Cacatuoides courtship behaviour

[Griz]

I'm hoping to gain some insight into some odd behaviour I have been noticing with my cacatuoides. I have a trio which is now about 16-18 months old and in good health. They produce fry regularly which are eventually picked off by their tankmates. (I have no desire to keep the fry)

ttmale will lay on or near the bottom, fins clamped, motionless and very dark in colour. It scared the heck out of me the first few times I witnessed it! I have since come to the conclusion that it is related to courtship. He only does this with one of his females very close by and she exhibits similar, but not as drastic behaviour. They sometimes will do this for long periods of time and then will quickly revert to normal colouration and behaviour. It seems to me that this only occurs when he is attempting to gain the acceptance of the subordinate of his two females. Perhaps she is shy and he needs to be more gentle in his advances? He seems to have no trouble with the dominant female who is always yellow and constantly flirting with him. She is definitely the aggressor in their relationship and produces fry like clockwork. (A rather beautiful example IMHO who exhibits some male colouration)

Any insight into what is going on would really be appreciated.

 

[nightowl1350]

Can't say that my C. act like that . The male is always flashing his pretty fins and the female goes on her side showing her tummy. They have only spawned once that I know of, but look like they will again in the next day or 2. I would be very happy if mine do parent raise, but time will tell. The last spawn was eaten on the second day, but I don't know if was one of the pair or the 3 BN pleco in the tank.

 

[Mike Wise]

Your observation is rarely seen, but not unusual. The males of many apistos will advance toward a shy female in a submissive way in order to not frighten her away before he has a chance to court her.

 

[Griz]

Thank you Mike. This is exactly what he seems to be doing wasn't able to find anything describing this sort of behavior.

 

[Mike Wise]

Koslowski's book (2002) goes into fine detail on the courtship behavior of apistos. I highly recommend it for anyone who is interested.