pencilfish gone mad!!

[sacy]

hi. i got 2 penclifish in my 2ft tank for quit some time. they are friendly.^^

but this week, my pencilfish gone mad .
dont know wat happen to them. kept chasing my other fish out of e plant.
and e most power wan is! e pencilfish also chasing my 2inch+ SAE out toooo.

one of my pencilfish is super red.

anyone know wat happen to them?

[celticfish]

sounds like LURVE is in the air... er water...
am not very familiar with pencil fish mating but the symptoms sounds like so.
i.e. small fish chasing away a bigger fish. its just not natural! and more intense colours.
continue observing, try not to disturb them and change water parameters.
good luck!

[Wackytpt]

sounds like LURVE is in the air... er water...
am not very familiar with pencil fish mating but the symptoms sounds like so.
i.e. small fish chasing away a bigger fish. its just not natural! and more intense colours.
continue observing, try not to disturb them and change water parameters.
good luck!

answering to nature call.. could be in breeding mode

[sacy]

wow!! new year , new babyzz ^^

will e eggz survive and hatch? with
2XAlbino Corydoras
11x Cardinal
1x SAE
2x Hillstream Loach
30++Shrimp
in e tank? >.<

btw how to know e sex of e pencilfish?

thankz for reply ^^

[MrTree]

For this species, the male would show the red on top & bottom of the black band across the body.

but frankly speaking, it looks more like two males flaring to me...

[cs_sg]

For this species, the male would show the red on top & bottom of the black band across the body.

but frankly speaking, it looks more like two males flaring to me...

What species are these pencilfish?
Mine behave the same too.

[sacy]

wif!! >.< i got gay fish??

then y only one of my pencilfish is chashing e other fish alway?

i not sure. maybe itz <Nannostomus beckfordi(golden pencilfish)> or <Nannostomus harrisoni(Harrison's pencilfish)>

thank mr tree

[Justikanz]

Err... When males flare, it means they are fighting for territory or for the girls...

The winner chases the loser away and gets the territory and the girls...

If all goes well, in a couple of months' time, you should find a couple of small pencils... Provided they are not ALL hunted down...

[mickthefish]

they look like a pair to me, going of the ventral fins the clearest pic shows it having a white trim to the edges, the other they are absent, as sacy said either beckfordi or harrisoni, i'm not sure.

[ccs]

So how to tell diff between male and female?

[bezz]

I think Pencilfish eats their eggs as soon as they spawn...So quite difficult to get baby pencils.

[Justikanz]

I had a few babies... Yes, the parents will hunt the eggs down and so will the tank mates... But in a thickly planted tank, esp with thick mosses, some fry will survive...

[sacy]

eh.. how to tell e pencilfish is a male or a female?

i meet to confrim my 2 pencilfish is a pair anot. i dont wan gay >.<

btw is kh 11deg normal anot?

[mickthefish]

the brightest coloured is the male, also the female is a lot fatter especialy when full of eggs.
mick

[sacy]

mickthefish thank!

[neon]

I have 3 of these pencil fish in my tank and 2 of them always do this crazy dance . It is quite fasinating to see them do this dance and their body turn completely black and the red become extreme. I can see the scale also flare up and visible. So far I have not seen any baby at all. May be they are gay ?

[Justikanz]

Males DO flare at one another that CAN sometimes look like mating ritual...

Furthermore, in a community tank, eggs and subsequent fry can be eaten VERY easily... I was lucky to have 3 baby pencils from 2 batches surviving, which is probably due to the thick Java moss I used to have and the fact that the tank is a 4footer... More space for the babies to hide and the hunters to forage...

[nostalgia]

i think pencils are one of the more easier fishes to breed! They mate pretty easily. When mating they will stick side by side with eachother shaking! Very interesting to see!