What's Going On Here?

[marya]

hello all,

ok so i have 4 altispinosa in a 48" long 30gal breeder, 2 males and 2 females. About 2 weeks ago they paired off. Everyone's colors became intense, in particular the females developed deep orange/bronze patches on their ventral regions and one appears slightly swollen. The females' ovipositors are visible. Two weeks went by with the pairs displaying and mouthing the substrate in their respective areas, but no eggs were laid. Today for the first time the pairs seem to have seperated. The females are together hiding behind some flower pots. Periodically one of the girls will try to approach her male, only to be chased away. What's going on? :unsure:

thanks!

 

[mscichlid]

You could try rearranging the tank when you do the tank maintenace. Put a spawning site at each end of the tank. You could also put some kind of a buffer in the middle of the tank like a large piece of driftwood so that the fish can't see each other. Also provide 4 hiding places for each fish.

Feed them heavily on live food for about two weeks and then do a 50% water change.

HTH, it's a start.