hey all, i have a few questions about my little experiment, but first a little background on "Big Papa"
in my 120 gallon cichlid community (mostly africans) i had a 8" mayan, a female (5") zz red dragon, and a grey with black bars flowerhorn. cupid, the 5" female was always chasing the little grey one until i had enough of it and threw him in a 55 by himself at school. there he stayed for a few months, packing on the pounds (so to speak) and gaining tons of color. eventually though, cupid decided to eat one of her tankmates and nearly choked to death (btw, as a baby, she had her jaw broken and fins ripped apart by a jewel that she pushed too far), so i decided to split the 55 and put one on each side. by this time they were both 6" (like i said, Big Papa packed on a lot of size and weight) and trying to kill each other more than ever. i go home for the weekend and you know what i find when i come back monday?
BOTH FISH ON ONE SIDE GUARDING EGGS! they soon raise a batch of 20 babies (wasnt trying to save all of them, too many!). unfortunately, i left them in too long and they began eating cupid alive! it happened so quickly she had suffered a lot of damage already and contracted internal parasites somehow. then, in the hospital tank, the aerator was knocked out and her water became a soup of discusting filth... all in the next weekend!!! by the time she recovered from all this, she turned out blind. i'm working with her to regain her weight...
back to the point... after leaving the tank to himself again, i decided to try to pair him with a red devil the same size: they paired off for a few days, but something set him off and he beat her nearly to death. i barely saved her... so then i took a female midas bigger than him and threw her in. first he attacked her, then was submissive to get her angry, then he was dominant, and back and forth until a bond was formed... idk what all of this was, but it worked for them
my real question is: they've been paired off in the 55 for several weeks AT 82 degrees, with 50% water changes twice a week, no gravel, two bricks and an upside-down pot as the setup, and they STILL HAVENT LAYED EGGS! as the pictures show, he's in partial breeding dress and she is swollen with eggs, but they've been like that for weeks! he tries to entice her, and she responds, and they once made a couple passes over the pot, but she doesnt seem willing...
WHAT CAN I DO TO GET THEM TO BREED!???
Big Papa
his girlfriend
her again
in my 120 gallon cichlid community (mostly africans) i had a 8" mayan, a female (5") zz red dragon, and a grey with black bars flowerhorn. cupid, the 5" female was always chasing the little grey one until i had enough of it and threw him in a 55 by himself at school. there he stayed for a few months, packing on the pounds (so to speak) and gaining tons of color. eventually though, cupid decided to eat one of her tankmates and nearly choked to death (btw, as a baby, she had her jaw broken and fins ripped apart by a jewel that she pushed too far), so i decided to split the 55 and put one on each side. by this time they were both 6" (like i said, Big Papa packed on a lot of size and weight) and trying to kill each other more than ever. i go home for the weekend and you know what i find when i come back monday?
BOTH FISH ON ONE SIDE GUARDING EGGS! they soon raise a batch of 20 babies (wasnt trying to save all of them, too many!). unfortunately, i left them in too long and they began eating cupid alive! it happened so quickly she had suffered a lot of damage already and contracted internal parasites somehow. then, in the hospital tank, the aerator was knocked out and her water became a soup of discusting filth... all in the next weekend!!! by the time she recovered from all this, she turned out blind. i'm working with her to regain her weight...
back to the point... after leaving the tank to himself again, i decided to try to pair him with a red devil the same size: they paired off for a few days, but something set him off and he beat her nearly to death. i barely saved her... so then i took a female midas bigger than him and threw her in. first he attacked her, then was submissive to get her angry, then he was dominant, and back and forth until a bond was formed... idk what all of this was, but it worked for them
my real question is: they've been paired off in the 55 for several weeks AT 82 degrees, with 50% water changes twice a week, no gravel, two bricks and an upside-down pot as the setup, and they STILL HAVENT LAYED EGGS! as the pictures show, he's in partial breeding dress and she is swollen with eggs, but they've been like that for weeks! he tries to entice her, and she responds, and they once made a couple passes over the pot, but she doesnt seem willing...
WHAT CAN I DO TO GET THEM TO BREED!???
Big Papa
his girlfriend
her again
