT.....

I was on the understanding that I would be paying ¥150,000 maybe less.
But the piece that I would of had looked like it had gone through a meat grinder. Real bad shape, and I'm not prepared to spend that money on something that could be dead by the time I get home!

So.... I need to raise a few more bucks, so this week I am going to try sell some of my fish and a 8ft x 3ft x 3ft glass tank to a local store and hope to make up the cash!

Forgot to add, the fish in the picture was moved into the tank it is in last week ready for me to view.
So new tank + white floor / background has affected the coloration a fair bit.

Wow pretty big , lap or pbb? the variants always confuse me.

Originally Posted by stackdeck

Wow pretty big , lap or pbb? the variants always confuse me.

PBB mate. "Wild Turkana"

Originally Posted by dom3116

1 thing I look for in IDing a PBB is its serpent-like head. Head looks more massive and prominent than a regular lapradei. Also the height of its dorsal spine when raised.

BTW, the one I posted on top is an sp. Koloton and not a koliba. The particular fish is one of the COLLECTIONS we (manila bichir boyz) displayed during one of our shows.

Nice koloton nonetheless! Koloton came across my mind as well, but it's colour and contrast looks really similar to the koliba's sold by Aqua-Bonito

Other traits of PBB for reference, as quoted from Infblue of MFK: "The major difference between laps and Pbb would be the head shape and the head features (e.g. the head length of Pbb is somewhat longer, the lower jaw of Pbb is thicker giving off the impression that it's pointed upward more). The number of dorsal finlets is also different, although there's slight overlap (14-18, typically 15-16, for Pbb. 13-15, typically ~13, for lap). There are also some differences in the body patterns."

Originally Posted by tokyogasmask

OK guys, after a domestic flight, unnecessary shopping and eating, i ask you to name this fish, the variant and why.....

That's one nice, and big PBB Turkana. According to your description of Turkana PBBs, they seem to be bigger on average than their counterparts from Chad. Anyway, congrats on acquiring this gorgeous bichirs soon

hello fellow bichir lovers, just sharing a pic of my lap while it still has its external gills...