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Mr. & Mrs. Chub build a nest

Started by Guest_trygon_* , May 19 2013 09:53 PM

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17 replies to this topic

#1 Guest_trygon_*

Guests

Posted 19 May 2013 - 09:53 PM

Meet Mr. & Mrs. Chub, they've dug a small pit and have started adding in the proper stones.

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Mr. Chub is not happy, he has a lot to do.

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Like gathering stones, and...

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dealing with interlopers, and...

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gathering more stones.

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But, Mrs. Chub also pitches in,

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and she has the last word in the selection process.

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Striped shiner

I hope you enjoyed the photos. I'm sorry for the weird lighting, but I just picked up a second strobe so I've got some learning to do. It'll be fun going through the learning curve.

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#2 Guest_steve_*

Guests

Posted 20 May 2013 - 02:39 AM

Very nice photos. Thank you much for posting.

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#3 mattknepley

NANFA Member

Smack-dab between the Savannah and the Saluda.

Posted 20 May 2013 - 06:03 AM

Fantastic pictures, and fun captions. Especially like the shiner close ups. Thanks for posting.

Matt Knepley
"No thanks, a third of a gopher would merely arouse my appetite..."

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#4 Michael Wolfe

Board of Directors

North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage

Posted 20 May 2013 - 08:20 AM

I never knew, and have never seen before a female carry stones.

I mean, you have the pictures, so I am not arguing the point, but it is a surprise to me. Maybe it shouldn't be, I mean both male and female birds sometimes help build the nest.

Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin

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#5 Guest_Kanus_*

Guests

Posted 20 May 2013 - 08:52 AM

Wow, those are GREAT! I also have neither seen nor head of a female carrying stones. Very fascinating. Were these taken at night, or is that just the effect of the strobe? Not that it detracts from the photos, I was just wondering.

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#6 Guest_trygon_*

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Posted 20 May 2013 - 10:30 AM

Derek,
No, they weren't taken at night, but it was an overcast day and the nest is in the shade under a tree. But I'd say that some of it is learning how/where to aim the strobes when using a wide angle lens when trying to balance with natural light.

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#7 Guest_Skipjack_*

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Posted 20 May 2013 - 04:46 PM

Very cool. Love the Luxilus close ups.

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#8 Guest_IsaacSzabo_*

Guests

Posted 20 May 2013 - 04:59 PM

Great photos, Bryce! I like the chubs carrying the rocks.

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#9 Guest_Doug_Dame_*

Guests

Posted 20 May 2013 - 11:45 PM

Nice photographs.

A 120 second exhaustive ... look (pant, pant), I'm tired already ... Google search found MANY specific references about MALES building nests, and none about females helping out. That doesn't mean this behavior hasn't been documented before, but certainly the common understanding is that only males do that.

Great observation, Mr. Emersive PhotoScientist !

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#10 Guest_trygon_*

Guests

Posted 21 May 2013 - 07:39 AM

Thanks to all for the kind words. Apparently this particular female hasn't read any of the ichthyological literature about her species.
Doug, all of the bluefins and hogchokers are doing fine, I'm expecting some spawning activity soon.

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#11 Guest_exasperatus2002_*

Guests

Posted 21 May 2013 - 09:07 AM

Incredible pics! Thank you for sharing. Keep em coming.

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#12 Guest_gerald_*

Guests

Posted 21 May 2013 - 01:46 PM

I asked Wayne Starnes and he says he's never seen or heard of any female chubs helping with nest construction. Yours may be the first documentation of female chub nest building. Please write up a short blurb about it for AC with those pix - this observation needs to be in print! Is Todd Crail still following this forum? If he's never seen it happen, then probably nobody (but you) has.

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#13 Michael Wolfe

Board of Directors

North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage

Posted 21 May 2013 - 03:53 PM

I dont want to be a kill joy, but is there any possibility that it was a juvenile male (I cant really tell them apart at a certain size and I look at a pretty large number of blueheads in the wild and in aquaria)? Are there any records of multiple males working on teh same nest.

Oh, and I am going to ping the Farmer and see wha he thinks.

Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin

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#14 Guest_trygon_*

Guests

Posted 21 May 2013 - 07:20 PM

Michael,
I don't think you're being a kill joy, just prudent. I have quite few photos of this fish, is there any particular diagnostic feature to look for to determine the gender pf this fish? Have the Farmer pm me if he needs any more photographs.

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#15 Guest_Doug_Dame_*

Guests

Posted 21 May 2013 - 09:12 PM

Doug, all of the bluefins and hogchokers are doing fine, I'm expecting some spawning activity soon.

Bryce, if your hogchokers start breeding at 3 cm, get photo-documentation of that too.

(sorry for the off-topic.)

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#16 Guest_jblaylock_*

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Posted 22 May 2013 - 01:03 PM

Awesome photos

and snubby porn.....that is all

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#17 Guest_trygon_*

Guests

Posted 24 May 2013 - 03:42 PM

After further review, and magnification, it appears that there are very,very small tubercles on the "female's" forehead. I think I found an altruistic juvenile, or an apprentice nest builder.

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#18 Guest_gerald_*

Guests

Posted 24 May 2013 - 05:43 PM

I just received a note from Bob Jenkins who has studied at thousands of preserved and live Nocomis. He says that females do indeed have small tubercle buds, similar to juvenile males, but he doesn't recall ever seeing a known female (sexed by gonad exam) where the buds developed into conspicuous tubercles. He also said he's seen smaller males moving stones on a dominant male's nest, while the dominant fish was away. Bryce's "pair" however appear to be acting as a team, based on his photos and (only slightly anthropomorphized) description. Bob copied Gene Maurakis, Carol Johnston and Paul Angermeier to see if they have any ideas. If I hear anything more I will post it.

Edited by gerald, 24 May 2013 - 05:44 PM.