Breeding My Peacock Gudgeon Colony

[alykat]

HI everyone I’m looking for advice on breeding and raising the fry of my peacock gudgeons. I currently have one male and six females in a 15 gallon take. They’re the only fish in there and I started this tank out to be a breeding project.

They’ve got plenty of caves in the tank and they just had their first successful spawn. Yay! The filter is baffled but I’m sure the parents will eat this batch of fry.

My fry tank is currently cycling and should be ready for the next time the eggs hatch.

Does anyone have advice for moving the fry over to the new tank, foods to use, how and how often to clean the fry tank, using methylene blue on the eggs, and any helpful info! I’ve heard that gudgeon colonies usually follow a pretty regular cycle in terms of when to expect the next batch of fry. But again I have no clue how long I should expect to wait.

I’ve bred plecos before but more on accident than anything else and I didn’t do anything except extra water changes.

Thanks a million in advance!!

 

[75g Discus Tank]

I’m not an expert in gudgeon breed8ng, but for breeding fish, make sure the parameters for both tanks are exactly the same.

For feeding, baby brine shrimp is very very good.
When they get bigger, you can feed them daphnia.
HikarI first bites is also a good option if you don’t need choose to go the live food route but it isn't as good.
Keep the water pristine and do more water changes. I would use a bucket to put the water in so you can see the fry if you accidentally suck one up.

 

[chromedome52]

Peacock Gudgeons invariably eat their fry after they hatch in aquaria. With 5 females, this is pretty well guaranteed, but the male will get his share. You will have to pull the eggs before they hatch. I usually gave them 4-5 days and then move them, at which point the fry are visible in the transparent eggs. Put some aeration near the eggs to keep oxygen circulating over them.

Fortunately, once they hatch, the fry are ready to feed. I've raised them on baby brine shrimp from the start, microworms are also good, as are vinegar "eels".

 

[alykat]

So I’m thinking of setting up a brine shrimp hatchery for the next batch. How would you suggest aerating the eggs? Would a sponge filter near them do the trick?

 

[chromedome52]

No, I would use an airstone or even an open airline. Not at full blast, but at least a moderate current running past the eggs. It would be hard to get the outflow from a sponge filter close enough to the eggs to give them some movement.

 

[alykat]

Perfect. I’ll go to the store this weekend and pick one up. I’ll definitely be sharing my progress once I get some more fry