Who Gives A Fish Forums

One of my paracyprichromis nigripinnis is definitely holding this time - same one as in that pic I posted earlier. I'm getting a bit worried about her though. Last night, I thought she just looked a bit skinny when I fed them, figured she was just pouching her food like usual. But tonight, I checked her before adding food and sure enough, she's got a pouch full of little dark things - pretty sure they're eggs, not just last night's food. What's got me concerned is how quickly she's lost weight - like, overnight. Never had these fish before, so I'm not sure if it's normal for them to get this skinny after spawning. I'm used to my americans losing a bit of belly after spawning, but this one seems really thin.

If I were to net her, would she spit the eggs out so she could eat better? I'm worried she won't survive holding eggs in this state - or would she spit them out on her own if she's not up to holding them?

My experience with cyps is that they stop feeding while holding, but they quickly regain condition after releasing the fry. If you try to net her, she'll likely release the eggs, but they might not be developed enough to survive on their own. What's your tank's stocking like, just out of curiosity? Personally, I'd leave her be until she releases the fry naturally.

Apart from the nigripinnis, I have a single leilupi and a julie in the tank, that's all. This is day 3 and I know they can hold for up to 20 days, but I'm really concerned about how thin she's become. I've been keeping a close eye on her and if she loses any more condition, I'll have to net her and hope for the best. I'm not too fussed about the eggs, to be honest, as I wasn't planning on breeding them anyway.

If you don't catch her and she does spit the fry, I reckon they'd struggle to make it anyway with the leleupi and Julies in the tank. They do hold for around three weeks sometimes, and I've known them to go longer. I wish you the best of luck if you do try to catch her, but honestly I'd hang on a bit longer.

She's no longer holding, so I'm assuming she's spat the eggs overnight. Thankfully I didn't have to intervene, I just hope she can build up some condition now before she spawns again.

They will indeed, but the spawning cycle will persist.