electric blue hap diging

[GeneralGoldeneye]

My blue hap is diging around and his stripes are more visible right now. My blue and my yellow lab that I thought was a male was doing the mateing dance together but my 2" yellow was not laying eggs and my blue is 4"

[Dixie]

Let me see if I'm understanding this right...the 4" blue hap and the 2" yellow lab that you thought both were male were doing the mating dance but the lab wasn't laying eggs?

If I got that right maybe it was a dominance dance. Were they going around in a circle?

[GeneralSteven]

Where either on of them shaking

[GeneralGoldeneye]

Where either on of them shaking

Bro your a dork lol you know he was so why ask.

[GeneralGoldeneye]

Let me see if I'm understanding this right...the 4" blue hap and the 2" yellow lab that you thought both were male were doing the mating dance but the lab wasn't laying eggs?

If I got that right maybe it was a dominance dance. Were they going around in a circle?

yes thats correct and my blue hap was shaking like he was fertilizing the eggs

[johnpeezy]

just becasue the two were shaking at each other, dosn't mean its the mating dance. That almost seems like the fist inital greeting of one another when there is a decision to encroach on somebodies territory.

That can be followed by a series of tailslaps to the face, the two of them swimming in circles, somebosy proceeding to build a nest and even nothing at all.

My electric blue hap(not sure exactly which one) digs all the time mainly hessifting substrate for leftover food.

and Don't think an electric blue and a yellow lab could even cross anyway but I have some strange mutant hybrid cichlid in my tank so who knows? Heck my electric blue hap and a calvus act like they paired off and always swim around one another too.

[Dixie]

Name calling isn't nice, especially to someone that's trying to help.
With that being said, I think johnpeezy is right. It doesn't have to be a "mating dance" but it's possible for any 2 mouthbrooders to breed.

[TRDNiteLife]

Name calling isn't nice, especially to someone that's trying to help.

I think they know each other.

[GeneralGoldeneye]

Yea thats why I called him bro hes my younger brother

[kaybee]

There's a thin line of difference between the spawning ritual and dominance displays (which is what I believe your fish were engaging in).

Vibrant colors, spread fins and shaking attract willing spawning partners but is also the same 'body language' to project dominance or threats in male vs male interaction. The shaking also transmits vibrations and pheromones and can be a preclude to an attack.

Some males when trying to attract a mate will quickly revert from display mode to attack mode, driving off unwilling females.

....Don't think an electric blue and a yellow lab could even cross anyway but I have some strange mutant hybrid cichlid in my tank so who knows?

Any lake malawi cichlid can potentially breed with any other lake malawi cichild since genetically there's still a lot of commonality (the potential for that occuring, however, is an entirely separate matter). I've seen a photo of a malawi eye biter (a foot long 'hap') x yellow lab hybrid.

[GeneralGoldeneye]

There's a thin line of difference between the spawning ritual and dominance displays (which is what I believe your fish were engaging in).

Vibrant colors, spread fins and shaking attract willing spawning partners but is also the same 'body language' to project dominance or threats in male vs male interaction. The shaking also transmits vibrations and pheromones and can be a preclude to an attack.

Some males when trying to attract a mate will quickly revert from display mode to attack mode, driving off unwilling females.



Any lake malawi cichlid can potentially breed with any other lake malawi cichild since genetically there's still a lot of commonality (the potential for that occuring, however, is an entirely separate matter). I've seen a photo of a malawi eye biter (a foot long 'hap') x yellow lab hybrid.

Did the cross breed look any good

[kaybee]

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[johnpeezy]

I honestly think I have a yellow lab/frontosa hybrid he has the color pattern of a flameback hap but orange/purple a hump and stripes like a frontosa and the body style of a lab. I'll take a pic of him one day.

he was a 2.99 motled zebra my girlfriend had to have.

the only thing I know for certain is that he is a cross

[Dixie]

LOL Ok so maybe I'm behind in the times. If it's alright for big brothers to call little brothers dorks...what is ok for little brothers to call big brothers (wink)?

I'd like to see johnpeezy's fish. Sounds cute.