# Mating Behavior



## Paul B (Aug 4, 2009)

I have always said that if your fish are exhibiting mating behavior they are in the best of health. There are as many varied mating behaviors as there are fish. My fireclowns just get next to each other and shake while smacking each other with their tails, my bluestripped pipefish kind of swim parallel to each other and occasionally wrap around each other. Bangai cardinals just stay next to each other as do seahorses and the male of these gobies drag the female around in their mouth. This male has been holding (gingerly) the female by the area just before the tail for an hour. She is playing hard to get and is probably not ready to lay eggs. This pair has been laying eggs for a few years now.


















Here is the female tending an earlier spawning


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## BigandUgly (Sep 24, 2009)

Wonderful pictures. Thank you for sharing. It is really a great sign when everyone in your tank is having a love fest. You must be doing something right.

Have you had any luck raising your gobies fry?


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## beaslbob (May 29, 2009)

We have a local here that raised yellow watchman gobies. Well actually she only got one to leve for over a year. From the briefing she gave our local club, it takes some doing. they had a larval phase of like 29 days or so. In that time she had to feed rotifers and phyto in a small tank with 50% daily water changes.


my .02


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## Paul B (Aug 4, 2009)

> it takes some doing. they had a larval phase of like 29 days or so. In that time she had to feed rotifers and phyto in a small tank with 50% daily water changes.


Thats why I don't do that anymore. People ask me for baby bluestripe pipefish, bangai cardinals, fireclowns and gobies but they are to time consuming. I may do it again in the future but for now, I just let them do their natural thing.


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## beaslbob (May 29, 2009)

You done bettr than me. Only thing I ever had spawn was snails and 3 stripe damsels. The 3 stripe's larva only lasted about a week or so.


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## Paul B (Aug 4, 2009)

Here are some seahorses I collected, the female is transfering eggs to the males pouch









In this upper picture taken in my tank about 1973 that male blue devil is above his nest of eggs in that barnacle shell. That fish and the 6 others lived seven years and laid eggs every month or two.


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## BigandUgly (Sep 24, 2009)

I've bred numerous freshwater fish, usually just for fun, occassionally to trade to the LFS. I haven't had the time or energy to try saltwater yet. I'm thinking about Bangaii's or Perc clowns, but it is a lot of work and time consuming. I'm not sure when the real job and family responsibilities will allow it. 

Maybe in 4 years when my oldest leaves for college and I can convert his bedroom to a fish room (yeah right).


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## Paul B (Aug 4, 2009)

These guys just laid another batch of eggs. This time they are in between some rocks that they really have to jamb themselves into. It is amazing they have any scales left after squeezing into this place. Maybe tomorrow I will try to move a rock to see them. I may topple the entire tank to do it though.


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