Angels spawned

[jumpman]

Had a male and female angel for a month together, from Fishmurf before he went abroad!! Thanks again mate!

Well, I thought the female was looking a little plump underneath, and I came home from work last night to find her laying eggs up the filter intake tube!!

The male was being very defensive, chasing off catfish that were hovering underneath for eggs that dropped down to the substrate. He also hovered up the intake tube every now and again....to fertalise I presume??

After they had been doing this for quite some time, and the female had stopped, he became intolerable and kept chasing her to the other side of the tank, only to come back and swim up and down the tube fanning the eggs, not letting anything near!! At least he was doing the right thing!!

I know my water is very hard hear in london, so wasn't expecting the eggs to develop, but was suprised when I came back to the tank a few hours later and all the eggs had gone (I presume eaten by the angels as nothing else dared come close!!)

Would this be because they knew they were infertile so just ate them? Would the best test be to take them out next time?? I would rather they brought them up if the eggs survived. Currently they are the only two in a 75 gallon tank (no wonder they are happy! )

Anyone in london bred angels successfully, if so can it be done in just tapwater?? Any info appreciated

the jumpman 8)

 

[jumpman]

where are all those angel owners I saw before?!

must be their day off!

 

[fisherman9844]

Angels may or may not be good parents. It's really a matter of trial and error. Sometimes you have to remove the male but the female is fine. And sometimes the other way around. Some breeding pairs become good parents after a time or two. Some get the idea after six or eight times. And yeah, some just never get the idea.

You mentioned the catfish - sometimes the female will take eggs into her mouth and move them if she feels they are threatened. Other times, she (or he or both) will simply eat the eggs if they feel they are threatened. If you have the option, it's always better to isolate them in a bare tank with good filtration.

The fact that they ate the eggs does not mean they were infertile. Eggs will die relatively quickly if infertile. They're easy to spot because they turn white and are quite obvious. The female will eat any eggs that have died, usually without disturbing the others. If they don't eat the eggs, it's best to leave one or both parents in the tank with the eggs. They will keep the eggs clean, remove any dead ones, and keep the water circulating around the eggs.

The good news is that angels are quite prolific. Once they start, she'll likely lay eggs every 10 days. I have a breeding pair of gold marbled angels and she's been laying a batch of eggs every 10 days, regular as clockwork, for the last two months. This is the only time that you can reliably sex angels. Both the male and the female display a papilla. The female's is short and relatively blunt for laying the eggs. The male's is longer and more pointed. The female will lay the eggs and the male will come along immediately behind her touching each egg with his papilla and fertilizing them. It's best not to have too much water circulation in the tank as it can reduce the number of successfully fertilized eggs. Once the eggs have been laid and fertilized and if you have to remove the parents, then you want to ensure that the tank has very good circulation to ensure the eggs are getting enough oxygen.

Eggs will usually turn into wigglers in about 72 hours after they are laid and the wigglers will be free swimming 24 to 48 hours after that. Fry born in a tank with a gravel or sand substrate will have a dramatically reduced survival rate. If possible a bare tank is the way to go. If you'd like some hints on raising fry, you can post your questions or PM me and I'd be glad to give you some hints.

Good luck!

 

[jumpman]

thanks fisherman,

some good info/advice there

I will see what happens next spawning and go from there. I have sand in the tank they are in, so I may move them into a spare tank I have. Will see how it goes, thanks!