First Spawn!

[tomcptse]

Hi All
This is my first post in the forum and it is an exicting one too. My new pair of cacatuoides spawned today.
Bought these little fellows about a month ago, got the male in frist, then got him a wife about a week after. They were doing fine for the first few days, then the male started to chase the female and got a bit aggressive to her . I was abit worry :frown: but didn't really do much about it for 2 weeks. Then I got home after work today and things got different way around and saw the female got aggressive toward the male instead. Then I looked closer. SURPRISE SURPRISE! There are eggs in the small pot cave :biggrin:

 

[LeviathanGirl]

Congradulations and welcome to the group! The first spawn is always the most exciting, especially when they start swimming around!

 

[Mike Wise]

Congradulations and welcome to the group! The first spawn is always the most exciting, especially when they start swimming around!

So true. I can still remember my first dwarf cichlid spawn (almost 30 years ago!) like it was yesterday. My little Nannacara anomala turned into a black-striped fury. Good mother, too. Good luck with your fish, tomcptse.

 

[DH247]

Congrats!! It's really something else to watch mum guard and tend to the fry. I'm on my first spawn too and I can't help but be mesmerized every time I go to check on em!

 

[tomcptse]

DH247

Totally agreed with you. I have the same feeling everytime.:biggrin:

How old is your spawn? got any wriggling tails yet?

 

[DH247]

I've got a whole bunch of free-swimmers! They're darting around and they'll swarm mum. It's amazing to watch em go from leaf to leaf and 'sit' on some of the driftwood and forage. This is the best though, I noticed the other night that mum will herd them all into a coconut shell shortly before the lights go out. Without fail at the same time every day! Then she stands guard at the mouth of the cave. It's really cool!!

 

[tleehm]

Congratulation - this is the beginning of the addiction.

The pair should take care of the fry (unless the male is a bad father - like my elizabethae in the past, he sneak up and snack on the fry) until the pair is ready for the second spawn (around 4 weeks). Then the female will chase them away and you'll need to separate them from the parent (have a grow out tank ready).

Thomas.

 

[DH247]

Thanks for the advice!! I've got another couple tanks pretty well cycled up but it looks like one just became a grow-out tank!!

 

[Triadtropz]

congrats ..looks like a good mom...

 

[DH247]

Hey Tom,

any wigglers yet? Some pics??

 

[tomcptse]

Hey DH247
Just got some fresh photos today.
I think few more days they will be free swimming.
Got to get ready for some baby brine shrimp very soon .

 

[DH247]

Cool! Looks like you've got a good sized school of fry! Mine are starting to wander further and further from mum. It's cool to see them as wigglers. I missed that stage cuz they were all under a large piece of driftwood.

Hey does anyone know of a good way to rinse bbs without losing a bunch, or an easier way to gather them after rinsing?

 

[tomcptse]

Day 8
They are finally free swimming now.
It's so fun to watch them. If they swim too far away from the pack the mum will suck them with her mouth and release them back into the pack, and I'm so glad that the female is such a good mum. So far the number of the youngs are still high.

 

[DH247]

Great photos Tom!!

 

[tleehm]

Hey does anyone know of a good way to rinse bbs without losing a bunch, or an easier way to gather them after rinsing?

Not sure what's available in Canada, but there are BBS strainer in the market that allows you to strain and rinse the BBS with minimal losses (some still makes it through though).

 

[tomcptse]

For small quantity I use tea bag.
Just cut open a tea bag, empty out the leafs, a quick wash under hot water, clip the bag at the side of any container with a clip, then siphon out the hatched bbs through the bag. Rinse the bbs with fresh water then turn the bag inside out to release the bbs in any storage container or directly into the fry tank.
I can granrantee you that you won't lost any at all .
=)
This is the excellent way to do small quanitity

 

[DH247]

Tom, that's bloody brilliant! Thanks guys!

 

[tomcptse]

DH247, no worries mate :wink:

 

[Mike Wise]

I, too, use a fine mesh baby brine shrimp net. I siphon the BBS out of the hatching bottle though the air line tubing into the net. Then I simply rest the net on a small bucket of fresh water, with only the bottom of the net resting in the water. This rinses off any excess salt left on the shrimp without forcing them through the mesh.

 

[ed seeley]

A handkerchief will work well too to strain BBS. Just make sure it's clean....