How to breed rays

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gshock what you said was great.I agree and that makes sense to me.Maybe i need more compitition in my tank too.i have 2 rays male and female that are probably both 3 years old and 18"+ in size and breeding size.the other 2 are 14" and the final 5 are about 10" not expecting those ones anytime soon but the larger ones were showing breeding signs about 1 month ago.now it stopped.but i did have a bit of water quality issues here that probably stunned them a bit.My big tank 1400 gallon is just about stockable maybe it will happen when i change their tank.

any suggestions.should i move the male first let him get used to the tank without a female than drop a girl for him.that tank has a drip system so the water will be premo!!
 
Good foods and water changes! I put my Motoros in a 180 gallon and the male knocked her up. I moved the male to my 450 gallon and he knocked up two more females! The only thing I do is water changes and feed...Smelts,shrimp,scallops,clams,pellets. I think the one main ingredient is getting a good male! My marble motoro male is mature but won't breed with anything. My regular motoro will breed with anything and everything. Now I am just waiting for my black rays and castexi's to mature.
 
i tried a similar thread a while back if i remember right. asking people who have bred rays to post details of their setups , feeding and water change details to help people find the info in one easy place and from people who have actually bred rays ( as opposed to spending weeks trawling and searching as many of us have )

the responses were just as shameful as many in this thread for someone both asking for help and offering a thread that will help others, lots of replys saying search and lots from people who havnt actually bred rays ( as i think you stated ) so defeats the object.

the general idea i get from alot of people on this site is dont bother asking. which is a shame as there is lots of knowledge and knowledgeable people around.

if i had bred my rays i would happily post but it seems my male is either lazy or just hasnt worked out what to do yet

i think perseverance is key . i heard one guy had his rays for 10 yrs before finally getting them to breed so well done to him :)

obviously you need good water , lots of food and space but then all fish need that so its not very helpful without specifics ;) .
 
Gshock;4886049; said:
You throw a pair into a tank lol. Not rocket science. 9 out of 10 times these horny things just go at it.
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Pretty Much... :-)
 
Different species can prove very difficult to breed and there are little things you can do to encourage breeding. I'm working on a few new tricks now and am finding some success with them. When I stop doing the little things there is no breeding attemps made by my male tiger on my female flower so I do know the little things can make a world of difference.
 
Firstly,
It depends on wat type of ray u would want to breed.
Secondly,
I would reccomend a bigger female to a male. (2-3 inches difference)
So the male would still be able to flip.
Thirdly,
Water quality must be checked. meaning ammonia levels at zero all the time if ever possible. Quality food and well oxyginated water.
Fourthly,
A working male. Jus a male and a female would do.

Process,
Male would court the female by chasing her around the tank.
Initial signs from the female would be to reject if she is not ready.
Usually if the female is ready, she would secrete a scent from her u know where and attract the male. but if the male is not dominant enough,
Rejection would take place and in result the male could end up injured.
I personally witnessed a male stung by the female as a sign that she is not ready for breeding.
In the event of a succesful breeding. The male would usually leave the female alone and will not go after her anymore. in the coming months.(usually 90 days) the female will deliver the pups and it's best advice to promptly remove them from the main tank and transfered to a holding tank for them to grow. for the first few days, introduce black worms or blood worms. good staple food for growing pups. den wean them to shrimp or occasional live foods.

Thats my experience.
Cheers and Gd luck.
Dom:)
 
lincolngoh;4894798;. The smaller less dominant male will have little chance. Change the water softness slightly every few weeks.[/QUOTE said:
I have not bred my rays yet but they will once my female is larger...they are showing signs now.

I have to advise agains t changing the softness slightly every few weeks...all fish need stability. I can understand that a change in softness could be a one off trigger much the same as a temp drop will signal the rainy season. Don't mess with the softness or ph as it can cause a lot of stress and a die off of filter bacteria.

With most easy to breed fish you just need good clean water, stable parameters and a good healthy diet and plenty of it. The water changes will trigger the fish. I have seen a cold hose pipe sprayed on the surface to simulate rain but you need to use dechlorinated water.

One other note is to make sure you have a matured tank ready to move the male out in case he becomes aggressive. I am going to set up a "just in case tank" if not make sure you can divide the tank, do it now....not whennit is too late!
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i think changing the water softness would be a mistake for non experts like myself.i have tried it before with south american cichlids and wiped them right out.and my waters very hard high ph around 8.i havent done a hardness test ever but the rays acclimate fine,their are many people here breeding them in our tap water just fine!!! messing with water chemistry is new to me,i have never had the need in my 15 plus years of aquarium hobby

hey skynoch "scott" whats the secrets
 
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