Pelvicachromis Taeniatus Fighting

[FishMan10005]

Hey all,

My pair of P. Taeniatus (I believe "Moliwe") spawned about a week and a half ago. About the time the fry should have been free swimming, the pair ended up eating their spawn. I expected that, it was their first. However, ever since then the pair has been fighting nonstop. I ended up separating them for a few days. I tried putting them back together today and they immediately started fighting again. Why are they fighting and what can I do about it? Do I need to separate them for another few days?

Thanks,
Steve

 

[Hawkeyes]

I had this problem with my pair from Makoure. Large water change, move decor around, and get a female Pelv. Pulcher or similar species. The pair will feel the need to make their species thrive over the opposing species. Maybe leave the lights off for a couple of days as well. And of course keep a close eye on things.

Aron

 

[FishMan10005]

Thanks for the fast reply. I just did a 50% cool water change and immediately they are both out and dancing for each other instead of fighting. I normally do bi-weekly 25% changes and had done so while they were fighting, but I guess that just wasn't enough because 50% seemed to do the trick. Glad that worked, I would've hated to rearrange the decor and mess up their caves. They've got some extensive tunnels and caves dug through the sand.
Thanks!

 

[Hawkeyes]

Glad to hear they had an attitude change! The key is to make it last. In my experience the male would blame the female for the demise of the fry, beat up on her, make up, and they would spawn every once in a while only to repeat the cycle. After a few months of this the female finally stopped eating the fry and all was well. In one particular instance I had 2 pairs so I switched them around and they re-bonded successfully. Tricky little fish sometimes!

Aron

 

[tjudy]

I have observed this behavior many times. I wonder if there is not an instinctual behavior wired into the fish to drive away partners after unsuccessful spawns. I can imaging this in the wild working out very well. A young pair makes an attempt, but fail. They bicker and disperse. Each fish (now with a little experience) then pairs with a new mate. If the new pair is successful, all is good... but if the spawn fails the system kicks in again. This is all hypothetical, but it seems plausible based upon observation in the aquarium.

 

[lcwei96094]

i am having the similar problem too. i bought 2 males and 1 female from my friend. three of them live happily at the beginning. but after a while the two males infected by mouth fungus and so i put them into a separate tank from the female. only one of them survive. i put him back to the female after that. unfortunately, the female does not seem to "recognize" the male anymore and keep chasing him all over the tank and very aggressive to him. to avoid any casualty, i have removed him again...

i wonder is there any way to "bond" them again?