# Female angelfish keeps nipping a new larger male



## Eng.moh.safa (Apr 11, 2013)

I wonder if you can help me with this one
I have a community tank

5 Angelfish ( 2 matures ones male and female)
3 swordtail
1 betta
4 dwarf gourami
1 pleco
1 platy

I had a large male that i replaced today with a larger one, the problem is that the female began to nip the new larger one ( even larger than her) and started to chase him. It's not very aggressive as i seen worse before. But it seems like she hates his guts lol.

Maybe it is a territorial thing? Should i relocate the female for a couple of days till he becomes the dominant and then introduce her to the tank again ?

I used the above technique before but it was due to a continuous fight between a younger male and a larger one and it worked, is there a possibility that i would work with a female !!?


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## yannis2307 (Apr 23, 2012)

what size is your tank? looks like it's a bit crowded...was the female a pair with the male you removed? if so, angelfish find a mate and they dont split with him/her for the rest of their lives if you dont interrupt the relationship somehow, and they can even get sad or stressed if something happens to their mate or they are moved to separate tanks... thus, the female could have been angry(?) or whatever and could have thought that the new male was responsible for the split etc. etc. ....


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## Eng.moh.safa (Apr 11, 2013)

Hello and thanks for the reply

My tank is about 75 L 

There was a male i removed yesterday but it wasn't clear if they were a pair or not as they only been in my tank for 1 week and i didn't like the colors,

Anyways, i've uploaded a video about what's happening 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yoKD93s4Xg

Now she is doesn't seems to hate the larger male as she did yesterday.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Cichlids are always aggressive when new fish are introduced. They need to work out dominance and boundary lines. If they don't settle down in a week or if you see blood or other significant injury, pull one or the other.


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## Eng.moh.safa (Apr 11, 2013)

emc7 said:


> Cichlids are always aggressive when new fish are introduced. They need to work out dominance and boundary lines. If they don't settle down in a week or if you see blood or other significant injury, pull one or the other.


Thanks for your reply,

If you check the video link i posted above you can see that she is attacking both males, i can see a tube coming out of her, and also the small male is having something apearing, although she doesn't seems to accept him at all !!

Should i separate the young male into another tank to give way to the large ( new) one to dominate ?


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

I would let her pick a mate. Once she's chosen, if you can give the pair a tank by themselves, you are more likely to get live fry. Breeders will often "force" a pair by giving the fish no choice, but if the males are both nice, I'd let her decide. A "compatible" pair is less likely to beat each other up and eat the eggs. Don't worry about size. Female tube are blunt, square. Male tubes are skinnier and pointed. This may be your best chance to sex your angels.


From the video, it does look like pre-mating aggression. As long as the other fish can get away from her, its okay to let them chase. But there are too many fish for eggs to even last overnight.


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## C. King (Dec 14, 2012)

Angels choose their mates by a series of aggressive behaviors that are easily mistaken for fighting. The female tests the potential partner for strength, good health, and and sometimes just her own particular personal preferences. As emc said, let them work it out, and don't be too concerned, unless there is blood or serious injury.


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