Electric Blue behaviour - Spawning or Fighting?

Hi All

So I bought the last 2 Electric blues at my LFS on the weekend. The one (let's call him Fred) was more colourful and "radiant" than the other (I'll call it Jo). I am not sure if they are a pair, or both males (Fred is definitely male based on what I could find on the Internet) and I figured Jo was either a female or a younger male....

So, all week Fred has been chasing Jo whenever he/she is nearby. No harm done, more like a friendly reminder not to invade its personal space and Jo seemingly wasn't too bothered by this, casually moving away and continuing with life.

Tonight I get home, and Jo has had a metamorphisis..... Forehead coloured a dark cream, almost orange colour and eye bloodred with a dark black stripe through - colour has transformed to match that of Fred to such an extent that I don't know which is which. They seem to be hanging out together in the back of the tank, inbetween the plants and just occasionally pushing the other out of the way. Jo was swimming around last evening, rubbing its sides against plant leaves, driftwood etc.

Anyway, they seem relatively peaceful with the odd aggressive show-off to the other.

So? Spawning or fighting? Sorry, I can't get photos, just no way of getting to them but I will keep trying

 

@CJ Fish , sounds to me like they want spawn

My female also changes colour before spawning and they shake and rub against driftwood
they eventually lay their eggs on the driftwood or rocks as hidden away as they can
I have had it that we see fry without ever having seen eggs they were so well hidden

Hope im right.... good luck!!!

 

Thanks @MariaS, what do I do if they spawn? I dont have a spare tank for the fry and pretty sure the other fish will be in for a hiding from the parents?

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Is it Electric Blue Acaras or Rams? Both have a very similar look, but a massive size and temperament difference.

 

No, the one is much "paler" than the other - I have considered that it might be a younger male, hence my question. Photos to follow

I doubt they are Acaras, the eye and the high dorsal fin is pretty much in line with what I have seen on the Internet in trying to research their behaviour

Photos as below - apologies for the poor quality, hope this helps

 

AH, RAMS. Stunning little fish. Hard to tell sex on the electric blues. Not a dead give-away, but usually the males will be slightly larger, and the spikes on the male's dorsal is usually longer than that of the females. But again, I have seen females with way longer spikes...

It is most likely territorial behaviour. During spawning, there will be a lot of flashing and flaring of their fins, trying to show off.

I guess time will tell...

 

Thanks @Jaco83, the flashing and flaring was happening last evening together with the "pale" one rubbing against the other every now and then. It did look like some sort of courtship ceremony. They were hiding together in the back of the tank, just hanging out.

I guess I will have to wait and see what happens - just concerned that if it is fighting, whether it will end and how. If however they are spawning, I would also have a problem with what to do with the fry, as I need to think of the well-being of the tankmates. I believe Rams will get possessive over their area and their fry, and could be aggressive to other fish?

 

If they are fighting, you would possibly notice ripped fins, and you might find them grabbing each other by the lips.

If they are spawning, give them a flat rock to spawn on, as they will lay their eggs on a nice flat rock. They will also claim this area as their territory. Once they have eggs and fry, they will defend the area, but they wont harm other fish. The only thing that will happen, is that there will by free food for the other tank mates. Eggs or fry wont last very long.

 

No ripped fins (yet) but will check again this evening - let's wait and see. If it is fighting, is there any sort of duration that this behaviour would continue for, or would it continue till I remove one from the tank? If it is spawning - how do I know when to take them out of the tank, or do I just move the rock and the eggs? lol

 

@CJ Fish .... The thread below has pictures of my breeding pair

https://www.tropicalaquarium.co.za/threads/electric-blue-acara-fry.26099/

 

Thanks to all that responded - I think they are/were fighting or sparring. They seem to be spending 90% of their time with this behavior but the remainder of the time they are quite content spending time in close proximity of each other. Rather fascinating to be honest

 

How do I make them stop? They seem to be fine one minute and the next they are sparring and seemingly trying to grab each other by the lips

 

Separate them, or create more hiding space.

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Having bred and raised a thousand or more I would say you have two males. Since Electric Blue Ram females do not show a side spot with sparkles they can be hard to sex unless in spawning condition.