Indeed, young Paros could grow up slowly and fastly. I always was used to the impression of slowliness, but my experience was limited. It was confined to my own methods and that of some fellow-Paroists, and these methods were that of extensive breeding. But then I came across quite the contrary. Especially Horst Linke is a master in growing young fish much faster than others, and that depends on intensive feeding, water care and much room for each individual. I was always impressed how quick his young fish grew. I often received Paros from him of which he said to be half a year of age, but they were adult, showing their full colours, mated and bred. My own fish always needed double the time or more. I remember especially some P. tweediei which were rather larger, but according to him only half a year. And this was surely true. Compared with fish by Günter Kopic or Bernd Bussler they were giants and those of them and myself dwarfs.
But there was an opposite truth, too. These large fish did not live very long. The explication for the fastness of their growth was Horst’s aim to have good photographs of them (which we can view in his publications); time and space was money and fast growth a necessity. Put however into “normal” tanks for a “normal” Paro-life-circle they died earlier than many others. Günter Kopic had a male P. deissneri for more than eight years, and it bred until its seventh. Horst’s young became adult in a hurry, but grew old in the same quick ratio.
I can imagine that the fish shown by friend Ekona are indeed ten weeks.