hybrids... thoughts and concerns

[TrailerParkFishTanks]

hybrids are a hot topic in this community so i figure i'd post it up here since we totally derailed this kids thread in the for sale section. sorry about that bmarine. im just looking for a few reasons why they are bad and why they are good. i have my own thoughts but im curious about reasons and concerns and why are they such a touchy subject.

[nate]

It happens big deal... Some people get so up tight over hybrids... I dont get it... Some people like them, i dont encourage it but could careless...

Great topic....

[African cichlid Keeper]

I not a huge fan of them especially in African cichlids. Just because when Fish store get them in as something doesn't mean that really what it is. I had people tell me it a blank when is really not a blank its crossed with blank x blank. And in African cichlid they don't look as nice as when there pure. 

[danielratti]

What you need to do is look into this more. A lot of fish cannot come from africa anymore or at the moment. On top of that the lakes seem to be drying up and having issues with invasive plant and fish species. If we have poor or mixed fish ij the hobby it really takes away the beauty of it. It could even come down to captive breeding programs of where the fish are coming from hobbiest who have good strains of these fish. If playing frankinfish is your thing keep it to your tanks. One place I lost respect for was pruesses or how ever you spell it when the openly buy hybrid fish to sell in the store.

[nate]

I could be wrong but arent hybrids also in the wild... Im sure it is actually more common in the wild then we all may think.

[Marty]

It depends on where your talking about.  In Africa, for instance, habitats are broken up by formations of rocks or sand, which is a natural hindrance for fish to travel too far.  ie.  rock dwelling fish will typically not travel over a large expanse of sand and sand dwellers will not travel through rock formations.  They also have a tendency to seek out their own species to breed with before they'll breed with another species.

[danielratti]

Generally yes with two closely related species and these.hybrids are generally sterile

[TrailerParkFishTanks]

What happened to the yellow labs when florida overflowed? what did they get mixed with? and what do you look for when you still see the hybrids today? (this is a carry over from bmarine's post in the for sale section)

[nate]

What happened to the yellow labs when florida overflowed? what did they get mixed with? and what do you look for when you still see the hybrids today? (this is a carry over from bmarine's post in the for sale section)

Bad quality i guess...

[auratus]

You look for a fish that dosent look quite right or just dosent really look like anything right at all .  It`s not something you can pick up over night

[lilscoots]

Generally yes with two closely related species and these.hybrids are generally sterile

With africans, this is very false. 

It sucks as a consumer when you buy a juvenile that's supposed to be something and it starts to color up and it's not what you paid for.

There is going to be a time when some of these fish disappear in the wild, It'd be nice if the hobby had kept the lines pure to be re-released if the chance ever arose.

Color variation is choice driven by the females, hybridization in the wild would be a result of those females not being able to find males of their species to breed with...this "choice" is genetically driven and not readily abandoned like they are forced to in a tank.

That's all I have time for now.

[auratus]

  Hybrids are bad for the hobby

[danielratti]

Well I was talking about hybrids in general happening in nature.

[Steve]

I have no problem with hybrids because there are a good number of them that I like and that I think are a very nice looking fish. The only way they "hurt" the hobby is when they are sold as something they are not. As long as people that have them or buy/sell them do it where the person that is getting them knows what they are then I have no problem with that.

 I'm sure that is not the popular thing to say with some of the purists but we all have different likes and dislikes and one thing I have learned over the years with all the hobbies/things I have been into is that life is too short to look down your nose at someone that likes something different than what you like.

 And that's all I'll comment on the subject

[nate]

I understand both sides a little better now... Im glad that no one is getting out of hand... Alot of times this debate gets pretty heated...