Editing Cichlid (section)

====Pit spawning process====

Many species of cichlids use pit spawning, but one of the less commonly studied species that exhibits this behavior is the Neotropical ''Cichlasoma dimerus''. This fish is a substrate breeder that displays biparental care after the fry have hatched from their eggs. One study<ref name=Alonso-2011/> examined reproductive and social behaviors  of this species to see how they accomplished their pit spawning, including different physiological factors such as hormone levels, color changes, and plasma cortisol levels. The entire spawning process could take about 90&nbsp;minutes and 400~800&nbsp;eggs could be laid. The female deposits about 10&nbsp;eggs at a time, attaching them to the spawning surface, which may be a pit constructed on the substrate or another surface. The number of eggs laid was correlated to the space available on the substrate. Once the eggs were attached, the male swam over the eggs and fertilized them. The parents would then dig pits in the sand, 10–20&nbsp;cm wide and 5–10&nbsp;cm deep, where larvae were transferred after hatching. Larvae began swimming 8 days after fertilization and parenting behaviors and some of the physiological factors measured changed.