rio xingu rainy season

Everything you ever wanted to say about "Zebra luvin", but didn't because you thought everyone would take the mickey! Plus general topics for discussion including everything from what you feed them to your personal experiences.

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bengranger80
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Posts: 31
Joined: Sat Apr 26, 2008 12:35 am
Location: plymouth uk

rio xingu rainy season

Post by bengranger80 »

Hi,
I am thinking of attempting to persuade my zebs to breed and would just like a bit of advice if anyone has any.
I like to do things naturally, so I would like to know exactly what happens to the river when these plecos decide to breed.
How many hours of sunlight is there at that time of year?
What temperature is the river when they start breeding?
what changes occur in their natural environment when they feel the urge?
How long does the rainy season last, and do they start to breed at the begining or end of the season?
any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks
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TwoTankAmin
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Joined: Fri Apr 21, 2006 2:16 am
Location: Westchester Co., NY

Post by TwoTankAmin »

That is sort of like asking what the spring temperature is in NY. Last year it was one thing this year another and next another still. How long does "winter last" is the same sort of thing. There are no magic numbers but what you can know is the guidelines. And then you get into those ranges and hope it does the trick. If not you fiddle with things in the hopes you hit on whatever your group needs to get to spawning.

The hours of sunlight are not relevant as zebras live too deep for it to matter. TDS, barometric pressure change and rains, current and temperature are all more important. The water is warmer and "dirtier" during the dry season and then storms come and the water is cleaner the current is stronger and temperature lower. They breed at the onset and then for a while thereafter.

You may be into natural but, trust me, your fish are not. They should breed longer in a tank than they do in the wild in terms of seasonality- ie rainy and dry seasons tend to last about 12 months in the wild but in my tank they last more like 14 months. They live and spawn in the dark in the wild but in my tank I have lighting on about 8 hours a day- so I can see. In the wild there is a sandy/silty bottom but in my tank the bottom is bare glass.

The point is, despite all these difference, my group has spawned well over 50 times in the past few years. There is no magical set of numbers that guarantees you will get spawns. In fact, if you read through enough threads on spawning these guys you will discover that many people dutifully tried it all from TDS meters and ro water to sprinkler heads to simulate rain etc. and had no luck until they just gave up and left the fish alone. And then out of the blue they get a spawn and its off to the races.

There is a lot of good info in the pages you see in the menu if you mouse over home at the top of the page. In addition, there are plenty of posts here on the topic you can read to see what various folks have done and tried.
What makes the common person uncommon is common sense.
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