# Unusual Krib behavior?



## Praxx42 (Mar 4, 2005)

I've recently acquired a pair of wild-caught "yellow" kribs. They're now living in a heavily-planted 55G with a couple of cave-ish areas for their perusal. It's taken them a few days to get used to the new housing and the new owner, but they're now finally coming out of hiding for feeding and the like.

I'm _pretty_ sure I have a male and female. I know _for sure_ that I have a female (the smaller fish), but the jury's still out on the larger fish (the guy at the LFS was having trouble sexing them as well). I've watched kribs make the mating behavior before, bend and vibrate... but would a female krib make the mating moves towards another female? The smaller of the two fish was shaking what her momma gave her towards the larger fish this morning, but the familiar markings of the kribensis aren't as prominent on these "yellows" as they are on the normal kribs, so I can't tell for sure is it's a male or not?

Again, am I watching a female krib hit on another female? :shrug:


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## brad (Jul 10, 2005)

Usually no, the female will prefer to chase the other, and not shake at her.

Look at the dorsal fins. the back end of the female`s will be rouded while the male`s goes into a point. The tail fin will also be rounded on the female and male`s will be diamond shaped. Congrats on some beautiful fish.


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## Praxx42 (Mar 4, 2005)

Yeah, they are awesomely colored. Just this morning, I noticed that the larger of the two has a bright red stripe that edges out the top of its dorsal fin... truly more interestingly colored than any other fish I have owned.


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## JanS (Apr 14, 2004)

Congrats, they're great fish. Wait until they really start breeding for you; then they really glow.

One sure fire way to ID the females is that their pelvic fins are cupped to carry the eggs, and the males are more pointed. Females also have a more plump, rounded belly.


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## Praxx42 (Mar 4, 2005)

At this point, I'm pretty sure I have a male and female: The larger fish shows no signs of territorialism towards the smaller (and def. female) fish... in fact, they stay pretty close to each other, even sharing the same "cave" on occassion. The larger fish certainly doesn't normally carry any similiar coloring charateristics of the smaller fish (the fem is always yellow-jawed, red-bellied with a horizontal black stripe, and the "male" is usually just gray in the body with some intense yellow and red coloring at the edges of the fins. I know "he" can shift colors to a more normal krib "look," he just doesn't seem to want to at the moment). I haven't seen anything I could attribute to breeding behaviour yet, but I'm just glad they haven't ripped each other to shreds.  I can wait on babies.


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## Praxx42 (Mar 4, 2005)

Okay, update:

I am about 99% sure that I have a male and female as I found out that, Saturday morning, Mama had dug out a small "chamber" under my H. micranthemoides and up against a tile wall. There were 50+/- light yellow eggs stuck to the wall, and both Mama and Dad were defending the chamber against anything that got too close.

Now, I'm still new at dwarf cichlids... When I checked on them Sunday night, it appeared that Mama had moved all the eggs to a more secure location (a capped-off piece of 2" PVC I put in the tank just for that purpose). Then she moved them AGAIN to a location I can't quite see (buried in the HM). Is this normal? It's awesome to see them care for the eggs, but is moving them around like that normal?


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## JanS (Apr 14, 2004)

Wow, congrats again.  

I've never heard of them moving them around, but it's possible.
Keep us posted.


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## Praxx42 (Mar 4, 2005)

<sigh> I'll stop after this one.

Surprise, surprise. After doing some research, I was pretty sure my kribs had a bad clutch of eggs, as they were all khaki-colored (amber being the "right" color). I was completely confused after I watched the mom move the actual eggs a couple of times, as I thought that was not normal behavior. I figured the eggs were all bad, and Mom was just looking for something to do.

What a shock I got last night when I looked in the biggest "cave" in the tank to see 40+/- wigglers laying on the Flourite. Mom was happily guarding them and moving them away from the cave entrance with her mouth while Dad stood guard. And then she moved them AGAIN. Those lil' babies get shuffled around more than an Army kid!

So, long story short, my kribs are retarded. But at least they are attentive parents.


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## JanS (Apr 14, 2004)

LOL! They must be doting parents.  

That's pretty good to get fry with a first attempt in your tank. Way to go!
Now you just have to find a place that will take the fry off your hands when the adults make a habit of spawning.


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## Praxx42 (Mar 4, 2005)

Yeah, that may be a problem. I'll ask around tho... makes me think I should have kept my giant FW shrimp for population control.


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## brad (Jul 10, 2005)

Praxx42, I know I`m jumping back in late in the game but just so you feel better, it is normal for mom to move the eggs and the fry around. As you`ve probably noticed, they get rather nervous when they have little ones and especially if there is anything in the tank that is bothering them. (corydoras, plecos, and snails seem to be a few that don`t get the point)

They`re wonderful fish (though I doubt their tankmates would share that opinion)


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## aquaverde (Feb 9, 2004)

I recently separated my pair. After the third brood, I didn't know what to do with the young and the male started terrorizing the female. She wouldn't have made it if I left them together.


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## Praxx42 (Mar 4, 2005)

Gracias, folks. And yes, I am sure the tankmates hate them (7 glo-strip tetras, a female bristlenose, and about 70 Amanos), but they sure are fun to watch. I'm trying to hold off doing any gardening until the fry become freeswimming, which should be happening by this weekend.


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