[Subtletanks91]

The biggest thing to remember here is this.

All fish have different temperaments, triggers, and habits.

You can have a group of say guppy fry, and there are ten. Not all ten will have the same temperament. Dome will be mild mannered, others passive, but you always run the chance of a bully. Usually the biggest or smallest sometimes the unsuspecting. But not fish, no matter genetics, species, husbandry will have the same temperament of there cousins. Period.

So to say all cichlids are evil and aggressive is inaccurate, but none the less given the behavior during breeding, territory, and solitude can become agressive while others are passive. It's not science guys, it's common sence

 

[Subtletanks91]

I do find most cichlids do much better at taking care of their fry than many groups would. It's been a while since I read what defines a cichlid but I think "advanced parental care" was part of the basic decription. It certainly takes a good deal more to care for a bunch of active little fry than is required of fish who may simply scatter their eggs.
While I would never consider cichlid emotions to be anywhere as complex as human emotions, I think it is missing a lot if we say they do not have some type of thought and reaction to a situation. They certainly learn to a certain level and some of that seems to indicate emotion.

As for aggression, it does vary a lot and much of that does involve raisng a group of fry. To me whether they "think" or not is purely how we define "thinking". They plan when they build a nest site. They display for females. They go through all the actions to protect their family even fighting to the death with larger fish.
When we guys do that we are credited with thinking so I'm willing to say my fish think.

The larger fish in my pictures is the male (father?) of the two smaller. Some would call that a grandfather to the fry? He was not aggressive and did not have to be frightened away. This was an action that I saw several times. Often enough that I got the camera and was ready when it happened again. He never turned on his black agrressive colors which he could have if he had wanted. He and his female had their spot back at the other end of the tank and he would drift by now and then. It may be just projecting human emotions onto a fish but it sure fits what I see humans do.
Is it a case of fish not having emotions or maybe a case of us not being able to recognise what we are seeing?
Is it rational to say your dog loves you but a fish is only wanting food?

I agree with this. While they may have different thought actions, and ways to perceive emotion. They still perceive it none the less. Take rams, on a usual case there monogamous, certain penguins as well. Not everything is just instinct and urge.

 

[Subtletanks91]

I've had ram pairs that have bonded, and had a mate die while introducing new females to the tank the male never paired with another.

This is like saying that anything living that has just for example nerves. What happens when you hit or cut a nerve, you get a sensation of pain right. While this is not an emotion it is a feeling. So it goes to say that they can feel things physically why not emotionally, because we as a "superior" being to a fish can have emotions and day that fish can't because they can't walk talk or communicate with us. They have there own way of communication.

I'll admit there are some fish rather than others that possibly can't feel emotion. Bu there are others that can "think" so therefore I am inclined to say have emotion.

All we can do is speculate what we think and believe to be. We can't really prove anything just because you can study something and you think you know doesn't mean that we as a species know for sure. It's all just speculation and guessing.

 

[Subtletanks91]

Didn't science prove this forever ago that fish not only feel pain, but have emotions as well?

Does anyone observe their fish anymore or are they just strictly a add-on piece to a tank.

+1 I agree 100%

 

[Subtletanks91]

Yeah we did get a little off topic there haha. There's always going to be debates on aspects of fish there environments and behaviors.

But needless to say stef is right. You can't condemn a certain species because of its behavior or action.