Severums Breeding - 01/23/2007
Hello,
<Hi, Jeannine - first of, THANK YOU for fixing your capitalization and re-sending your message - I can't tell you how much we appreciate this.  You're awesome.>
I have a pair of gold Severums that have bred 3 times. The first time in my community tank.  The babies were there for a few days and then were gone.  The parents were protecting the babies so I thought the other fish had ate them.
<Yeah, that's very likely.  However, the parents also can end up "giving up" if the threat to their young is too great in a community tank; if they do "give up", well, sometimes even the parents will eat the young.  Also, new parent cichlids might take a few to several tries before they finally understand that baby cichlids are for raising, not eating.>
So I moved them to their own tank so they would have no worries.
<Great!>
They had more babies and were doing nicely for a few days. Then they were gone. The parents must have eaten them.
<Yeah, the stress of moving may have spurred this, or again, they're probably pretty new to the whole baby thing.>
The 3rd set, I let the babies in there for a few days. Then I put them in a breeding net to separate them.
<Better to either completely remove them to another tank to raise them or to allow the parents to raise them uninhibited.>
I fed them some liquid small fry food. The parents did not like being separated from the babies. Two hours later they were all gone. I can see some floating dead, but I don't see all of them. I don't know if the parents somehow sucked them through the net or what.  
<This can and does happen, even with very fine netting - it's just not safe for the young to keep them in a breeder net in a tank with strong adult fish.>
How can I keep them alive? Do I need to move the parents back to the community tank after they have some more?
<That is an option.>
If so when?
<As soon as you see aggression toward the young, and are quite certain they're going to be eaten....  Otherwise, let mom and dad try their hand at parenting in peace a few times - they'll get it right with time, more than likely.  Don't disturb the tank too much or provide a threat to the "kids", and probably the parents will learn how to do things the right way.  Cichlids are amazing; they're one of the few groups of fish that actually do protect and raise their young.  Occasionally, there will be a pair that just doesn't "get it", and if yours never "gets it", then separating them from their young is the thing to do.  But let 'em try taking care of their young first; it means less work for you, and possibly healthier young.  Even better, you'll get to observe some of the most interesting fish behaviors there are - parents providing for, protecting, and raising their young.>
Thank You,  -Jeannine
<All the best to you,  -Sabrina>

Breeding Gold Severums    1/21/07
Hello, How many breeding pair of gold Severums can you have in a 55 gal tank?
< I would stick to two if you plan on keeping the fry around. But just one pair will supply you and all your friends with all the gold Severums you will ever need.>
I have 12 Severums in this tank and 3 sets are breeding.  Will  they breed and raise fry as families?
< No. If they breed at the same time the fry will get mixed up and they will not be able to tell their fry from their neighbor's. the breeding pairs will constantly be fighting with one another. I would recommend that you just keep a pair and watch them raise their family like cichlids do.>
I can move the unpaired fish if  necessary.  Thank you
<You could potentially end up with 6 breeding pairs of fish. Each pair can produce a thousand eggs every two weeks depending on the size. Lots of gold Severums to get rid of.-Chuck>

Severum Breeding With Siblings   1/14/07
Hello, I wrote you in December of 05 about TOO much of a good Thing, This was in reference that I had a mated pair of gold Severums that had 2 set of   babies 2 week apart, and thus I had almost 400 babies to raise. You suggested I   contact local fish stores. After 1 year I am down to about 40 babies left.   I had a very upsetting day last May as one of my parent fish was found dead out of the tank as I woke one morning.  All this time I thought it was the Daddy fish as it was the larger and the most colorful of the pair.  Now I  am wondering if maybe I have mistaken the identity.  From August 11 of 05  (first babies) until now, there have no eggs in the tank at all.  The  parent fish has shared a tank with 10 of the younger fish for 8 months. Part of this time I had a divider in the tank as the younger fish seemed to  annoy the parent.  The past 2 months the parent fish has lived freely with  the 10 maturing fish.   
2 of the younger fish began to mate and move  to a place in the tank inside a flower pot.  Suddenly eggs were in the tank  again.  What a joy!   NOW I am very confused.  The original  parent fish suddenly began parenting the eggs.  I thought may the mothering  instinct was just overcoming the fish and it was filling the parenting  role.  These eggs were not fertilized and so 2 weeks later a second batch  appeared.  Same thing happened.   At some point some of the smaller fish at the eggs about day 5.  Yesterday 3rd set of eggs.   YEAH.  I am now prepared to divide the tank to prevent the other fish from  eating the eggs.  I'm not SOOO not sure of the largest original parent  fishes role.  I put 3 fish on the side with the eggs last night.  The  largest fish will not leave the eggs.  Could I have mistaken the fish and  it was the male all the time and it is trying to fertilize the eggs?  Could  this still be the female and it is mothering the eggs?  If it is female why  no eggs for over a year?  I just don't know what to do.  My original  plan was to get a mate for the original fish when the babies were all  moved.  This is not happening right now as I am having babies.  Could  the largest fish be mating with a smaller baby fish?   Please help me  with this issue.  Thank you so much.
<The older fish could be breeding with the siblings. You could have a female and is trying to breed with the siblings by laying eggs but the younger fish isn't going for it. Probably the older fish is laying the eggs hoping that one of the younger males will fertilize the eggs.-Chuck>

Green Severum has laid eggs   9/21/06
Hello,
<Hi there>
In one of my tanks, (55 gal.) I have 2-4" Green Severums, 1-3" Bala Shark, 1-5" Silver Dollar "Ike"-my favorite fish, 1-3" Pictus Catfish, 1-4" Electric Blue Cichlid (Yes, I know he shouldn't be here but he gets along better with the fish in this tank than in my African Cichlid tank),
<Ah, yes. Many tank-bred Aulonocaras are quite mild>
1-6" Common Pleco, 1-2" Moonlight Gourami, 1-1" Gold Gourami, 1-1" Opaline Gourami. (My Son wanted Gourami's, and I plan to transfer these fish to a different tank eventually.) With some mild aggression at times, the fish are getting along just fine. No Fish is over-harassing any other fish too much.
The 2 Severums were purchased from different fish stores. They look alike except for coloration. 1 was sold as a "Turquoise" Severum and the other as a "Green" Severum.
<Mmm, same species...>
My wife insisted at first that they were different fish. I told her that they are the same species, and so are Gold Severums. Am I correct?
<Yes>
Anyway, our 7 year-old daughter spotted eggs laying on some of the rocks at the bottom. We immediately could see that they were fish eggs. The eggs are light brown in color. I removed the rocks with the eggs from the tank and placed them in a breeding net. From all the reading I can tell with some certainty that this wasn't the right thing to do. Will these eggs hatch? How will the fry do afterwards?
Thanks for your help,
Del
<Mmm, might hatch... better left with the parents though... the fry, raised in either way will have to be fed once free-swimming... Please read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/severumreprofaq.htm
and the linked files above. Bob Fenner>

Breeding Severums   7/6/06
Hello, I have 4 Severums in 55 gallon tank 3 golds and 1 green. It would appear that the 2 larger Severums have spawned and now I have eggs. There are 3 Catfish in this tank 1 Cory, 1 spotted Raphael and 1 Striped Raphael, also in the tank is a Pleco. I figure I have to remove the cat fish and Pleco, but can I use a tank divider to separate momma Severum and eggs from the rest?? If so should I leave the male with the female and eggs or separate him to? Thanks for any info. Guy Clemency
< Leave the parents with the eggs. The Pleco will be a problem but the parents should be able to keep the others away. The eggs will hatch in three days and the fry will become free swimming in three more. When they begin to swim I would recommend that you use some airline tubing and siphon out the babies and put them in a tank of their own. In another week the parents may eat the eggs themselves and get ready to spawn again. When the fry are free swimming they need to be fed baby brine shrimp and crushed flake food.-Chuck>

Breeding Severums (02/25/03)
I'm going to sound like a COMPLETE ignoramus here, but oh well.
<Ananda here, and believe me, I have done the same thing....>
I have 2 Severums in my community tank.  I am interested in breeding Severums, but have NO idea how to determine the sex of them!  I have read descriptions that say things like "the male has pointier fins", but I have been unable to see actual side-by-side pictures showing the differences, which makes the descriptions useless.  
<I didn't find any side-by-side photos, either, and read that one of the few ways you can be certain of the gender of the fish is to examine their genital papillae. The text didn't specify what to look for, but I suspect the male's will be more pointed and the female's ovipositor will be rounded. (The other way to be certain which is which is to catch them spawning!) A female Severum may have a dark spot on the dorsal fin, while males may have reddish-brown spots and worm-like markings on the head. >
They are about 3-1/2 to 4" long, one green & one gold.  Any help you can give would be VERY appreciated!
<I've read that these fish do not pair bond particularly easily. I would suggest a large tank, excellent food, and several fish. If you have one male and a harem of females, you may get a pair to spawn. As for *finding* that male, you might need to go to a local fish store with a fair number of these fish in one tank and just stare at the fish for a while, or look for a cichlid club and ask its members for help.>
Thanks,
Raven
<You're welcome. --Ananda>

Severum Eggs
Hi this is Valerie. I have two gold Severums and yesterday morning I found eggs on the wall of my aquarium. Well I bought a screen so that none of the other could get to them. Well I'm just wondering, how long does it take for Severum eggs to hatch?
<Hi Valerie, the eggs should hatch within 3-5 days.  I do not know if I would use the screen to separate the parents from the eggs, Severums are delayed mouth brooders, and make pretty good parents.  A quick search on Google.com for Heros severus breeding should lead you to a wealth of information.  There is also a good article at the link below.  Best Regards, Gage
http://wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/severums.htm  >
Thank You,
Valerie

Gold Severum reproduction
<Hi, Pufferpunk here>
My two Gold Severums have laid eggs twice in the last 2 weeks and continue to eat the eggs. Is this normal?  
<A lot of fish will eat their own eggs>
I have tried separating them and the eggs don't hatch.  Should I be doing something else??
<I have either hung a breeder net across from the filter stream & raised the babies in there, or put the eggs in another tank. If you move them, you will need to cover the intake of the filter w/a sponge or use a sponge filter.  You may need to dose the tank with 1/2 dose Methylene blue, to prevent fungusing of the eggs.>
<Good luck--Pufferpunk>

Egg Eaters
My breeding pair of Severums keeps eating the eggs. What can I do to prevent this? They reside in a 75 gallon tank with a 5 inch Pleco.
<Any other tankmates, or is that it?>
They are not very aggressive after they lay the eggs like most other Severums I've seen. Anyway, what can I do to get these eggs to hatch?
<I read an account where someone had a breeding pair of angels that ate batch after batch of eggs, and instead of raising the fry himself, he put an African butterflyfish (Pantodon buchholzi) in the tank with them to see if that would elicit defensive behavior from the angels (I believe his reasoning behind using this species was that they really pose no threat to eggs, as they only eat live fish or insects that find their way to the surface of the water).  If you try something like this, be sure to use a fish that poses no threat to the eggs, will keep its distance from the angels, and can be easily removed once the eggs hatch - and even still, there's no guarantee whatsoever that it will work, but it might be worth a try.  You can always remove the eggs once the parents are through laying and hatching/raising them yourself.  Hope all goes well,  -Sabrina>

Gold Severums have laid eggs!!!
After removing the 7 inch Bala shark and spotted African Cichlid and turning up the heat to 82-84 degrees on the 29 gal tank, the female finally deposited hundreds of eggs on the wall of the clay pot. Yesterday, the eggs were clear/opaque and today they are all white. My assumption is that the male has fertilized almost all of the eggs. I am observing that the male is maintaining guard over the entrance of the clay pot and keeps the female away every time she come near the eggs. Is this normal behavior or should I separate the fish or removed all together? Do I have to do frequent water
changes? Are the eggs safe from the parents? How long until the eggs hatch into fry? Are the fry safe? Please make any recommendations, I appreciate your advice.
< The eggs should hatch in three days. The whitish color is an indication that the eggs may have all died. If they hatch the fry should be free swimming in about three days. At that time they should be fed baby brine shrimp and finely crushed flake food. They should be removed from the parents into their own tank in about a week. The parents will spawn again within a couple of weeks.-Chuck>
JohnB

Gold Severums have laid eggs!!! Bob's go
After removing the 7 inch Bala shark and spotted African Cichlid and turning up the heat to 82-84 degrees on the 29 gal tank, the female finally deposited hundreds of eggs on the wall of the clay pot.
<Neat!>
Yesterday, the eggs were clear/opaque and today they are all white.
<Ohhh... fungused>
My assumption is that the male has fertilized almost all of the eggs.
<Mmm, maybe... not... could be you have two females... or even that the male is sterile or did not participate>
I am observing that the male is maintaining guard over the entrance of the clay pot and keeps the female away every time she come near the eggs. Is this normal behavior or should I separate the fish or removed all together?
<Not too abnormal... but... trouble for you and them being in this small a container... need at least a forty, better a sixty gallon tank or larger... too stressful, problems if one beats the other...>
Do I have to do frequent water changes? Are the eggs safe from the parents? How long until the eggs hatch into fry?
<They won't... they're not viable...>
Are the fry safe? Please make any recommendations, I appreciate your advice.
JohnB
<John... you need more information than can be gleaned from simply asking here... do read through what little we have on all cichlids posted here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwlivestkindex.htm
and consider getting a good book or two on cichlid husbandry... you can search these on Amazon, Barnes and Noble... Bob Fenner>

Spawning Severums 7/28/05
Hello, I finally have babies.  A long story and I won't bore  you with my experiences, but it has been  a very delight to come home and  watch the parenting of the parent fish.  Now, my question:  I have  read all emails that you
have posted and will remove the babies in a week as you  suggested.  How often do the parents spawn?
< Depends on the conditions and somewhat up to the particular pair. If the eggs are eaten right away then they will usually spawn in a couple of weeks. If they are left with the fry then usually the fry hang around for a week or so then they may be eaten and the pair will spawn again within ten days or so depending on the water temp and the condition of the pair.>
It was 14 days to the  date from the first batch of eggs that were not successful to the new parents to  this second batch.  Will they spawn every 2 week all year long?
< After the third spawn sometimes the female needs a break . The male may kill her if she is not ready and willing.>
I am  in the process in setting up a new tank for 2 of the first babies and a tank for  the bulk of the other babies.  
Thank you for this information.  I have fish stores in my  hometown but they had not had a personal experience with Severum babies.  I  have learned a lot from you and the readers and would love to share my  experiences with anyone
with limited questions.  Thanks  again. Debbie
< Good luck with the fry.-Chuck>

Too Much Of A Good Thing, Or Be Careful What You Wish For!  12/5/05
Hello, I wrote in July and announced the hatching of babies for my Severum couple. I have now had 2 batches and still have the nursery of fish in with the parents. I have relocated 75 babies and I am moving the others as possible. I have watched the babies for the last couple of months continuously swim behind the daddy fish. He positions himself nose down a lot of the time in the tank. He can and does swim correctly and eats very well but is noticeably vertical at times. What can this be?
< The male is using his ventral fins to signal the fry.>
Do you know a good way of getting homes for the approximately 150 other babies? Thanks for the help. Debbie
< When the fry are about 1 1/2 inches long you can start to call pet shops and tropical fish stores in your area and see if you can sell or trade some of the fry. They may take some and you can make a couple of bucks out of the deal. Go Aquabid.com and see if you want to sell them over the internet. Their may be a local aquarium society in which you can place some of the fry up for auction at a meeting. Their is a national club called the American Cichlid Association that can be found at cichlid.org. They have a publication they put out called the Trading Post in which members can buy and sell fish. Lots of possibilities. Sometimes these big New World cichlids will produce thousands of fry and take care of a market for the entire country.-Chuck> 

Breeding Gold Severums   2/10/06
I have two golden Severum fish which for a while have been shifting sand and stones, cleaning a rock, and going through the motions of laying eggs but haven't as yet. They are kept in a 4 foot tank with 7 dwarf rainbow cichlids, a red tailed shark and one other algae eater. Any suggestions on what to do to get them breeding?
< Feed them washed earthworms, brine shrimp, meal worms and king worms. Raise the water temp to 82 F and do a 50% water change once a week. If they are a pair then I would think that this would get them going in less than two weeks.-Chuck>

Crossing Green Severums  - 02/20/06
Can you tell me what fish would make good mates for a female green Severum to cross breed with?
<Severums have already been crossed with a number of easy to breed central American cichlids like red devils and convicts. Try and get a male the same size or a little larger. My preference would be a nice male green Severum.-Chuck>