# 26 Bowfront Angel Breeder FRY GROWING UP - update



## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

Hey guys, as many of you have seen I had some Angels breeding in my community tank. Unfortunately that tank also houses other Angels as well as barbs and the fry quickly became food for the rest of the community. I have just purchased a bowfront tank that I have set up as a breeder tank for the two paired angels.

I have decided to go with eco-complete for the substrate because I had a tub full of it just sitting here un-used. Plus I will be planting the tank eventually so that's a good place to start.

The tank came with an AC30 HOB and a 50w heater that i have replaced with a 250 w from another tank (not to make it hotter, but the 250 has better temp control) It also came with a standard 15w single bulb (8000k) which will have to be upgraded before i try to plant it.

First think i did was find a place for the tank... now it did not come with a stand, but I had my old tool box sitting around which seems to make not a perfect stand, but a pretty cool looking one! 








I needed to do a water change on the 77 tank so i just siphoned the water directly into the 26 to try to keep the water parameters as close as possible so that the pair continue to breed in their new home. 








On the advice of Rick at IPU i boiled the old media from the filter before cycling the tank. I then added 2 capfuls of stability and will continue to add 1 capful a day for the next week as per the bottles instructions. The tank is very basic and plain right now, but i wanted to make sure the Angels were in there before they decided to lay eggs again. 








I have already gotten a package of first bites in preparation for the fry. 
Now previously the Angels have laid their eggs on a leaf from my aponogeton plant. Will they lay on any flat surface like the walls of the tank or will i have to provide a place for them???

Thank you for looking.


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## gklaw (May 31, 2010)

Yike !

Trade you a stand for the tool chest :lol:


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## thefishwife (Apr 21, 2010)

IMExperience you will need to put something in there for them to lay eggs on. A piece of slate, or a plant with large leaves. It just gives them more options. They may just use the intake filter or the sides but having more options is good


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

I'd transfer some substrate or media from the original tank to accelerate the cycle. I am not entirely sold on the Stability thing. I'd check the ammonia levels regularly and do water changes as necessary. Otherwise, it's looking good.


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## CRS Fan (Apr 21, 2010)

2wheelsx2 said:


> I'd transfer some substrate or media from the original tank to accelerate the cycle. I am not entirely sold on the Stability thing. I'd check the ammonia levels regularly and do water changes as necessary. Otherwise, it's looking good.


Hello Mike.

I'd have to agree with Gary on this one (although I have used Stability before with good results). It is especially helpful in re-setting the good bacteria load when experiencing a rogue bacteria outbreak). I would suggest getting a plastic amazon swordplant and or a piece of slate so the angels don't decided to lay eggs on the heater (a very common occurence).

Good luck on the rearing project!

Best regards,

Stuart


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

thanks guys for the advice... i will be checking my ammonia levels, (i guess i actually have to get a tester now!) 
And i will find something suitable for them to lay eggs on. I don't think a plant will work due to the low lighting on the tank right now... guess i'll have to keep my eyes open for yet another glo fixture and plant this tank properly


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

You can certainly put a big Java Fern it there, or some Anubias. They'll survive. Or put a piece of slate in there for them to lay their eggs on.


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

*Finally i've got some eggs*

So i came home from work today and fed my tanks like I always do when i noticed a very welcome sight... The Angle pair that I moved to the breeding tank has just spawned another batch of eggs, this time almost covering two Java Fern Leaves (thank you 2wheelsx2 for suggesting Java Fern). Now it's time to find out if i can keep these guys healthy right up to maturity! From the looks of the eggs they are fresh today, I'll look again in the morning to see how many get fertilized. This pairs last batch only missed 4 eggs.

Here's the early pics.


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

Wow, that's a lot of eggs. Congrats!


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## target (Apr 21, 2010)

Can't wait to see them hatch. Nice looking angels. And before long you will have a much nicer stand for the 26.


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

ya buddy! can't wait


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

Hey Mike congrats on the spawn, now that there in there own tank they will be very attentive to the eggs. Don't be surprized if they move them around. Cheers Laurie


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## mortava (Apr 24, 2010)

That's so cool! Congrats!


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

Clown Lover said:


> Hey Mike congrats on the spawn, now that there in there own tank they will be very attentive to the eggs. Don't be surprized if they move them around. Cheers Laurie


Thanks bud, i have noticed in my other tank the Angels moving their eggs from place to place... thought it was pretty neat how they would rearrange everything like that


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

mortava said:


> That's so cool! Congrats!


Thanks! More pics to come... it's about 7 days from egg to fry


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

Well the fry have now released their egg sacks and are swimming free! I gave them their first feeding of "First Bites" today. There was definitely some loss as there aren't nearly as many fry as there were eggs, but that is to be expected. Both parents are still nurturing their fry and actively "herding" them all together. Very need to see the male collect all the babies in his mouth and spit them out where he chooses. 
Here are a few shots from this morning. Sorry about the horrible quality of the shots...it is very difficult to get a clear shot of fry with an iPhone.


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## target (Apr 21, 2010)

Damn, those guys are tiny. Going to be cool watching them grow


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## Claudia (Apr 21, 2010)

Aaaaawww they are so cute, reminds me of my angels :keep those pics coming


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

Looking good Mike!


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

Well guys it's been 3 months since my last update on this tank, but the fry sure have been growing! Here are some pics i took this morning
































The pictures really suck but you get the idea!


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## rich16 (Mar 25, 2011)

That is so cool, thanks for the update! Now if only my pair would get it sorted out...


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

Hey Mike cool pictures, i just have the 1 breeding pair in my community tank now and I'll see how that goes. Keep the pictures coming. Cheers laurie


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## hlee72ca (Jun 29, 2010)

monkE said:


> Well guys it's been 3 months since my last update on this tank, but the fry sure have been growing! Here are some pics i took this morning
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I think you meant to say that it has been 3 weeks since last update. I love the pics and the video, the parents have such good maternal & paternal instincts. I love how they rushed to the glass to protect their fry.


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

ya good call, 3 weeks! not months... in 3 months i should be able to sell them all!


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

rich16 said:


> That is so cool, thanks for the update! Now if only my pair would get it sorted out...


I'm surprised that yours haven't figured it out yet... mine just keep pumping out these eggs and even the pair in my community tank are still pumping them out and rearing them as long as they can keep the other fish at bay... about 2 weeks is the longest i've had free swimming fry in the community tank so far, but they just keep going!

Heres a pic of the community pair today with a fresh batch on a lotus leaf..


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

Clown Lover said:


> Hey Mike cool pictures, i just have the 1 breeding pair in my community tank now and I'll see how that goes. Keep the pictures coming. Cheers laurie


Thanks Laurie! Did you end up selling all the fry from your last batch??


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

well its been some time since my last update and the fry just keep growing and growing. Still no colours have come in yet so it will be interesting to see when that happens.


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## onefishtwofish (Apr 21, 2010)

coming along nicely. at about 5weeks you tell the colors better and select the ones you want to keep.


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

Hey Mike your little guys are looking good, how many do you have there? I never seemed to be successful with angels. Cheers Laurie


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## monkE (Aug 4, 2010)

onefishtwofish said:


> coming along nicely. at about 5weeks you tell the colors better and select the ones you want to keep.


5 weeks? these guys are like 2 months old and still clear... does that mean that they are ghosties? lol that would be cool if they grow to be clear



Clown Lover said:


> Hey Mike your little guys are looking good, how many do you have there? I never seemed to be successful with angels. Cheers Laurie


Thanks Laurie, there's probably between 30-40 in there...i think i count 37 in the one picture. At least 10 are toonie size but none of them has shown any colour yet besides a bit of yellow on their head


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## onefishtwofish (Apr 21, 2010)

they very well could be ghosts then


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## onefishtwofish (Apr 21, 2010)

my original breeding pair raised about 150 a batch.................lol hard to rehome.


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