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Over the last two months, I've been seeing more and more of them, and over the last month, they swim up the glass to the surface fairly often. Last night, they were also swimming upside down on the surface, across the length of the tank. One actually stuck his entire head out of the water for a second or two by "treading water" (wiggling his tail) vigorously.

The tank water is a little low, causing the return water to splash and create more bubbles than usual. Is this normal play behavior? My husband thought maybe prelude to mating (it was often a pair). Just want to be sure they aren't gasping for air (did not appear so).

I have three and plan to add 3 more soon. I've had them for 7 months in a 38 gallon with mbuna (Demasoni, Yellow Labs) and lots of rockwork. Temp 78, pH 7.5, Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0, Nitrate 10.

I don't think there is anything wrong with them. I have seen a tank full of multipunctatus hybrids cause the surface to boil with activity during feeding, they get their noses a good half inch out of the water in their rush for the food. Real multipunctatus I've also seen swimming inverted under the surface with their barbles just protruding, also during feeding.

now that u talk about multies they stick their heads out all the way until they touch the top during feeding

I lost some of my petricola's to the hob filters. It seems they like to swim up the outflow, and weren't making it back into the tank on the way back out. I finally found one dried out on the glass cover, I figure the dogs ate any that hit the floor, due to the absence of other corpses.
I put a strip light on the top of the tank that covers the openings, and haven't lost any since.

Thanks for the replies. Mine do not come to the top during feeding (I feed sinking pelllets and I always make sure some food hits the bottom for them). It seems more like they are playing.

DJRansome wrote:It seems more like they are playing.

I once made a 'jungle gym' for a multipunk using adhesive plastic hooks. It spent many an hour at gymnastics, before eventually losing interest.