Paired off, but male is AGGRESSIVE!

[hohm44]

I have a pair that appear to be trying to breed in my planted tank. Eggs have been laid several times, and I believe that they are being fertilized, as the eggs stay viable for two days before dying off. However, when I put this pair in a separate breeding tank, (with softer water for the eggs), the one I believe to be the male becomes very aggressive to the female, chasing her and head butting, to the extent that she gets injured. It's as if he's trying to make her lay eggs again. Once I healed her up, I reuinited them in the main tank and they paired off again, and the whole cycle repeated. I am new to the breeding aspect of things, is what I am seeing normal? Can this pair ever breed successfully? This male has always been the top dog and most aggressive fish in the tank.

[kaceyo]

Every pair behaves differently and you may have to make some adjustments to keep them happy. I had the same problem with a particular male and anytime I wanted to breed him I'd have to place a divider in the tank between him and the female to keep him from injuring her. It was an eggcrate divider so they could see each other clearly and interact enough to keep their interests up. When I could see that they were ready to spawn right away, shaking etc, I'd pull out the divider. I still had to watch them close to make sure things were going as they should. After three try's they managed to get the deed done, afterwhich I removed the male right away and let the female raise the spawn.
Give it a try and see if it works for you.

Kacey

[Rod]

Discus are not monogamous, each and every spawn involves a testing of strength and suitability as a spawning partner. It is not unusual to see a breakdown like you are describing. Best pairings are with more boisterous females rather than boisterous males.