Breeding Neon Tetras

[Subway107]

I would like to add to my shoal of 6 Neon Tetras in my 200 litre community aquarium. Now instead of buying them I thought I'd first try breeding my own in my spare 60 litre tank. As I have never bred any egg laying species before I would appreciate if somebody with any experience could explain how to go about this.

How many neons should I put in the breeding tank? Is there such a thing as a mating season(?) for these fish, i.e. Are they constantly ready to breed or will I need to condition them with the right diet and water conditions etc? And what are the ideal water conditions for the breeding tank? And how will I know when to remove the parent fish?

Any information will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

 

[hanny93]

Neon tetras are notoriously hard to breed and raise fry to adulthood in captivity, however in the wild they are excellent breeders, scattering eggs and doubling popuulation sizes in 15 months or so..

The female will usually be rounder than the male, becoming rounder when she is filled with eggs. Another way of telling is the blue line on the tetras, on females it appears bent because of the rounded belly.
To breed them, or at least try, you need a separate tank really, so you can just remove the parents after the eggs are fertilised, so they have less chance of being eaten.

Put an inch or two of gravel on the bottom and put some plants like Cabomba or Fine Leaf Indian Fern in, keeping the temperature below 24C.
Also make sure the filter intake is covered by something so the fry don't get sucked in

Only add one pair of adults at a time, and limit the light because the eggs are sensitive to light.

Feed the fry on infusoria or egg yolk, miniscule foods like that for the first 1-4 weeks then after that they should be able to eat newly hatched brine shrimp

Only breed healthy specimens, that are good examples of the breed, just like any other animal.