Ivanacara bimaculata eggs

[illumnae]

After conditioning my Ivanacara bimaculata with live worms and decapsulated brine shrimp eggs, one of my 4 pairs has finally laid eggs! I notice though that the eggs are not bright orange/red like apistogramma eggs - could they be unfertilized? There's alot of eggs though, much more than what I remember from apistogramma spawns.

 

[Mike Wise]

Look normal in color and numbers for a cichlasomine. Not all apisto eggs are red. It depends on what they eat.

 

[anewbie]

Off topic but one thing i will say about Ivanacara bimaculata is they are really peaceful much more so than their related species. Do quite well in a community aquarium even if spawning.

 

[rasmusW]

Congrats… it’s a fantastic species, for sure.

-r

 

[KenL]

How are the eggs looking now? If they are not viable, they’ll probably get eaten.

 

[illumnae]

Thanks everyone! Looks like this may be a viable batch of eggs based on your feedback. Both parents are still guarding the flowerpot, and the male is also constantly displaying at the pair in the next tank - I guess they're pretty good parents? Hopefully they see the eggs through to free swimming fry! I'm hoping that the fry will eat decapsulated brine shrimp eggs like the parents do, but I've bought a Ziss hatchery, eggs and sea salt just in case. I've also got Repashy powder in my fish cabinet and the parents love the gel, but I don't think it's suitable for newly hatched fry?

It's been over 15 years since I last deliberately tried to spawn dwarf cichlids so I'm not up to date with what to do anymore. From my vague recollection I previously always just fed decapsulated brine shrimp eggs and they worked fine.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

I'm hoping that the fry will eat decapsulated brine shrimp eggs like the parents do

I've not kept these, but if they are like Apistogramma spp. the fry need the food to move ("wriggle response") before they will recognise it as food.

I keep <"Banana / Micro worm"> (Panagrellus reduvius / nepenthicola) cultures, they are incredibly low maintenance. If you feed the decapsulated Brine shrimp eggs and "micro" worms together the fry should take both.

If you are in the UK? You are more than welcome to some of mine, I always have spare cultures.

cheers Darrel

 

[illumnae]

Hi all,

I've not kept these, but if they are like Apistogramma spp. the fry need the food to move ("wriggle response") before they will recognise it as food.

I keep <"Banana / Micro worm"> (Panagrellus reduvius / nepenthicola) cultures, they are incredibly low maintenance. If you feed the decapsulated Brine shrimp eggs and "micro" worms together the fry should take both.

If you are in the UK? You are more than welcome to some of mine, I always have spare cultures.

cheers Darrel

Thank you very much for your offer Darrel, unfortunately I'm in Singapore. Let me see if the micro worms will pass the wife test. I did some research about maintaining a micro worm culture but it's quite troublesome in hot and humid Singapore.

 

[Ayazad]

My Bimaculatas successfully laid eggs five times. The first four parents ate the eggs on the third day. The fry have been swimming under the protection of their parents for 10 days now.

 

[anewbie]

Thank you very much for your offer Darrel, unfortunately I'm in Singapore. Let me see if the micro worms will pass the wife test. I did some research about maintaining a micro worm culture but it's quite troublesome in hot and humid Singapore.

bbs works well for the first couple of weeks then dry food.

 

[illumnae]

My Bimaculatas successfully laid eggs five times. The first four parents ate the eggs on the third day. The fry have been swimming under the protection of their parents for 10 days now.

The eggs disappeared from the flowerpot on the 4th day, but the parents still exhibited guarding behaviour - the male is still threat displaying at the next door tank and the female is lurking behind the bigger flowerpot. I'm hoping that the eggs/wrigglers got moved instead of being eaten.

 

[illumnae]

bbs works well for the first couple of weeks then dry food.

I bought all the apparatus needed for bbs, just haven't hatched them before so just having first time jitters plus non live food is easier to prepare. I'll probably start hatching bbs over the weekend if the eggs haven't been eaten.

Anyone can share how long the eggs will take to hatch? I estimate they were laid on Sunday.

 

[anewbie]

I bought all the apparatus needed for bbs, just haven't hatched them before so just having first time jitters plus non live food is easier to prepare. I'll probably start hatching bbs over the weekend if the eggs haven't been eaten.

Anyone can share how long the eggs will take to hatch? I estimate they were laid on Sunday.

For me the eggs take a little less than 24 hours for the first few to start hatching; be aware that bbs only last a few days before the brine shrimp consumes their egg sack and are lacking nutrient.

Also you have time as first wrigglers will form and the parents will move them and then when they first begin to go swimming they will still have a small egg sack and won't need food till it is exhausted - usually 12 to 24 hours but is species dependent.

 

[KenL]

I haven’t bred anything for a long time, but with apistos, usually about a week from laying to free swimming when food is required.
They will eat from would and mum.

 

[illumnae]

For me the eggs take a little less than 24 hours for the first few to start hatching; be aware that bbs only last a few days before the brine shrimp consumes their egg sack and are lacking nutrient.

Also you have time as first wrigglers will form and the parents will move them and then when they first begin to go swimming they will still have a small egg sack and won't need food till it is exhausted - usually 12 to 24 hours but is species dependent.

Sorry I wasn't clear, I meant the fish eggs hatch time not brine shrimp eggs

 

[illumnae]

Sadly, I think the eggs/wrigglers got eaten as it's day 8 or 9 and there are no fry

 

[anewbie]

Sadly, I think the eggs/wrigglers got eaten as it's day 8 or 9 and there are no fry

Is the female out and about or in a secluded area - she will move the wrigglers when they first hatch.

 

[illumnae]

Is the female out and about or in a secluded area - she will move the wrigglers when they first hatch.

The female is no longer guarding the secluded area 24/7 like she did when the eggs first disappeared, though she still disappears there every now and then to check the area out. I thought the fry become free swimming after 8-9 days though, so I assume that they're gone by now since I see no free swimmers now

 

[illumnae]

The first batch of eggs didn't make it, but another of my pairs has laid eggs. This pair is a younger female with one of my original males (my first group had 3m2f, and this male was the leftover one that I paired with a female from a much later shipment). Guess I have to keep the bbs factory going on.

 

[anewbie]

As far as i can tell they form strong bonds (not sure if it is for life); though oddly enough the odd male out is not harmed - but will be sometime chased away. At least that was my experience. However the two females can have deadly confrontation in a small aquarium.