210 gallon Frontosa build

[Caperguy99]

Does anybody have a recommendation for a source on African Cichlid behaviour?

I’m probably a bit spooked from the recent deaths, but I worked from home today and have been paying some attention to the dynamics.

Homer, the largest, I suspect is definitely a male. The next biggest is also starting to develop a little hump - so perhaps is also a male.



The two smallest I’m guessing are females. They haven’t grown as fast, and seem to accept their place in the colony.

I have seen some odd behaviour from the middle-most fish today, pictured below. There doesn’t seem to be any damage to the fins, but for a period today it was acting pretty strangely. It would swim in a sort of jerky motion, flashing on the sand, and then sort of wiggle its back half. I watched videos of mollys with the “shimmies” and it sort of looks like that - but not continuously and not as strenuously.

Do you think this is aggression or dominance-seeking behaviour? Flirtation or something to do with breeding? Simple stress? Or a neurological problem?

 

[Bwirtz]

I would definitely say it is not breeding behavior as you are a few years out from that happening. My Kitumba started breeding when the females got at around 4-4.5 inches. You will see the females tube drop, she will refuse to eat. Once I see that behavior I shut off lights for two days and stop feeding the tank. It allows for breeding and minimal distraction, actually had a female this weekend breed with my beta male, first time I saw them breeding live.

Fish will flash post water change when the temperature changes or the perimeters vary. I don't think it is anything you need to worry about.

I would continue to monitor and try not to vary your schedule. I also think you should start planning for adding more Mobas into your group. Do you have an extra tank for quarantine you can start to prepare?

 

[Caperguy99]

I would definitely say it is not breeding behavior as you are a few years out from that happening. My Kitumba started breeding when the females got at around 4-4.5 inches. You will see the females tube drop, she will refuse to eat. Once I see that behavior I shut off lights for two days and stop feeding the tank. It allows for breeding and minimal distraction, actually had a female this weekend breed with my beta male, first time I saw them breeding live.

Fish will flash post water change when the temperature changes or the perimeters vary. I don't think it is anything you need to worry about.

I would continue to monitor and try not to vary your schedule. I also think you should start planning for adding more Mobas into your group. Do you have an extra tank for quarantine you can start to prepare?

Thanks! I’ll keep an eye on things - I’m guessing I may have 3 males and 2 females now. This summer, I’ll try to offload two males and replaced with two sexed females.

No quarantine tank sadly, so I’ll have to source from a reputable seller.

 

[Bwirtz]

Took a few shots of some of the big boys today. The male and female highlighted in the second picture were the ones that bred last week. Unfortunately either she ate them or they didn't get fertilized.

 

[Caperguy99]

Took a few shots of some of the big boys today. The male and female highlighted in the second picture were the ones that bred last week. Unfortunately either she ate them or they didn't get fertilized.

Wow so beautiful!

How old are they?

 

[Bwirtz]

The group ranges from 5-11yrs old.

 

[Caperguy99]

Closing in on 7 full months with these guys - all seems well, except for the single mystery death.

The other day I turned down the outputs on my FX-6s a little bit to reduce the current slightly, as I thought this might have been blowing them around a bit and causing stress.

In terms of size, if I had to guess here’s what I’m looking at - from largest to smallest:

4 inches
3 inches
3 inches
2.5 inches
2 inches

In terms of behavior, they all become more active in the evening time. During the day, they seem to hang out in the caves - they also seem more active at nighttime for feedings.

Homer, the largest, has a favorite cave that he hangs around most days. He’s also darkened up fairly significantly - sometimes looking almost black. But this seems to shift a little, maybe with mood? Or perhaps a dominance thing?

The next three largest puff and chase each other a bit, but nothing too concerning. One of them had some odd mannerisms though - almost like it’s got a parasite or a neurological problem or something. It flashes way more than the other fish, and sort of has a habit of shimmying its tail. It’s been doing this for a while, though, and there’s no frayed fins or obvious damage - and it’s eating well, so I guess I’ll wait and see.

The smallest definitely stays out of the way, but seems alright overall.

A few photos: The first shows my biggest 4, the next is one of the middle sized fish, and the lady is my smallest.