CONVICT CICHLID FRY PREFER THE MORE MATERNALLY ACTIVE OF 2 PARENTAL FEMALES

Convict cichlid fry, Cichlasoma nigrofasciatum, were separated from their parents and presented with two isolated adult females, their mother and another female that had been guarding fry of the same age. The fry always stayed near one of the females, but this was not always their mother. Initial choice by the fry, when they could first see the two females, appeared to be random. However, the proximity of the fry to the chosen female positively affected her behaviour. She turned towards the fry more often and extended her darkened pelvic fins in 'spread' posture longer than the non-chosen female. Thus, the tendency of fry to stay near a female is influenced by her behaviour, not by the genetic relationship between female and fry. © 1992.