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I'd like to set up a couple of 10 to 20-gallon breeding tanks and begin breeding a couple of species of freshwater fish. Since this will be my first endeavor in the world of fish rearing I'll need to select species that will be fairly prolific and forgiving. Ideally the species I ultimately choose will be uncommon in the Indianapolis, Indiana region. I don't necessarily need to make a profit but it would be nice to at least break even. Once I've narrowed the field I'll consult with the owners of the lfs about which species they are interested in stocking and what they are willing to offer for them.

One specific question I have is whether it would be possible to breed more than one species in the same tank (such as a bottom dweller and a surface dweller or two types of cories) or whether I could stock a second species with the species that I'm breeding.

I'd love to hear from anyone willing to share their experiences, opinions, or suggestions about breeding any of the fish on my list. If all of the fish on my list are too farfetched, I'm open to suggestions of more realistic options. [note: bold means that I already have at least two of that species]

zebra otos
pencilfish (of any type)
yo-yo loaches (or any other type of loach)
rocket killifish <aplocheilus annulatus>
convict julie <julidochromis regani>
panda cories
dainty cories <corydoras habrosus>
pygmy cories <corydoras pygmaeus>
balloon belly mollies (common but charming )

Thank in advance for your thoughts.

Last edited by zoeandmaia at 08-Feb-2005 17:03

hmm, i dont have any experience with any of the spesies that u have listed but i have a few to suggest

betta splendens, they arnt *prolific* but they do breed nicely if u fnd a good pair, and u can create ur own strain i bred 2 pink cambodians, although classifyed as the same color, they are diffrent, the female has a more typical light colored body with typical pink fins with blue wash, while the male has a more pink body more red fins with blue/purple wash, they are also brother and sister, they bred well their first try, i have about 50 fry left and they all became free swimming today, i lost quite a few, but that is to be expected but hey are fairly easy to breed and if u have a lot of time the fry will be fairly easy to raise on frozen BBS (baby brine shrimp) im feeding mine on planaria, liquid and powdered foods, becausei dont have axces to actual fry food, i find my own

and if u realy just want to nail down ur fry keeping skills, u could get live bering fish, such as, platys, gupies, misquito fish, ect

Last edited by fishyhelper288 at 08-Feb-2005 17:24

Here is the easiest solution:
Go to the lfs find 1 male that you just have to have, pick 2-3 females that match this male, or are just beautiful in your eyes, take them home, let them get settled, turn out the lights, and bang you've got fry...now if you can't wait that long, drop them in a mud puddle on the way home and you'll have fry:%)(don't do this). Really these are the easiest to breed, and if you wish to breed for one trait you can usually get 2-3 generations a year. They can also usually be sold back to the lfs at 3-4 months. They will drop fry every 28-32 days once they get going, and can drop anywhere from 10 (the first couple of batches) to 200 (in the later batches) fry...The one male will happily service the 2-3 females and keep everyone happy

Below I'm posting a picture of each female and male...

When a female is pregnant she will have a blackish/dark grayish spot abover her anal fin, above/within the red circle I've drawn...


Male


Best of luck in your choice of endevors, Heidi[/font][/font]

"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom." Thomas Carlyle

I really appreciate the advice, but I don't think I'm interested in breeding bettas. For one, my lfs seems to have an abundance of them. Still I do find them stunning and I have plans to own a male betta sometime soon. Anyway, thanks again for your thoughts. I'll print out your posts and save them in case I ever do decide to breed bettas.

Why not guppies?

"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom." Thomas Carlyle

I always ooh and aah over the colorful guppies in the stores' tanks but for some reason I have no desire to take them home Can't really explain it :hrugs:: they just don't appeal to me in that way.