Munetaka Watanabe

A new finding on the settling behavior of a cichlid in shelters

Settling behavior of a freshwater cichlid ( Pelmatochromis pulcher B) was observed. The fish were placed in partially black-taped glass tubes, and the position of the fishs body vis-a-vis the tape was recorded. The fish settled in a long shelter so that the position of the eyes coincided with the edge of the shelter. However, in shelters much shorter than body length, the fish settled such that the center of its body (omitting the tail fin) coincided with the center of the shelter.