chico246810 asked:
Hi i own some central and south ameriucan cichlids but also i own some community fish such as mollies and zebra danios. I need a project quickly my purposals due tomororw for my science fair that i can do on my female convict cichlid. my convicts have babies btu the male is tkain care of em so i could use them i also have a jack dmepsey please help?
Hi i own some central and south ameriucan cichlids but also i own some community fish such as mollies and zebra danios. I need a project quickly my purposals due tomororw for my science fair that i can do on my female convict cichlid. my convicts have babies btu the male is tkain care of em so i could use them i also have a jack dmepsey please help?
March 19th, 2009 at 5:02 pm
Train her to jump though a flaming hoop?
March 20th, 2009 at 12:32 pm
Well, most projects require time to form a hypothesis and then test the hypothesis to see if it is accurate. I am not sure one day is enough time.
This is a simple project but it does pose a risk to your fish.
Some science fairs allow experiments with live animals and others don’t. For example, one classic experiment (found in most older science fair project books) involves changing the temperature of fish tank water and seeing what it does to the respiration rate (breathing) of goldfish. In some places around the country, that experiment would not be allowed at all. In others, you would need a special permission form guaranteeing that you will take good care of the animal. In other places, they don’t yet have such restrictions. Again, use common sense. I once had students do a very clever experiment to see if their hamster or their cat could learn to go through a maze more quickly. This experiment, though it had animal subjects, obviously involved no chance of harming the cat or the hamster so I gave them permission to do it. Generally you are safest if your experiments involve plants or insects, and both types of organisms can lead to some fascinating studies! If you REALLY want to do an experiment with your pet, be prepared to explain what information you are hoping to gain from the experiment and how you will ensure the safety of the animal.
Here is a site you can use for ideas.
Sorry I could not be more helpful. It would also be helpful to know what grade you are in,
Wishing you the best.
March 22nd, 2009 at 5:10 pm
Why not take the fry, put them in 2 separate tanks, keep everything the same-water quality, temperature, etc. but feed them different foods-but still appropriate foods, and see which grows faster. That won’t be as harsh on them as changing temperatures.
March 23rd, 2009 at 9:36 pm
I think the best short term thing that could be done with a convict female in a science fair is using her as an example of animals (especially fish) that change color when they are ready to breed and how it is different in different species of fish depending on their sex, and in the case of cichlids, has evolved dependent on how they raise and protect their young.(in convicts, it the male that does most of the rearing would need the most camouflage while it’s the female is free to get that bright pink belly)
It shouldn’t really take that long to research and right up but you really should use this as a lesson on how it is a horrible practice to procrastinate.
March 25th, 2009 at 12:46 am
There’s a lot of things you can do. Sexual dimorphism (difference between gender), breeding behaviour, parenting behaviour, anatomy of a fish, anatomy of a cichlid, Captive coloration versus wild-type coloration (or any other trait for that matter).
If you want some good research, check out
And on the subject of the respiration test, I’ve done it to a feeder goldfish, and if done properly, is quite harmless; the water temperature should never get above that of bathwater.
Good luck on your project! And procrastinate some other time!
March 26th, 2009 at 12:15 am
Aeration and behavior. Increase the bubbles in the tank, and count the gill movements?