Harlequins Strange Behaviour

[KezJona]

I was just at my friends who is looking after my fish whilst my tank cycles and was watching two Harlequins in particular... They were running around the tank, but it looked like their bodies were glued together! Then they would separate and meet up and do the same thing over and over again.

Is this just a game they play?

 

[MBOU]

Urm... You could call it that yes... indeed.... a game LOL

Were they kind of 'shimmying' next to each other and against each other? Either way tbh, sunds like spawning behaviour LOL

 

[XeroTolerance]

I think it is spawning .

 

[KezJona]

I'd say next to each other, so that means there doing the naughties?!

 

[Delloy12]

Sounds like your fish are "rocking the boat"

 

[CrazyAirborne]

if you get them to spawn, that would be great!! I think they need soft water to spawn, do you have soft water? it would be so cool to raise harlequin fry!

 

[KezJona]

if you get them to spawn, that would be great!! I think they need soft water to spawn, do you have soft water? it would be so cool to raise harlequin fry!

Oh god I have no idea whether my water is hard or soft.. How do I find this information out? Haven't lived in the house that long so if it is something I should know generally, obviously I don't

Also, if it is spawning behaviour how do I research into how long they hold their eggs for before laying, and what to do. I have never encountered spawning fishies so this is all new to me

 

[coldcazzie]

Pretty sure they are egg scatterers.

There's a thread here giving you an idea about how to spawn egg scatterers. It's definitely possible, and if they are doing it naturally then all you have to do is encourage it. I'm really tempted to try with my silvertips once I'm done with my module for this year

 

[SchottayB]

Urm... You could call it that yes... indeed.... a game LOL

Were they kind of 'shimmying' next to each other and against each other? Either way tbh, sunds like spawning behaviour LOL

I've had Harlequins for over a year now and two of mine have done this shimmying next to each other for months and months now. They are never apart!

Never seen any eggs in the tank though

 

[BigbruiserAl]

Harlequins rasbora will lay their eggs upside down on broad leafs, they tend to eat the eggs so parents need to be removed. Will be why most of us never breed them in community tanks