My electric blue female is starving againe

[CWO4GUNNER]

I have a breeding pair of electric blue hap in a 244 community tank with an assortment of Mbuna Ciclids. I worried about the female becasue she never fully got her weight back on from her very first clutch of eggs she carried around in her mouth. She is now on her 2nd clutch and although the comes out of the artificial reef during feeding time, she never eats a bite. She must have eaten the last clutch or I just don't recognize blue hap fry from the assortment of baby fry that hang out in the sharp dead corals, some yellow (labs) and some silver or gray about 10 or 15. She is now gaunt and look like a she is starving. I cant catch her or the male without destroying my tank so Im just hoping she brings this clutch to full term so eventually I can set out a fish trap and start thinning out my tank population now at about 20 assorted adults of which 8 are breeding pairs and 15 fry which are conservative estimates. I think a fish trap is the only way I will be able to control tanks population without stressing the whole tank as it is just too roomy a tank to catch fish selectively and the sharp dead assortment or corals that make up the reef don't help with nets that snag.

Anyone have a photo of Electric Blue hap fry size maybe 3 weeks old? maybe I can try and target them for separation if I put out a fish trap.

 

[Blue2Fyre]

I dont have a picture but the fry will be grey in color. They maybe the silvery ones you are seeing.


I would suggest adding something to your tank to help with population control. I keep syno petricola in with my mbuna and since I have added them I haven't had a single fry survive in the tank. I use to be over run with them. There are some other syno catfish from the rift lakes that can work as well. Syno multipunctatus comes to mind. They like the same water parameters, eat anything and can put up with the mbuna aggression. They are the perfect way to control the population. Just remember that they like to be in groups.

 

[bcpits]

What he said.
Add some cats to take care of the fry.
Mbuna also dont pair. They are harlem breeders. Daddy could be any of the other males in the tank

 

[CWO4GUNNER]

I was thinking that eventually with fish traps I could selectively separate them by species into other smaller tanks easy to catch fish from like 60 to 100 gallon tanks. I was envisioning tanks with all yelllow labs or all blue haps and maybe a tank full of striped bumblebee females. At worst I was sort of hoping to give them to the pet shop for credit maybe or even occasional Oscar feeder food. But it suddenly occurred to me that I would have to have a special fish trap to catch fry only, so Ill have to do more research. I currently have one 7" fat bumblebee male I had to remove that was way too aggressive in his own 80 gallon tall tank. he is one mean fish that would just assume attack and kill then pause to look at another fish, he is one I definitely need to get rid of but he is so beautiful and his stripes so defined and contrast. Hell be going to the pet shop soon probubly free.

 

[Blue2Fyre]

I dunno about taking the fry to the LFS. If you don't know for sure what they are they could be hybrids. If you are just keeping pairs then there is a good chance of having hybrids. If you separated the species like you mentioned then sure go for it. It's a pain though to raise fry big enough for the LFS to take them IMO.

 

[CWO4GUNNER]

Wow that not very good news that my Mbuna community tank could have a bunch of drab colored hybrids. I assumed my labs would breed labs and the same for my Julido Marlieri, Bumblebee female, Brichardi Albino, female Nanochromis, Blue Johanni, Albino Peacock, Kenyi, and Red Zebras. Thought thy would all stay within their specie partner...Ill start looking for these cat fish by name next time I go to a large species shop in Las Vegas.

 

[Blue2Fyre]

Mbuna are notorious for creating hybrids. Red zebra x yellow labs are one of the most common. If they look similar in anyway there is a good chance they will cross. The best bet to prevent hybrids is to keep mbuna that don't look at all alike and to keep several females per male.