View Full Version : Prickly Sculpins mating?
Belltrain
12-01-2010, 1:04 PM
Hello, My prickly sculpins have become a pair and move everywere together and stay around eachother. They have recently been spending more time behind my drift wood. The female spends the most time there. This morning I awoke to my male digging out gravel behind the wood. They going to mate?? If they do I will be very stoked :headbang2::dance2::omg:
OrionGirl
12-01-2010, 1:50 PM
Are you seeing color changes? Are they mature?
Belltrain
12-01-2010, 1:50 PM
Bump^^^^^
Belltrain
12-01-2010, 1:51 PM
I am seing there patterns have turned the exact same color and they are mature.
OrionGirl
12-01-2010, 2:07 PM
It's possible. Kind of the wrong time of the year, but some cool water changes could mimic spring conditions.
What do you have them in?
Belltrain
12-01-2010, 2:08 PM
They live in my sub-tropical 55gallon aquarium that stays around 72-73. They avoided eachother until now which leads me to believe they are forming a pair.
OrionGirl
12-01-2010, 2:11 PM
Interesting. I saw juvies at the estuaries when I lived up the coast from you, never saw live adults.
Belltrain
12-01-2010, 2:13 PM
I have a large sculpin around 4 inches who I belive is a male because of jaw structure. And I have a smaller sculpin around 2 1/4 inches who has a different jaw structure. They both came out of the same creek, and I am almost 100% certain are the same species
I have a large sculpin around 4 inches who I belive is a male because of jaw structure. And I have a smaller sculpin around 2 1/4 inches who has a different jaw structure. They both came out of the same creek, and I am almost 100% certain are the same species
those seem a bit small to mate, they dont mature till after 4 inches, the male should be closer to 6-8..but its possible.what colors are the male displaying?
another thing, females and males have mostly the same jaw structure...males will be larger with a longer thinner body, females will be shorter and wider...i believe if you look threw my thread, you can compare your female to mine. who is 4 1/2 inches,
when its time to mate the females will blow up..and look like they swallowed a ping pong ball.
Mine digs pits all the time to lay in as well^_^. good luck and pics pics pics!!!!
how long have you had them? and what sort of water movement do you have?
Belltrain
12-01-2010, 5:04 PM
my male is dark brown to blackish mix his jaw structure isnt to different just more square and deeper mouth, he looks different than your female in the picture. I have a powerhead in the aquarium and with my filter the water gets pushed around quite a bit. My powerhead is poined over a large rockpile where they like to lay at night. The female may be a bit too small to mate but maybe there just saying hey when the time is right we will :D. As for pics they will be up shortly when they cooperate.
^_^ awsome
These guys are amazing fish that so many people look over,
Just keep in mind they need high desolated oxygen, so lots of water movement, and dont take them much over the temp you have them in, as they get older iv noticed there tolerance for heat gets lower, witch makes sens they move in to deeper waters as they get older.^_^
how long have you had them?
for the male watch for his head to darken..all the way back to his dorsal fin to a jet black, its a territorial /mating coloration that males show.
Belltrain
12-01-2010, 5:16 PM
Ive had the small female for about 4 1/2 months and the male around 3 months, from what ive seen they have dug out a whole cavern back there with 3 exits haha. They built there own tunnel network
Ive had the small female for about 4 1/2 months and the male around 3 months, from what ive seen they have dug out a whole cavern back there with 3 exits haha. They built there own tunnel network
they have not been in the tank long...so im not sure if its breeding behavior,(could still be wrong) they normally dig and tunnels in the wild.
what other fish are you keeping them with?
..one pointer..males and females don't stay together after breeding..the male will chase off the female, and he might eat her if he is that much bigger than her, anything half there size will be eaten in your tank as well, anything around there size that is not fast will be beaten to death.
what are you feeding them?
Belltrain
12-01-2010, 8:15 PM
..one pointer..males and females don't stay together after breeding..the male will chase off the female, and he might eat her if he is that much bigger than her, anything half there size will be eaten in your tank as well, anything around there size that is not fast will be beaten to death.
what are you feeding them?
Im still unclear if they are mating I have school till 9:50 tonight.
55 gallon stock
1 Bluegill-61/2 inches
1 Leopard Ctenepoma-2 inches
2 Prickly Sculpin-1 is 41/2 and 21/2
4 Emerald Cafish-between 3inches and 2 inches
All my fish coexist really well and I have plenty of cover for all. I have not seen any of the stock attack eachother except when my bluegill bullied one of sculpins on time, but he held his ground. And none fights anymore.
woot..looks like sculpin food to me..
give them a few months and anything under 2 inches will be a snack..watch the blue gill he might kill your smaller female, these guys are pray to anything larger then them and will eat anything smaller than them.
what are you feeding them?
it takes time for these fish to settle but i really do not recommend these guys in a community tank, every thing is food if its half there size.
Belltrain
12-02-2010, 9:48 AM
woot..looks like sculpin food to me..
give them a few months and anything under 2 inches will be a snack..watch the blue gill he might kill your smaller female, these guys are pray to anything larger then them and will eat anything smaller than them.
what are you feeding them?
it takes time for these fish to settle but i really do not recommend these guys in a community tank, every thing is food if its half there size.
As of now nothing could be eaten except possibley the female and leopard ctenopoma. They both will grow and at the size they are now will not be eaten if they stay on their growth pattern. My emerald corys are large and stocky with armor plates on there sides and spikes on all there fins they should not be messed with, And infact both sculpins let the Emeralds feed around them.