Seems like never a day goes by without drama in one of my tanks... Over the last couple of days 2 of my 6 neons have been getting a little on the porky side. These two are larger than the others (there are 4 I think are female and 2 I suspect are male). Their behaviour it completely normal and they don't seem to have any signs of illness though I'm praying it doesn't turn out to be bloat or something. The tank is fed small amounts of tropical flake food most days but one day a week they get a little blood worm and another day a week they get peas (in order to try and prevent things like this happening!). I have very very soft slightly acidic water in my area which I am told are good breeding conditions for neons. I will try and put a pic of the largest girl later as I can't get one becauseof the glare at the moment.
If it turns out they are pregnant (fingers crossed!) what on earth do I do? I never expected them to breed especially as they have only fairly recently added them to the tank Is there a way to tell whether they are carrying eggs or whether they just need to poop? Thanks.
Neons are egg layers . the chances of the egg's surviving in a community tank are zero - none . The egg's themselves are light sensitive so normally die off before they even begin to hatch . Plus if you think how big your neons were when you bought them from the LFS imagine how small the fry would be IF they ever survived in a community tank .
The females do tend to be larger than the males i know mine are well fed so do have little pot bellies.
If they are acting normal and eating well i would just say the female is full of egg's watch them closely and if you see 2-3 of them hidden near a plant or bit of bogwood and it looks like they're flicking off each other really fast thats them mating
It does help thanks If I in future I decided to have a shot at breeding them (obviously not this time round as I haven't done the research) If I put them in a breeding trap would that work? Obviously I'd have to put the egg bound lady and a male in with her. Just curious really, I've never had a shot at breeding fish do I'm afraid I haven't a clue what i'm talking about!
I have no idea about how to actually breed them i do remember reading a journal on the net about it tho i'm sure if you googled "Breeding Neon Tetra" it would bring it back i'll have a scour round see if i can find it for you
Ta very much I'm googling it now as we speak. My head is running away with ideas now... Obviously the eggs can't go in the snail tank as they would be eaten but they could grow out in there when they are free swimming etc.... I need to stop now haha.
Is there a way to tell whether they are carrying eggs or whether they just need to poop? Thanks.
