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When I picked up a pair of Apistogramma macmasteri I was very pleased that they started cavorting soon after entering the tank and in about 2 weeks I had the female parade around the tank with a clutch of fry. However, a few days after the mating the male, who had been eating very well, stopped eating. He would still bite at the food but then spit it out. At first I wasn't too worried but then he developed white/translucent stringy feces and a week later he passed away. I just had a second mating with a new male. Like the first time I did not observe the mating itself but the female turned yellow and I can clearly see the eggs which are deposited on a vertical well-protected piece of driftwood rather than in a cave. There also seem to be a lot more eggs than the number of free swimming fry from the first spawn. However, the male again stopped eating and this morning I found him dead. I should note that there is a second female who has taken occupancy of a coconut cave and she has also turned yellow. It will take a few days to find out but the male may have had his hands full with two back-to-back spawnings. I have not observed any clear aggression between the male and females so unless the mating itself is highly aggressive I can't see aggression being the culprit. Yesterday I shot some video of him looking pretty, nice round (but not too round) belly, normal colours and showing off his raised fins. Apart from the disinterest in food everything looked excellent. This time I actually cut him open to see if there were worms or other indications of disease but it all looked nice pink and clean. If there was any parasite it was too small to see even with a magnifying glass. So question is; what caused this and how common is it for Apistogramma males to die shortly after mating. I don't think it is normal and I would like to prevent it from happening again. Of course it may take a long time before I can find a new male given the dearth of dwarf cichlids for sale in Edmonton. It is actually more likely that my half inch fry from the first spawn will end up providing the next male.
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- Apistogramma
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Hey everyone, I have finished cycling my tank and have moved my live stock over and everything looks great, except my pulsing Xenia. http://instagr.am/p/RARA7MPw9S/ Is there any coming back from this stage or is it finished?