Maybe they are waiting to get fat on cichlid fry! Was it just me or were the BG circling the Cichlid nest like sharks. There is a really good view of a BG coming in and taking a fry at 1:46 to 1:47. To see it better you can slow down the video to 1/4 speed in the settings
If the fry get spooked and dart off from the parents the blue gill will dive in and try to grab a few fry. It amazes me that those cichlids can be 1/4 the size and will run off the blue gill. I think it's the risk vs reward. A starving BG I think would pose a more serious threat. I put them in as a forage species and they are reproducing well. I so far have kept gambusia out otherwise that may have been my go to for small forage. I do believe gambusia are major predators of swim up fry.
I'll update when I see some gills on beds.
