Breeding Bristlenoses

[ray777]

Tough...have you got a photo? Some of my females are completely bristle-free. Others, have a nice mustache of smaller bristles. IMO, the presence of bristles isn't a good indicator, body shape and head shape are better. The females will always be a little smaller, but again that's tough if you have a late male.

I will upload a pic tonight when I get home from work. Sounds like a small mustache but then who knows. Probly two males that will piss me off.

 

[Fishermoe14]

I will upload a pic tonight when I get home from work. Sounds like a small mustache but then who knows. Probly two males that will piss me off.

if it is two males, just ask your lfs if they will trade one for one.. they did that for me and that is how i got my 2nd breeding pair..

temp changing was only used when the pair stopped producing. waited for 2 months and didn't get anymore clutches, so naturally i triggered them to spawn with temp changes

my first pair produces only dark babies.. both parents are albino, but the dad isn't a full albino he has black eyes and is a little darker than real albinos. however, i did get an awesome calico out of them so im happy

 

[shookONES]

I'll most likely keep a trio of albinos in my new 180g, but back in the day (I'm talking 6-7 years ago) I bred BNPs with great success by keeping an empty VHS tape in the tank as a pseudo cave. Wasn't pretty, but I had a constant stream of fry.

 

[Alistriwen]

If you're looking for simple caves what I see a lot of BN breeders do is take two of the clay bases you put clay planting pots on, break a small semi circle in both then put the two pieces on top of each other. It creates a narrow cave inside with a small opening the male can stick out of when he's guarding the eggs. It's cheap, effective, and it isnt even terribly ugly. I will probably use that sort of setup for my longfin albinos when they finally hit breeding size, which is taking forever.. Speaking of which, any advice for getting em to grow quicker? I feed zucchini at least once a week and they have a constant supply of fresh Algae as well.

 

[davo]

Fortunately they aren't as fussy as some other plecos when it comes to cave sizes, I've had one friend who bred his in a fake castle and another in a clay flowerpot with a hole in the top lol.

 

[davo]

I'll most likely keep a trio of albinos in my new 180g, but back in the day (I'm talking 6-7 years ago) I bred BNPs with great success by keeping an empty VHS tape in the tank as a pseudo cave. Wasn't pretty, but I had a constant stream of fry.

lol I've heard it all now!

 

[Fishermoe14]

i use coconut caves... i make them myself so they are dirt cheap.. the plecos love them and they look good IMO.. heres some pics just for SH and giggles..

my true albino pair breeds in a cave that was cut lenthwise while the other pair breeds in a horizontally cut cave.. once they find a cave they like, they use it forever.. those are the tanks they bred in also..

 

[Titania]

If you're looking for simple caves what I see a lot of BN breeders do is take two of the clay bases you put clay planting pots on, break a small semi circle in both then put the two pieces on top of each other. It creates a narrow cave inside with a small opening the male can stick out of when he's guarding the eggs. It's cheap, effective, and it isnt even terribly ugly. I will probably use that sort of setup for my longfin albinos when they finally hit breeding size, which is taking forever.. Speaking of which, any advice for getting em to grow quicker? I feed zucchini at least once a week and they have a constant supply of fresh Algae as well.

Where do you get your supply of fresh algae? I feed mine zucchini or green beans 5 days a week, giving them algae wafers and/or brine shrimp sticks on the two off days. I'd start supplementing yours with a high quality sinking pellet to get them some additional protein.

 

[davo]

I like to feed inverts to give them protein, different worms tend to go down well. Sinking carnivore pellets are also good, but I feed them sparingly.

 

[Matt181]

Thanks for all the help guys.

i went to my LFS today and saw normal, albino and long-fin bristlenoses!

Now to choose which ones to breed lol.

Thanks
Matt