Boesemani behavior

Akysten

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May 28, 2006
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I recently added a second Boesemani... at time of purchase, i supsected that this one is female. The coloration isn't as good as my other Boesemani(from the same tank, purchased about 3 weeks apart), but it could be that the fish may not have matured... I'm assuming that since they're about 1.5"(both) that it's possible that some may get their colors before others.

Yesterday, The two grouped up together, is what was obviously some sort of show... my first thought was mating. BOTH fishes got very bright and colorful. They would swim side by side and shake their tales with thier fins fully extended. One would leave, the other close behind.
When they were doing this, the one I suspested as female looked very bright... the blue was as dark as the known male, but it extended a little farther back to the tale. The tail was more of an yellow than an orange.

So what was this? A mating dance/ritual? Or some sort of alpha show/competition between males?

Total, the suspected female is back to a more subdued coloration... they are about the same size, I see no other noticable difference but the colors.
This fish as added to the tank on Saturday.
 
Are they just shaking the tails, or did they shake their heads as well?

When males do this it's called "sparring" -- think of it as play fighting -- but keep an eye out for true aggression. It's normal rainbowfish behavior for males. Asian and some farm bred males have a more yellow in them than wild boes do. The fish are just thrown in tanks and vats to breed regardless of whether they are good specimens or not.

However, there's always the chance of hybrids. Could you post pictures of the two fish so I can positively ID them?

Roan

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