Anyone know how to stop breeding?

[ella777]

Hello! How can I house 6 rosy barbs without them breeding? I already have 1 male and 2 young females and I'm getting 3 more soon. The male has been chasing the females around quite a bit and I don't know if he's trying to breed or make friends. I definitely don't want them breeding. Apparently they don't need certain waters to breed so I'm nervous I'll randomly have hundreds of fry.
Can anyone help?

 

[GaryE]

They will lay eggs - there's no stopping them. I had some that spawned almost every morning for years.
But they eat their eggs and any fry that might appear. Have no fear.

 

[ella777]

They will lay eggs - there's no stopping them. I had some that spawned almost every morning for years.
But they eat their eggs and any fry that might appear. Have no fear.

Thanks! What is the age limit for him to fertilise the eggs? Hes around 3 years old now. I've had the females for a little less than a week now. Should I crush the eggs before they hatch? I haven't seen any so far. If they do hatch, should I put them in a separate 70l tank and sell them?

 

[GaryE]

If they hatch, they'll get eaten. They naturally spawn over gravel in moving water, so the eggs get swept to safety. In a tank, they fall to the floor and become snacks for later.

If you want fry there are tricks used to save the eggs, and the fry can be raised in a separate tank. But truly, these are not livebearers and accidental fry tend only to happen when you move all the fish out of a tank and the eggs develop with no predators. Even then, they'll circle down and eat their eggs as they fall.

He should be fertile til about 7, although fertility diminishes with age.

 

[DoubleDutch]

There have been thousands of people with Rosybarbs without seeing one single fry over the years. Not any need to fear.

 

[gilpi]

Wish I knew, I started a tank with a Convict pair, I now have about 20 of them in one tank about one inch long, I know there will be a war soon.