Chromidotilapia guntheri mouthbrooding Q

[retro_gk]

Hi,
Aren't C. guntheri supposed to be paternal mouthbrooders? I stripped my fish yesterday at 8 days post spawning and it was the female who was holding the wrigglers :?

 

[aquaticclarity]

Since the young were wigglers it is possible the parents started to "swap" the young back and forth between each other giving the male a chance to eat. Once the eggs develop the parents start to share brood care responsibility and both parents may even take some of the spawn into their mouths at the same time for protection purposes. You may have caught the adult fish out to strip while the fry were out of a mouth and the closest parent will then pick up the fry to shelter them.

Keep in mind also that with Chromidotilapia g. guntheri and C. g. loennbergi that the females are the much more colorful fish as compared to the males. Not your normal cichlid situation. This is in part, at least in my opinion, to the males doing the majority of the early brood care and needing to be less conspicuous.

Jeff

 

[retro_gk]

hmm yes, that is what I figured as well. Just that all the literature says the male broods solely till the fry are free swimming and these guys were about 4 days away from that.

 

[Randall]

Chromidotilapia guntheri guntheri

Hello Rahul,

Yes, Chromidotilapia guntheri guntheri are paternal ovophilic mouthbrooders, but perhaps your pair has not read the same books that we have.

Good luck!


All the best,

Randall Kohn