Severum breeding behavior

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MatthewM

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Is this behavior normal for severums our could this be breeding behavior?

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Not sure but in my tanks all cichlids have lip locked like that and in my tanks it just seems like more to show who's the boss but I have heard that male sevs will do that to test their mates strength to see if he wants to breed with her.
 
That's what I'm wondering see they are in a 125 and there was alot of cichlids in there but i removed everything but them and a pleco over the past weekend! Anyway I've seen aggressive cichlids do this before as a dominance thing but they have been like this for hours with short little breaks but neither of them is backing down like they don't like it! So it seemed odd to me!
 
Yep this is breeding behavior! My sevs are doing the exact same at the moment.. Along with other breeding signs like clearing a spot in the tank to lay eggs. They can do it for ages and not stop!! Hopefully you'll get some eggs soon! Here's a pic of mine going at the same thing!
 

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Awesome lol good looking severums there! They have already cleared a place inside a ship in the tank and have been I'm there constantly so I'm hopping for fry soon i can't really see inside though so I'm having to look around out for signs!
 
Awesome lol good looking severums there! They have already cleared a place inside a ship in the tank and have been I'm there constantly so I'm hopping for fry soon i can't really see inside though so I'm having to look around out for signs!

+1 This is typical breeding behavior as long as they both are staying with it and not backing down.
What I've done with all my pairs of Severums was to keep a large piece of flat slate or rock on the bottom of the tank for them to spawn on. If you decide to artificially hatch the eggs, this will be an easier way to remove the eggs. If you let the parents do it, you will be able to see what's going on better and keep tabs on the situation.

Usually lip locking is a first sign of "nuptuals" so spawning should be soon. If you can't see the eggs because of the location, you should see the male guarding the entrance to the ship while the female is in there. That will be your clue that the "deed" is done :brows:

Good luck with your pair (y)
 
Have you got any eggs yet? I am still waiting! They have been lip locking and cleaning a piece of slate non stop for over a week now! Andy from your experience breeding Severums do you know generally how long breeding behavior can last before they actually lay the eggs?
Thanks a lot
 
I haven't seen anything yet but they have stopped locking lips and pretty much stay inside the ship constantly haha! I'm thinking i have eggs and just can't see them!
 
Have you got any eggs yet? I am still waiting! They have been lip locking and cleaning a piece of slate non stop for over a week now! Andy from your experience breeding Severums do you know generally how long breeding behavior can last before they actually lay the eggs?
Thanks a lot

Each fish is different but I would have to say that breeding should be soon if they have been cleaning for a week now. One thing you do need to do is give them some privacy. I can't stress enough that lack of privacy will deter most any fish from spawning. (I once had to use a mirror set up so I could watch my trio of Angelfish spawning because they would NEVER spawn when I was in the room. I used to have to watch them from the hallway :lol:) You also want to make sure that the water parameters haven't changed and the water conditions are no longer right for breeding.

Another trick you can use should they not spawn in the next , say, 3 days, is to do a partial water change of about 10% of the water volume and see if that doesn't spark or respark their interest. After that, it's pretty much a waiting game. Fish breed when they want to and not when you want them to. :banghead:

Hope this helps...(y)
 
I haven't seen anything yet but they have stopped locking lips and pretty much stay inside the ship constantly haha! I'm thinking i have eggs and just can't see them!

Kinda sounds like that ;) Next time, use a flat rock outside the ship so you can see for yourself (y) I'd start counting the days so you'll know when to get your live brine shrimp hatchery going so you can start feeding the fry when they become free swimming.

Keep us posted (y)
 
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