MousePotato

Henry and Eleanor having been sharing a divided tank for about a year now while I worked on Husband to get another. In that time, there has been relative peace and health for both. Henry is a very boisterous Ps. elongatus and Eleanor a very shy Ps. demasoni.

Well, tonight when I fed them dinner, Eleanor came out of her cave and started swimming around, fins at full salute! This is unusual enough for her because usually she hides if anyone gets within five feet of the aquarium. The real shocker was that she ignored the food, and stared at me, jaw bulging and making near constant chewing motions.

Could she be holding? Could they be fertilized? Can fish breed through a mesh divider? Her jaw is even more distended than it was the last time I saw eggs in her mouth (pre-divider).

The funniest part was when she kept rushing at Henry and he seemed to be doing his best to avoid her. She looked like she was saying "look what you did, you blue casanova!" and if a fish can look guilty, he was doing it! His dorsal and pelvic fins were tucked in and he looked at me as if to say "I was lonely! It meant nothing! They can't be mine!"

Shawnie

id say they belong on jerry springer!!! whose your babys daddy!

laur.laur.234

That's hillarious

MousePotato

LOL, Shawnie! Well, he's the only (other) Pseudotropheus in the house, so I think he may have to edit his personal ad!

Slug

It is possible, hence why males usually have eggspots. Eggspots are used to trick a female into thinking she missed an egg, as she goes to pick it up, as gross as it sounds, he releases sperm into her mouth to make sure all the eggs get fertilized. So yep, its possible they are fertilized, and possible to breed through mesh.

MousePotato

Thanks, Slug. I actually did know the basics of mbuna mating (gross or not ), but it seemed unlikely. There are no flat rocks near the screen, just river rock, and they can't exactly do the circle dance, either. However, as Michael Crighton said "life finds a way." If ever a fish resembled a Velociraptor <sp?>, it would be these hybrids!

Allie

She did it alone...lol She is probably holding UN fertilized eggs. Too funny. My male yellow lab likes to hold with the female. lol

MousePotato

I hope you are correct, Allie. I don't need monster hybrids on my hands! Do the females lay eggs regularly, whether they get fertilized or not? It's been a long time since I've noticed her holding.

That's hilarious about your yellow lab! Hmmm.... Some males adopt female coloration to show submission. Some just like how it FEELS!

Allie

Well if they are hybrid...just let her spit in the in the tank...they will get eaten.