Sweetness

[kribensis12]

I bought 4 Red Jewels today. I was bored with my fish and decided to get some new fish. I used to keep jewels last year, but they wouldnt breed. So today i saw the Jewels at my fav store and they were brick red. Amzing color. So i bought 4 in hopes of a pair. Some are 2 1/2 t0 3 inches long, others are 1 1/2 inches long. I would think breeding size. I will post pics as soon as they color up, but there, WOW, amazing! Sorry, i had to post this.

 

[kribensis12]

I will try to get pics later today. THey are dazzling. The 2 biggest appear to be male and female. You know how spider man has that "spidey-sense"? Where he knows that sometihngs going on? I think i have Aqua-Sense! I can just tell that one of the big ones is a male. He has a more dulll red body, and more speckels and just appears manly. The other one have a rounder stomach and is a brighter red and seems more feminine. The smaller ones also appear to be male and female. The smaller 2 were getting picked on so i put in my 2 danios in there to ease aggression.

 

[kribensis12]

Okay, here is a Video of what i think is the male( and female):

Notice, how he is bigger and darker colored.

Here are pic's of what i think is the Adult Female:

And here is a Video of 3 out of the 4 Jewels. The 4th one is the Male(?) and he is always hiding. So, are my suspicions about the sex correct?:

 

[kribensis12]

BUMP

 

[peter22UK]

a pleco of some description might clean up some of that algae

i seen a breeding pair of jewels in my lfs yesterday they even had eggs...bright red they were

 

[kribensis12]

Dude, that tank is too small for a pleco, it's only a 20 gallon flat hexagon. Besides they poop more than they eat.

 

[kribensis12]

Any ideas with the sexes of these fish?

 

[SJ2K]

Nice cichlids there and you could have a small pleco in a 20g, i would usually suggest a group of oto's but in with africans is not a good idea

 

[WaterBender1995]

"dude"...

Bristlenosed plecos are the best for algae control in a mbuna tank...and they dont crap much.

 

[kribensis12]

Bristlenosed plecs arent what i am looking forward to right now. I might get some later in life, but not right now. Plus, the algae , as far as im aware, benefits the tank. Also, it dosent bother me too much. I do scrub the tnak every week or so. But it grows back real fast. So, do you guys have any idea on the sexes of these fish?

 

[kribensis12]

YESS. I looked in the tank least night, and i ofund the "female" under a rock with a good sized clutch of eggs. IM SO EXCITED, as i've never bred them before. I never saw a reeeding tube, so their sneaky! I will post pics once free-swimming.

 

[kribensis12]

They hatched today. The female aggressivley chases the male away all the time, should i remove him?

 

[kribensis12]

So, should i reomve him? There is no sign of fin damage. Also, how long does it take for them to become free-swimming?

 

[kribensis12]

They are free-swimming! I am contemplating moving the male to my 30g tank with my angel and livebearers. Will he attack them?

 

[kribensis12]

Well even thought no one seems to acre, i'll post anyway. I got some decent pics of the fry as they are swimming in a mass by the filter ( uh ohhh). Here they are:

The mom, proudly defending her brood.

The dad, in a breeder, after a thurough butt wooping from the mom.