Tiger Barb fry!

[Crusis]

My wife and I have successfully bred our Tiger Barbs twice now. We lost the first batch, we're not sure why, but we had a heat failure that might have cooled down the tank too much.

This second batch has JUST left their eggs. We dumped some infusoria into the tank, and added a safety factor with regards to heat (spare heater).

Any advice on raising Tigers?

The fry are in a bare bottom 15G tank, with a small sponge filter and a couple of Java Ferns that the parents bred on.

The funny thing about this is that we've read three books on the issue, and not a single one of them agree on how to take care of Tiger Barbs or even how the breeding process works! We simply put a gravid female in the tank with a large well marked male, and viola! babies were laid.

Any tips on feeding infusoria would be most appreciated, as we've raised livebearers up to now without needing to resort to such small food. These fry are tiny! Probably a tenth the size of a newborn guppy.

 

[BrianNY]

That's outstanding man . Have the eggs hatched? No point feeding until the fry are free swimming.

 

[Crusis]

The eggs have hatched, but they are SO hard to find. That's one of the reasons I'm posting in here is to see what the experience of others has been.

The fry were so tiny compared to the livebearers we've been used to, and they're basically transparent at this point. We're not sure we have all the water conditions right, or if we're feeding correctly, or even if we have the right temp.

PH is about 7.7 (it's 8.4 out of the tap where I live)
Ammonia is 0
Nitrites are 0
Nitrates are 5-10
Gh is about 10
temp is 77F

The tank is part of a 5 tank system that all share the same sump, but I have the tank separated from the system and just an airation filter in there now.

 

[BrianNY]

Livebearers will be more fully developed at birth than egg laying fry, so they will naturally be larger. If the eggs have hatched, you needn't concern yourself with water params just yet, it means the conditions are fine. However, as the fry begin to grow they will tax your bio filtration. It's a good idea to keep an eye on the nitrates and when they start to climb pwcs are in order.

Infusoria is a great starter food and will culture naturally in the fry tank once introduced. As the fry become more active you can start them on larger foods. I have had success feeding both frozen bbs, and frozen daphnia. Good luck.

 

[Fear134]

Saw your post and thought you might be the ones to ask. I've got a Tiger Barb with a large belly. I thought maybe it's just a swollen stomach but it the belly is growing large but not out to the sides. Could she possibly have eggs? Any ideas?