First Time Pleco Babies Help

[boohag]

Brand new here and hi to all. My pleco pair spawned last Thursday, Jan. 22nd. They're both always out and about but the next morning the male wouldn't come out of a cave. Picked it up and shined a light in there to find a huge bunch of eggs. Did I mention that papa plecos don't much like you shining lights on their eggs? Poor guy was freaking out. Anyway, today is Tuesday, the 27th and I think they've hatched. Instead of moving them to a different aquarium (I don't have one anyway), I bored out the sides of a 1 1/2 gallon plastic tank, covered it with plastic window screen with a removable top and put it inside the main aquarium, which is 46 gallons with two filters plus a uv sterilizer. Better than a new, uncycled one for them to hatch in, plus I have other fish that may eat the eggs/babies.

The reason I think they've hatched is because the female, who up to this point hasn't shown any interest in the screened container, is now perched on it and will not leave. She's either hanging on the side or sitting on top. I could open the little side door or remove the top to let join the papa and babies, but is this the correct thing to do? I always heard that papa takes over and momma has no interest from that point on? I feel guilty keeping her from her babies, but it may be that the male would just chase her off anyway? Is there some job she has to perform after they've hatched? Maybe naming them - !!!

I have SO many questions on how to raise these babies. They were a total surprise. I bought a male from a guy on Aqua Bid, and he threw in a second, smaller one which ended up being a female. The male is absolutely stunning. Long fins and very light colored. That faint patch of pink on his head really intensified just before the eggs showed up. Now I know why.

I would appreciate any input that would help me raise them correctly. I bought fresh cucumber, zucchini and brussel sprouts. I have frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp. Also have a can of organic baby spinach and french cut green beans. Have a brine shrimp hatcher ready to go too. But -- what do I give them first that they can bite into - spinach?

And what do I do with all of them? At what age do they mature enough to make even MORE babies? One 46 gallon tank is the limit for me!

Thanks, Cheryl

 

[rocknurworld2006]

Brand new here and hi to all. My pleco pair spawned last Thursday, Jan. 22nd. They're both always out and about but the next morning the male wouldn't come out of a cave. Picked it up and shined a light in there to find a huge bunch of eggs. Did I mention that papa plecos don't much like you shining lights on their eggs? Poor guy was freaking out. Anyway, today is Tuesday, the 27th and I think they've hatched. Instead of moving them to a different aquarium (I don't have one anyway), I bored out the sides of a 1 1/2 gallon plastic tank, covered it with plastic window screen with a removable top and put it inside the main aquarium, which is 46 gallons with two filters plus a uv sterilizer. Better than a new, uncycled one for them to hatch in, plus I have other fish that may eat the eggs/babies.

The reason I think they've hatched is because the female, who up to this point hasn't shown any interest in the screened container, is now perched on it and will not leave. She's either hanging on the side or sitting on top. I could open the little side door or remove the top to let join the papa and babies, but is this the correct thing to do? I always heard that papa takes over and momma has no interest from that point on? I feel guilty keeping her from her babies, but it may be that the male would just chase her off anyway? Is there some job she has to perform after they've hatched? Maybe naming them - !!!

I have SO many questions on how to raise these babies. They were a total surprise. I bought a male from a guy on Aqua Bid, and he threw in a second, smaller one which ended up being a female. The male is absolutely stunning. Long fins and very light colored. That faint patch of pink on his head really intensified just before the eggs showed up. Now I know why.

I would appreciate any input that would help me raise them correctly. I bought fresh cucumber, zucchini and brussel sprouts. I have frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp. Also have a can of organic baby spinach and french cut green beans. Have a brine shrimp hatcher ready to go too. But -- what do I give them first that they can bite into - spinach?

And what do I do with all of them? At what age do they mature enough to make even MORE babies? One 46 gallon tank is the limit for me!

Thanks, Cheryl

hii there and welcome to the forum

keep male only with babies not female as female has no nterest and only male looks after them

when babies come out of the cave , u can start to feed cucumber and blanch the zuchini

usually i just feed these 2 onl at first for a while

u wont need brine shrimp etc as this is no good for plecs

any more questions dont hesitate to ask

 

[Inchworm]

Hi boohag

Welcome to the forum!

Whoever said that egg laying fish were hard to raise must never have tried breeding BNs. They are so easy and so cute too. Isn't it surprising how big the eggs are and how many of them come out of the little female?

The good news is that they eat adult food right away. I feed mine blanched zucchini, lettuce, kale, yellow summer squash, cucumber and butternut squash. They do well.

The thing to watch out for is that your tank will probably need more frequent water changes since you have all those vegetables in it. They, like their parents, will eat a lot an produce a lot of waste, so keep an eye on your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate as well.

Lots of luck with your fry!

P.S. I moved your thread over to the Plecos and other Loricariids section where it will be seen by more members who have plecos.

 

[boohag]

hii there and welcome to the forum

keep male only with babies not female as female has no nterest and only male looks after them

when babies come out of the cave , u can start to feed cucumber and blanch the zuchini

usually i just feed these 2 onl at first for a while

u wont need brine shrimp etc as this is no good for plecs

any more questions dont hesitate to ask
[/quote]

Akkk, I can't figure my way around here LOL. Thanks for the tip on the brine shrimp. Some say they have to have protein, and other say no. After posting I turned the light on and no wonder the female was over there - there were babies outside of the cave! I thought it took longer for them to emerge? My timing must be totally off.

 

[boohag]

Hi boohag

Welcome to the forum!

Whoever said that egg laying fish were hard to raise must never have tried breeding BNs. They are so easy and so cute too. Isn't it surprising how big the eggs are and how many of them come out of the little female?

The good news is that they eat adult food right away. I feed mine blanched zucchini, lettuce, kale, yellow summer squash, cucumber and butternut squash. They do well.

The thing to watch out for is that your tank will probably need more frequent water changes since you have all those vegetables in it. They, like their parents, will eat a lot an produce a lot of waste, so keep an eye on your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate as well.

Lots of luck with your fry!

P.S. I moved your thread over to the Plecos and other Loricariids section where it will be seen by more members who have plecos.

Yes, they are cuties, and YES about the size! I noticed the female looked bloated one day, but I had given them each an extra wafer so didn't think much about it. Actually, I thought she was a boy. As I said, I just turned on the light and saw some stuff at the bottom of the cage. Thought it was leftover wafer, then it MOVED. One shot right up to the top of the cage! Got some video but it's through the mesh, so not so clear. Don't know if you're allowed to post video here...

So now that they're out of the cage, does that mean the egg sacs have already been eaten and they need veggies today?

I'm going to find my way over to the other forum.....

Thanks, Cheryl

 

[rocknurworld2006]

yes as soon as they come it u can start feeding them with vegetables as said above

they eat more vegetables than anyhing
bogwood also ood to have

u can feed example bloodworm,artemia pellets but not as babies really as they wont eat it

 

[boohag]

yes as soon as they come it u can start feeding them with vegetables as said above

they eat more vegetables than anyhing
bogwood also ood to have

u can feed example bloodworm,artemia pellets but not as babies really as they wont eat it

Okay, I just put two slices of blanched zucchini in there on a bamboo skewer. They haven't gone for it yet. They're just sitting there swishing their tails. I think I can see eyes but it's hard to tell looking through mesh. If they don't eat it right away, papa fish will. He hasn't had anything to eat today.

One worry I had using the mesh thing was that debris and slime would build up on it and slow the current through it. But momma fish has taken up that cause and is cleaning mesh and the one acrylic side I left on there. Way to go mom!!!

I have a small piece of driftwood in there for both papa and babies. Didn't take long for me to learn that it is ESSENTIAL for bristlenoses. Well, didn't take THEM long to teach ME. Haha

 

[boohag]

New video taken today. They've taken over the castle.

http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2G2bSjSBVk...re=channel_page

 

[boohag]

Latest video taken today - CHOW TIME !!!

http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=0t7MFh3kHPI

 

[seanie112]

welcome to the bristlenose breeding group

cool video's how many have you got (bristlenose)

i have 5x proven breeding trio's bns breed every 2-5wks

plus i have 11x longfin bns breeding aswell

and around 300 brown and albino commons bns

and some 30 odd longfins bns brown albino

 

[boohag]

welcome to the bristlenose breeding group

cool video's how many have you got (bristlenose)

i have 5x proven breeding trio's bns breed every 2-5wks

plus i have 11x longfin bns breeding aswell

and around 300 brown and albino commons bns

and some 30 odd longfins bns brown albino

You must either own a fish store or breed and sell fish! How many tanks do you have? I only have the one 46 gallon with 32 babies. Thought of getting another one but hubby pooh-poohed the idea. If I had the space though..... So far 8 of mine are spoken for, including the mother. There's another person wanting some too, but I don't know how many. I'm in the process of getting the proper shipping supplies. I've never shipped fish. Plan on using the Kordon breathing bags and getting insulated boxes from Staples. I've already ordered a fancy fish trap so they won't be so traumatized. Those little buggars as FAST. I'd never catch them in a net. The quandry for me is whether to use heating/cooling bags. It's warm here in Florida but cold where I'm shipping. What do you do in case like that? I'm sending them strictly overnight at my expense. I only want them to go to a good home - capable people who know how to take care of them. I just HATE the thought of giving them to pet shops. Then I'll keep boys only so there won't be any more babies. How many could you keep in a 46 gallon? They only get to about 4-5 inches long.

I originally planned on keeping one boy (the papa,) but I saw a video on You Tube of two males. They were fighting (you know that "sideways" action where they bump each other?) They didn't have their side bristles out so I don't think they were really trying to harm each other - more like playing. So I'm thinking more than one boy would be okay. What do you think?

 

[seanie112]

i have 5 tanks i live in a ground floor flat 2bed room
77x17x18 divided in to 3 with a trio bns in each divider with fry bns front room

48x12.x12 divided into 2 trio bns and red cherry shrimp in each divider with fry bns under neath 6.5ft tank
corner tank little smaller then a juwel 350ltr with my longfins bns in front room
x2 2ft with longfin fry grow on tanks and other with 3xfemale ablino longfin 1x male longfin brown in kitchen

thats all i am allowered intill we move then having a fish room in shed
as i have already got some of the tanks i got the following

tanks not in used at my mums

3x 48x15x15 divided into 2
1x 48x18x18 (edit)
1x3ft divided into 2

and soon added to tanks
more females and males common bns next wk



in posting using heat packs in boxes really cheap in the usa
really good bags Kordon breathing bags

with having more males in tanks have more caves put one cave at one end and the other at other end of tank if they fight for the right to breed with females the top dog male will normaly win

be good to have more females then males wld help with breeding someone else wld say something else abt it

my two males used to fight but the biggest one normaly one
since i moved the other male he not breed with hes females as yet
i am thinking abt taking out the dividers in my 6.5ft tank next wk when i get some more males and females and put in another 4 caves for them

we will see wot happens next wk when i get the other common bns

good luck with your bns breeding and shipping the fry

i never shipped fish intill last wk

not to bad plus when i went to plymouth on the train on sat i took with me loads of fish that i sold and had to drop them off at train stn where the new owners i had to take with me 300 fry all bags in 50 fry in each big bag and some adult clown plecs and other plecs i sold plus 2x proven trio's bns
my tanks look a little bare now lol

 

[boohag]

i have 5 tanks i live in a ground floor flat 2bed room
77x17x18 divided in to 3 with a trio bns in each divider with fry bns front room

48x12.x12 divided into 2 trio bns and red cherry shrimp in each divider with fry bns under neath 6.5ft tank
corner tank little smaller then a juwel 350ltr with my longfins bns in front room
x2 2ft with longfin fry grow on tanks and other with 3xfemale ablino longfin 1x male longfin brown in kitchen

thats all i am allowered intill we move then having a fish room in shed
as i have already got some of the tanks i got the following

tanks not in used at my mums

3x 48x15x15 divided into 2
1x 48x15x18
1x3ft divided into 2

and soon added to tanks
more females and males common bns next wk



in posting using heat packs in boxes really cheap in the usa
really good bags Kordon breathing bags

with having more males in tanks have more caves put one cave at one end and the other at other end of tank if they fight for the right to breed with females the top dog male will normaly win

be good to have more females then males wld help with breeding someone else wld say something else abt it

my two males used to fight but the biggest one normaly one
since i moved the other male he not breed with hes females as yet
i am thinking abt taking out the dividers in my 6.5ft tank next wk when i get some more males and females and put in another 4 caves for them

we will see wot happens next wk when i get the other common bns

good luck with your bns breeding and shipping the fry

i never shipped fish intill last wk

not to bad plus when i went to plymouth on the train on sat i took with me loads of fish that i sold and had to drop them off at train stn where the new owners i had to take with me 300 fry all bags in 50 fry in each big bag and some adult clown plecs and other plecs i sold plus 2x proven trio's bns
my tanks look a little bare now lol

Wow, you really LIKE fish! The dividers are a great idea. Wish I'd have known what I was doing when I got my tank. It's a bowfront and you simply cannot find a divider for it. If I could find one, I would be able to keep a couple of males AND females because I could keep them separated so no more babies!

Yes, I plan on using the Kordon bags. I emailed them with some questions and the guy got right back to me with detailed instructions. The only thing I'm not clear about are the warmers. It's 80-90 degrees here in FL right now, but cold in other parts of the country. The warmers will help there, but I'm afraid they would fry here. I guess the best way is to ship them overnight, with a warmer and just cross my fingers. I'm going to follow the Kordon guy's instruction and only put one fish to a bag. I don't care how many boxes it takes, as long as they get there safely.