Is my fish holding? *Edit* I have fry!

[Fishyfanatic]

I have 1 male and 1 female Maylandia callainos in the 150 gal tank. Last night I was doing my nightly check on all of the fish to make sure they are healthy and acting normal. The female was hovering inside of the rock structure and wouldn't come out. I fed the fish and she stayed where she was. Later on I noticed her chasing away other fish from the structure. I inspected her closer and see that she has what looks like something black in her mouth. She also has a bulge on the underside. She isn't closing her mouth completly but is moving her jaw quicker than she used to.

I didn't know what to think of this so I set up the 10 gal QT with a sand substrate, decor from the 150, and water from the tank (so I didn't have to stress her by acclimating into fresh water). The filter has been running on the 150 for about 6 weeks now, so it is seeded. I added the decor because I thought that if she was holding, then she would feel more at home with the similar surroundings.

Is she holding eggs? They may not be black, but a darker coloration than her body (she's light blue). If she's not holding, then it looks like something is stuck in her mouth. She has not eaten since I have found the "stuff" in her mouth. What is going on? I tried searching online for pics but can't find any to tell if they are eggs.

Here's a pic of her.

 

[FishCrzy]

I can say with 99 percent certainty that she IS holding.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

YEAH! Thanks. Could it possibly be anything else besides holding?

 

[rich311k]

The throat looks expanded and she looks in great health and color. I would say she is holding.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Thanks guys. I was very concerned when I saw her last night because I have never had a mouthbrooding fish have fry. I've never seen one before. We've only had mollies breed before.

 

[Toirtis]

I concur...looks like she has a mouthful....congrats.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

This morning I went in to do the morning feeding and turn on the lights. As soon as I clicked the light I saw a fry swimming next to the mother. She quickly scooped it into her mouth. I sat and watched for a while and noticed that there are two more swimming around the tank. She swam towards them but I guess they are independent little guys beacuse they swawm away and wanted to be in the open. I can't believe this. She has apparently been holding for some time now and I never noticed it. I'll post pics later.

 

[Jchillin]

Alright FF!!! That is amazing! I guess that with everything you were previously thinking, this has come as both a comfort and a surprise. 8O

 

[Fishyfanatic]

I just went back in there with the camera and found about 20 fry released. It's probably a few more, but they were hiding and kept moving. I can't believe this went so fast. Friday I see the bulge and on Sunday they are all swimming around. The mother is back in the 150. The fry are hanging together in the 10 gal, some are venturing off, but come back pretty quickly. The mother looks like normal, doesn't look weak. This is so exciting. My first batch of African fry. And they just happent to be the beautiful Cobalts. Here's some pics:

 

[Fishyfanatic]

And I am VERY glad that I took her out of the 150 when I did. Who knows how many fry would have survived. I was actually going to setup the 29 gal for just her (take out the parrots and such) this afternoon hoping that it would provide less stress and a larger environment, but she beat me to it.

 

[Steven A]

WOW great images. The fry look cool. 8)
Congrats

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Thanks guys. I still can't get over the fact that this all took place over the weekend. I am really enjoying this all.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

The mother is eating like normal and acting perfectly in the main tank. What a great experience that was. James' mom almost had a heart attack when he called her and said we were having babies. He didn't mention the FISH were having the babies. I'm just so giddy right now. I figured I'd have a few weeks to prepare for the release of the fry. Time to go shopping! We are already talking about emptying the 29 gal tank and having that as a grow out tank but then he started thinking about another 55. Oh man. We'll have to start removing furnature again to accomidate the new tanks.

 

[Jchillin]

Nice pics FF...the fry look kinda cute hanging out in the cave.

 

[rich311k]

Congrats and nice photos.

 

[Puriti]

Congrats on the fry! ^^

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Thanks everyone. Well I went to the lfs today and actually had to go to 4 before anyone could give me Baby brine shrimp. Noone else carried it. The one that I found it at said that they have the freeze dried kind and the woman proceeded to give me Betta food. She said it is the same thing. If I hadn't seen the fry mouths I would have taken her word for it but I knew that they would NOT be able to eat those big pieces. So tonight I fed them the frozen baby brine shrimp and they went crazy over it. Gobbling it all up. They look like schooling fish because if one goes across the tank, the whole pack does. It's pretty funny to watch. You can already tell who is the leader of the gang. They are so tiny but you can tell that they are pure cobalts from the light blue coloration. So cute. The male is already "flirting" with the female again. I have a feeling this means more fry in the future. We are thinking about keeping most of the Cobalts and putting them in the 150 gal tank, replacing some of the current stock. BUT, if they breed, wouldn't there be issues since they would be brother/sister? It was just a thought but we'll probably just grow them out and sell them to the lfs. If we have 25 survive, that's quite a bit of money. Plus I'd love to see how fast they grow.

 

[Toirtis]

Congrats....and good luck on rearing those guys!

 

[An t-iasg]

What an exciting weekend you had! Congrats on the fry! Keep us updated on their growth!

 

[Epaulette Shark]

FishyFanatic
Your fry look like they are having fun in there tank.