Silver Tipped Tetra And His Big Belly!

[Gemmylou]

I have five silver tipped tetras in my tank and they seem to all be the same shape and size bar from the one lower down in this picture who seems to have a larger tummy. Is he ok?

PS. I love how Al my algae eater looks so sinister in this picture!

 

[Colin_T]

the top fish with white tips on the fins are males and the fatty at the bottom is a girl

 

[Gemmylou]

does that mean she is possibly carrying eggs. I had her pegged as a him as my other girlies aren't as pretty as her.

 

[Colin_T]

Yep she has eggs. Most female tetras and barbs will develop eggs in the home aquarium. They are well fed and in clean water and this is ideal for producing eggs. As long as there are males in the tank she should breed occasionally and get rid of them. If there aren't any males around then they can become egg bound. No need for you to worry about that because there is a nice male in with her

 

[Gemmylou]

I have no where for her to have them though, I would like babies it would be great. Im afraid Al the alage eater will eat them and my guppies Any advise?

 

[Colin_T]

You are unlikely to get any fry survive in a community tank anyway. The main thing is you have males and females together so they can breed when they want. The fish will pr off and swim into the plants where they expel their gametes (eggs & sperm). It is all over in a matter of seconds and you don't normally see it. Just leave them as they are and they will be fine.

 

[Gemmylou]

its such a shame. So they will have no chance at all in my community tank?

 

[Colin_T]

Basically, yep. The other fish will eat the eggs if they find them. The babies get eaten when they hatch out of the eggs. And the babies often get sucked up the filter or starve in the clean tank. If the tank is chock a block full of plants then some might survive but generally very few baby fish survive in a community tank.

 

[Gemmylou]

Ok how would I go about breeding them in future because they are obviously very happy little fishes in my tank and it can be done.

 

[Colin_T]

Separate males and females for a week before putting a pr in a small tank (18-24in long tank). Have soft acid water in the breeding tank with a layer of Java Moss over the bottom. Introduce a pr (1m & 1f) in the evening and they usually breed the following morning. Once the fish have bred you remove the adults and cover the tank with a towel to keep it dark. A few days later the eggs will have hatched and the fry will be hanging on the sides of the tank. A few days after that and they will be swimming around and you can start feeding them.