Bichir "Cupping" Breeding Behaviour
Like 2 Dislike 0 Published on 25 Nov 2016
Male Bichirs "cup" their anal fin to catch and fertilise the eggs. They also do it to signal the females they are ready to breed.
Whilst male Lower Jaw Bichirs like this Lapradei mature around 3 years. Females don't become fertile until 5-6 years. This can lead the males to become sexually frustrated and aggressive; even more so when Upper Jaw males can mature as young as a year, but females still 5-6.
All the females in the tank being under and around 2 years, there has been a lot of fin bites of frustration from this male.