Are these angelfish pairing up?

[Charlotte2001]

Hi everyone, I've got 4 adult angelfish. I've noticed yesterday and today that 2 of my angelfish are staying at one side and chasing my other angelfish away from that side, I've tried uploading a video but won't let me. I've took pictures of their genitals. Is this them pairing up? Am I best rehoming th e other 2 angelfish?

 

[utahfish]

Cant tell from the picks but from what describe sounds like they are. Angel fish are shoaling species so if not kept in a shoal of 6 or more will be aggressive and territorial to eachothet.if 2 have paired up theyll claim a territory in the tank for a breeding spot and defend it because thats what cichlids do. If they lay eggs the aggression will increase as well. Probably be best to re home the two non bonded and keep the 2 bonded ones and hope the female is a good mama so the male doesnt kill her, because thats what angels also do

 

[Retired Viking]

I had a mated pair and they stuck together and defended their territory. I had them for at least 4-6 years, I didn't have any other angelfish in the 55 gallon tank,

 

[Munroco]

Pic on the left looks like a male with that hump on his forehead. It's not a 100% way of telling but mostly it's the case.

 

[Byron]

I agree that you may need to separate the fish (remove the bonded pair to another tank or remove the other two from this tank) but for the moment I would observe very closely to get a better understanding. A video as others have suggested would (might) help, depending what we see. However, with this species, seeing two that remain close with no real squabbles while all others are kept at a distance does suggest a male/female pair. They may or may not bond, that is up to the individual fish. Non-bonded pairs can spawn a few times before one of them (usually but not always the male) decides enough is enough and the other will be killed fairly rapidly.

If they do spawn, it is normal for the fish to eat the eggs of the first few spawnings. This never happens with wild fish (the regular eating of the eggs) but (so far as i know) always with commercially-raised angelfish. This is no indication of bonding or not, just the way it is.

 

[Charlotte2001]

Pic on the left looks like a male with that hump on his forehead. It's not a 100% way of telling but mostly it's the case.

This is the fish he stays with and defends, does it look like a female?

 

[utahfish]

This is the fish he stays with and defends, does it look like a female?

The fish in that pic looks like a male. Bump on head and jagged or forked front fins and is round not angular.