My Pygmys Are Chasing Help Please

[pippoodle]

i think my pygmys might actually be getting ready to spawn , my leopards have but i didnt rescue the eggs in time
my pygmys are in with tiny minnow fry and black and bronze cory juveys and 1 adult hasbrosus - so my main question is if they do spawn will i need to remove the eggs or will they be ok

one of female pygmys (i'm assuming its a girl cos its one of the ones with a hubby belly and is amoung the bigger pygmys) shes going up and down the glass non stop and the others keep head butting her belly area similar to what the leopards did

please any advice is appreciated

thanks Sarah xx

 

[Water]

My Cory's live in a community tank. Every time they spread the eggs on the glass all the others eat them. I put them into another tank and the Corydora's started to eat they're own eggs but I was able to harvest about 40 of them before they got them all. Cory eggs don't last long in a community tank.

 

[pippoodle]

argh didnt know corys ate their own eggs thanks for the info - i'm going to try and save some of my other eggs when they spawn again

 

[pippoodle]

anyone else got any more advice please

 

[Inchworm]

Hi pippoodle

Cory parents sometimes (but not usually) eat their own eggs, and most other fish will eat them. When they hatch, unless there is lots of cover, they will also be eaten. I don't think corys can tell that the little creatures are their own young. It's best to move the eggs to a tank of their own to hatch and grow.

Let me clear something up. The head butting is done by the female, to the male, when she is ready to collect his sperm. The males don't head butt the female. Rather, when spawning is about to happen, they will swim in front of her as if to say, "Pick me, no pick me!" When she is ready, she will turn to the male of her choice and push him over. It will appear that she is tickling his tummy with her barbels. When she is finished she will swim away with eggs between her fins.

Here's some spawning pictures I recently posted:

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=268500

Good luck with the pygmys. I'd love to read all about them spawning for you.

 

[pippoodle]

ok so i've been a bit wobbly on the legs today so been sat watching the fish tanks
the pygmys in the hex are all going nuts still

the female is butting the males really agressively at the moment but nothing is happening - is this just a practice run? or is it cos they are younger than her

cheers sarah xx

 

[pippoodle]

bump

 

[Inchworm]

Hi pippoodle

I've been thinking about your corys and their behavior, but have no good answer. Head butting is not something corys ordinarily do unless it's part of the process of breeding. If this is the case you will see eggs immediately.

I suspect you are seeing ordinary play among the corys. It's not unusual for them to swim in different directions and they sometimes do bump into each other. It's rare that any kind of Cory is aggressive, so it's nothing to worry about. Give them time and if they want to spawn, they will. In the meanwhile just enjoy them.

 

[pippoodle]

i was just wondering wether she was trying to spawn and they were mature enough to yet as when the leopards do the same they spawn right away
i've got the other corys listed in my siggy and they dont play like this like i say only when i have seen the leopards spawn ing
the peppered are old enough to spawn yet i have one big 8 year old mamma and 3 new young ones - unsure of sex - so haven't seen these spawn yet
my pandas spawned once but i missed the eggs - now only have 1 panda left as other pandas and my albinos were killed during poisoned water change (mains water)

the pygmys are great little things and spend lots of time playing around but as i said it seems as though the female is really trying hard to get the males to spawn with her they just dont seem to know what to do

 

[Inchworm]

Hi pippoodle

There's no need to worry about your female. Even if she has eggs and the males aren't able to cooperate, she can still lay infertile eggs. Did you recently do a water change with cooler water? If so, that might have given her some ideas.

 

[pippoodle]

Hi pippoodle

There's no need to worry about your female. Even if she has eggs and the males aren't able to cooperate, she can still lay infertile eggs. Did you recently do a water change with cooler water? If so, that might have given her some ideas.

yes i did they are in the hex with the juveys corys from drewry and my minnow fry so they get water changes 2-3 times a week still to help the little buggers grow

she's definately getting excited by the water changes just waiting for the boys to catch up now and then hopefully should have some fertile eggs