apistogramma agassizii male eating fry

[uberape]

this is strange but i could have sworn i saw my male agassizii eat a fry, strange because they are about 1.2 cm long. im sure he did but i didnt see him chew after. there were a few going missing but i put this down to tetras. I'm annoyed only because Ive been feeding them for so long (i didn't think any would survive in a community tank). I panicked and put fake grass in the clearing that the mother and fry hung out. do they eat them this late on to initiate another breeding cycle or something?

 

[uberape]

ps i cant get the water quality right for them in any of my other tanks so i cant move anybody

 

[Mike Wise]

Most fish will eat another if it can get it in its mouth. If you really want to raise fry, then the best method is to use a separate breeding tank.

 

[wethumbs]

A moveable feast.

 

[uberape]

I know its wrong but when i see an apisto in the shop i always want to buy a couple. I cant help it, I just find them more interesting as pairs. If they breed, I just feed the fry and if they survive then good on em, this is irresponsible and kind of cruel but anyway im a monster (a poor one). I just wondered why the male turns nasty thats all, a few days ago he was cleaning them and protecting them and now he's trying to eat them. sort of like a farmer raising cattle... ah moveable feast, i get it ha ha

 

[slimbolen99]

What kind of apisto is it? I don't know many male apistos that care for the young. I would garner a guess that if the tank were large enough, the female would be chasing the male away and keeping him away...although, it's not uncommon for tank bred fish to get eaten, much like it is not uncommon for fish in the wild to eat their young.

 

[uberape]

i thought it would be clear from the thread title (joking) its an apistogramma agassizii the tank is 35 gallons long, theres plenty room. but the male has until now been very helpful chasing away tetras and cleaning fry in return for first dibs at the bbs. It was the way he ate the fry, so as to not get the females attention, pretending to yawn almost then whoom it was gone. then he continued to swim like nothing had happened. so sneaky or just unintentional i dont know.