Fry in water change bucket!

[Orlon11]

About a week ago i did a water change and also removed a large amount of green hair algae that was growing everywhere. Out of laziness, I just left the bucket in the corner. Now I was just about to empty it out but I saw at lest 2 or 3 tiny fry swimming around!

I think they must be Celestial Pearl Danio, since that's the only fish in the tank with both sexes, aside from the loaches.

It's a heavily planted 20 gallon long, inhabitants:

5-6 kuhli loaches
5 CPD
7 threadfin rainbows
1 Ancistrus
countless cherry shrimp

Should I risk fishing them out and putting them bck in the tank with the other fish, or are they sure to get eaten? Or should I leave them in the bucket? I don't have a spare tank....

I think they must be eating microfood from among the masses of hair algae. What else can I feed them? I won't be able to go to the store until tomorrow.

Help me save these little guys!

 

[Leeatl]

If they have survived this long I would just leave them and watch them daily till they get a little bigger . You could put them in a container of at least a gallon . The smaller the volume of water the easier to take care of .They are probably eating stuff on the algae like you said . I would change out some of the water daily . You can crush flake food up to powder and feed that as well . When big enough remember to match the temp of whatever they are in to the tank you are going to put them in . Good luck and have fun with it...lol

 

[Brookster123]

Throw an air stone in there and let nature roll... maybe add more algae as you can collect it. Pretty cool

 

[Orlon11]

I've set them up in a plastic box with an air stone and some extra java moss. I tried feeding tiny amounts of powdered fish food, but I'm not sure if they went for it. But they must be eating something if they've lived this long!

 

[Leeatl]

They may not eat the fish food till they get a little bigger . Like you said they have been eating something...lol There are microscopic things we can't see that they eat . I know when my Plays birth I never know it till one day I see a fry about a quarter inch long so they have been alive for a while . I don't do anything special for them and let nature take care of it . I figure the strongest , smartest will survive . If I didn't go this route I would have a 100 tanks of Platys....lol

 

[Brookster123]

Frozen baby brine shrimp would be the next best thing. Theyll def pick bugs off the moss in the meantime.

 

[notespeller]

i raised danios for about 3 years. I discovered my first batch just like you, in my old water change bucket! I lost my first batches due to not knowing what to feed them, despite trying everything. Eventually i crushed regular fish food in a plastic bag with a rolling pin and then smashed it to smithereens with a hammer (mostly for fun). I put a small pinch in a bowl of tank water and poured it into their small tank. They took to it immediately and i never lost batches again.

They should NOT be put back into the main tank until they are bigger than the other fishes mouths, they will get eaten. I once thought some were big enough to go back into the tank, then a few hours later i saw one of the adults swimming around with one of the babies half hanging out of it's mouth! i had to poke the fish with a stick to get it to cough it back up.

once danios start breeding they will do it about once a month, so you'll have lots more