|
Jack Dempsey Spawning Factoids |
|
Basic
Diet
|
Koi pellets and occasional nightcrawler |
|
Breeding
Quarters
|
20H
with under gravel filter and flat slate |
| Dither
Fish |
Female convict cichlid |
| Female |
4
inches |
| Male |
4
inches |
| Temperature |
76
F |
|
Water
|
Did
not check pH. Just aged water. |
| Behavior |
Both
mellow at all times |
|
Pre-Spawning
Clues
|
None |
|
Fry Food |
Microworms first, crushed flakes after two days |
LA
First "pair" selected turned out to be two males. Note their
bright colors.
LA
20H aquarium with cave and flat rock. Female convict dither fish
above.
LA
No matter how they try, two males can't get the job done.
LA
So we took out one of the males and added the female in back.
LA
We pumped up the future parents with 1/2 nightcrawler per day.
LA
So I took Tuesday off and came back to see the female fanning eggs.
LA
Nice batch of eggs. The white ones are dead. Female not
trusting the photographer.
LA
Both parents care for the eggs.
LA
Male the brighter colored of the pair.
LA
Way fewer spangles on the female.
LA
Female convict dither fish looking pretty good also.
LA
We watched the pair care for the eggs for a week.
LA
We saw fewer and fewer clear eggs and more white eggs.
LA
So we pulled the eggs and housed them separately. They all
appeared dead.
LA
So we cleaned the slate, siphoned the gravel, and started them all over
again.
LA
Two days later one of our regular customers says: "Looks like you
have 1,000 fry over here."
LA
Not a thousand but quite a few.
LA
Just try to get them to all line up in one group.
Final Report: Well, it turned out there were closer to 300 or so. We started them
out with three feedings of microworms per day. The parents had evidently
successfully hidden them from my efforts at cleaning their tank.
This explains why they killed their female convict dither fish.
The second morning (when we turned on the lights) we saw no fry.
They were hiding somewhere because they were back in force within an
hour.
LA
Most dempsey males make excellent parents.
LA
Ditto the females.
Additional Dempsey Info. For more details on spawning
behavior go to Dempsey Info.
© 2007
LA Productions
aqualandpetsplus.com
3600
Sixth Avenue
Corner
of Sixth & Euclid Avenues
Des
Moines, IA 50313
515
283-0300
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