Breeding Tiger barbs
I have a school of 6 tiger barbs, Im pretty sure that there are 4 males and 1 female. Do you guys know a good reference where I can find info on how to breed them? If read that I have to separete them for a couple of seems then put them baca together and once they have matee remove the parents. Does that sound ok? I wanted some more detailed info. Thanks.
Here's how I used to breed them. First, seperate the sexes into 2 tanks where they can't see each other. The males will have a cherry red snout and the females will be rounder in the belly with no red in the face.
Second, Feed them well with live foods if possible or frozen varieties of protein with some vegetation for about a week to 10 days.
Third, after the feeding phase, set up a tank for the fish to breed in. Here's the tricky part, you can gang breed these fish or you can just set up pairs. Since you said you only have 1 female, I would set up 1 pair for spawning.
Use a 10 Gal tank with a heater, a sponge filter and plenty of live small leaved plants (i.e. anacharis, hornwort, foxtail). Using smaller sized eggcrate, make a grid that will cover approx 3/4 of the the bottom of the tank. (The object is to not let the parents be able to get under the grid.) Use something to raise the grid up off the floor. (I used PVC fittings in the four corners and 1 in the middle.) Cut another piece of the eggcrate to fit the open side of the grid to prevent the parents from getting underneath. Now you're almost ready
You want to create a heavily planted area over the grid. I would anchor some of the plants to the grid and let the rest float. (Try to anchor some taller plants at the edge of the grid to keep the floaters from leaving the area above the grid.) Once you have done this, you can add your pair into the tank. Make sure the temp is about 80- 82 degrees and just wait. Usually, within 24 -48 hours, the fish will have spawned in the plants. You might see the eggs there or you'll see the eggs underneath the grid. (Or the female will look thinner without the eggs.) Once you've seen evidense of spawning, remove the breeders back into their seperate tanks for reconditioning.
As for instructions on the internet, you can just google "Breeding Tiger Barbs" however, I just told you pretty much everything you need to know
I learned this method from my Mentor and some older books by TFH publications on breeding fish. Worked like a charm
For raising the fry, you'll want to start a culture of infusoria as their first food. (They'll also be finding some infusoria amongst the plants they were spawned in.) Once they are large enough, switch to live baby brine until they start accepting crushed flake foods or other "micro" foods.
If you have more questions, feel free to PM me
