Hey guys I have a colony of 8 Moba Frontosas and I’m trying to increase my chances of getting them to breed successfully. I’ve been considering getting dither fish to lower the aggression towards any holding females. I’ve considered getting a large school of livebearers but want more ideas, anything is appreciated.
Ideas for Dither Fish for Moba Frontosas?????
- Thread starter ZHfish
- Start date
Maybe a group of Yellow or White tail Acei. They are one of the few semi schoolers from the Rift lakes.
From what I have seen no other fish will work for that. The aggression towards the females is usually conspecific. A male attacking a holding female wants to breed again. Or it could be a conflict over territory or hiding places which often happens when the tank size is on the lower end.
Agree, doesn't work that way for Cyphotilapia. There are other fish you can keep with them in a large enough tank, but they should be chosen carefully for compatibility and they don't really serve as dither fish or target fish, they're just compatible fish Cyphotilapia can live with peacefully-- without either eating them or being disturbed by them, which leaves a lot of fish out and puts some in a sometimes they work, sometimes they don't category. Chosen carefully-- as in not boisterous or aggressive, not egg stealers or spawn disrupters, not fin nippers, and not going to be eaten. That leaves out small schooling fish (likely to be eaten) and certainly leaves out most mbuna (aggressive, fin nippers, small enough to be eaten).
I kept and bred Cyphotilapia for about 25 years and they're among the most individually variable fish I've had in terms of temperament. Temperament of the alpha male can dictate a lot in terms of breeding, or how peaceful or fussy a group is. Tank size can make a difference, group size can make a difference, sometimes other factors like beta male behavior or how much females bicker with each other-- some alpha males run the group, some leave things alone and let the females bicker, some are harsh, some are apathetic, some are benevolent dictators, etc. Some females are good at holding, some tend to swallow eggs, some figure it out after a few tries, some never do and you have to strip eggs or wigglers, etc. All this goes with the territory, among the reasons they're not a beginner fish, especially to breed.
You could try arranging obstacles and caves for females to hide in. Sometimes I simply had to tinker with group size or swap males or females in or out to end up with a peaceful, effective breeding group.
