# Hemichromis elongatus



## hook848

I bought eight wild caught H. elongatus last week. They are in my five foot 75 gallon and tolerating each other so far.

My hope is that a breeding pair will form and have the tank to themselves. I'm keeping a close eye on them as I know things can turn violent in a hurry.

I'm just enjoying watching one of my favorite fish and thought I would share some pics and a video. Enjoy. :thumb:


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## lostnight

Cool fish, I've had elongatus before, but never more than one at a time. I did have a group of six frempongis I kept in a 75 a couple of years ago, but I failed miserably to breed them. Despite my best efforts, they killed each other off, and now I'm down to one. Very nasty to each other and to other species. Hopefully you will have much better luck than me.

Thanks for the pics and video, keep us posted.


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## hook848

I have kept single elongatus in the past as well. About five years ago I put four juveniles in the 75 and within five minutes one elongatus had whipped two medium Oscars and some Tilapia butterkoferi. I ended up with one elongatus in a 20 gallon by himself.

I have always liked these fish and my 75 gallon was available after I moved my Tropheus to a 125. I didn't plan on keeping the 75 but saw a breeding pair of elongatus on youtube and got the itch again. I went from one tank to three for this little experiment. :lol:

It is both awesome and unexpected to see seven H. elongatus living in relative peace. I moved the smallest of the eight to a 20 gallon. He was in rough shape when I got him and hiding so much he wasn't eating. He's doing good now. His fins are healthy and he's putting on some weight.

We'll see how it goes!

*knocks wood*


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## lostnight

How are they doing so far? I've been interested in seeing how they do.


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## hook848

lostnight said:


> How are they doing so far? I've been interested in seeing how they do.


I still have seven getting along and doing well, thanks.

The largest fish goes any place in the tank he wants. The others just move out of the way. He's mellow so that helps keep the others in line.

Four are a bit smaller and they have the typical nasty attitude. They spend their time guarding their piece of turf, making little charges at each other, but no actual fighting. They're pretty when they're flaring their gills and colored up. If I had a better camera I would try to get some action shots.

The two smallest fish just stay out of the way as best they can. The get chased from one bully to another, but usually find neutral water pretty quick. They aren't being bitten and always eat. I feel bad for them, but somebody has to be on the bottom.

I'm not sure what triggers spawning with these fish. There's not much info about them anywhere. They're supposed to be very prolific in the wild, but I don't see any pair bonding yet. One fish does have a deep gold colored hue that makes it stand out from the others. Maybe the only female? I don't know.

I'm enjoying them, and thanks again for asking.


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## lostnight

Cool, thanks for the reply. I'll probably ask for another update sometime doiwn the road if I don't hear anything. The heirarchy sounds very similar to the one I had with the frempongis. My alpha male was clearly in charge, but mellow and less aggressive than some of his subordinates. I also didn't get any pair bonding, I was watching for it constantly. I hope you get a good pair.


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## lostnight

Hey, I just got three tiny frempongis today. They will go in a 150 I purchased, but won't be ready for about 10 days. They are in a 30 long with a little amphilophus sagittae I also got today.

Here's a pic of 2 of the frempongis:










So I am back in business with a 5 Spot species, whoo-hoo!


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## lostnight

Hopefully they will color up like my old ones.


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## hook848

Good luck with your frempongi. I was going to try them if I couldn't get the elongatus. They look like they color up really well.

I may have some activity that could be breeding going on. The dominant fish has been resting on the bottom, almost like it's looking to nest. It only allows one other fish, one I've seen gently nudging it, in to it's territory. I watched for about an hour and the two are definitely claiming half of the tank when this resting occurs.

I was going to get some pictures but needed to clean the glass. Now the glass is clean but the fish are a bit shy. They don't really like having the tank messed with. Water change days always make them restless for the day.

I'm back to eight fish in the 75. The one I moved to the 20 gallon healed up good and is holding his own back with the group.

Does anyone know what the breeding behavior of these jewels looks like?


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## lostnight

Cool, I've never had more than one elongatus at a time. Hoppefully if everything works out you will be able to educate us on their breeding behavior and colors. Have fun! opcorn:


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## hook848

Here is the best group shot I could get. These guys would be easy to photograph if I had a decent camera. My Tropheus never stop moving, but these guys pose nicely.


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## hook848

Two of my jewels have bonded. :thumb: They're claiming more of the tank all the time. I may have to move the others out soon.

Here is a video of them doing the dance. 




And a few pictures.


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## hook848

The pair have eggs now. It has been 48 hours I can see them buzzing with new fry.


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## Vincent

Congrats!


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## lostnight

Excellent, now I'm getting jealous. opcorn:


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## hook848

Thanks guys.

Here is a video of them with the eggs.


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## hook848

Here is a picture of the tank. I wanted to post it, and list a few things that may have helped these fish tolerate each other as long as they have.










I put tall stumps on each end and a large plant in the middle. The plant is tall enough to bend at the surface and provide shade underneath. The fish have always used it for cover. It also helps break up the line-of-sight across the tank, allowing fish to find areas where they can't be seen by the dominant fish. The stumps help with this as well. This is a trick I've used to curb aggression in my Tropheus.

The light on the left side stopped working about a month ago. I've had trouble with it before and just decided to leave it off. This left one side of the tank in the shade and the fish seemed to like it. I don't know if it helped with the pair bonding or not, but wanted to mention it.


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## lostnight

Good aquascaping. I know where I can buy some extra tall artificial plants like that, I think I might get some for my 150. Maybe I'll also look for tall stumps to put on each end. If it worked for you, I'm will to try it with my frempongis. Right now I have no plants at all in there.


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## hook848

Hi lostnight,

I bought the fake stumps and plant at Petsmart.

Here is some video of the fry swimming. There must be 400-500 of the little guys.





Good luck with your frempongi!


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## lostnight

Yeah, that's funny. I hit 3 different fish stores and ended up buying 2 plants and the stump at Petsmart early this afternoon, lol. I just bought one stump. I don't have as much of plants floating on the surface to create the layer of shade though. I hope this ends up working for me. I may rearange the rock piles slightly.


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## hook848

Nice looking tank.

I see it's much deeper than my 75 gallon. My tank is 16" deep, so, after the gravel the fish have about 14" of water depth.

If you still want to provide some shade, you could use sections of the plant, or another one, and let them float free.


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## lostnight

Thanks. I may do that when I get a chance. 









Man, your 5 Spots sure threw a lot of fry, that's impressive.


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## cornbread_5

yeah i cant wait for my pair to breed


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## cornbread_5

here is my pics of my pair


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