NYE spawn, free swimming today

[duanes]

female Andinoacara coeleopunctatus with fry, above and below.

Male below


I find it interesting that in many cases, spawns have coincided with secular, and even religious holidays.
Maybe its that most holidays have their basis in ancient pagan rites and seasonal changes where natural occurrences influenced observances and celebrations.

 

[Deadeye]

Congrats!
There may be some correlation, my bp con pair (happened naturally, I didn’t do anything to force it) bred right when snow came, exactly 2 weeks after their first lay, and was on track to breed right on New Year’s Eve, but just didn’t.

 

[duanes]

Thought this shot (although not particularly clear), was amusing with the 1 fry apparently hanging on the anal fin.
Breeding season for this Andinoacara is Dec thru April here, this is the 3rd year they have spawned at this time.
There are two pair in a 180 gal, and a couple extra unattached females. The two pair have divided the tank rough;y claiming about 50% per pair. The two dominant males assinatted every other male in the tank over those 3 years.

 

[duanes]

Randomly snapping pics, this turned out show one of the ways one might determine gender difference in Andinoacara coerleopunctatus.

Seems to be all about the extra iridescent color markings from the females gill plate, under the eye, to the nose.

 

[Gourami Swami]

Looking great, interesting that they spawned right on the new year. I like these CA acaras, supposedly one of the most common fish in the region but not seen much in the hobby.

 

[duanes]

now at around a week free swimming the tetras have whittled down the school of fry to about half, and this has strengthened the resolve of the parents to protect the remaining fry.
The female keeps the fry at one end of the 180, while the male keeps all other residents of the tank at at the other end, allowing them maybe 1/4 of the tank.

Shot taken on an end looking down the length of the tank,

Its interesting to me, from this angle, how cramped the actual usable space of the tank really is.