Hi, thought I would share my experience with a pair of Bolivian rams that spawned a week ago. They are my first egglaying fish to spawn, and my only cichlids, so I was very surprised and excited to see eggs - I had asked for a male-female pair when i bought them, but they look so similar, I was never convinced, especially since their only interest in each other has been to fight over food and chase each other in an aggressive way occasionally - only when first introduced to my tank, and then when I moved them to another did they hang out together a bit (for safety?). They share a tank with glass bloodfin and lemon tetras.
Anyway, they've had warmer water due to hot ambient temps here in Sydney, and maybe an unintentional rise in pH to about 7.4 helped too; they laid their eggs on a flat rock, moved them a couple of times to holes they dug, and shared egg-sitting duties - fascinating for me to see.
Yesterday at feeding time, the female (I'd finally confirmed which she was by the breeding tube!) had disappeared! - I searched the tank carefully, and figured she must have somehow jumped out, even though the tank is covered. This was a great surprise, since they rarely swim to the surface, and she had not left her eggs for more than a minute or two since spawning. How sad that she was gone (and where could the body be? - was checking under furniture...)
Today she is back! - I still don't know where in the tank she could be hiding. While she was away, the male has been guarding and tending the eggs single-handed. It appears he is keeping her away from the eggs, which I guess explains her absence; I fear he may have been harassing her, since today I have seen him chase her off a couple of times when he catches sight of her.
I have now screened off a couple of corners with slate to make sure she can take cover from him.
Can anyone suggest if this is normal behaviour for this species? I am wondering if I should separate the adults, but want to minimise stress on them all. The eggs are still okay (wriggling away) although perhaps fewer than there were originally.
Anyway, they've had warmer water due to hot ambient temps here in Sydney, and maybe an unintentional rise in pH to about 7.4 helped too; they laid their eggs on a flat rock, moved them a couple of times to holes they dug, and shared egg-sitting duties - fascinating for me to see.
Yesterday at feeding time, the female (I'd finally confirmed which she was by the breeding tube!) had disappeared! - I searched the tank carefully, and figured she must have somehow jumped out, even though the tank is covered. This was a great surprise, since they rarely swim to the surface, and she had not left her eggs for more than a minute or two since spawning. How sad that she was gone (and where could the body be? - was checking under furniture...)
Today she is back! - I still don't know where in the tank she could be hiding. While she was away, the male has been guarding and tending the eggs single-handed. It appears he is keeping her away from the eggs, which I guess explains her absence; I fear he may have been harassing her, since today I have seen him chase her off a couple of times when he catches sight of her.
I have now screened off a couple of corners with slate to make sure she can take cover from him.
Can anyone suggest if this is normal behaviour for this species? I am wondering if I should separate the adults, but want to minimise stress on them all. The eggs are still okay (wriggling away) although perhaps fewer than there were originally.
