Electric Yellow Cichlid Breeding Reccomendations

[awsomepk]

Hi guys, I'm John for those of you who don't know me. Anyways, here is my question:

I want to start breeding electric yellow cichlids, but before I do I would like some advice. My first option is a to gallon with a heater, DIY Sponge filter, and a Topfin 10 gallon hang on back filter. Right now it just has snails and a female betta, but i could move both of them.

My other option is a 14 gallon tote. I could move the things from my 10 gallon into the tote.

What I was thinking is putting silica sand for the substrate, getting a big flat rock for the spawn, and putting an acrylic divider untill the female looks ready to spawn, to avoid her getting hurt.

Please share your thoughts/concerns.

Thanks, John

 

[thepotoo]

Electric Yellows are not at all hard to spawn. They want hard water, so a crushed coral substrate or lots of limestone is a must. Mine spawned right in a 55 gallon community tank, and half a dozen fry grew to about 1" long without any special effort on my part (daily feedings of spirulina flakes, weekly 30% water changes).

A two gallon is far too small for them, the male will kill the female in no time in such a place. Even the 14 would be pretty small. I have two friends that breed mbuna more seriously than myself, and both wait until the female is holding (eggs in her mouth) and then net her out and move her to a small 20 gallon tank by her self. One of these people uses a paper clip to get the fry out of her mouth as soon as they hatch, and then returns the female to the community tank, the other person waits until she spits the fry on her own (I my female held her fry for close to a month, but I wasn't really paying attention to when the eggs hatched). How long have you had these fish? How big are they? What are they living in right now?