pregnant labidochromis caeruleus

[thanew]

does anyone have a picture of these things while they are carrying eggs? my mom is a little lost with it and she doesn't know if they are pregnant or not so I want to find a picture, but a google search didn't come up with anything.

i know they have a lump in their throat (i guess thats what youd call it) and they rarely eat..

so any pictures would help out

thanks,
thane

 

[whitetiger_CJ]

Are the gills flared?, and they will usually clamp there mouth together while in close proximity to other fish.

 

[travis simonson]

Hope this helps. Look for a distention in what is called their buchal cavity, sort of what we would consider 'under the tongue'. It's actually pretty easy to see when you know what to look for. They will usually carry the eggs for 3-5 weeks. The eggs will actually hatch after about 7-10 days and after that they will be carrying the live fry in their mouth, although they won't actually release them until 4-5 weeks have passed, IME. As soon as they start carrying they will almost certainly quit eating, although I've seen a few females capable of taking small bits of flake food while carrying. With L. caeruleus you can expect anywhere from 20-50 fry, with a very low survival rate in a community tank. If this is her first breeding you may see considerably lower numbers of fry, but she will be holding again soon if the male has anything to say about it

 

[jenpc]

nice pic

 

[travis simonson]

Thanks Sort of a lucky shot, as the fish in the pic is usually almost always in cover while she is carrying. She happens to be the only female L. caeruleus in a tank with three other males. Definitely the unfortunate object of attention when she is carrying