feeding fry to and after 3/4 inch
Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2011 1:13 am
HI
I have bred a lot more zebras than I actually have. It happens that they decided to form a breeding colony about 18 months ago in a planted 70 gal (which causes some problems: This is what I have observed:
1. If I leave them in the breeder tank they fade away and die within a week ..they get very thin and die... it is starvation for sure.The tank is too big.
2. If I put them into a breeder net,they are OK and develope reasonably well but they cannot stay there forever and ,in any case,sooner or later ,I need the breeder net/refuge for another batch.
3. At a few weeks or a month, they go into a ten gallon grow out tank. There,if I keep them on small food like cyclops, baby brine shrimp,rotifers ( all frozen) and dry food they do ok but at about 3/4 of an inch they seem to be ready for larger food like wafers, european shrimp mix,discus beefheart food , pellets etc. Without adding the larger food they seem to get thin. When I change over to the larger foods I get good growth but,also,deaths, often of the biggest ones. It is theorized that they choked and I think I believe choking occurs at least some of the time. I did see a very fresh death,though,and that fry,at almost 1 inch, had developed a swollen red abdomen and died within 12 hours of feeding homemade european shrimp mix..but I have fed that stuff before. Certainly you can't feed homemade discus beefheart food.
So,who knows what is a good food or group of foods that re good for zebra plecos from 3/4 to one inch.? My feel (and I have done this) is that at one inch they are fine back to be with the parents in the 70 and ,also, at that one inch size,they can evidently eat anything the parents eat.
Thanks for your help
I have bred a lot more zebras than I actually have. It happens that they decided to form a breeding colony about 18 months ago in a planted 70 gal (which causes some problems: This is what I have observed:
1. If I leave them in the breeder tank they fade away and die within a week ..they get very thin and die... it is starvation for sure.The tank is too big.
2. If I put them into a breeder net,they are OK and develope reasonably well but they cannot stay there forever and ,in any case,sooner or later ,I need the breeder net/refuge for another batch.
3. At a few weeks or a month, they go into a ten gallon grow out tank. There,if I keep them on small food like cyclops, baby brine shrimp,rotifers ( all frozen) and dry food they do ok but at about 3/4 of an inch they seem to be ready for larger food like wafers, european shrimp mix,discus beefheart food , pellets etc. Without adding the larger food they seem to get thin. When I change over to the larger foods I get good growth but,also,deaths, often of the biggest ones. It is theorized that they choked and I think I believe choking occurs at least some of the time. I did see a very fresh death,though,and that fry,at almost 1 inch, had developed a swollen red abdomen and died within 12 hours of feeding homemade european shrimp mix..but I have fed that stuff before. Certainly you can't feed homemade discus beefheart food.
So,who knows what is a good food or group of foods that re good for zebra plecos from 3/4 to one inch.? My feel (and I have done this) is that at one inch they are fine back to be with the parents in the 70 and ,also, at that one inch size,they can evidently eat anything the parents eat.
Thanks for your help