Help me breed my cichlids (Central America)

[MoshJosh]

I posted this over on fishlore but figured I would post here as well to get ya'lls opinions. 

Ok so I got an odd/unique cichlid (convict flowerhorn hybrid) that I want to breed with a unique but common cichlid (long fin convict).

See this thread/pictures:
Help sex my mystery cichlids (South American) | American Cichlid Forum | 513361




Anyway. . . pretty sure the hybrid (red) is female, and I think the convict is a male. . . they seemed to interact fine initially, but now the hybrid just hides on the far left side of the tank, looks like she may have been nipped a few times, though I haven't seen much actual aggression.

Today and yesterday I put in some caves, first I used home made pot caves, she wouldn't use the, then I put in some "cichlid caves", but she wont use them either. . . and the convict can fit in them anyway. . .

I tried putting the hybrid in a breeder box just to make sure she wasn't getting beaten up. . . but after about an hour she seemed like she might beat herself up more by trying to escape than the convict would. . .

I could make a divider out of egg crate/light diffuser. . . not really wanting to take out the drift wood (or cut it in half) but that might be my only option. . .

I can't move either to another tank as no other tanks are heated, plus my other fish would quickly become food. . . so think a divider is best option?

UPDATE: I cut some egg crate light diffuser before work tonight, tomorrow I will. . . cut the driftwood in half. . . and install the divider. Might try grabbing some guppies on my next day off as well.

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

@MoshJoshdivider is your only option. One or the other may bust it down if it’s not super snug. Mother Nature does not always follow our whims and they may kill each other before they breed. Not unusual in CA cichlids and in hybrids  especially flowerhorn and parrot hybrids to have tons of aggression if they have the hots for each other or one or the other does. In some of the videos I’ve seen they often have them breed through a divider to keep them from killing each other. 

[MoshJosh]

Ok so I got the divider in, just held there by driftwood substrate and the caves. The female immediately found a spot she could fit though (space created by the uneven background), however, doesn’t appear the male can fit through. They seem to be hanging out a bit and the female isn’t just hiding in the corner. . .
Also they dug a big hole and ripped up all the plants haha

Edited December 5, 2021 by MoshJosh

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

Well I think that's not a bad system if she can escape. That's the main issue is her ability to find a good spot to feel safe. 

[MoshJosh]

So an update: the day after putting in the divider they were thick as thieves, always hanging out together etc. So I removed the divider, re-scraped the tank, and added some dither guppies. . . and today. . . 

[timQ]

nice!

 

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

They just needed a little space to figure out how much they loved one another. It will be interesting to see their parenting strategy after the fry emerge.