Kribs

[Jo]

Please bear with me if this is a bit rambly, but my thoughts are all a bit jumbled up and I gotta get them down somewhere!

hmmm, right, I think I have decided what to put in my currently empty 24g tank...I went to the LFS on sunday and happened to fall in love with some of the Kribs that they had.

I have currently got 4, with the intention to split of the pair (when they pair up, they are too young at the moment to be able to sex them and everytime I look i swear that they change, by my last count I think I have at least one female, so I am keeping an eye on them until they pair off!)

I have been reading round the subject of breeding, and provided I can find somewhere to take the fry, I might give it a go.

However, my question is this:

I will only be putting one pair in the 24g, but I have been told about sometimes using "target fish" to give the male something to chase at breeding time, or otherwise they might turn on each other. A couple of sites suggested that Tiger Barbs are good target fish as they are not timid and are quick enough to get away from the Kribs.

I DO have tigers at the moment, (got 7) but am concerned that putting these in the 24g with the kribs might be a little too much? At the moment my Kribs are less than an inch long and my tigers are still young too, about the same size.

Other people that I know of manage to keep kribs in a community aquarium. My next question is what are people's opinoions, experiences on this, if it does end up that I have 3 males and 1 female and I manage to split off a pair, my lfs will accept the other fish back, but if possible I would like to keep them...I'm guessing that two males in a community tank would fight..is this correct?

umm...yes....so....please can someone give me a little experience on what they think might be best..?



Some advice and opinions would be nice as I dont want to mess it up!

 

[Starry^]

Hiya,
we also have 4 kribs, one pair and the other 2 we are not too sure about yet.
We had our pair in our cichlid tank, with 3 yellow labs, 2 brichardi's and 2 other small shell dwellers, its interesting that you talk about using target fish, because until I read your post I didnt really think about it as you have made a good point,we have just moved our pair into a tank of their own, as they were chasing the other fish away from their caves all the time, and we guessed that they wernt happy having the other fish around all the time, so therefore moved them.
Now all they do is hide in their tunnel, hardly eat or come out at all,whether thats because the female is pregnant or what i dont know, she doesnt look that fat yet, so Im wondering whether they were happier in the other tank or not.
I have read that the male when the female has eggs can get quite aggressive and even possibly kill other fish,not that I can back that up, but was another reason why we moved them.
Our other 2 kribs,not sure of their sex, but they are in our large community tank and seem fine so far,not really picking on each other or other fish.
So I would definately give putting your kribs into a community tank, even as a trial, until they are old enough to be sexed or pair up.
I dont know if adding target fish to your tank would be a good thing,(Barbs may not be the best choice as.. even though they can get away from the kribs, they themselves can be quite nippy and will probably take bites out of your beautiful kribs tails.)
We havent got anything in our tank with the pair of kribs at the moment, and they havent picked on each other much, (that i have noticed anyway,) but you have brought up a good point and I will be sure to keep an eye on them,as it will be interesting to see if they do start picking at each other.. makes me wonder whether it was the right decision taking them out of the big tank.. as I guess the male chasing other fish away, must give him a sense of Duty.
whereas now he doesnt have to do anything but shake at the female all day..
I will definately let you know how it goes anyway,keep me informed, as this is quite interesting being a first time krib keeper as well



Starry^

 

[Jo]

Thanks for your response!

I've been having a chat with a friend of mine that has kept Kribs previously...he said that he kept them with Tigers with no problems and also kept them with spawning angels...just a bif of info for you...

I think that I'm going to sort out my 24g properly and then am going to put the pair of kribs in there and try them with some tigers (as I already have them its not an issue, i can just swap them back if they don't all get on)

With regards to your Kribs hiding a lot now, from what I have read, they can be very timid if not kept with other bolder fish and may not be happy to swim in open water if other fish already doing so...

Let me know how your Kribs get on on their own in the tank, I know of people that have kept them successfully on their own, so I'm sure it'd be great, but would be good to hear a different side of the story!

How old/big are your Kribs?

 

[Nix]

Well if your tigers become a problem or don't work out i hear Danios can make great distraction fish, because there fast and won't be much of a aggresion towards your pair. (also they are rather cheap) Good Luck both of you! B)

 

[Jo]

Thanks Nix, I might try that otherwise!

 

[Starry^]

YAYEEEEEEEE

You wont believe it, but I was saying just earlier today that the female krib of the pair wasnt fat. WELL SHUT MY MOUTH! she is laying eggs as I speak!!!
I cant beleive it!
How amazing.. so I guess thats why they were hiding away and not eating much..
We have them in a 10gallon tank, and so far things are going oki, apparently its better to keep them in a 20gall, so I will leep u up to date on whats happening.. as we might have to move the male out as of yet..
YAY!
Our first kribby babies.. if they survive that is!



Starry^

 

[Jo]

oohh congrats!

Lemme know how it all goes...how exciting at chritmas too!