# Questions about Macs



## Us And Them (Dec 4, 2008)

I Believe I have the Smaller Variant of the Two types... The Mac is 4.5 " .
Lately , My Mac has gotten Very Agressive and Extremely protective over this one particular corner in the tank.
Even tries to Bite me , ive never been so nervous to put my hands in a fishes tank like this one...

Anyways ,is it possible that It could be a sexually mature female at that size ? and if so , Is it likely She has released her eggs (without any males present) and is guarding them ??

Let me know what you think


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## Tensa (Jul 28, 2008)

honestly sounds to me like your P just finally came out of its shell. post a video of the finger snapper for our entertainment please.


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## primetime3wise (Sep 28, 2003)

PROBABLY just territorial behavior.


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

Jon87 said:


> I Believe I have the Smaller Variant of the Two types... The Mac is 4.5 " .
> Lately , My Mac has gotten Very Agressive and Extremely protective over this one particular corner in the tank.
> Even tries to Bite me , ive never been so nervous to put my hands in a fishes tank like this one...
> 
> ...


I agree with these two. Though ive heard of solo female p's releasing eggs, its not likely. I also dont think they guard eggs when they are infertile. Seems a but small to be mature, but im not exactly sure the size that they mature at. If there were eggs you should be able to see them, but once again it is most likely coming out of its shell.


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## Us And Them (Dec 4, 2008)

Thanks guys. Also My Heat has been at 82 , and I Have Him in my Sump. Its a custom Made sump , about 4 Feet Long , 18 '' Wide and Filled with about 6 Inches of Water.

That Mac has always been kept in a colder tank as it was in a shoal with 11 Others.

Is it possible , that with Slightly Cooler Water Changes , Lowered Tank Level (Stimulating dry season) Combined with an Increased Temp
That I may have accidentally Got it into breeding Mode ?

Color has Darkened Considerably. Im gonna try and get Pics Up ASAP , its gonna be hard to get good shots , the Sump is hard to get at from the front of the tank and i dont have much room behind but I will try.

If thats the Case , I think I might Ask Winkyee if I can Buy a Few macs off of him and see what happens.

Either way if it is just it coming out of its shell , Im excited .

Cheers

On a side note - The Sump is completly boxed , so its had considerable time to Heal ownits own and for ONCE it can finally Be the Bully as opposed to the Victim - That shoal Had Kicked His Butt , tattered fins (expected ) Lost one eye and Its face was bitten with a bit of Lip Damage But it healed amazingly. Any longer and they definetly would have made a meal out of it.


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

Jon87 said:


> Thanks guys. Also My Heat has been at 82 , and I Have Him in my Sump. Its a custom Made sump , about 4 Feet Long , 18 '' Wide and Filled with about 6 Inches of Water.
> 
> That Mac has always been kept in a colder tank as it was in a shoal with 11 Others.
> 
> ...


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## Us And Them (Dec 4, 2008)

sean-820 said:


> Thanks guys. Also My Heat has been at 82 , and I Have Him in my Sump. Its a custom Made sump , about 4 Feet Long , 18 '' Wide and Filled with about 6 Inches of Water.
> 
> That Mac has always been kept in a colder tank as it was in a shoal with 11 Others.
> 
> ...


[/quote]

Thanks for the info. The reason the water is so low is because it Evaporates so quickly. My top ISNT completely covered and the Sump isnt covered at all. I guess I could be keeping it at a higher volume maybe 8 Inches, This Sump tank looks like it was made for Rays , any higher and im sure my Sump would over flow when the 90 Drains.

Speaking of Rays ( On a side Note ) I was contemplating Using a 60 Gallon Rubbermaid as the 90 Sump. , Using the 60 Gallon and Get a Nice Motoro and Pick up a 40 Breeder for the Mac.

Could the low water level be stressing him out?


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## Tensa (Jul 28, 2008)

do not get any rays with a tank that small you will have a dead ray on your hands quick! research the rays thoroughly before considering and become familiar with how large they get. even the small ones seem like they wont be big but they are much larger then you think and make a huge mess.


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

AS fan said:


> do not get any rays with a tank that small you will have a dead ray on your hands quick! research the rays thoroughly before considering and become familiar with how large they get. even the small ones seem like they wont be big but they are much larger then you think and make a huge mess.


 agreed. Rays need a 180g plus. Hystrix need a 125g plus, but its almost impossible to find true hystrix now. Rays are messy fish too so thats another reason they need a large tank for water volume.


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## Us And Them (Dec 4, 2008)

sean-820 said:


> do not get any rays with a tank that small you will have a dead ray on your hands quick! research the rays thoroughly before considering and become familiar with how large they get. even the small ones seem like they wont be big but they are much larger then you think and make a huge mess.


 agreed. Rays need a 180g plus. Hystrix need a 125g plus, but its almost impossible to find true hystrix now. Rays are messy fish too so thats another reason they need a large tank for water volume.
[/quote]

Damn , didnt know they needed something huge like that.


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## Tensa (Jul 28, 2008)

most people dont and they really need larger tanks then that. my friend has a motoro that dwarfs his 500g.


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

AS fan said:


> most people dont and they really need larger tanks then that. my friend has a motoro that dwarfs his 500g.


Most people dont realize that teacup rays are generally retic rays which get past 24" disk diameter


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## Tensa (Jul 28, 2008)

sean-820 said:


> most people dont and they really need larger tanks then that. my friend has a motoro that dwarfs his 500g.


Most people dont realize that teacup rays are generally retic rays which get past 24" disk diameter
[/quote]







i agree with that too.


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