CichlidFish.com - Fish That Think.

Hi
Have two large (8 inches) Oscars in 75 gallon tank (one male tiger and one female albino) all the suggested maintenance to keep them happy.  They hatched a batch of eggs and all seemed to be AOK.  About two weeks after the fry hatched out they laid another batch of eggs....A day or two after they laid the eggs - the fry used to swim around the adults - The next day the fry were poking around the area where the eggs were - Then the "war" started - The male ran the fry off after about 15 hours and then started ramming and chewing on the albino female - knocking scales loose.  The female doesn't have enough sense to stay away from the male which appears to be guarding the eggs.  I am afraid she is going to succumb to injuries by the male unless he quits seeing her as a threat to the eggs and or she gets the message and moves to another area in the tank.....What is going on here?  This didn't happen with the first batch of fry and eggs - with the first batch they both seemed to share an equal time guarding the eggs....Maybe I should vacuum up the eggs to preserve the female from getting munched by the male?????????  (Hatched out two day old fry lower center of pic)
Thanks

Sometimes stuff like this happens in aquaria, though IME less likely in a larger tank.  One or the other parent will (correctly) see the older generation of fry as a threat to the new eggs, and try to do away with them.  The other parent trys to protect them, and the chaos begins.  One or the other parent will hold a grudge for awhile aferward, as well.

A couple of approaches could help.  First choice IMO would be to remove the first set of fry to another tank.  This should settle things down a bit.  Alternatively, you could put in a divider to separate the adults for awhile.  This may prove necessary if hostilites continue in earnest.  Or you can add some hideouts for the older fry -- preferably as far as possible from the nesting area -- and hope for the best.  Good luck!

Thanks for the info - been checking around for another tank and could put a seperator in the tank - Never a dull moment - but Oscars are the best!!!!
Cheers
VRV