SO I had this demasoni and rusty cichlid(don't know real name) that spawned a couple of months ago, (I think it was those two based on the babies I just found a couple of weeks ago). Now the demasoni's bottom jaw is all puffed up and shes not eating, I take it shes holding eggs? Whats the best thing to do now. Should I take both fish out of the tank or just the demasoni?
demasoni holding eggs?
- Thread starter tothna
- Start date
If you have another tank, I would move the mother, and place a big flat rock or something to lay the eggs on. but depends, some male do not bother the eggs..
You don't need to remove her. Just place her inside a breeding net you hang off the side of the tank. She will hold until the fry are old enough to spit out. Keep her in the net for 3-4 days and feed her a little extra before releasing back into the tank.tothna said:
Well, I waited too long and it looks like her mouth is back to normal and I saw one little tiny guy in the tank. My question is, how big are they when they spit them out because the one I found was tiny, but bigger than I expected(actually looked like a fish). I had a GT breed and when the eggs hatched the fry were much much smaller and less developed than what I saw in the tank yesterday. Is this how they should be, or could this have been from a previous batch?
tothna, I let the fish settle for about a week then catch her to transfer her into a breeding net which I let hang off the side of the tank. This means no water change for her. You want to try and eliminate any condition that might cause her to swallow the eggs or eat the fry. The fry are formed at around a week old but feed off an external egg sack which should be gone by the end of the second week. I then start to put some food into the net at around 23-24 days so as to try and get her to leave her fry a little earlier seeing they are protected. I then keep her in the net for 3-4 days and feed her up before lettingher free back into the main tank. The fry when I first see them are somewhere between 5-10 millimetres long. I feed them Stage 1 fry food for a week then go onto Stage 2. I try and feed them 3-4 times per day so they grow faster.
The correct name for the Rusty is "Iodotropheus sprengerae". Great fish to have if you can get them.
I forgot to say I feed my fry in the net for between 4-6 weeks before letting them go into a tank for fry. If you let them into the main tank you will find they grow quite slowly. I must say it is great to look at a tank that has fry in it as there is always activity. The fry are a lot more active than the bigger fish. Stick their heads out from all the holes.
I forgot to say I feed my fry in the net for between 4-6 weeks before letting them go into a tank for fry. If you let them into the main tank you will find they grow quite slowly. I must say it is great to look at a tank that has fry in it as there is always activity. The fry are a lot more active than the bigger fish. Stick their heads out from all the holes.