Prickly Sculpins mating?

[Belltrain]

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 . As for pics they will be up shortly when they cooperate.

 

[Kaosu]

^_^ 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]

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

 

[Kaosu]

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?

 

[Kaosu]

..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]

..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.

 

[Kaosu]

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]

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.