Severum shake a lot

[peifc]

I just bought a new pair of Red Face Gold Severum. Before I got them, they were ok in LFS. Now they are in my fish tank...they shake from head to tail when they were trying to stay still. Yet, when they come up for food or even swimming...they have no problem. My other severums (Green and Gold) in that tank don't have the problem of shaking. I'm just wondering if the shaking could be the nerve damage from the ride home (the bumpy ride).

Or could it be disease? Anyone encounter this problem before?

Please advise.

Thanks.

 

[NickH]

Severums, like many cichlids, "shake" to display dominance. Your tank's pecking order has been disturbed. There will be unrest in the tank for a few days until all the fish are re-established.

Coincidentally, how large is the tank?

 

[peifc]

The current tank is 72. Just got another 92 tank. Unable to move any fish until the cycle is completed.

But why only these 2 severums (male and female) shake? My dominant male Green Severum doesn't do that. Is it that because the Green Severum was introduced in the tank before these 2 Red Face Gold Severums?

 

[NickH]

It's hard to say. Maybe the new fish are trying to carve out a territory in the tank, etc. If everything else seems normal, I wouldn't worry about it. Cichlids do all sorts of weird things....

 

[peifc]

Thanks for the info. Maybe they will feel better once I moved them to different tank.

 

[dcallen]

Hi,

I have a Taiwan Reef African Cichlid that I have seen shake like that before. I agree with Nick, Cichlids sometimes do weird things that's one of the nice things about them is being able to watch their unusual behavior. If your water parameters are in line and the other fish look okay then I wouldn't worry too much about it.


HTH