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| PART 2: The First Spawn / Parent Raising Seeing my first angelfish spawn was probably the most exciting thing that happend from the time I started breeding angelfish. When both the male and female are vigorously cleaning the spawning surface and both of their breeding tubes are fully extended, the spawn is very close. The female will first start to make a few practice runs before actually laying the eggs. This is thought to get the male excited and ready to spawn as well. After a few practice runs, the female will begin to lay eggs in rows with the male following her and fertilizing the eggs. Spawnings can last longer than 2 hours sometimes but I find that they average around an hour and a half. What I described is what is "supposed" to happen and this usually does. But on occasions, the fish act differently. Sometimes, instead of fertilizing the eggs the male will just follow and eat the eggs! Or sometimes the male won't even fertilize the eggs. Something that happens very rarely is when two females pair up and even spawn by each other! Except in this situation, the pair should eventually get the procedure right within the next several spawns. Angelfish spawn every 7 to 14 days usually so this gives the amatuer breeder several tries(you will wish they spawned even more often at times!) After the pair has spawned two things can be done. The eggs can be removed from the tank to be hatched artificially or left to be raised by the parent fish. I prefer to keep the first spawn with the pair to see if they will parent raise and to kinda "reward" them for being good fish and pairing up. Most angelfish don't raise their young and usually eat the eggs or newly hatched fry. However, if conditions are changed to their liking, they sometimes start to parent raise even after many times of eating the eggs. So assuming that you are leaving the spawn with the parents, there are a few things that should be done. First, keep feeding the pair very good since they don't need extra temptation to eat the eggs. The pair will keep swimming over the spawn, fanning thier pectoral fins over them to provide a current over the eggs. This helps keep fungus from growing on the eggs. I've found that keeping the tank light dim helps calm the fish down and thus makes it less likely for them to eat the eggs. The eggs will hatch depending on temperature. At 82 degrees F, they will hatch in about 48 hours and may take longer if the tempearture is lower. By now some of the eggs will have turned white. The original color of the eggs is a clear amber color. The eggs that have turned white have either becme infertile or were never fertilized to begin with. Some pairs pick these eggs out while others leave them alone. Look closely at the eggs after the 48 hours have passed. The eggs should have started hatching by now. When I first started breeding angels, I used to get upset becuase the eggs were not hatching but upon looking very closely they had already hatched. The tiny hair-like tails of the fry stick out of each egg and wiggle continuously. This is the proof that you do have a pair and it should be moved to its own bare bottom tank before the next spawn. Many pairs eat the "wigglers" at this time. But if they don't, they may become even more protective and move them to a different place such as a leaf. Don't worry about the parents handling the wigglers in their mouth. They know how to take care of them better than we do. Like before, having just a dim light in the tank will be best to calm the pair. The pair will fan and guard the wigglers continuously for the the next 5 days. The wigglers are feeding on their yolk sac at this time and don't need to be fed. On usually the seventh day(from egg being layed) the wigglers will begin to swim. They have now almost or completely finished their yolk sacs and need to be fed. Live baby brine shrimp is the best food for the fry and should be fed in light feedings 3 to 4 times a day. (Go to "Brine Shrimp" page) It is extremely important to do partial water changes and clean the uneaten food during this period. The reason that tanks with gravel aren't suitable for fry is that uneaten food and dirt accumulates there making it almost impossible for the fry to survive. After each feeding of live bbs(baby brine shrimp), the fry's stomachs will become big and and red. Wait about 30 minutes to let them eat all they want, and then siphon the floor of the tank. This should be done at least for the first week after the fry become free swimming. The baby angelfish should not be kept with their parents for more than a month because they then start to bite their parents' fins and scales. And long before that time, the fry would have out grown their tank if they hadn't been moved yet. Consider yourself very priviledged if any fry from your first spawn survive past 2 weeks of age. I managed to raise about 15 fish from my very first spawn and now I've learned more about the whole process. |