Do Plecs pair bond - death of an LDA33

[krazyGeoff]

Hi there,
It has beed a sad and frustrating week.
Last Friday my favourite female LDA33, the one that used to come out and watch me work in the fish room, had some kind on idiot moment and managed to get her snout stuck up the intake of the FX5. She was 21.5 cm TL and her head was so big that she couldn't break free and I am assuming that she drowned.
Last night I noticed that her male friend, the one that was caving was sitting in the air stone bubbles and appeared to be breathing more rapidly than usual.
I tested the water:
N3H4 = 0
NO2 = 0
NO3 = 5 (The test kit reacted, but didn't colour up enough to be a 10)
pH = 5.8
Temp = 28.5C
All pretty normal really.
This morning he was dead. Also 21.5cm TL.
There were no signs of fighting, no bloating, no cloudy eyes, no sunken stomach, no nothing........

Those fish had been together for 3 or 4 years, since they were 7cm.

The only thing that I can come up with (and not particularly rationally) is he must have had a broken heart

It is very frustrating as they were about to go into the dry season, while I am overseas, and then rainy season when I return. It is not possible to replace fish of this size in my country

Geoff

[MatsP]

Sorry for your loss. Just a thought: Is it possible that there is some sort of parasite problem, and the reason she got stuck to the filter intake was that she was weak, rather than "stupid".

I hope I'm wrong, but just wanted to raise the possibility.

Edit: Gus (female!), my first Bristlenose, and mother of many little bristlenoses, died not so long back, 7 years after I got her (whilst in the hands of a friend who was looking after some of my fish). My friend said that the male (Warren) was sitting in the cave where she was laying dead - my friend implied Warren was mourning. I'm not convinced.

--
Mats

[Taratron]

I am constantly frustrated by one of my male bristlenose, who will only spawn with one female, despite the other three who constantly fill with eggs and approach his cave. He chases them all off, save for her.

I just want some longfin babies, Mr. Fish! Please lower your standards and raise one clutch from one of the other femmes!

[wrasse]

Geoff,

I totally sympathise. Those fish, at that size, must have been superb.

[racoll]

Geoff, that sucks. Just sickening when these things happen.

They have some LDA33 down here in CHCH, if you are interested in more, but they are only very small unfortunately.

[krazyGeoff]

Thanks for your thoughts folks,
I thought I would open up the female, sort of an amature autopsy, to see if she had any eggs in her, which she didn't.
The gut looked "normal" based on pictures that I have seen before on the digestive tract etc for a baryancistrus.

She was a nosey fish, and only half of the strainer was in place over the intake to the FX5 (as had been the set up for over a year). Once she got in there she would not have been able to extend her pectoral fins.
I still have the deceased male in the deep freeze. (A big fish like that is going to smell out the rubbish bag if I put him in there before rubbish day)

Yes they are quite magnificant at this size. Lucky (I suppose) that they are my small ones and I still have 3 females and 1 male.
They will be having a dry season whilst I am at the L-Number days, and hopefully I may be able to pick up some spawning tips in Hanover from Johannes Leuenberger who has bred the L177

Cheers
Geoff

[Rabbit]

Sorry to hear mate.