Festae Pair aggression

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sbrady5pts

Plecostomus
MFK Member
Jun 7, 2008
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Hi everyone

I have grown out 6 Festae in a 220, and 2 of them recently went off and spawned. I was thrilled! Everything was going great, with the pair guarding the eggs with no aggression toward one another and they were not overly aggressive towards the tank mates. After sitting on the eggs for 3 days the Eggs disappeared and the Male went crazy and almost killed the female. She is on the mend now, but it will take a while to build her back. I have breed fish forever but not in a community-style setting. I have always seen aggression before the spawn but not after like this.

What causes Post Spawn Aggression? Any Advice
 
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Goliath Tigerfish
MFK Member
Dec 12, 2005
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Are you sure the eggs are eaten? Usually the female will move the eggs as soon as they turn into wigglers and not free swimming just yet.
She will pick a tight spot well out of site.

The post spawn aggression you mentioned usually means the male is ready to spawn again.

Some will pair and protect the spawn together, sometimes the male will leave it to the female.

Sometimes when their are other females in the area the male will try to drive the female away so he can continue to spawn.
 
S

sbrady5pts

Plecostomus
MFK Member
Jun 7, 2008
404
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long island
That is really interesting. I have seen the females move them, and there is a chance that happened. She is hiding out now in a small cave not far from where the eggs were. I think that's unlikely though because the first day after I assumed they were eaten the female was out in the open just trying to get away from him.

Do you think the other females in the tank led to the aggression? He did get closer to the other less dominant female after beating the initial female.


Any chance the first pair has successful future breedings or is this male just too aggressive?
 
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Goliath Tigerfish
MFK Member
Dec 12, 2005
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No way to answer for sure.
If anything is true about cichlids is that they can be unpredictable.
I always separated the pair once it formed and gave them their own tank.
I would still have to step in occasionally with a divider though.
 
S

sbrady5pts

Plecostomus
MFK Member
Jun 7, 2008
404
49
61
long island
True statement. Thanks for feedback. I have always heard about the Festae aggression and owned several pairs over the years but this is the first time I have really seen it.
Your male is a beast in the picture
 
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Goliath Tigerfish
MFK Member
Dec 12, 2005
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sbrady5pts said:
Those are some BIG festae. Here is my last pair that I had. Male was big but no Hump like yours.
Click to expand...
I see on your male looks like the beginning of a hump.
I get that a lot of times about the hump.
The pair I had I got from a guy in Hickory NC.
He was a biologist for the Catawba Valley science center there.
He went on several collections trips each year to South America.
He collected the parents of my pair and spawned them.
At the time I picked these up from him I actually bought five fry 1to2 inches.
I got two pair and one female out of the group.
I sold the others and kept this pair.
I never bothered to ask about catch location or anything at the time.
I assume that some from different locations get the hump and some do not.
 
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