Sticky, Sticky Eggs!

[NEONCORY]

Unfortunately, I am not really sure if I have any frys from the Melanotanias. Last batch I put the eggs with Panda eggs since I was in a hurry and also the lack of space. And it seems I got more frys then the number of Panda eggs I put in. So I think I have some frys from the Melanotanias but I can't say for sure. I just have to grow them frys and see if I indeed have offspring from them. And next batch, I don't think they are hatching. So I still try different things to get frys from them. Unfortunately, they don't lay eggs as often as Sterbai, I have not be able to try many experiment. And it is always the space or lack of is issue in the small home without fish room.
I am still come up the better way to deal with 3 different species eggs.

 

[NEONCORY]

Update

I found 1 hatched sometime between yesterday morning to this morning. It is only 1 out of about 50 eggs I collected from week ago. I am hoping more would hatch sometime today. But at least, I can say that some egg(s) is good enough to hatch and I am sure this time because I didn't put any other eggs from Panda or Sterbai. I was start to give them up that it has been more than week but it must took so long since they are in cooler temperature. I guess I can try higher temp next batch I collect and see shorten the time.

Now I may need another Cory to breed. I did see some Matae and Adolfoi at the store few days ago. Although the Adolfoi were priced at $14.99! and saw about 4 pretty big one close to be adult. Attempting but that is quite expensive especially the store have no guarantee. The Matae was $3.99 or 4.99 but there were only 1 left so I told them to get them more.
Or maybe I'll buy some Pygmaeus which were sold at $1.99 at another store. Beside I can keep them in small tank like my fry tank. I read they would not bother(eat) another small fish beside I read that they are good at keeping the place clean. They can be nanny/maid for other frys. Yeah, I think that is not a bad plan.

 

[NEONCORY]

I did collect 41 eggs in the Java Moss. They usually place eggs in a bunch. Unfortunately, I still can't hatch their eggs well. Hopefully I can find the right answer. I'll try softer water and see if it makes any difference this time.

 

[NEONCORY]

It is still not perfect but I got 3 wigglers this morning out of 41 eggs I collected on Tuesday. I do hope more would hatch during the course of Today.
These guy sure give me trouble of hatching the eggs. At least, I know now some can hatch. Hopefully I can find the water parameter best fit to hatch those eggs. I guess I have to keep experiment.

 

[jollysue]

Congrats on the new fry! Good work.

I am having some trouble with eggs in one of my hatcherys too: The sterbai, LF bronze, melanotanea, brochis splenden tank. I believe so far it is just the LF bronze and the sterbai that are spawning, although they are all dancing.

A few have hatched; I don't know which yet; but there have been lots of eggs and most fungused. I think I will try some Maroxy after the next water change.

I hope my melanotanea spawn....

 

[NEONCORY]

Thanks jollysue,

Although, it is far from the success. I did find 1 more hatched this morning. That gives 4 out of 41 eggs, that is less than 10%. I see I need further experiment or maybe need to get more male(s) possibly female(s). Then again, I saw few other fish I like to get when I was at the store yesterday.

BTW, maybe I should not mention this to you since the Panda disaster and all but I did kept my group of Melanotanias with Pandas in infamous unheated cool tank.( Now I moved them to another Unheated tank since I find them to be too active and little too big for Pandas. And it seems I was getting eggs from Pandas less often.)
Remember, I am not saying you should follow my set up for Melanotanias since we learned the lesson from the disaster of Pandas. I just merely saying that how I keep mine and got some eggs from them about once a week or 2 weeks although they haven't hached well.

 

[NEONCORY]

I guess they found out that I was complaining about the bad hatch rate. This afternoon just before I was about to go out to take care of the errands, I noticed there are some eggs on the front glass of the tank. After the close inspection, there are more on the far back corner of the glass and some stray eggs in the Java Moss. And this 10g tank is located bottom part of home made stand under the 29G community tank and placed in sideway so I can fit 3x 10G under neath of the stand.
So what am I suppose to do?
Of course, kneeled down on the living room floor and I rolled up my sleeve and reach my hand to way back of the tank to scrape off those eggs. Good thing that they are really STICKY eggs otherwise I would've lost some in the water. They sure showed me.
I collected 111 eggs mostly on the glass. And after I cam back. There are some more eggs on the inlet plastic tube of power filter. I guess I will just take the tube off to collect them. As well I'll do some water change.

So I guess, they are not too unhappy with new home.(without Panda Corys but now they live with Blue Tetras.)

Now only if I can hatch like half of the eggs would be good.

 

[jollysue]

I just learned from an experienced panda breeder and Cory importer that most pandas sold in the stores are from China breeding farms. He said that they have a shorter life span and are more sensitive and less likely to spawn. I got some panda breeding stock from a breeder recently and they are huge! The ones I have from the lps that crashed on me are tiny like little juvies, but they are well over a year old.

I have the new pandas in with the suessi and gossei, and they are about the same size and play together!

 

[NEONCORY]

So after I collected 111 eggs in the afternoon, I went to run some errands. And saw some more eggs, and collected 47 more eggs from them yesterday. I should know how many hatch by Tuesday/Wednesday. Hopefully at least 10 or 20.

 

[NEONCORY]

I must say I am pretty excited to see and count 125 wigglers out of 158 eggs I collected at 3 days ago.( I moved them from egg hatching to wiggler nursing container.) Hopefully, I can raise to free-swimming and eventually 1/2" miniture Corys without lose many.
Finally I think either I or the males of Melanotanias did right. Maybe combination of both.

I love when things go right. Speaking of things going right is also treatment of "ick" on the new fish I got about week ago is finally showing some improvement this morning. I bought 6 albino looking so called "Gold Neon Tetras" about week ago. And like 2nd after the purchase, I notice the white spot on 1 or 2 of them. So I read few article and start to raise the temperature and do water partial water change everyday but it got worse and 1 of the fish were covered with white spots all over the body. And the fish was the biggest of the 6. Although I never see them flash and scrape on the tank decoration and they didn't lose appitite. So start to use 1/2 tab of "Ick Clear" the product from Jungle and I see majprity of spots are gone. I will dose few more days and keep them for month before move them. Although the silicone got blue tinted, that is the small price for eliminate the awful Ick.

And my God, I put them in the quarantee tank.

 

[jollysue]

Yes, Thank God for quarantine tanks! I am glad they are recovering. Mardel's Copper Safe probably would not tint the silicone. Love Mardel products!

That's wonderful news about the fry!

 

[NEONCORY]

Yes, Thank God for quarantine tanks! I am glad they are recovering. Mardel's Copper Safe probably would not tint the silicone. Love Mardel products!

Yes, it is a difinate evidence that you need to quarantine all the new fish. Especially the fish from the store. Better to be safe than be sorry.

That's wonderful news about the fry!

Yes, it is a great news for me. Now I can go get another Cory and see if I can get eggs then frys from them. And you know I already have some idea of which one I would like to get.

 

[NEONCORY]

Unfortunately I lost like 30 frys out of 125 hatched. I need to figure what went wrong. Maybe I didn't match the water well enough when I moved them or fed them too soon.
The good news is they are making more eggs at this time of writing. Maybe they find out that I killed their children(didn't mean to). The males can be pretty rough chasing female. They are zipping all over the tank.
I'll pick them up when I get home.

 

[NEONCORY]

So I did collect 59 sticky eggs. They were stuck on the back glass near the surface next to the HOB except 4 were on the leaves of stem plants floating at the top.
Hopefully they gonna hatch as well as last batch. Although I just put them in the same home made egg tumbler with Sterbai eggs. I guess I need to make more ASAP.

 

[NEONCORY]

It turned out yesterday was tri-fecta again for me. Ha how about that, I did collect same number of eggs from last time. 59. I did notice there were eggs on the glass last night before I went bed and after I collected eggs from Sterbais. But I didn't feel like to stick my arm(they usually place the eggs at the back and tank is placed sideway, smaller side is facing toward me. It is one of the 3 tanks to fit in the home made stand under the bigger tank) in the cold water(there are in the unheated 10G tank) to pick these sticky bunched eggs(takes longer to pick and seperate than other eggs). I also saw some on the near the bottom next to the bogwood.
I figure it would be pretty safe after the light out. So I turned the light off and went bed. And good thing they were still there when I collected in the morning, 17 on the back glass next to the powerhead and 42 on the side glass near the bottom next to the bogwood with some Java ferns on it. They were less sticker than usual because of the longer duration of the time, I'm sure. So actually I drop a couple of eggs unfortunately. When I was stretching my arm all the way back to collect from the back glass.I think that is 20" from the front glass(like I said, the tank is set that way.)