Cody

my keyholes and swordtails have been together since december, and they have always been fine and gotten along. One of my keyhole has had a major darking in its coloration, the black markins on it have become almost jet black, the only time i have seen this before was during feeding time, and they both would be like that. The one with the coloration change has been hanging out in one part of the tank in the same spot for a few days now. If a fish comes by the keyhole, it will chase them away and return to post. It isnt hurting its tank mates though, just keeping them away.

i do not know if they are a pair or not. they were not mature enough when i got them to determin there sex. They will look at eachother and then start swining in a cirle chasing eachother then they willl back off and the other keyhole will go its seperate way and the other will return to post.

Cody

does anyone have exprience breeding them that can help answer this

Cody

the behavior is still going on

Cody

i guess ill just have to wait and see to find out on my own

Allie

Sorry haven't been on much lately. Yes they get pretty dark when they want to breed the female's belly will be rounder than usual and her marking will stand out. My female will get a blue tint in her scales.
My keyholes bred!!
Here are pix of mine when they bred for the first time.

Cody

OH MY GOSHHH. i looked and the one thats sitting in that one spot has a the blueish tint. do you think theres eggs she gaurding. should i but somthing in there that would be better for her to lay her eggs. help me out please ahh im very excited

Allie

Sorry to burst your bubble but from what I have read & learned...the first batch of eggs never make it. 99% of the time anyway. BUT it will mean they are a pair. They usually lay eggs again shortly afterwards. Sorta like, practice make perfect. Mine haven't yet b/c my male keyholes have been dealing with parasites. I lost one but not the one who bred witht he female. I'd take a look around to see if there is any eggs...mine laid them in a good spot to get pix that time.
The female does guard the eggs the whole time, like convict and kribs but in a more mild way.

Cody

im aware that the frist batch deosnt make it. i did reading but it makes me happy that it happend, i wanted to breed somtihng other than livebeaers. Is there anything ishould do to help them along and make it so the fry will most likley survive in the future

Allie

Nope, they should be able to handle the task on their own until the fry is too big. Make sure there isn't anyone to eat the babies, just the parents.

Cody

illl post some pics and you can make suggestions as far as my tank goes

Allie

Cody

sorry about my being rude earlier. i gets me mad when i have a quesstion and know one seems to bother

Allie

You weren't rude, impatient & frustrated yes.

Cody

here is one of the fish i believe is the female. illl have some more on here soon

Allie

Is she smaller than the male...if so she looks like a she to me.

Cody

here he is . yes he is much bigger. these arent the greastest pics but they do

Allie

Yup, he is a he. So they should be breeding soon if she is dark like mine gets.
Mine liked to lay the eggs on a flat smooth surface like a flat rock which I propped on another rock. Keyholes love planted tanks best.
Mine are in a 10g right now with all fake plants and real rocks. I am treating them both for parasites since both males had them and 1 died. Maybe the parasites prevented them from growing at a normal rate. I hope my male will be ok. SO far so good tho.

Cody

keyholes are nice fish, they have some attitude but there a peaceful fish

Cody

do i need to cover any of the filters

Cody

filter intakes i mean

Cody

i bought i peice of slate for her to lay the eggs on

Cody

also what foods will i need to make sure there eating. or what should i do to the food i already have

Allie

I would. You would need to when there is fry eventually, so why not do it now. I try to have a sponge on the ends of most of ours.

Cody

alright. and what about for food

Allie

I'd just feed them regular tropical or cichlid flakes.
Here's link to a profile on them
http://www.wetpetz.com/keyhole.html

Cody

ok thanks for answering my questions