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ok i think i just witnessed my black skirts spawning but i'm not sure.can anybody tell me what they do?also how do you sex them i don't know which is male or female.i have 8 of them in a 29 and they own the middle and top layers cause their the only mid top level swimmers.the rest are bottom feeders.could that cause a spawn?any help at all is much appreciated.

Est solarus uth mithas,My honor is my life

Ok i tested all my water parameters.everything is the way it's supposed to be.what they were doin was all 8 of them looked like they were flipping out some pairs were chasing eachother.it looked like water acrobatics and they kept bopping eachother.all the other fish in the tank i.e. the cories and otos were all acting normal only the tetras were doin it.so it's not something wrong with the tank which is what i thought at first.

Est solarus uth mithas,My honor is my life

Hi there,
As far as I know, black skirt tetras have little to no sexual dimorphism, so essentially look the same.
Females may be quite a bit plumper and overall a little larger at maturity, which seems common in a lot of the more commonly kept tetras.
Sounds more like your fish are squabbling with each other, commonly semi-aggressive fight just like this.
Spawning will involve a very fat female, usually hanging around over plants, with 1 or 2 males dancing around her, showing off, followed by spawning runs through the plants where the females drop eggs and the males fertilize (and eat them haha).

Sounds like a group of healthy happy aggressive little skirt tetras to me!


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oh ok thanks lol,guess i was just kinda hopng it was spawning.

Est solarus uth mithas,My honor is my life

If Gymnocorymbus ternetzi shares any behavioural characteristics with, say, Lemon Tetras, then signs to look out for will include:

[1] Males (usually slender) 'flicking' their bodies at each other side by side and making darting passes at each other (don't worry, they don't come to blows, it's all ritualised);

[2] Female (who should be rounded and noticeably full in the body) being chased by slender fishes (usually the males);

[3] The female will be accompanied by a male amongst fine leaved plants. When the pair actually spawn, they'll shimmy side by side for a second or two, then part almost explosively as if someone's set off a depth charge between them! At this point, eggs should be clearly visible.

However, I have to ask at this point, how old are your Tetras? Only Gymnocorymbus ternetzi doesn't usually start breeding properly until it's 2 years old. If yours are juveniles, at the most they'll be engaging in 'dummy runs'.


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