Raising bristlenose pleco fries - Log

[Final Dynazty]

Wow this thread is becomin huge and has a lot of info.

Well i would just like to say good luck to all of you guys.

 

[yhbae]

Thanks...

Day 14
--------

The largest one is now about 1 inch!

Within 2 days, they COMPLETELY finished zuchini. So far I've been giving 5 slices but now I am upping to 6 slices. Also, I am upping water change to 50% every two days.

I bought another 10g used with equipment. At some point down the line, I expect to split the group into two tanks.

Caught two more fries (much smaller, so these must be 4th spawn) from the main tank, into this tank. I still see 4 more in the main tank...

Note that I am exclusively feeding only zuchini, for now. I'm not sure if there is a need for any other vegetables given how well they are growing. Normally, variety is the key for any fish food, so I may introduce other vegetables as well...

I can see tonnes of those little white thin worms in the tank. I guess the pleco fries don't eat them. They are supposed to be good food for fries in general, so I may add one or two other fries in this tank, just to eat up those worms!

 

[yhbae]

Day 15
--------

Caught 9 more fries from the main tank, threw them into this tank. Now there are 31 of them! Amazingly, no casualties so far...

Boy do they make a mess though!!! I had no choice but to syphon out the mess they managed to create in one day. Looks like daily water change will become part of my life for the next forseable future...

May be this is the right time to try mixing some cucumber with zuchini as the latter is really producing alot of mess...

 

[samthefishman]

so your female(s) definatly spawned again?

 

[yhbae]

Oh yes. Since the 3rd spawn, I took out 11 fries so far, and I saw 5 more right now. There's probably at least 10 more by judging from the typical spawn... Hopefully, these guys will hit 1 inch size quickly, otherwise I will seriously run out of growing space!

I'm getting 2nd tank ready to divide the population in few days...

 

[samthefishman]

it almost seems my fry are not growing at all, altho they still have their egg sacs.
Do they get their full colour after loosing there sacs?

di any of the fry you could have egg sacs?

 

[yhbae]

it almost seems my fry are not growing at all, altho they still have their egg sacs.
Do they get their full colour after loosing there sacs?

Its only been few days, give it some more time and I'm sure they will show growth...

I'm not sure about coloration though. I have the albino kind, so they are kind of transparent/faint orange so it is very difficult to tell when they have started to show the coloring...

 

[samthefishman]

also i have been noticing my female hanging round the spawning area whenever i go in the room.... she is the female that has been fat for months now, she looks ready to burst. Maybe i am gonna have more fry?

 

[yhbae]

Probably. Apparently, bristlenoses pretty much spawns continuously once they start to spawn, so you will probably get endless supply of them as well! Hopefully, you will make a good use out of them.

I plan to sell mine to LFS, and hopefully, it will pay for the hobby maintenance cost(food, electricity, water and equipment). In a way, my bristlenose adults are feeding and providing spaces for them to live...

 

[samthefishman]

in a way i wanna sell them, but in a way i dont.
I mean i need the money, but these little guys are awsome!!!
I may even keep them till they reach 2" i think i am gonna put them all in my 89Gal.
But eventually i will make profit, i just wanna watch their life cycle, see how they grow up and which ones are male and female

 

[yhbae]

in a way i wanna sell them, but in a way i dont.
I mean i need the money, but these little guys are awsome!!!
I may even keep them till they reach 2" i think i am gonna put them all in my 89Gal.
But eventually i will make profit, i just wanna watch their life cycle, see how they grow up and which ones are male and female

Personally, I'd never have more than few of these in a same tank, regardless of the tank size - they make soooo much poops! I keep 3 in my main tank because they are continuously breeding, but if they didn't, I would never do that... I see poops everywhere, and I need to clean the sponges in the filter every few weeks because it gets clogged up so easily!!!

 

[samthefishman]

yeah there are many ups and down to it. But regardless of the work and effort i am willing. And also finace is not a proble, I still live with my parents, i dont have to pay bills

 

[yhbae]

yeah there are many ups and down to it. But regardless of the work and effort i am willing. And also finace is not a proble, I still live with my parents, i dont have to pay bills

Lucky you! I have to choose between fish fries and my "fries" to feed!

 

[samthefishman]

lol.
You gotta admit, it would be hard to get rid of them. you basicly raised them. And what if they get sold to some little kid who knows NOTHING about fish and kills them.

 

[yhbae]

lol.
You gotta admit, it would be hard to get rid of them. you basicly raised them. And what if they get sold to some little kid who knows NOTHING about fish and kills them.

I agree...