[nick0604]

I have 6 yellow labs, 5 demasoni, 4 socolofli, and 4 bumblebee juvie cichlids in my 120g tank setup. I had about 10 demasoni, but 5 died and I have no reason why. One of the socolofli is pretty aggressive towards other socolofli. The dems or the socofoli haven't started breeding yet. My yellow labs are breeding like crazy, but these other fish just aren't breeding at all. Any help to get the dems and socolofli breeding would be very helpful. I'm not sure what to do. the dems are about 1.5" long. Is this to young for them to start breeding?

 

[GTZ]

I have 6 yellow labs, 5 demasoni, 4 socolofli, and 4 bumblebee juvie cichlids in my 120g tank setup. I had about 10 demasoni, but 5 died and I have no reason why. One of the socolofli is pretty aggressive towards other socolofli. The dems or the socofoli haven't started breeding yet. My yellow labs are breeding like crazy, but these other fish just aren't breeding at all. Any help to get the dems and socolofli breeding would be very helpful. I'm not sure what to do. the dems are about 1.5" long. Is this to young for them to start breeding?

It could be that the dems are still a bit young.
Because Demasoni are so aggressive towards each other, it's recommended that you start with a large grouping, in your case 15-20. This helps spread out the aggression so that everyone gets a share of being picked on. http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/p_demasoni.php
In my limited experience, Socolofi are almost as bad as Demasoni when it comes to conspecific aggression, I would up their numbers to 6 or 7. If they're large enough to sex (google venting cichlids) try to get a ratio of 1 male to 5 or 6 females.

 

[soulpride]

i would up the bumblebee number too. 1m/7-8f. the bumblebee will be your most aggressive fish in that tank.

 

[justinf67]

I agree, my albino socolofi can be really aggressive, although lately he seems to have mellowed some... I have to say have some patience, the fish are only 1.5'', they are still juvies. Female demasoni can hold at around 2'', but, in my experience, the males reach sexual maturity later than the females, at around 2.5-3''....Once they start, they wont stop. Again, be patient...

As for them all dying, their may be a power struggle going on... I keep dems in my main tank and 2 growouts right now and rarely lose any. My numbers are good, but u have to be watchful with dems as a dominant male can stress the others to the point of death. Watch ur tank for this aggression and remove if necessary

 

[Kanorin]

I agree with the three posts above.

Aside from bettering your male : female ratios, the best thing you can do to encourage spawning is clean water low in nitrates. Give your tank a nice big 70% water change and you'll spur their growth and maybe even some spawning.

Socolofi should start breeding at about 2.5 - 3 inches.

 

[nick0604]

Finally my demasoni female is holding. I moved her into a maternity tank last night that is divided with yellow lab fry on the other side. How long does it take for her to spit out her fry? I am pretty sure I also witnessed the courtship of male and female which was pretty amazing! Also, about how many fry will she hold? She is about 1.5 inches long.

 

[dielikemoviestars]

Usually 3 weeks, maybe a little longer (up to 4). She might not hold the eggs full term since she's a new momma. I wouldn't expect many this time.