Getting healthy offspring from aquarium live-bearing fish that can continue and improve the breed is far from being as easy as it seems, even if we are talking about the most common guppies, swordtails or platies. We would like to give a few simple but useful tips, which will help the novice aquarist succeed in breeding popular ornamental fish breeds.
Step 1: selection of adult breeding fish and decoration of the aquarium
Care for the future young should begin already at the time of preparing the aquarium for adult fish. It must be spacious enough: otherwise, the natural instinct simply will not allow the inhabitants to reproduce, implicitly suggesting that a full-fledged continuation of the genus in cramped conditions is impossible. This is the first. Secondly, the ratio of males and females should be correctly calculated. Experts recommend sticking to a proportion of about two females per male. But there are some nuances here, depending on the breed of fish: for example, you should not let 2-3 swordtails into the aquarium, otherwise they will constantly fight for a dominant position; these fish should have either one male in the flock, or 4-5. As practice shows, for the greatest success in breeding swordtails, a group of 1 male and 2 females in an aquarium of 45-50 liters is ideal.
Of course, all fish intended for breeding must be healthy, strong, and energetic. As for the maintenance of the aquarium, it is necessary:
- closely monitor the freshness of the water;
- ensure good filtration;
- create vegetation and shelters for fish (they breed without problems in a completely empty aquarium, perhaps only guppies; for other breeds it is better to create a decent “entourage” that is conducive to mating games);
- do not overfeed the aquarium inhabitants so that they do not become lazy and sleepy.
Step 2: Birth & Fry Aquarium
The most noticeable and the only accurate sign by which a pregnant female is identified is an enlarged rounded abdomen. Orientation to the black “pregnancy spot” is not so infallible: due to the peculiarities of coloring in many ornamental fish, it is completely invisible, like in platies, golden swordsmen, black mollies, etc. On average, the duration of pregnancy is about 1 month, but varies depending on the breed: Phalloceros caudimaculatus in an aquarium with well-established heating may well sweep fry after three weeks, and for female swordtails, childbirth in the fifth week is not an anomaly.
It is recommended to plant the female in another aquarium at the beginning of the last third of pregnancy. Moving a fish is always stressful, and at a later date it can harm the fry or even cause premature birth. If there is any doubt about the term, it is better to carry out jigging earlier.
What should be the aquarium for fry:
- quite voluminous, since fry in a tank that is too small cannot always fully develop, and as a result they reach sexual maturity, being less than the established standard in size (moreover, in males, the small size becomes the gene dominant and is fixed in the offspring).
- convenient for regular thorough cleaning; ideally - without soil, in which pollution and waste products accumulate.
- equipped with a filter or aeration unit; experienced breeders recommend aeration with a foam filter of not too high power - there are cases when powerful imported installations caused the death of juvenile fish in the first weeks of life.
Step 3: raising juveniles
We have already talked about the sufficient volume of the aquarium; the specific size of the container directly depends on the breed of fish. For good development anablepsians, for example, it is better to place them in a 100-150 liter aquarium as early as possible, and micropicilia fry perfectly frolic in a volume of only 30 liters.
Is it necessary to feed the fry in the first hours after birth? If there is vegetation in the aquarium, then in most cases the existing algal bloom will be enough to feed the babies for 2-3 days. However, feeding is necessary: the amount of organic matter in the aquarium cannot be calculated, and the sooner the fry begin to take food, the less likely they are to remain hungry.
- To feed the fry, you can use special feeds sold in specialized stores, or home-made mixtures in the most different variations(of course, the second option is for experienced aquarists).
- In the first few days, it is better to give food every one and a half to two hours in small portions, about 6-7 times a day in total. As the juveniles grow, the frequency of feeding decreases.
- If newborn fry do not take dry food from the surface of the floating feeder well, it can be mixed in a small portion of water and poured into the aquarium.
- At least once a week, it is necessary to perform a water change: the filters do not remove the smallest particles of organic matter and the excretion of fry, and polluted water makes it difficult for the fish to properly metabolize.
- Water heating is necessary, but it should not be too strong. During the first 14-15 days, it is better to maintain a temperature of + 25-28 ° C, and then set such a regime so that at night the water is several degrees colder.
If all fry rearing activities are done correctly, you will get young ornamental fish that fully meet breed standards, with rich colors and no health problems.
Once the eggs have hatched, you are just beginning your journey in breeding fish and rearing fry. After all, raising fry is often a more difficult task than getting a couple to spawn, and getting caviar is half the battle.
On the one hand, most cichlids and viviparous give birth to fry large enough to immediately start feeding on artificial food, but the majority aquarium fish, for example, give birth to very small fry, which must be fed with the same small food. Their fry are so small that they themselves could serve as food for guppy fry or cichlids.
Also, juveniles can only eat food that moves, and you will have very little time to train them to eat other foods before they begin to starve to death.
Next, we will look at the many different foods that aquarists use to feed fry. Each of them is quite nutritious in itself, but it is better to use several different ones to create a complete diet.
boiled egg yolk
This is a simple and inexpensive food for feeding fry. Of its merits, it does not create an unpleasant odor, which is the sin of live food and is very affordable.
To prepare the food, hard boil a chicken egg, remove the protein, all you need is the yolk. Take a few grams of the yolk and place it in a container or cup of water. Then shake or mix it thoroughly, in the end you will get a suspension that you can feed the fry.
If necessary, pass it through cheesecloth to filter out large pieces of yolk. Then you can give a suspension to the fry, as a rule, they stand in the water column for some time and eat them with appetite.
One yolk can feed the fry for a whole month, of course it will not be stored for so long, and do not forget to boil new time from time. Do not add too much mixture to the aquarium at once, it decomposes quickly and can lead to the death of fry. Feed egg yolk sparingly, a few drops a couple of times a day.
Another problem is that the yolk, even after filtering, may be too large for some fry, will not be digested and will begin to disappear at the bottom. The smallest parts can be obtained using a mixer or blender.
Dry egg yolk
There is no fundamental difference between boiled and dry. Widely used in fry feed, but very easy to make yourself.
It is enough to boil the egg, and dry and crush the yolk. It can be added sprinkled onto the surface of the water or mixed with water and poured into the aquarium. It floats on the surface of the water, and the yolk mixed with water hangs in the water column for some time. Use both methods to give your fry maximum nutrition.
It is also good to feed small fish with dry egg yolk, as it is much smaller than the smallest flakes. The particle size of dry yolk is smaller than that of diluted in water, which is important if the fry is small.
Liquid artificial food
This food is already diluted with water. Sometimes the particles are too large for small fry, but manufacturers are constantly improving the quality of such feeds. New generations of food are already suitable for all types of fry, in addition, their advantage is that they hang in the water column for a very long time and the fry have time to eat.
dry flakes
Widely available, but although they can be fed to large fry such as guppies, they are not suitable for most others. Often the particle size is equal in size to the fry itself.
Live food for fish
Great food for any little one. They are easy to keep and very small (from 0.04 mm to 2 mm long and 0.10 mm wide). Unlike a microworm, a nematode culture can go without food for several weeks and will not die.
Nematode is soil roundworm- Turbatrix aceti, can also live in silt. Since nematodes are live food, they are especially suitable if fry refuse artificial food. In aquarium water, nematodes can live up to a day, so they do not poison the water quickly and can be eaten by aquarium fish fry during the day.
Nematodes live in a highly acidic environment, feeding on bacteria. To prepare a nutrient medium for them, take one to one apple cider vinegar and distilled water. Vinegar should be regular, no additives.
For example, we take half a liter of vinegar and half a liter of distilled water, mix and add a couple of tablespoons of sugar or a few apple slices without peel. An apple is needed to create a breeding ground for bacteria. After a week or two, the solution will become significantly cloudy, which means that the bacteria have multiplied rapidly and it's time to add the nematodes themselves to them.
The culture of nematodes can be bought on the Internet, on a bird or among familiar aquarists.
Add vinegar to the solution and put the jar in the dark. In a couple of weeks, the culture will be ready.
The most difficult thing is to filter out the nematodes, as they live in a very acidic environment and adding them along with vinegar can be deadly to the fry. You can pour vinegar into a bottle with a narrow neck, and cork it with cotton wool on top and pour fresh water on it. Nematodes will move through the cotton wool into fresh water and can be caught with a pipette.
Another method of breeding nematodes is even simpler and more commonly used.
As a nutrient medium, oatmeal or oatmeal, which must be brewed to a state of thick sour cream. After the oatmeal has been brewed, you need to add table vinegar about a teaspoon per 100 grams of the medium.
Next, the mass is laid out in a layer of 1-1.5 cm, laid out in saucers or other containers, and a culture of nematodes is placed on top. Be sure to cover the container so that there is a humid environment and does not dry out. Literally in two or three days, the nematodes will already crawl out onto the walls and they can be collected with a brush.
Of the nuances of breeding nematodes in such a way - the culture should stand in a warm place. The layer should not be too high, no more than 1.5 cm. If mold appears, then the medium was too liquid or little vinegar was added.
Of course, you need to feed the nematodes by adding fresh porridge from time to time. When? This will already be seen in the process. If the output has become smaller, if the medium has darkened or water has appeared on it, if there is a smell of decomposition. You can also feed with a few drops of kefir or carrot juice, even a couple of drops of live yogurt.
But it’s easier to have several containers with nematodes in stock and, in which case, just switch to another one.
The nematode is an excellent food - small, lively and nutritious. They can even feed fry of different sizes, since the nematode itself is also different.
Zooplankton - ciliates
Infusoria are not the only micro-organisms, they are a mixture of various micro-organisms with a size of 0.02 mm or more.
To grow your own shoe ciliate culture, place some hay, spinach, or dry banana or melon peel in a bottle of water and place it in a sunny spot.
The problem is that you can't control the types of microorganisms in such a culture, and some can be toxic to the fry. To protect yourself, first scald hay, spinach or banana peel and then adding a culture from familiar aquarists to the water, it is just dominated by the ciliate shoe. The water needs to be aerated to reduce fermentation odor, and a bottom siphon to remove leftovers will extend the life of the culture by a few more days.
So, fill a liter jar with water and bait - dry banana peel, pumpkin, hay and put a non-solar place. Add a culture of ciliates to the water, preferably from familiar aquarists.
If not, then you can even collect from a puddle, or a local reservoir, although there is still a risk of bringing something else. Wait a few days for the infusoria to multiply. You can catch in two ways - filtering through paper and lowering it into water or darkening the jar, leaving only one bright place where the ciliates will gather. Then you simply collect them with a tube.
Infusoria are not as hardy as nematodes, so a new jar will have to be launched every couple of weeks. However, they are extremely small and can be eaten by all types of fry.
Green water - phytoplankton
Ciliates can be divided into two categories: zooplankton (we talked about it above) are tiny microorganisms. Phytoplankton are tiny algae, ranging in size from 0.02 to 2 mm in length. Aquarists use green water as food, but it's actually phytoplankton.
Green water is extremely easy and simple to obtain. Just take some water from the aquarium, put it in a jar and put it in the sun. The sun's rays will make the water turn green within a couple of days. When this happens, simply add some water to the fry tank. Instead, add water from the aquarium.
This is very similar to breeding ciliates, only even easier. Any water from the aquarium contains both zoo and phytoplankton, but by increasing the amount of light, we stimulate the growth of phytoplankton. One problem is our climate, in winter or autumn there will not be enough sunlight, but you can just put it under a lamp, the main thing is that the water does not overheat.
Green water is simple, affordable, very small in size, it is perfectly eaten by fry from the first days of their lives. And most importantly, it does not die in the aquarium and serves as a source of food for fry for several days. For greater efficiency, you need to keep several cans at the same time, in case the plankton suddenly die in one.
If you have a microscope, then you can generally grow only the crop that you need, but as for me, this is already superfluous.
microworm
The microworm (Panagrellus redivivus) is a small nematode (0.05-2.0 mm long and 0.05 mm wide) that seems too small for a fry. But they have one quality that makes them stand out, they are very nutritious.
To create a microworm culture, mix cornmeal with water until thick and creamy, then add a quarter teaspoon of yeast. Place in a jar with a lid that has holes for ventilation, no more than 1.5 cm layer and add a culture of microworms.
It is easiest to take them on a bird or from familiar aquarists. But if there are none, then you can find a damp pile of fallen leaves in the nearest park, collect them and bring them home. In it you will find very small, white worms, which you need to add to the container with the nutrient mixture.
After a couple of days, you will see microworms that crawl out onto the walls and which can be collected with your fingers or a brush.
Malek eats them voraciously, but like nematodes, microworms do not live long in water, and it is important not to overfeed. When you collect them from the walls, some of the nutrient mixture may get into the water, but do not worry, it will also be eaten by the fry.
As a rule, it lasts for two weeks, after which the launch must be repeated. Hercules is also used as a nutrient mixture, but the smell from it is more unpleasant and the quality of our hercules leaves much to be desired. However, there are many recipes for preparing culture, you are free to choose your own.
Artemia nauplii
Newly hatched brine shrimp (0.08 to 0.12 mm) is widely used in the aquarium trade for feeding fry of various fish. They are active in fresh water and can live quite a long time. Where to get them? Now it is very easy to buy Artemia eggs, both on a bird and from friends and online. What you want is undecapsulated brine shrimp eggs. There is great amount opinions on how to properly obtain brine shrimp nauplii.
The easiest is to pour about two teaspoons of salt into a liter jar, a couple of spoons of nauplii and turn on aeration. Keep in mind that it should be around the clock and the bubbles should not be too large, as they will raise the newly hatched brine shrimp to the surface of the water, where it will instantly die.
An important point is the water temperature, preferably about 30 C, since at this temperature the nauplii come out in a day and at the same time, and at a lower temperature the yield is extended.
After about a day, two nauplii will hatch and they can be removed with a siphon and added to the aquarium with fry. Turn off the aeration and the nauplii will collect in the bottom of the jar, and the eggs will float to the top, they need to be removed. A little salty water in the tank won't cause problems, but you can either transplant the nauplii into intermediate fresh water or rinse them out. Malek eats them with pleasure and grows well.
This article describes simple yet effective ways, with which you can raise the fry of many fish. It's not always easy, but patience and dedication will always pay off. We hope that we could help you with this!
Post navigationGuppy fry are born in miniature sizes - 3-5 mm. They can be kept in a community aquarium provided there are enough hiding places. Among plants and decorations, it is easier for them to hide from adults who can eat them. A plant floating near the surface, thanks to its roots, will create a good shelter. Also, food for fry can be lowered immediately into the thickets of plants, where adult fish will not find it.
The content of guppy fry is possible in a specially prepared jig. It is recommended to take a glass container with a volume of 20-50 liters - in such a tank, caring for baby fish will not cause trouble for the aquarist. Water must be taken from the common aquarium where these fish were born. There are often reports that guppy fry died after being launched into the nursery. This is due to the fact that the water in it was of inappropriate parameters. Ground covering, stones and driftwood are optional, because they do not simplify the care of a brood of guppies.
See how to make a simple do-it-yourself fry jig.
A filter and a compressor must be installed in the sump. A sponge filter connected to a compressor is suitable as a filter. To support temperature regime you will need a water heater. For lighting, it is better to choose fluorescent lamps that do not heat the water much.
Water changes should be carried out in the amount of 20-40% of the volume of the jigger. It is also necessary to siphon the bottom, it is better after changing the water. The sponge from the filter should be rinsed once a week, depending on the degree of clogging. Aeration and water filtration must be turned on around the clock. Water for replacement must be insisted for 2-3 days.
In the first days of life, the number of daylight hours should be 12 hours, gradually it should be reduced. At the age of 3-4 months, small fish will need 8-10 hours of light. Saturated lighting increases the rate of growth and development. The best water temperature in the jig: 28 ° C for the first 3 days of life. Gradually, the temperature decreases to 26 ° C, after 3-4 months to 24 ° C.
Feeding. The first sexual characteristics
Proper care is impossible without feeding. The first 3 weeks of life they can be fed live dust and brine shrimp with an incubation term of 6-8 hours. In the first month of life, bloodworms, sliced tubifex, cyclops can be added to the diet. It is important that the feed is pulverized. You can also give hard-boiled and chopped chicken yolk, alternating it with other feeds. It is recommended to give branded food for guppy fry.
Look at the newly born guppy fry.
As the fry mature, they need to be sorted. When it is possible to identify the sex, especially of older guppies, prepare an aquarium with water by diluting it with water from a jigger. Guppies from the age of 2-4 weeks can breed, therefore, in order to avoid early pregnancy of females, sorting should be carried out.
The dominant feature of male guppies in the early stages is the lengthening and folding of the lower fin, which is located near the anus. Over time, this fin will turn into a gonopodia. After the gonopodium is formed, it will be easier to determine the sex in the early stages. Different-sex rearing of fry is good for their health. When kept separately, they are easier to care for, and they do not waste their energy chasing each other.
If the fry do not take food during feeding, then the water quality does not meet the standards. Healthy fry have a rounded abdomen and a strong appetite. Many problems with growing fry are due to the fact that they are provided with improper care. This applies to aquarium cleaning (bottom siphons, water changes, filtration, aeration).
The first signs of staining of young fish do not appear immediately, depending on the species or breed. Sometimes a female guppy is able to give birth to offspring from different males, or once fertilized female can give birth every month. The number of fry in one brood is about 20 pieces. Therefore, it happens that fry from several broods grow in an aquarium. The first time after birth, the fry can stay at the bottom in a motionless state.
If the female is not properly cared for during pregnancy, she may give birth to premature fry ahead of time, in which the yolk sac will be visible. Preterm birth of a female occurs due to frequent water changes in the aquarium, or due to the introduction of guppies into a recently started aquarium. Mortality among premature fry is very high.
Even if the breeding of fish was not included in the plans, and there are no skills, there is every chance that with good conditions the existence of the inhabitants of the aquarium will multiply. If this happens, the question will be: what to do? tropical species that are contained in tanks belong to two groups: viviparous and spawning. The first young fish that you are likely to encounter in an aquarium are fry of viviparous individuals.
viviparous fish
As the name suggests, these fish give birth to fully formed fry. They are usually quite large and the brood is uniform in size. Larger than the fry that emerge from their eggs, they have a greater chance of surviving in a multi-species tank, although some will fall prey to other fish. They are able to gnaw on the edges of flakes and eat algae on plants. To feed them, you can crush some cereal or add one of liquid products, suspension for live-born fry.
Be wary of overdoing liquid food as it can quickly pollute the tank. When in doubt, place two or three drops on a teaspoon and wash them off the spoon into the aquarium. You also need to understand that these additional individuals, while still small, will grow and increase the load on the entire aquarium system and its filter. As a result, another tank will be required.
Aquarium with dimensions 45 x 25 x 25 cm, useful growing container. When not in use for young animals, it is an ideal quarantine tank. Set up the tank as usual. Partially fill it with water from the main tank and add a small amount of fresh water.
Fill the main tank with fresh water, following the example of a regular water change. Thus, water from the main tank is combined with fresh water. You can safely catch and move the fry to the grow tank. There is no need to wait for the water to mature; water exchange occurred simultaneously in both reservoirs. Be careful with the amount of feeding; it should be kept to a minimum until the filter has built up enough bacteria to handle the cleanup. The fry take varying amounts of time to grow in the tank. The periods depend on the growth rate. Do not place the fry with other fish until they are large enough not to be eaten. If you have too many fry, give them to friends or take them to your local aquarium club or store.
On the picture: Female platies often give birth in an aquarium. They look for a quiet place, near the water surface in the thick of plants, and this gives the fry a chance to avoid being eaten.
spawning
These fish are a little more difficult to care for when breeding. While some species will spawn in an aquarium, not all will excel at brood rearing. Because other inhabitants believe that caviar and fry are affordable food. It's much better to set up a spawning tank with everything the fish need: beautiful leafy plants, caves, shale, etc. The fish is placed there. Depending on the species, learn about your species, remove either both parents after breeding and return them to the main tank, or leave them to care for the eggs and hatched fry.
Developing parental instinct is important. Research the species you keep and feed them the right foods to bring them into spawning before trying to breed them.
Feeding spawning fry is fraught with problems. Sometimes the fry are so tiny that they can only eat ciliates, tiny microscopic creatures that need to be cultured. Others are slightly larger and need just hatched brine shrimp. For them, you can buy nauplii grown in salt water.
Fortunately, the little ones certain types, but by no means everyone will take portions from finely dispersed commercial live-bearing products, which are available in either liquid or powder form. Other fry will require green foods in the form of seaweed, frozen peas, and lettuce.
Successful rearing of fry
Whatever type of fish you breed, cleanliness is important. Eggs can become moldy quickly if tank conditions are poor or the eggs are infertile, and the tiny fry can get bacterial infections in dirty conditions.
Another reason for wastage is starvation because there is no suitable food when the fry needs it, or because the food is too large for the fry to eat. It doesn't matter how much food is put into the tank regularly, if it's the wrong size or offered at the wrong time, the fish will starve. Most fish die for these reasons, more often than for any other.
Broods may vary in size. Some fish produce 10 or 12 fry; others produce thousands. One cannot hope for the survival of every fish from a large brood. Thus, it is better to settle for raising 50 healthy adults than 1000 small stunted specimens. Fish don't just need food to grow, they need space. A very small one who has enough space to raise a lot of fry.
On the picture: Few fish like this Loricaria spawn on flat surfaces. Here on the glass of the tank. This male guards the eggs from other fish in the tank.
Guppies are characterized by great adaptability. However, they also impose certain requirements on the environment that must be met for their successful breeding. This is especially important for breeding domestic thoroughbred guppies.
However, it does not follow from this that it is necessary for them to create conditions that completely coincide with the optimal conditions for their life in nature: it should be borne in mind that guppies have long been a pet. As a result of domestication, both her heredity and her appearance, and its requirements for living conditions. Guppies bred in our aquariums (more precisely, breed groups) are so different from each other and from their wild ancestors that at first glance they can be mistaken for different species. The most attractive signs of color and shape of the fins are different for different breeds of groups, and therefore the conditions under which they look most effective are also different. Gray (by background color) guppies are less demanding on the conditions of detention than light ones, and light ones are less demanding compared to albinos. Large-finned are more demanding than short-finned and forked ones. They even reach sexual maturity at different ages. Different aquarists, and even more so in different cities and countries, have guppies adapted to different conditions (feeding, temperature, water hardness, pH, etc.). Therefore, recommendations cannot be made for all groups. When purchasing guppies, it is useful to ask in what conditions they lived with the previous owner. Guppies that are accustomed to frequent water changes or to a flow tank do not do well in an aquarium with “old” water and vice versa.
If you want to have good thoroughbred guppies, it is better to keep them not only separately from other fish, but even different breeds guppies, in different aquariums. For maintenance and even for obtaining offspring from one pair of guppies, it is enough to have a three-liter jar. But to grow offspring obtained from one pair, you need an aquarium with a capacity of 20 liters or more, at least 40 cm long.
The life expectancy of males at a moderate water temperature is 2.5-3 years, females - 3.5-4, but they stop breeding a year and a half earlier.
Puberty
Puberty, depending on the conditions of detention (primarily water temperature) and feeding, guppies reach the age of 3-5 months.
In well-fed fry, sex begins to be determined as early as two weeks of age. Fish can breed in the same aquarium where they are kept. To prevent juveniles from being eaten by adults, shelters are needed in the aquarium - soil, places with dense thickets of plants and floating plants on the surface of the water, especially Riccia. If the fry are of value, they are scooped out with a cup and transferred to the nursery aquarium.
The female is transplanted when her abdomen becomes almost rectangular, and the maturity spot at the anus is brown-black or black (in golden females it is yellow-brown). For this purpose, you can also use liter jars, leaving them afloat in the aquarium so that there are no sharp fluctuations in water temperature. But it is better to plant females in 5-liter jars. In this case, after hatching, the female can be transplanted, stones and most of the plants removed, and the litter left for cultivation until the sex of the fry is determined. The composition of the water in the jig should be the same as in the aquarium (but without iodine); salt can be omitted or added at the rate of 0.5 teaspoon per 10 liters of water.
But the water temperature should be 3-4°C higher, and it is better if the water level does not exceed 10-12 cm.
Guppy, unlike the vast majority of fish, does not spawn, but fully formed fry. Therefore, it is called viviparous.
However, the development of eggs inside the mother's body is carried out exclusively due to the nutrients inside the egg (egg) - during the development of a fertilized caviar, nutrients from the mother's body do not enter the egg. Therefore, it is more correct to call guppies not viviparous, but ovoviviparous fish. Fertilization in guppies is internal. Sperm is introduced into the genital opening of the female with the help of a special copulatory organ - three anterior rays of the anal fin rolled into a tube - the gonopodia, which is a modified anal fin. In immature males, it has the same shape as in females. With the onset of puberty, it begins to resemble in shape first a triangle, and then a tube. Gonopodia in guppies are mobile and can, with the help of muscles, take various positions necessary for insemination. Spermatophores (packages or "containers") with sperm, having entered the body of the female, partially fertilizing the eggs, partially remaining in reserve, remain there for several months. In guppies, there are often cases of obtaining from one fertilization from 6 to >, 11 litters. This greatly complicates the work of guppy breeding: if a female guppy was fertilized by one male, then when mating with other males, it is impossible to establish from which male this or that offspring was obtained.
Spawning
Spawning is usually stimulated by adding fresh water and raising its temperature. If too much fresh water is added, it can occur prematurely, and the female will spawn larvae with very large yolk sacs or even eggs. Such offspring generally die. Part of the larvae can be saved if the water level in the spawning ground is lowered to 3-5 cm, its temperature is increased by 2-4 ° C and slightly salted (0.5-1 teaspoon of salt per 10 liters of water). Sometimes it happens that a fully mature female cannot “be born”. In such cases, it is recommended to add a young male of the same line to it for a while, and remove it with the start of spawning.
The fertility of a female depends on her age and size. At the first spawning, normally developed, but small females have 10-20 fry, large ones - 20-30. In growing females with the second mark - up to 40-50, with the third - up to 70-100 pieces. The maximum fecundity can be over 180 fry.
The intervals between the marks depend on the conditions of detention, especially on the temperature of the water. At normal planting density, they are 1-2 months.
The fry soon after birth begin to feed.
Feeding fry
The most critical period for feeding juveniles is the first 3-5 days after birth.
The following can be borrowed from the experience of industrial fish farming: for the first 3-5 days of life, feed the fry around the clock with live food, without turning off the light at night. During this period, a rich and nutritious diet is especially important. If the juveniles from the first days turn out to be “tightened”, one cannot count on growing large beautiful adult fish even under optimal conditions for keeping and feeding them. The first food can be “live dust”, rotifers, brine shrimp and cyclops nauplii, and in their absence, a microworm (better grown on finely grated carrots or oatmeal with carrot juice), finely chopped oligochaetes with a razor.
Of the live feed substitutes, it is best to use feed mixtures industrial production, for example, coming to pet stores from Germany. You can use MicroMin - this is a starter food for fry of the first days of life. TetraOvin is started when the juveniles are a little older. The formulation of these feeds was compiled in strict accordance with the recommendations of scientists and contains most of the substances necessary for the growth and development of young fish. Thus, the composition of these feeds includes vitamin A, growth vitamin T, calcium phosphide, carotene, etc. The manufacturing process of these feeds also includes mandatory treatment with ultraviolet rays.
You can use when feeding fry and substitutes for live food, such as yogurt, egg yolk, scrambled eggs, etc.
Yogurt. A small amount of curdled milk or weak milk is poured with boiling water so that the milk protein (casein) coagulates. With a net of dense mill gas, the clot is caught and washed with water. Then the net with a clot is lowered into the water of the aquarium and gently shaken until a cloud of small food particles appears. Yogurt does not spoil the water, it can be stored in the refrigerator for several days.
Yolk. Egg boiled hard. Take a piece of the yolk and rub it in a spoonful of aquarium water. Then poured into an aquarium with fry. It should be noted that water quickly deteriorates from the yolk, so it is used only as a last resort, in the absence of other feeds.
Omelette. Two raw eggs are mixed with two teaspoons of dry nettle (ground in a mortar) or hercules, and then poured into 100 ml of boiling milk and beaten vigorously. When the mixture has cooled, give it to the fish (how much they will eat). Store the omelet in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Powdered milk. Powdered milk is a highly nutritious protein food for aquarium fish. You can cook it at home. A plate of milk is placed on a pot of boiling water and it is evaporated. The resulting powder does not dissolve in water for several hours and is completely eaten by fish.
Cheese. Cheese can be used as food. Non-sharp varieties of cheese are rubbed on a fine grater. Grated processed cheese should be slightly dried before feeding.
Feeding fish with dried gammarus, daphnia, bloodworms, as well as cereals, omelettes, crackers and biscuits is permissible only in extreme cases and for a short time. You can not eat stale food. They can cause a decrease in the growth rate, and sometimes even disease and death of fish. 
Feed is desirable to alternate. Gradually, they begin to give a small cyclops, chopped, well-washed tubifex, etc. When feeding even with live food, it is necessary to add a small amount of algae (crushed thread) and other components of plant origin to the diet.
It is known that fish grow throughout their lives, only at different rates. Accordingly, she eats. Here is an approximate daily feed intake (with the optimal content regime): from the moment of transition to active nutrition until two weeks of age - 150-170% of the weight of the fish; from two weeks of age to 1 month - 80-100%; from 1 to 2 months - 30%; from 2 months to the moment of separation by sex - 15%; from the moment of separation by sex until full maturation - 5-10%; producers - 3-5%.
For the first week, it is advisable to feed the fry 4-5 times a day, the second - 3-4 times and at least 3 times up to one and a half to two months of age.
The initial two weeks (especially the first) are a very important stage in the life of juveniles and actually determine what adult fish will become. If at this time the fry are not fed enough and inadequately (for example, with one dry, finely ground daphnia, which is in principle possible), and, starting from the third week, as it should be, the tail camber (the angle between the upper and lower edges) is still in the grown fish ; the veil, and often the richness of color, will not be what they could be. With a lack and inferiority of food, it is recommended to select some of the best fry and fully feed them, and destroy the rest.
Loading...