Scenes from the Grokeroom

Post by **Marc van Arc** » 09 Sep 2007, 10:41

MatsP wrote: They don't get to do this simply because they are Japanese, but because they are paying good money to the exporters. It's all about "you get what you pay for" and demand/supply relationships. The exporters run a business, not a "fair distribution of fish campaign", so they will sell to the highest bidder.

Sorry if my posts have been too implicit. Yes, you are 100% correct: it's all about money. As always

.

CFC · Post by **CFC** » 09 Sep 2007, 10:53

But what gets me is that (seemingly) fish are much cheaper in Japan and the rest of Asia than they are here in England, fish that we have to pay a premium price for they get for the equivilent of a few pounds, i know that the price of things are all relative to wages in each country but i would have thought the exporters would get more money from selling the fish to British importers where everything costs far too much.

Or maybe it is really just a case of the grass is always greener, but if i dont find a Lophiosilurus alexanderi and a Trachycorystes within the next couple of years i'll be off to Japan to liberate some of theirs and smuggle them back in my suitcase

racoll · Post by **racoll** » 09 Sep 2007, 11:51

CFC, they have a Trachycorystes at my LFS.

Bas Pels · Post by **Bas Pels** » 09 Sep 2007, 13:44

CFC wrote:smuggle them back in my suitcase

I wouldn't blame you, but do remember, the plane flies at 10 km altitude, approx -60 C air temp.

I'm not certain about circumstances in the planes frieghtarea, but as far as I know, tropical fishes have a high risk of deying in your suitcase.

However, I did manage to get subtropical fish home without any problem, so perhaps you could try it

DAWN · Post by **DAWN** » 09 Sep 2007, 14:36

I've heard of the saying "pigs can fly" but fish!

I think I'd wait until their available at the lfs, then at least you'd know if they'd be acclimatised to our waters!

CFC · Post by **CFC** » 09 Sep 2007, 14:54

racoll wrote:CFC, they have a Trachycorystes at my LFS.

Where abouts in bucks is the shop and what sort of money are they looking for for it?

Bloody typical really, i'm flat broke from setting up the fish house and buying an Asterophysus a couple of weeks ago and the Lithodorus last week

racoll · Post by **racoll** » 09 Sep 2007, 17:15

He is at Maidenhead Aquatics @ Oxford, just off the M40 J8A.

When I popped in today I took a photo for you.....

They want £200 for him, but i'm sure you can negotiate a better price.

He's about 8".

CFC · Post by **CFC** » 09 Sep 2007, 20:03

£200 eek, that is well out of my current budgets reach and compared to prices ive been told at Wildwoods after i have missed out on them is a bit over priced, they normally go for around the £120 mark.

Thanks for the photo though, he looks like a beauty but my mrs really will divorce me if i spend £200 on another fish so soon.

racoll · Post by **racoll** » 09 Sep 2007, 21:05

I reckon if you turned up and offered £120 they would accept.

He's been there since the shop opened a few years ago.

grokefish · Post by **grokefish** » 10 Sep 2007, 09:21

I got the Grokefish I for £70 in wildwoods.

racoll · Post by **racoll** » 10 Sep 2007, 11:02

Just a thought, but perhaps as doesn't yet have a common name, it could be called "Grokefish", as the name seems to have stuck?

Richard B · Post by **Richard B** » 10 Sep 2007, 12:27

great idea racoll - the grokefish is a good choice of common name given the rough similarity to the character i remember from the moomins & as you point out the repeated use of the name here, where we all call it that

CFC - i think they've still got one at Wharf as well - you can check the stock lists online but it was still pricey as far as i remember

CFC · Post by **CFC** » 10 Sep 2007, 16:26

From what i hear you need to take out a small mortgage before buying anything at Wharf, rumors have it that being "the best shop in the country" has gone to their heads and they are charging extortionate prices for their fish ( a bit like some of the MA branches ). I've yet to actually visit the shop but from what i've heard and from having a brief telephone conversation with someone working there a couple of years ago who was less than unhelpfull i dont think that is going to change any time soon.

I've missed out on a few at Wildwoods, they appear on the website and by the time i get on the phone they are already sold, i guess when you charge reasonable prices for fish they sell a lot quicker.

Post by **Marc van Arc** » 10 Sep 2007, 18:58

racoll wrote:Just a thought, but perhaps as
Trachycorystes trachycorystes
doesn't yet have a common name, it could be called "Grokefish", as the name seems to have stuck?

You might want to make it an official common name. Thanks to Daniel60, we have a link to Fish Base's Name This Fish "Contest".
The page that will show up is about C. reticulatus; scroll down to this line:
If you wish to propose common names for other species, you can obtain a list of species with missing English common names here.

http://64.95.130.5/tools/NameExplorer/N ... 6&adminx=n

grokefish · Post by **grokefish** » 11 Sep 2007, 19:59

That would be way cool!
But I can't work it out.

On the earlier topic, as if to prove my point I now have 5 peppermint plecs, Parancistruss Nudiventris (I wonder if Medaka will lend me a dickshunary?) within two days of posting that note, and they were just up the road in the local MA. Pictures can be seen on the post I have labelled As if by majic......

Matt

racoll · Post by **racoll** » 12 Sep 2007, 11:43

You might want to make it an official common name. Thanks to Daniel60, we have a link to Fish Base's Name This Fish "Contest".

T. trachycorystes already has a common name on fishbase: the "black catfish".

Grokefish is better!

Richard B · Post by **Richard B** » 12 Sep 2007, 12:49

Black catfish - hmmm surely that could apply to many species - imagine asking your lfs if they have any "black catfish?"

CFC - if you ask wildwoods i'm sure they'd give you a call when they next get some in so you won't be disappointed

Post by **Marc van Arc** » 12 Sep 2007, 13:29

racoll wrote:T. trachycorystes already has a common name on fishbase: the "black catfish".

Checking first certainly has some advantages

.
Nevertheless, black catfish is very inappropriate and I second Richard's remark on it.
I've seen it named Black jaguar in an article once, but Grokefish does nicely imo.
Perhaps FB is also willing to change inappropriate names?

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 12 Sep 2007, 13:51

Fishbase supports multiple common names (which is not unusual, as multple languages and regions may have different common names for the same fish), so I expect that ADDING a name would be possible.

--
Mats

Post by **Marc van Arc** » 13 Sep 2007, 22:12

grokefish wrote:I got the Grokefish I for £70 in wildwoods.

They still stock them (at least if it's Wildwoods in Middlesex). If anyone is going to have a look, pls do me a favour and let me know what they charge for Ageneiosus marmoratus.
Not that I can come over, but just to have an indication (and become green with envy). I checked their stock on TFF; my god, what an incredible bunch of (odd) catfishes......

grokefish · Post by **grokefish** » 14 Sep 2007, 13:34

Yes this shop is seriously underated.
If you do end up in London one day Marc I would pay it a visit. Its really peacefull in there and you can wander around for hours and still find something you didn't see earlier.

Matt

CFC · Post by **CFC** » 14 Sep 2007, 15:07

Wildwoods is the only shop i buy fish from these days, i rarely even bother to look in the local shops any more as there is no comparison of quality and variety of stock. I try to get down there at least once every couple of months but my mrs does her best to limit trips as i always come home with a couple of hundred quid less in my wallet. The true best shop in the country if you ask my opinion.

I bought 2 A.marmoratus there last year and i think they cost me around £25 each @ 8cm long.

If you get the chance to come over it really is worth the visit, i've yet to not find something i would like to keep there.

Post by **Marc van Arc** » 14 Sep 2007, 18:59

CFC wrote:I bought 2 A.marmoratus there last year and i think they cost me around £25 each @ 8cm long.

Do you still have them? They're not on your My cats species list. If not, what happened to them?
Anyway, my complexion is becoming rather greenish

.
And then there's Pier, BAS, Wharf, Wholesale and god knows how many more Aquatic shops that are worthwhile.
Stop being modest; if I combined all the LFS-ses in the Netherlands and became 200 years old myself, there still would be a huge inequality between both countries regarding the availability of catfishes.

racoll · Post by **racoll** » 14 Sep 2007, 18:59

Good shop indeed. Those Bagarius are pretty special.

CFC · Post by **CFC** » 14 Sep 2007, 19:47

Marc van Arc wrote:
CFC wrote:I bought 2 A.marmoratus there last year and i think they cost me around £25 each @ 8cm long.
Do you still have them? They're not on your My cats species list. If not, what happened to them?
Anyway, my complexion is becoming rather greenish .
And then there's Pier, BAS, Wharf, Wholesale and god knows how many more Aquatic shops that are worthwhile.
Stop being modest; if I combined all the LFS-ses in the Netherlands and became 200 years old myself, there still would be a huge inequality between both countries regarding the availability of catfishes.

The A.marmoratus developed the "Agenieosus plague" that has been the blight of my collection of Agenieosus catfishes for as long as i have been collecting them

I'm hoping that with my new fish house with a huge centralised system i will have more luck with keeping a few species again.

Its funny because whenever i want an unusual fish there always seems to be loads of them on the continent and none to be found here

grokefish · Post by **grokefish** » 16 Sep 2007, 21:41

Those spiders you have got can swim, I saw one swimming on the telly the other day, so it could be a natural defense to the fishys, (very old comment you may or may not remember or might not have been you at all, if not then ..well i don't know)

Matt

CFC · Post by **CFC** » 17 Sep 2007, 13:39

Yeah it was the tank below the rack with the spiders on, the spiders have since been removed to a spare bedroom in the house away from my fish and (touches wood) i have had no more strange losses since.

Another couple of weeks and i can start moving fish into the brand new fish house and then i'm going to buy as many Agenieosus as i can find

Post by **Marc van Arc** » 17 Sep 2007, 17:36

CFC wrote:Another couple of weeks and i can start moving fish into the brand new fish house and then i'm going to buy as many Agenieosus as i can find

If so I won't visit Wildwoods but stop at your place instead