I have 2 males and 1 female in a 120L tank which they share with some Panaqolus, Dianema, Corydoras, Centromochlus and a population of Endler's guppies. They always seem to get broody in November and switch off again at the end of February. Last year, after two years of waiting, they spawned for the first time. Over the period Nov-Feb the female produced 3 clutches, each time with 6 weeks in between. The first clutch she laid in the cave of the largest male but the response of the other male to this was to launch an all out attack which eventually resulted in the guarding male abandoning his cave after which the victor ejected the eggs. The losing male had lost most of his caudal fin and nearly all the skin on one side of his body. He really looked in an awful state but much to my amazement he healed very quickly without any problems or medication. Unfortunately I was away when all this happened and my then 9-year old son tried his best to save the eggs but they all developed fungus. The two subsequent spawns occurred in the same cave with the new occupant and were both successful, the male proving to be a very good dad. Here he is in his cave:
I thought about it for a while and I realised that, although the two caves were in the same positions as last year, I had accidentally swapped them over when I had taken all the decor out last summer to catch the juveniles. So my theory now was that the female has a strong preference for one cave, regardless of its position or the occupant. I assumed that the male occupying the favorite cave was reluctant to spawn because he knew there was a dominant male about. This would also explain his regular attempts at dispersal, doing the rounds of the tank hanging off the glass. So, I decided to put my theory to the test by swapping over the two caves. Both males left their caves when I picked them up and within ten minutes had entered their new cave, so that was good. That evening I did a 15% water change with cool water (I do this every other day) and before I had even finished the female was in the cave with the male that she had ignored all this time. Naturally, I was very pleased with myself for having the fish repond to my intervention exacly as I had predicted... It seems therefore that females are very choosy about caves and not so much about males. I should add that there is not much difference between the caves, but the preferred one is slightly larger.
With the female in the cave with the male that she had spawned with twice last year I was optimistic we would find eggs the next day. However, it wasn't until 6 days later (today) that they finally spawned, and I was lucky to observe the moment. As I sat watching the tank (as you do) I noticed the male backing out of the cave, followed a minute later by the female (she had been in there all this time). She then turned around and backed, tail first, back into the cave, followed by the male who went in head first. After about five minutes the male backed out again and this time he too turned around and backed into the cave. Over the next hour the male would come out of the cave every ten minutes or so and alternatingly enter it head first or tail first, until finally the female emerged looking much thinner and with a clearly visible ovipositor. The male is now fanning a nice clutch of eggs. Fingers crossed it all goes smoothly now.
Whoever said breeding plecos is kinda boring?
