help! they keep eating their eggs

[slightlyhector]

both of my females keep eating their eggs both have spawned twice and the eggs keep dissapearing please help

 

[Mike Wise]

We need a lot more information: tank size & lay-out; water values; other fish in tank, age of breeders, etc.

 

[slimbolen99]

I have experienced a unique phenomenon in (my) Apistos. They will lay eggs, eat them, lay again, let them hatch, eat them, lay eggs again, and after the fry are free swimming for a while, eat them. They eat about four or so spawns in a row. Then, for some reason, on the fifth try, they raise the fry indefinitely. I have two theories here. The first is that the parents are fearful that another fish is going to eat the fry or eggs, so in order not to lose the nutritional value lost in the eggs they have laid, they eat the spawn themselves and try again later. The second theory is that the parents will rear the fry to free swimming stage, where the fry are feeding themselves, and slowly pick them off. It's like having 50+ extra mouths. Just an idea. Anyone else experience something like this? Seems like even my experienced pairs have done that.

 

[slightlyhector]

its 29 gallons its just two ottos, one male apisto and two females i have had them for a month and both of them have spawned twice my ph is at 7.4(i know its high for apistos but my water is normally 7.8) my tank has almost no nitrates or nitrite my hardness is at 50 my alkalinity is 180. i have three separate caves, ludwigia amazon sword and aponogeton, and i recently added oak leaves to my water( maybe why my ph is gettting lower) and i feed them frozen brine shrimp and freeze dried bloodworms and i do a 10% water change once a week

 

[Mike Wise]

What species. A 7.4 pH is too high for many apisto species. The eggs won't develop. If it is a whitewater species like A. cacatuoides, then you are probably having the same experience as slimbolen99.

 

[Apistomaster]

If the eggs disappear every time then it may be time to consider trying artificial hatching methods. Depends on how badly you want some fry.
There seems to be pattern among many Apistogramma species, especially those you really want to breed, to lose one of the breeders. I often pull my first spawn from a species I have deemed important so no matter what happens to a pair I have some replacements in the pipe line.
I think I am close to this point with some recently acquired pair of Apistogramma cf. agassizi Netz/Net. I am pretty sure they have spawned at least once since I have had them but no fry so far. I may begin peeking, which I rather not do, so I confirm whether they have spawned and if so get some fry. Then I don't mind going au natural as long as I want. I love seeing the breeders care for the fry but many times some pairs eat every spawn and Apistos don't really have a very long breeding life span. They may live years past their prime without continuing to spawn as they grow old.
Apistos can breed at young ages and my understanding is that very few wild Apistos live more than a year before becoming something's food.