Electric Bullhead?

[xraycer]

Picked up a 4" marbled bullhead last weekend in a swap. I'm housing it with my 4"+ small mouth bass. There are no aggression between the 2 tankmates at all, but observed a weird thing last night. Every time the bullhead would comes into physical contact with the smb, the smb would cant to one side and does a quick, rapid whole body "shivering" thing......like its receiving an electrical shock or something. This would happen every few minutes or so, and always when there was physical contact between the 2. The smb doesn't attempt to swim away or appear distressed by this.

Any ideas?

I'll try to get a video of this tonight

 

[Gill Blue]

lots of fish can detect electric signals from other fish. maybe the bullheads have developed an overload type of thing. like a mild electric eel. or maybe they give off a pleasurable sensation so other fish don't want to eat them because it feels better when they don't.
maybe your smb is kinky...

 

[xraycer]

maybe your smb is kinky...

Well, he has been solitary for the last 2 months LOL

 

[divemaster99]

That's weird. What species did you say it was? Marbled could be referring to various bullheads.

 

[bottles]

This is territorial aggression. I have seen Cichlids and Channa do this; it looks like they are convulsing or vibrating very quickly. That's why the Smallmouth doesn't swim away.

 

[xraycer]

This is territorial aggression. I have seen Cichlids and Channa do this; it looks like they are convulsing or vibrating very quickly. That's why the Smallmouth doesn't swim away.

Yes, vibrating or convulsion is the right description. I believe you hit the nail on the head with the territorial reaction. The bullhead was just introduced into the smb's tank 2 days prior. So far, neither party has been aggressive towards each other.

After work today, I had the cell phone ready to record this "shivering" but nothing occurred. They were both just swimming around almost like they were playing together, a lot of time bumping and rubbing up against each other and with no "shivering" by the smb.

 

[xraycer]

Don't know the exact species. Guy just told me it was a marbled bullhead cat

 

[bottles]

Mine eventually just stopped doing it and there were no serious attacks. I have only witnessed this in juvenile fish.
I would just keep monitoring them.
Good luck.

 

[divemaster99]

Don't know the exact species. Guy just told me it was a marbled bullhead cat
View attachment 1042450View attachment 1042451

Thats got a black base to the dorsal fin so you might actually have a Spotted Bullhead! That's probably the rarest species out there and most sought after by me, they get about 8-12". Or it could possibly be a florida brown which you're looking 14-18".

 

[xraycer]

I actually got 2 of these bullheads in the swap (which also includede a gourami and a tapajo), but one didn't survive the trip home for whatever reason.