L046 Breeding report stage #2

Doug White · Post by **Doug White** » Mon Apr 16, 2012 12:33 pm

I thought I would do an up-date on my breeding program as I have discovered some new findings that may help to improve your chances at breeding the L046 Zebra. As in my last report my 100 gallon was producing offspring on a on going bases and that still continues.

I also mentioned I started up a second group in a 110 gallon tank, this is where it gets interesting. My second tank was set up copying my first, so I thought. The new group in the 110 started to breed and I got eggs and then babies

, but shortly after no signs of the babies

It was like they disapeared in thin air, not even any bodies. After a month or two more babies same results.

After closer examination

I realised I had a UV unit hooked up to the 110 system that I had used prior for other tropicals and on my first set-up I never used UV.

I unpluged the UV to see if this was effecting my out come.

A month and half later another batch of eggs, then babies, and yep you guessed it "they lived"

My conclusion is the UV system made the tank to clean for natural micro cultures to which the babies can feed on in their early stages, and the livebearing snails i have in that tank by the hundreds cleaned up the dead babies.
So if you have a UV on you system and are not having luck raising young L046 you might want to read this post over again.
Good luck
Doug White

Doug White · Post by **Doug White** » Mon Apr 16, 2012 12:49 pm

Another thought

in conclusion, I know from experiance that the young require something off the parents in the water like baby discus get directly off the backs of their parents. I know this from taking babies out of the breeding tank to soon and they die.

Maybe the UV affects what is they are getting out of the water from the parents.

Post by **TwoTankAmin** » Wed Apr 18, 2012 3:55 pm

Doug I am going to have to disagree with you here on your point about the babies being removed and their needing something from the parents like discus babies sucking slime.

Firstly, in the wild the current is so strong there is not going to be anything from the parents that stays around in the water. Furthermore, once the babies are free swimmers they fairly quickly are out of the breeding area and hiding in the tightest space they can find. I doubt they see either parent again after that point.

Secondly, I have had a lot of zebra spawns. I have followed different routes with various spawns over the years.This included pulling entire caves with close to free swimmers and dads still inside and putting them into growout tanks. I then returned the cave and dad to the breeder tanks just as soon as the fry went free swimming. There simply was not enough time for the babies to feed on anything from dad. The fry all did just fine. And I am not talking a few fry but more like 50+ fry over time.

There has to have been something else at work here I think.

Doug White · Post by **Doug White** » Fri Apr 20, 2012 10:42 pm

I have not experianced fry living without parents if pulled out before 1/4" in size. I have witness fry returning to both mom and Dad months after they have left the cave, photo attached proves this.

It is possiable the loss of fry I experianced when taken out in a early stage was due to another factor and not what i'm suggesting as a possiable explaination. Makes for good discussion and learning.

jsalas623 · Post by **jsalas623** » Sat Apr 21, 2012 1:16 am

Wow nice pic of the family!!!

Zeno · Post by **Zeno** » Sat Apr 21, 2012 7:22 am

You don't have to worry Doug, it's quit normal you loose some babies when you leave them together with the parents in the tank. The weakest fish will not survive. The benifit is that you don't have to bother about anything special.

If you raise the fry yourselves, more fish will survive but it will cost you extra care and time.

Greetz, Zeno

Doug White · Post by **Doug White** » Sat Apr 21, 2012 7:19 pm

Thanks Zeno, I do find it more natural to leave the group together.