Zebra Danio breeding behavior?

[pachuco2k]

What's up? I was wondering if anyone knew what Zebra Danios mating, or attempting to mate looks like. I have 4 zebras, 1 male and 3 females. For the last couple of days at least my male zebra seems to be trying to attach himself to the side of a close by female. As they swim around it looks like they are rapidly swimming in place in a tight circle while almost attached to each other side-by-side. Is that Zebra mating? I know they are promiscuous fish but I just want to make sure this is a behavior I shouldn't be concerned about.

 

[Sinuhe]

Yup, sounds like they are "getting it on" . That's how my danios bahave all the time, and I have a constant supply of danio fry, just haven't been able to keep them alive for more than a few days yet.

 

[pachuco2k]

Right on, thanks for the info. What do Zebra fry look like? About 2 weeks into my tank I saw this think that looked like an eyelash floating around in my tank. I was about to fish it out when I saw that it was actually moving on its own. It then proceeded to get gobbled up by the largest Zebra in the tank. Is that what a zebra fry would look like -- a floating eyelash?

 

[ADCISCO]

Yep! sounds about like what they do....though I have not had any fry yet that I have ever seen! I have alot of fish so they may have gotten eaten too.

 

[pachuco2k]

i guess its good to know then that my male danio isn't shooting blanks. Maybe I'll try breeding them after I finish stocking my tank.

 

[Sinuhe]

i guess its good to know then that my male danio isn't shooting blanks. Maybe I'll try breeding them after I finish stocking my tank.

I don't know where they get their energy, but my male danio is always on the go .

Apparently it takes about 2 days for the fry to "hatch" from the eggs, and after that they are about 4mm long, nearly transparent, with 2 little black specks for eyes. For the next few days they hang on to the plants, gravel, and sides of the tank. After that they become free swimming, and I supposed that's when my fry finally meet their end, when the grown-ups find and eat them .