ramirez bump

Question
Hi, I was looking at your posts and thought you might be able to help. I have One Ramirez cichlid who is sharing a twenty gal long tank with a green terror, black convict, Raphael catfish, bumblebee ( south American) catfish, corydora catfish, an octocinculus and a fiddler crab, he is the largest fish in the tank. ( all the others are babies and I am holding off until they are big enough to go in another tank.) The Ramirez is a male and he has developed a small white bump, that is tinged with pink, on top of his forehead. There is no aggression between the fish that I have noticed and and they all come out to feed regularly. I use a undergravel filter, topped with BiOrb substrate and and a hang over the side bio wheel, designed for a 30 gal tank. My ammonia and nitrates are normal ,but my nitrites have spiked lately and am using stress zyme to bring them back down. I wanted to know if the bump was typical of a male Ramirez or if he is developing a sore or something similar. Any advice would be helpful. Thanks


Answer
Hi Chris,
 That is hard to say without a picture.   If it is an actual distinct little bump, then that is not good.  If it is a general swelling of the forehead region into a "hump" as opposed to a distinct "bump" then that is okay.  Many male cichlids develop a "nuchal hump" as we call it.

-- Ron
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
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