New Female GT 1/10th the size of the male?

[TigerTalon1]

I recently purchased a female Rivulatus for my 8.5in Male, she is tiny compared to him and he could easily kill her, I am hesitant to add her because of this size difference, when I initially purchased her my logic was well most of the time a Male GT is bigger and capable of killing a female GT anyway even if they are relative in size. But once I actually got a look at them side by side, I am a little fearful of what could happen. What do you guys think should I wait for more size?

 

[MrsE88]

How big is she and what size tank?

I’ve never had issues with my male and adding females. He is very accepting.

On the flip side my smaller male (just over 4”) is a female killer. But I feel tank size plays a big part in how well a new pair will do.

 

[TigerTalon1]

How big is she and what size tank?

I’ve never had issues with my male and adding females. He is very accepting.

On the flip side my smaller male (just over 4”) is a female killer. But I feel tank size plays a big part in how well a new pair will do.

It’s a 55 gallon, and the female is about 3in . I still have her floating right now.

 

[TigerTalon1]

the Male flared up and that’s all, he’s not paying any attention to the bag.

 

[Jexnell]

Make sure there are caves she can get into and not him. Also I would get a divider just incase.

 

[MrsE88]

A 55 is pretty small for the two of them. They will need a bigger tank as I’m sure you are aware. Tank size makes a big difference in their behavior ime.

Like Jexnell said, be sure to have lots of hiding spots only she can fit into.

3” is a decent size. Give it a go, but be ready to move her if things so south. Any pictures of her?

 

[Jexnell]

Breeding cichlids is a delicate balancing act. If you really want to go down that road you will need several tanks to raise fry in also I would now have a back up tank to split up the pair if need be.
I had a pair of HRPs nearly a year. They spawned at least a dozen times. Even this pair that seemed to be great ended up with the male killing the female overnight with no warning.
My new Sagittae are even more brutal. Had them six months now. Got six spawns, and two dead females from my efforts.

 

[duanes]

A divider when there is a sizable difference in size is an great safety net.
Below is one I had for a pair of festae where the male was almost ft long, and the female only 4".

She quickly learned where the opening was.
In a tank of only 55 gallons, I would guess a divider would need to be thought of as permanent.
Be sure it is sturdy, with some horizontal piece to put rocks on for added security.

You can also notch out some spots to let the tank rim add to security.

 

[TigerTalon1]

Everything seems to be going good, I was going to attempt at building a divider but I decided I would try my luck at just introducing her, the male GT seems to ingnore the younger one. Here is pics, also I noticed the Female has a vertical line under her eye, does this line disappear with age or remain with females?

 

[MrsE88]

That line will come and go with it’s mood at the time. You’ll see the young male in my avatar has the line showing too. It’s not a gender trait, both sexes have it. My older male also shows his from time to time, it’s just not as noticeable on him. And he tends to only show it when he’s in spawning mode.