SOUTHERN AFRICAN
KILLIFISH SOCIETY

Killifish represent some of the most stunningly beautiful fish available for the home aquarium. They are all small to medium size fish (3 to 30cm) that prey primarily on insects and their larvae. They will not turn up their nose to a fat juicy worm or a small fish though. The breeding behaviour adds to their charm. Most spawn in the normal fishy fashion but some species require that the eggs spend a period in a semi- to totally dry state stored in peat or mud. Most's eggs require at least a week to develop to a stage where the fry can hatch out. This lengthy period has made it possible for these little fish to be shipped both nationally and internationally by mail! In response numerous large organisations have been set up to distribute these fish which are not normally stocked in pet shops.

The emblem fish for the SAKS is the little annual killifish, Nothobranchius orthonotus. Specificly the strain that hails from the Mkuze Game Reserve in Kwa-Zulu Natal (N. orthonotus "Mkuze Game Reserve KZN 99/1"). It is a hard to keep fish not because it is super sensitive to anything but rather because the males are very aggressive as far as killifish go and the eggs are very sensitive to storage and transport. For more information on this fish click here.

To get in contact with the society email to [email protected]. Feel free to join our Yahoo Group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/safrks.

To navigate back to this page click on the SAKS emblem.

Compiled by Tyrone Genade

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