when breeding kribs...

[wrs]

would dither fish be a good idea? like maybe 9 danios, or would that be a bad idea, or too much of them. If too much, what about 6?

and how long will the kribs tollerate the fry for? i know that some only tollerate the fry for a few weeks, and some for longer. just not sure about these cichlids.


thanks

 

[fishman 1]

Ahhh kribs.

They are a favourite of mine.
I suppose you could add a couple or so small dither fish if you like. If you have a main tank with some small fish, you could use some of them and remove them when they are guarded away from the breeding site.
I have one of my breeding pairs in a tank alongside another tank with fish in. That way they can defend the terratory and nothing gets a kicking.
When it comes to tollerating fry leave them in as long as possible to prevent them spawning straight off again. You will know when it is time to move the young as the parents will see them off as soon as they are ready to spawn again.
Hope you have as much success as I am having with my 3 pairs.
I got a pair of the pelvicachromis taeniatus (reds) the other day. They are next on my list to breed.

 

[wrs]

im going Friday, possibly, to look for some around. i hope to find some albino ones. i did see some awhile ago, just dont know where the store moved to.

good luck breeding the pelvicachromis taeniatus.

 

[Colin_BC]

I think that having a dither in with the (hopeful) breeding will help build a bond between them. The pair will see the dither as a threat and stick together to protect their territory and fry from the threat. Without a dither, the pair will often see one another as a threat which may result in one killing the other or driving it into a corner.

With my first breeding attempt with krib's, I had the dither's in and the krib's never turned on each other and raised the fry for over a month until I took them away. I had 70 when I pulled them to place in a rearing tank. I used a couple oto's and a true SAE (aka Siamese Flying Fox, true name Crossocheilus siamensis) as dither's. I think it was a bit much for the oto's. The SAE is very quick and always on the move, so it had no problem getting away. The fact that it generally prefers to graze off algae before attempting injury for the fry was a nice bonus.

On my second breeding attempt I went with no dither's. I don't know if it was because of no dither's present or if they were now married, but there was next to no dancing and flashing and the rest of the mating rituals before they spawned. The male never even dug a cave to impress the lady... The spawn was small and once they were free swimming, the male occasionally tries to chase away the female. Fortunately it's only been a coupe mock-charges here and there. She always calls his bluff and sticks around anyways and he just gives up trying to chase her away. He's 2-3 times her size as well... Yep, i think they're married

After these experiences, I'd definately recommend a dither. The mutual hate for the dither will help keep the pair bond stronger. HTH

Colin

 

[wrs]

what about, 3 danios, 3 pristella tetras, and 2 black skirt tetras? would those be good dither fish, or to many?

my lfs has some for 2.99. thats better than one that was $15 at another store.

how big do they need to be to breed them?

 

[Colin_BC]

You don't want too many dither's, or they actually will be a threat to any future fry. I'd expect a couple of danio's or tetra's would suffice, but I wouldnt go with more than a them.

Colin

 

[guppymonkey]

I use a small school of cherry barbs in my krib tank and it has worked out really well so far. Longer finned tetras or danios tend to get torn to shreds by the breeding pair so I would suggest something that has short fins and doesn't get too big, that way they won't be a threat to the fry for very long.

 

[619 Fish GOD]

Ahhh kribs.

They are a favourite of mine.
I suppose you could add a couple or so small dither fish if you like. If you have a main tank with some small fish, you could use some of them and remove them when they are guarded away from the breeding site.
I have one of my breeding pairs in a tank alongside another tank with fish in. That way they can defend the terratory and nothing gets a kicking.
When it comes to tollerating fry leave them in as long as possible to prevent them spawning straight off again. You will know when it is time to move the young as the parents will see them off as soon as they are ready to spawn again.
Hope you have as much success as I am having with my 3 pairs.
I got a pair of the pelvicachromis taeniatus (reds) the other day. They are next on my list to breed.

Can you post some pics of your p.taeniatus?