Just thought it was neat! Usually the holding males hide and lounge around the bottom of the tank, and stay lazy, but I caught this guy up at the top in plain view, so I recorded him.
B. Dimidiata are paternal mouthbrooders. While bubblenesters float their eggs up near the surface to make sure they get oxygen, this boy is holding his young in his mouth, and puffing up his cheeks like this to keep water moving through the eggs, and get them well oxygenated that way.
In the wild, this strategy is more viable, as the male is able to stay mobile, and theres no risk of the nest being broken by outside forces. In captivity, without risks of predation, its less reliable than bubblenesting! Why? Well. The males will swallow their eggs on a whim. Here’s to hoping this guy doesn’t decide he wants a snack anytime soon…
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Caption from original post:
B. Dimidiata aerating eggs
Just thought it was neat! Usually the holding males hide and lounge around the bottom of the tank, and stay lazy, but I caught this guy up at the top in plain view, so I recorded him.
B. Dimidiata are paternal mouthbrooders. While bubblenesters float their eggs up near the surface to make sure they get oxygen, this boy is holding his young in his mouth, and puffing up his cheeks like this to keep water moving through the eggs, and get them well oxygenated that way.
In the wild, this strategy is more viable, as the male is able to stay mobile, and theres no risk of the nest being broken by outside forces. In captivity, without risks of predation, its less reliable than bubblenesting! Why? Well. The males will swallow their eggs on a whim. Here’s to hoping this guy doesn’t decide he wants a snack anytime soon…