Angels Started Breeding Out of Nowhere

Hello,

I bought two angels from my LFS about a week ago and yesterday morning I noticed eggs all over my HOB filter and both angels swimming near them. I have read up on how to care for the developing fry but I was wondering, should I refrain from adding fish this week? I was going to buy some bleeding heart tetras until I saw the eggs and now I am not sure how long I should wait until I can add fish. Also how can I prevent the fry from being sucked into the filter when they hatch?

 

Hello barb...

Don't add small fish. The Angels will be protective of the fry once they hatch. Concentrate on keeping the tank water as clean as possible with large, frequent water changes. Start feeding a little more and a little more often. Well fed adults are less likely to bother the fry. Add some individual stems of a floating plant like Hornwort. Just drop the stems into the tank. They'll grow quickly floating close to the light and will provide hiding places for the fry and make the adults more comfortable.

Old

 

Hello,

I bought two angels from my LFS about a week ago and yesterday morning I noticed eggs all over my HOB filter and both angels swimming near them. I have read up on how to care for the developing fry but I was wondering, should I refrain from adding fish this week? I was going to buy some bleeding heart tetras until I saw the eggs and now I am not sure how long I should wait until I can add fish. Also how can I prevent the fry from being sucked into the filter when they hatch?

Get a sponge prefilter on that hob and turn down the flow... normally I always used a sponge when breeding angels.

Congrats by the way, breeding Angels is a big deal. Even accidentally!

 

Congrats on the angel eggs!
Do you have another tank you can use the angelfish fry in? If not, don't plan on getting any other fish for quite a while if you want to raise the babies.

What size tank are the parents and eggs in?

As stated, you will need to cover the filter intake with a sponge of some kind. Plan on doing lots of water changes, and you'll need to learn how to hatch baby brine shrimp!

Also will you share some pictures of the parents

 

Thank you! They are in a 60 gallon with a small rainbow shark and a very small bristle nose pleco. Here's a picture of them with the eggs:
Also I do have an unused 2.5 gallon in my house but I was thinking of maybe putting a divider in the tank

 

They are beautiful!!!

2.5 gallons wouldn't last long for the babies unfortunately. You can try keeping them in the main tank, I don't think the pleco would be a problem, but the rainbow shark would probably try and eat them... it will be pretty stressful for the parents once the fry start swimming...

Is there any chance you could pick up a 10 or 20 gallon tank for the babies? All you would really need for filtration is an inexpensive Sponge Filter. You would also need a heater for the fry tank.

 

I'm going to my LFS today to grab some supplies so if I spot a cheap glass 10 gallon I'll pick it up. How long will it take until they reach around an inch in size?

 

I'm going to my LFS today to grab some supplies so if I spot a cheap glass 10 gallon I'll pick it up. How long will it take until they reach around an inch in size?

My 5 week olds are pea sized....as a reference point....

 

Haha so a while then. Hopefully this goes well, I am quite excited about it!

 

Haha so a while then. Hopefully this goes well, I am quite excited about it!

It's a lot of fun, but can be a lot of work! And if it doesn't work this time around they will lay more eggs approximately 10 days after the current ones are gone!