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Hey, i think i have a kenyi holding some babies, not sure though. I just recently noticed that when i put in the food, she'd go and look at it then swim away. Her mouth seems to be bulging on the underside and she seems to be hiding more. (I will try to put on some pictures)

Is there anything i should do right now or when she lets them free. There are some other mbuna in the tank. I have a betta bowl thing in to represent a cave, and covered it in gravel and stuff. Would that help in keeping the fry safe.

Thanks!

†Aquapickle†

It sure sounds like she is carrying eggs/fry. But, if you just leave her in the tank with the other fish once they have developed and she releases them they probably won't last long.

You could move her to another tank if you have one available or you can strip her of the fry in a few weeks and raise them in a different tank.

Jim

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Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

How long will the mother hold the fry, and how exactly do i "strip her" of the fry?



†Aquapickle†

Typically you would strip fry at around 3 to 4 weeks time. However, you can strip the eggs and hatch them out in an egg tumbler, but you're probably not set up to do that.

Instead of giving out a long explanation here of how to do it, here is a link to several articles, with photos demonstrating the procedure. Much better than me trying to explain it. Hope that helps.

http://search.atomz.com/search/?sp-q=stripping+fry&sp-a=sp1002682c&sp-p=all&sp-f=ISO-8859-1&image.x=10&image.y=9

Jim

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Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

While it is possible to keep mouthbrooder fry in a tank with the adults, It's not usually recommended. the only way to do it is to give the fry alot of very small caves, small enough that the adults can't get into them. so it's usually a good Idea to move the female to a holding tank, or strip her at 2.5-3 weeks, the reason I say to strip so early is that if you wait 4 weeks she is likely to spit them out before you get the chance to strip. putting her in a holding tank is another option, and the important part if you do that is to cause as little stress as possible, if she becomes very stressed during the move she is likely to abort the clutch.

You mention that you have a betta bowl in the tank for a cave right now, is that the only cave you have?

If it is, you need to get more in there, african's try to establish territory based on caves and the like, so if you only have one, only one fish has a territory. the usual recommendation is one cave per fish. and you can easily make caves by incorporating some rockwork. on the other hand, if you have more caves than that, disregard that section.

Stripping is pretty easy, and the articles that OldTimer provided are great, in fact they're the ones that I looked at when I needed to figure out how to strip.

proud father of a bunch of baby haps. http://picasaweb.google.com/Sktchy/BABIES

No i have about five or six caves, i just wanted to add another one that is more enclosed.

I really have no idea how long she has been holding them. If i wanted to put her in a holding tank, how big should it be. (Is a ten Gallon alright?)
Thanks Guys


†Aquapickle†

A ten gallon would be okay for a temporary holding tank until after the fry are released. You still want to have some cave structures or a planted tank to help the female feel more confortable. A completely bare tank would probably be stressful.

Jim

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Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

Okay, i think i have a friend with a ten gallon he isn't using, and i could probably use that.

Thanks for all the help guys!

†Aquapickle†

If you do this and if you have the time you need to place whichever filter you are going to use for the 10 gallon on your existing tank for about a week to help seed it. A sponge filter would be great for this and they are relatively inexpensive. Also make sure when you set up the 10 gallon to take the water from your existing tank to fill it. A bit of the gravel would also be beneficial.

Jim

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Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

Ok, i will use those tips.

Thanks OldTimer!

†Aquapickle†

In my experience, stripping the female at 2 1/2 weeks is enough to have free swimming fish. I'd strip the female and leave her in the 10 gallon for a few days to recover, with the fry in a basket until you move the female out. Letting her naturally release sometimes results in it eating her own fry, and also results in a longer starvation period. Stripping females also lets them recover faster and spawn again sooner.

I think she has been holding them for at least 2 weeks, she is looking pretty thin. I will do some more reading on how exactly to strip the fish.

†Aquapickle†