Convicts have laid eggs.. but are they both Female? or even convicts?

[TangoWRX]

Hi Guys,

OK so I have a tank with two convicts, they regularly lay eggs which fail. They display strong breeding behaviour and show no aggression to each other. They both will tend to the eggs and swap over being on fanning duty.
The thing.. I am not convinced they are a male/female pair.

-The eggs will be fanned for 3 to 4 days and then get eaten - I have looked for wigglers
-I have tried looking for white eggs, you see a couple at first but after 3 days they all go cloudy in colour.
-In the video (I hope you can see) both fish have a large breeding tube showing. Do males show anything?
-Neither Convict has any red on the belly. They also show a lot of blue/green which makes me think they could be a hybrid!

 

[tlindsey]

Hi Guys,

OK so I have a tank with two convicts, they regularly lay eggs which fail. They display strong breeding behaviour and show no aggression to each other. They both will tend to the eggs and swap over being on fanning duty.
The thing.. I am not convinced they are a male/female pair.

-The eggs will be fanned for 3 to 4 days and then get eaten - I have looked for wigglers
-I have tried looking for white eggs, you see a couple at first but after 3 days they all go cloudy in colour.
-In the video (I hope you can see) both fish have a large breeding tube showing. Do males show anything?
-Neither Convict has any red on the belly. They also show a lot of blue/green which makes me think they could be a hybrid!

It's a possibility they could both female and Convict female normally has red showing . Also female will lay eggs sometimes without a male present. Possibly can be both m/f and they are new parents and haven't figured it out yet. Are any of the eggs Amber colored if so they would be fertilized.

 

[TangoWRX]

It's a possibility they could both female and Convict female normally has red showing . Also female will lay eggs sometimes without a male present. Possibly can be both m/f and they are new parents and haven't figured it out yet. Are any of the eggs Amber colored if so they would be fertilized.

thanks for your reply.

They have definitely paired off and neither have a red belly (which confuses me). The eggs are a tan colour for a few days, the odd white egg will appear, then nothing.

I have always been confused how long an egg takes to turn white if it is not fertilized.
What does a male breeding tube look like, how big compared to a female?

 

[Numbnuts]

Kinda looks like Honduran Red Points

 

[tlindsey]

thanks for your reply.

They have definitely paired off and neither have a red belly (which confuses me). The eggs are a tan colour for a few days, the odd white egg will appear, then nothing.

I have always been confused how long an egg takes to turn white if it is not fertilized.
What does a male breeding tube look like, how big compared to a female?

Unfertilzed eggs won't remain amber for a few days. The males tube will be more pointed.

 

[Gourami Swami]

Those are females for sure, both are convicts. Lesbian couple. They will probably guard the eggs until they all turn white then eat them. Pretty common behavior. The males tube is a pointy spike, not as big or noticeable as the females.

 

[TangoWRX]

Pic of eggs 24 hours later. There are a few whites ones, but surely they would all go white if not fertile?

 

[tlindsey]

Pic of eggs 24 hours later. There are a few whites ones, but surely they would all go white if not fertile?

View attachment 1313366

Yes that is correct.

 

[TangoWRX]

Yes that is correct.

Well then now I am confused if they are fertile or not

 

[Jexnell]

I agree they look like Honduran Red Points. With these both have "red bellies" the females tho will be a lot more intense.

Here are my pair. Got to wiggelers in thier first batch. Hopefully next turns out better.
This is the male
Female, hard to see but her belly is a lot more "red" than the males.
A short mating dance video