Golden Barbs

xweeqtx

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I've been sitting watching two of my barbs "rolling" each other over, they just keep going over and over one another, kinda as if they are trying to wrap like betta's do except full speed going round and round. What on earth are they doing? Is this some kind of mating ritual!? Or is there something seriously wrong ?

eta:
since the male will court the female quite violently during the breeding period. He will swim around her in circles and push her around with his mouth open. He will also strike her with his tail and try to force her to swim to a planted part of the aquarium where the eggs can be released. Just as in the wild, the eggs will be released when the water becomes light after the night.

So, yes, I assume they are breeding.
 
The question is, what sex are the animals involved?

Female gold barbs are a good deal larger then males, deeper and wider. Their dark marks are more a sprinkling of discrete spots, whereas males tend to have many spots to almost oblique stripes on their upper flank. In breeding condition, both sexes, but particularly males, develop a pinkish red hue over their lower abdomen, it is useless to attemp breeding if this colouration is not present.

Males are "keen" drivers of females, as with many barb species.

Two males will often spar a little which can resemble spawning behaviours. It is a strength/dominance type thing.
 
The question is, what sex are the animals involved?

Female gold barbs are a good deal larger then males, deeper and wider. Their dark marks are more a sprinkling of discrete spots, whereas males tend to have many spots to almost oblique stripes on their upper flank. In breeding condition, both sexes, but particularly males, develop a pinkish red hue over their lower abdomen, it is useless to attemp breeding if this colouration is not present.

Males are "keen" drivers of females, as with many barb species.

Two males will often spar a little which can resemble spawning behaviours. It is a strength/dominance type thing.

Well, I've 4 of them. One of the barbs is a good deal bigger than the other 3, and is the only one with this "sprinkling" as you described - more or less has barely any black at all. The other 3 have quite a lot of black on them. Two of the smaller ones have orangey abdomens, the others are white-ish. They stopped doing it a while after I posted and seem fine this morning. I didn't have it planned to breed them, I'm actually giving them to someone else so I've only got them temp at the moment.
 

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