Is my female African cichlid holding?
Well I have good news, one of my female Pseudotropheus Saulosi is holding, meaning she is pregnant. For those that may not know, African Cichlids are maternal mouth brooders, so the mother will lay eggs, have them fertilized by the male, and then will take the eggs back into her mouth for a few weeks, until they hatch.
1. One of the most obvious clues on whether your Cichlid is holding or not will be the bulging throat area. The area right below her mouth will appear swollen as if you have just fed her and she is keeping the food in her mouth. obviously, if you have not fed her in the past hour, she is keeping something else in her mouth.
2. If you are patient enough, you can watch her for a while and you might catch a glimpse of her opening her mouth to gasp or to tumble the eggs. Try looking in her mouth then.
3. You can also try feeding the Cichlids to see if the female goes for the food or just ignores it because she has a mouth full of eggs or fry (small cichlids).
