Rainbows fighting or courting?

[Squealor]

I just bought three Boesemani rainbow fish two days ago. We've tried sexing them to no avail. Two are smaller than the third, but other than that, the coloring is exactly the same. They are all young, around 1 1/2 inches long. As soon as they were in the tank, they seemed to get along fine and fit right in with all the other fish. They are eating well.
Tonight, we noticed that two of them (the two smaller ones) were chasing each around in a very tight circle, bumping into each other and nipping a bit. Each of them took a little bit of damage to the fins, but not much. This went on for quite some time. During this, the colors on the two fish became very vivid and dark... the front of the fish becoming a very deep blue/purple and the back becoming a bright yellow-orange. The third fish seemed to have nothing to do with any of this and just swam around like normal.
My question is, are they fighting or are they courting? I got a bit concerned while it was going on, but now all three are hanging out and getting along once again...

 

[Watcher74]

IME when fish are circling each other it is courting behavior. Also the fact that the boesmani became more vivid supports that.

Usually if it is hostile you have one fish running back and forth around the tank with the other chasing it.

Rainbowfish are randy critters, and continually mate throughout the year.

 

[Roan Art]

. . .During this, the colors on the two fish became very vivid and dark... the front of the fish becoming a very deep blue/purple and the back becoming a bright yellow-orange.

Those are males and they are fighting because you only have one female.

The third fish seemed to have nothing to do with any of this and just swam around like normal.

I assume she was more of an all-over "green" color with a dark stripe running horizontally down her sides and a few verticle bars?

That would be the female.

They will do this in the early AM as that is when rainbows spawn. When displaying spawning colors the males will also show a greenish-yellow broad stripe that runs from the front of the dorsal down to the eyes. The more dominant male will have the brightest stripe.

I suggest you buy three more females. If your young males are fighting like that now, it is possible that one may kill the other. It's not unheard of. I had two females go at it and one was bitten pretty badly. Unfortunately my gourami got into the fight and made a real mess of her. I lost that girl.

If you can't buy any more females, keep an eye on the boys and separate them if need be.

Roan

 

[Roan Art]

IME when fish are circling each other it is courting behavior. Also the fact that the boesmani became more vivid supports that.

Sorry, but that's wrong where the Boesemani are concerned. Boes will circle when fighting. They go nose to tail, nose to tail beside each other and shake their heads and bodies. If one does not back off and run away, the other usually starts nipping at its sides or tearing the hee-joobers out of it.

The fighting usually occurs in the very early AM, spawning time, and those are their spawning display colors. When courting the male swims beside the female, nose to nose, and shakes his head at her. He pushes her toward the choosen spawning site, she either lets him push her into the spawning mop or swims away, with him in pursuit.

If she is more than ready, sometimes she'll hang around HER choosen site and wait for Big Daddy to pay her a visit

Roan

 

[Watcher74]

I assume she was more of an all-over "green" color with a dark stripe running horizontally down her sides and a few verticle bars?

Boesemani females are not green at all. They look like the males, but the colors look "washed" out comparatively. Quite likely you are thinking of some other type of rainbowfish.

I have owned quite a number of Boesemani. They are my favorite fish in fact.

For a breeding group it is best to have 3 males and 2 females. This way the males compete against each other and let the females rest because they are so insistent on breeding.

But I have never owned any that actually harmed each other, they are all bluster in my experience.

 

[Roan Art]

Boesemani females are not green at all. They look like the males, but the colors look "washed" out comparatively. Quite likely you are thinking of some other type of rainbowfish.

Doubtful, I have a tank full of them. The immature females are actually yellow and blue, but they are so drab most of the time they look green. Which is why I put green in quotes.

Young Female Boesemani:

The mature females do look like washed out versions of the males, however since the original poster indicated that s/he just got them, they are probably immature females.

For a breeding group it is best to have 3 males and 2 females. This way the males compete against each other and let the females rest because they are so insistent on breeding.

Well, we'll have to agree to disagree, because I've heard the opposite. Should be 2 females for every 1 male

But I have never owned any that actually harmed each other, they are all bluster in my experience.

I've only seen, thus far, female vs female fights, but aggression and fighting are not unheard of in the Boesemani lines that are only a few generations removed from the original that were brought back by Heiko Bleher.

I do need to clarify in my first response that males will typically "display" to each other and assume a fighting stance. Whether or not it develops into a full-blown argument depends on the temperment of the males involved.

Roan

 

[fish_gal77]

pair of Boes... spawing?

I was just about to start a new thread but thankfully I found this one... I have a pair of Boes and the past few mornings I have observed some interesting behavior that I thought *could* be spawning behavior.

Roan - I know you asked for pics in another thread to try and sex them but I have been unable to get a clear picture of them. They ALWAYS move just as I am about to get the perfect shot!

ANYWAY... I have been trying to look for any difference in the appearance of the two fish and think I may see something. Here's everything I have observed: one is typically less brightly colored than the other, they both have vertical stripes, one has a single horizontal stripe and the other has multiple horizontal stripes. The stripes are best observed in the morning and later they are not really noticable.

This morning they were chasing each other in tight circles, and sort of shimmying nose to nose. My hubbie told me that he has seen them acting this way before too... They went into a cave several times and would stay in there for a moment then come out again and resume chasing. I have seen them chasing a couple of times before but this is the first time I had seen them go into the cave. It's a pretty small space for two boes... also, there are absolutely NO signs of injury on either fish.

What do you think?