Why are they scared

[Yuki Rihwa]

I have a Frontosa tank and we knew they're deep lake species, when I first got them they won't ever eat any floating pellet, they are refer sinking pellet. After a year or so they start come up near surface when I nearby the tank and beg for food, they will aggressively attack the sinking pellet that still floating on water surface but they often dash down to bottom very quick, their instinct behave telling them it's not safe to stay at the surface more than certain amount of time, that's my guess.

 

[duanes]

Its fairly easy to spot the kind of fish that naturally feed from the surface, compared to those that don't by how their mouth is shaped. Few cichlids have the surface feeder mouth.
These live bearers, killifish, and anabantids do

 

[troublesum]

Its fairly easy to spot the kind of fish that naturally feed from the surface, compared to those that don't by how their mouth is shaped. Few cichlids have the surface feeder mouth.
These live bearers, killifish, and anabantids do

UPDATE: I started feeding the sinking pellets and they went back to normal 2 of them even paired up and laid eggs but they laid them right below my intake tube on my FX6.
I am selling 5 F1 gold barred Midas $20 each of $15 each if you take all 5 i believe there is another pair within the 5 local pick-up in the NYC area