Grammodes question; Do I split them?

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yaajer

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Oct 1, 2007
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So, I got two Grammodes from Rapps a week or so ago, they are doing great and healthy. I can tell, one is a female and the other one is a male. The "boss" is the female right now, she's 1/4 inch (max, if that) larger than the male and bosses this young tank around. Currently, there's the two Grammodes, 1 flowerhorn, 1 polleni and some dither barbs in a grow out 75.

Question and what I'm debating. I'd like to have the male shine and I don't think he'll do that if the female is the boss of the tank. They are practically the same size, the female is just a few centimeters longer..both about 3.25 - 3.5" long. Is there a possibility the Male will usurp dominance as they continue to grow? I was thinking of pulling the female out of the tank to promote the male into the boss role. Thoughts?
 
Yeah, I will probably have to split them up..it's not like they are tearing each other up, just some aggressive posturing here and there by the female.
 
Every group of grammodes I've ever grown out (starting with a group of 4-6 little ones) seems to get along until the 3-4" mark...at which point the largest fish (a male) begins to pick off smaller ones...

The best way to prevent this is to separate them before this happens (male on one side of the divider / female on the other)....and the remainder into a cichlid community elesewhere...

Matt
 
Female Grammys can be mean sobs but don't underestimate the brutality of the male. If the female is larger than the male, she's older and more mature than he is. He'll come around soon.
 
Ok, thanks guys. They are siblings from Rapps, so I'll wait it out a couple months to see if the Male comes around.
 
I second Matts comment.
I got a pair from Rapps a couple years ago and the female was 4" and male 5" i put them in a 75 with some other cichlids which ended up getting destroyed by the Grammy's and they paired out and took the entire 75 as their own. thank god i didnt need a divider for the two and yes the females get very mean. IMO move the other tankmates out of the 75 and donate it to the pair of Grommodes. then put a divider in and make sure niether one can get thru. this way you can focus on feeding the male a lil better to help him outgrow the female. the only problem with that is grammodes grow slow lol. but this way the male and female both will put on their shine knowing their safe from each other or anything else. it also helps them focus on just eachother for pairirng without distractions. Ive used this technique a bunch of times and was impressed a few of those times with growth and color on certain species. but either way good luck
 
I would wait. I have found that a lot of cichlid females can be real SOB's at around 3-4". Leave them alone, she has other fish to boss also, have enough hiding places and just monitor. I my self will be picking up another male. I had a 7" beautiful male and I got him a 3" F from rapps. They connected immediately, he was always protecting her. Well he got into a lip lock with one of my other fish and he got his jaw broke. He died a week later. The morning I found him, the little female was by his side doing her damnedest to keep the other tank mates away from him. :( That alone wants me to find another male.

Sorry about going off the subject of your issue. I would leave them together. :)
 
Madness said:
I would wait. I have found that a lot of cichlid females can be real SOB's at around 3-4". Leave them alone, she has other fish to boss also, have enough hiding places and just monitor. I my self will be picking up another male. I had a 7" beautiful male and I got him a 3" F from rapps. They connected immediately, he was always protecting her. Well he got into a lip lock with one of my other fish and he got his jaw broke. He died a week later. The morning I found him, the little female was by his side doing her damnedest to keep the other tank mates away from him. :( That alone wants me to find another male.

Sorry about going off the subject of your issue. I would leave them together. :)
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He is also right lol. before going thru and stressing all your fish out to move them around, see what happens with the way it is first.
 
I also had success keeping 2 different pairs together 2 different times with other fish BUT....my tanks were way bigger than a 75. I think that is what made the difference in my case. Had my pairs been in a 75, they probably would have killed each other.

Ive also noticed, in most species, not all, that if there are a m & f and the f is bigger, she will tend to kill the smaller male. Natures way of thinning out the less dominant/ weaker males to spawn with and carry on the species with the strongest id imagine.
 
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