A goal of my study is to learn whether O‘opu Akupa are capable of breeding more than once in a season, and also to learn how large a nest is. I have set up two 45 gallon aquaria and placed a pair of O‘opu Akupa into each one. My hope is that these pairs of fish will spawn in the tanks, which will allow me to see whether they are capable of multiple spawnings, and also approximately how many eggs are laid in each nest. It is also possible to learn about nest guarding behavior if it exists in this species.
Two aquaria set up for an O‘opu Akupa breeding experiment. Each aquarium holds two O‘opu Akupa: one male and one female. PVC pipe and ornamental rocks and logs are set up in the aquaria to serve as nesting substrate as well as burrows for the fish.
Close up of an aquarium. Image has been purposely blurred to draw attention to the two O‘opu. The female O‘opu Akupa is hiding under the log on the left side of the aquarium (notice her tail sticking out of the left side of the log), and the male is in the PVC pipe on the right side of the aquarium.