# nuchal hump?



## dmannn g (Jun 16, 2014)

I've decided that keeping my midas is the simplest thing to do. So now my question would be what's the deal with nuchal humps? Are the a guarantee? Is it only males? Is it possible to have a male grow to 11+ inches and just now start to develop one? As far as I can tell by the fins the pointed pival? fin and the massive temper it's a male.The head is raised ever so slightly but it's no wider than the rest of the fish. so am I doing something wrong? The ph is 7.4 the temp is 78f. He only eats live ghost shrimp and omega one sinking shrimp pellets. He is on Hawaiian black aragonite sand. Theres no salt or chemicals aside from prime tap conditioner. There's no chance of getting a female near him so any other ideas would be great thanks.


----------



## BC in SK (Aug 11, 2012)

dmannn g said:


> So now my question would be what's the deal with nuchal humps? Are the a guarantee? Is it only males? Is it possible to have a male grow to 11+ inches and just now start to develop one?


A nuchal hump is usually made up of mostly fat and is a way to store calories. Of course in captivity there is no shortage of food, so food is no limitation on growing a nuchal hump.

It makes the fish look larger from the front. Like flaring gills make a fish look larger from the front and thus more threatening, a nuchal hump is thought to serve a purpose a long a similar line.

No guarantee that RD/midas will or will not develop a nuchal hump. Seems to be a large genetic component to it. Though environmental factors such as the presence of a larger rival seem to stimulate it.

No, it is not only male RD/midas that can develop large nuchal humps. Actually fairly common, especially in captivity, for females to develop large nuchal humps as well. Though it is still more common in males, and males do tend to grow larger nuchal humps. My understanding is that in the wild, it tends to be only the very largest males that develop them.

Yes it is very possible for a RD/midas to grow very large, before it ever starts developing a nuchal hump. Although sometimes young specimens can develop one, it is usually more associated with old and large. As well, even if it develops a large nuchal hump, the hump will change in size over time, getting larger then receding ect.



dmannn g said:


> As far as I can tell by the fins the pointed pival? fin and the massive temper it's a male.


Pointed fins generally are not a very good indicator of sex on large mature CA. Sometimes looking at juvies, a male becomes obvious because of it's developed fins, amongst others indicators of sex...but generally doesn't mean too much when looking at larger fish. 
I take it the fish is kept by it's lonesome?
If you mean by massive temper that it flares it's gills and attacks the glass when ever a person comes near that is behavior typical of many cichlids when kept by their lonesome, and not an indication of sex. Just a couple examples: When I kept my female blackbelt in her own tank she became a "glass banger" in very short time . My male Coptodon zillii became a "glass banger" with in minutes of being placed in his own tank. Neither fish act at all like this when kept with other cichlids. By removing the fish from a community and placing them in there own tank, and then later putting them back, it is more then obvious that this type of interest outside of the tank usually has most to do with having no tank mates.


----------

