Strange behaviour?

Hey all,

New to the group, this is my first post. I have 2 ellioti cichlids (did have 3 but she was a massive bully so returned her) one is definitely a female, she has a dark black spot with really vibrant blue specks on her dorsal, the other ellioti, unsure of sex, keeps chasing her, does a little shaking type dance but then sorta slaps/rubs up against the female, does it while facing both ways but mainly while facing her back end.

Does anybody know what this means? I have tried finding information but to no luck.

Thanks

Any chance of a picture and short video of the fish?
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Colin_T said:

Any chance of a picture and short video of the fish?
If the pictures are too big for the website, set the camera's resolution to its lowest setting and take some more. The lower resolution will make the images smaller and they should fit on this website. Check the pictures on your pc and find a couple that are clear and show the problem, and post them here. Make sure you turn the camera's resolution back up after you have taken the pics otherwise all your pictures will be small.

If the video is too big for this website, post it on YouTube and copy & paste the link here. We can view it at YouTube. If you are using a mobile phone to take the video, have the phone horizontal so the video takes up the entire screen. If you have the phone vertical, you get video in the middle and black on either side.

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Hi, i don't have any pictures yet, I've only had the fish for just under a week. I've put them in a bigger tank so they're hiding atm. I did find some information online and it seems it is some kind of courting ritual LOL. They did come from the same tank from my lfs so not surprised. I have a firemouth in there too, they all seem to get on OK. The bigger tank is a lot better, they were in a 66ltr but were always chasing each other, so I've put them into a tank twice the size.
Thanks for the reply. As soon as they start coming out more and not hiding, I will get some photos. They are very shy. As soon as they see movement, they hide. The firemouth hides anyway, he's taken residence behind a huge log of wood thats now in the tank hopefully they start being more social and not so shy and hiding all the time.

How big are these fish? If they reached sexual maturity, it can be breeding behavior. If you notice the 2 hanging in one cave, it's safe to say they have paired.

I've seen this behavior in some cichlids but not all when pairing. Apistogramma do this often.

They are about 2 inch without the tail fin. So fairly sized. I finally got pictures. I had to sit here still so they would come out to play. They do swim together a bit, and sometimes go in the same cave but not always. One will chase the other out. I've just put them into a bigger tank so I think they're finding their territory. When the weird dance was happening, the male would chase her wiggle/shake in front of her, then circle back and sort of slap up against her. I will link the article for you https://cichlidae.com/species.php?id=247. This is where it says its courting behaviour. Its the most informative article I have found so far on ellioti. Anyway in the pictures, the female is in the middle, Between the male and the firemouth. She has a vibrant spot and also the lfs also said she was female. He has a whole wall of just cichlids. So many amazing ones. I want them all LOL. I will get more pictures, I took loads but these were the best quality.

This one isn't that great but you can clearly see her black spot. It really is vibrant. Very dark and the blue is very bright. Its so beautiful.

OK so after sat watching them for the last hour, they are always together. Everywhere they go. They are no longer chasing each other like they were yesterday, they now seem like an old married couple they sift for food together. One will go inside one of the smaller caves, the other waits outside for it. Think they have either paired or they're new BFFS

It sure sounds like they have paired.

If you have trouble finding info on the Ellioti, do some research on firemouth behavior and breeding. While they are not the same fish, they come from the same genus (thorichthys) so you can expect very similar behavior.

I've been in the hunt for these fish for years, and every time I see one my tanks are fully stocked.

Metalhead88 said:

It sure sounds like they have paired.

If you have trouble finding info on the Ellioti, do some research on firemouth behavior and breeding. While they are not the same fish, they come from the same genus (thorichthys) so you can expect very similar behavior.

I've been in the hunt for these fish for years, and every time I see one my tanks are fully stocked.

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Yeah i knew they were from the same genus. I have done a good bit of reading, its all so fascinating. Im new to keeping fish and cichlids are my first fish. Im enjoying it. I love their character etc. I also have an African jewel, hemichromis bimaculatus. I think its a she. She's started turning red on her belly and face area. She looks amazing! She also has a little hangy down thing ( I dont know the correct term for their sexual organs) so think she wants to breed or lay eggs. She is on a tank by herself though. She's very anti social

My lfs has quite a few ellioti, I'm in the UK. Do you not have many where you are from then? I am in love with them. I can see myself having a lot of tanks full of cichlids ‍

Gem:) said:

Yeah i knew they were from the same genus. I have done a good bit of reading, its all so fascinating. Im new to keeping fish and cichlids are my first fish. Im enjoying it. I love their character etc. I also have an African jewel, hemichromis bimaculatus. I think its a she. She's started turning red on her belly and face area. She looks amazing! She also has a little hangy down thing ( I dont know the correct term for their sexual organs) so think she wants to breed or lay eggs. She is on a tank by herself though. Shce's very anti social

My lfs has quite a few ellioti, I'm in the UK. Do you not have many where you are from then? I am in love with them. I can see myself having a lot of tanks full of cichlids ‍♀

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My first tank was a cichlid tank as well. Almost 20 years later, I've kept almost exclusively American cichlids. The LFS by me has them, but only juviniles that would be bite sized for my current fish. My tanks are fully stocked now so maybe next run I'll get one.
Be careful with the firemouths if they breed and also the jewel can have very aggressive for its size. I've also seen them in community tanks where aggression is not at all an issue.

Metalhead88 said:

My first tank was a cichlid tank as well. Almost 20 years later, I've kept almost exclusively American cichlids. The LFS by me has them, but only juviniles that would be bite sized for my current fish. My tanks are fully stocked now so maybe next run I'll get one.
Be careful with the firemouths if they breed and also the jewel can have very aggressive for its size. I've also seen them in community tanks where aggression is not at all an issue.

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Sorry for the late reply, have only just seen this.
I keep my African in a separate tank, all by him/her self. Not entirely sure on the sex but does have a round belly. Although that could be due to feeding lol he loves his frozen foods! Literally takes them from my fingers. Its a beautiful sight

I had only one firemouth in with the ellioti but returned him as he was badly bullying the ellioti male. Mouth fighting n all sorts. Kept the ellioti pair stuck into the corner of the tank all the time. Feeding time was a nightmare. So I returned him as I felt it wasn't fair on the ellioti pair. I do think they have paired up, they follow each other everywhere. Even now they're in a 180l tank by themselves, they still are always side by side.
Interested to see if they breed
Ahh i fell in love with cichlids! Such beautiful fish, and also have such good personalities to them. I love seeing my ellioti has dug pits all over and watching my African play follow the finger lol could watch them all day
Whats your favourite cichlid then?
I would love some angel fish but think I need a separate tank due to different water parameters for them. Also love discus. So beautiful. My favourite have to be Africans though. Such pretty colours

I think you can watch this....


By the way, you have beautiful fish.

What African fish are you keeping?
I like especially the Lake Tanganyika fish.

Lajos_Detari said:

I think you can watch this....

Why Does My Tropical Fish Shake Its Body - Tropical Fish Site

If your tropical fish is shaking its body then it is something which you may think is wrong or out of the ordinary and not seen this before. Panic may set in

www.tropicalfishsite.com

By the way, you have beautiful fish.

What African fish are you keeping?
I like especially the Lake Tanganyika fish.

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Hi, thanks for the reply. The male was courting the female. I had done some research and the movement was sort of to show strength, he was pushing water up next to her by flicking his body sideways. They have definitely paired up now anyway.
I was watching them earlier and they were doing a mad little shake, I had cleaned the tank and glass today so now they can see their reflection, they always think its another fish lol they have been at the glass almost fighting their own reflections then doing like a little shimmy/shake after. Its so cool watching them do their thing.

I have an african jewelfish, hemichromis bimaculatus, I think that's the one he is anyway.
I will get some good pictures tomorrow of them all and post for you.
And thankyou, they definitely are beautiful fish