Betta Breeding question

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yaya10

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Mar 14, 2012
Messages
26
Hi all

So after my success with breeding dwarf gouramis I now started a new project of breeding bettas. Got some nice fish and after a few bumps on the way the pair I've chosen have spawned. So I come home the day after (female removed, male tending to the nest) and I find all the eggs on the bottom with the poor male trying to pick them up and put them back only the nest is gone! So I took out the male and put the eggs in floating container in the tank. My question is has anybody had experience with something like this? The eggs look opaque yellow/white and I think the might be dead? (no hatching yet after about 30 hours)

Would appreciate your comments. Thank you
 
Hi all

So after my success with breeding dwarf gouramis I now started a new project of breeding bettas. Got some nice fish and after a few bumps on the way the pair I've chosen have spawned. So I come home the day after (female removed, male tending to the nest) and I find all the eggs on the bottom with the poor male trying to pick them up and put them back only the nest is gone! So I took out the male and put the eggs in floating container in the tank. My question is has anybody had experience with something like this? The eggs look opaque yellow/white and I think the might be dead? (no hatching yet after about 30 hours)

Would appreciate your comments. Thank you

Depending on the temp., My eggs usually hatch in 24-36 hours (at 80 degrees). Higher temps have yielded faster hatching but more "retarded" fry. Colder temps will delay hatching for up to 36 hours. The nest not being there after the spawn is not much concern as I've had males abandon the nest and put each egg in a single bubble along the glass sides or the tank. However, if the cover to the spawning tank is no longer there, the lack of humidity might have caused the nest to disappear leaving the male no choice in where to put the eggs.
Chances are, if you don't see the eyes of the babies after 30 hours, the eggs are probably not viable. If this was a first spawning for both fish, it's not too uncommon. Wait about 2 weeks and condition the fish and try again. You should be following the same breeding procedures as for the Dwarf Gouramis but feel free to PM me and I'll give you my breeding procedures. (y)

Andy Sager (y)
 
Hi Andy

Thank you very much for your reply.

A lot of the eggs did hatch today and I have removed those that have not. I am running a little experiment by keeping some of the larvae in a small floating container (in the tank) and some in the actual large tank. Male seems pretty pissed off showing tattered fins possibly fin rot which I understand can be pretty common after spawning. I don't think he liked being taken away from the nest.

As for feed for the larvae, from what I understand they can start on brine shrimp larvae right away? I have got some infusoria but not sure about the quality or contents so could potentially contain some nasty stuff.

Will keep you posted

Cheers
 
Hi Andy

Thank you very much for your reply.

A lot of the eggs did hatch today and I have removed those that have not. I am running a little experiment by keeping some of the larvae in a small floating container (in the tank) and some in the actual large tank. Male seems pretty pissed off showing tattered fins possibly fin rot which I understand can be pretty common after spawning. I don't think he liked being taken away from the nest.

As for feed for the larvae, from what I understand they can start on brine shrimp larvae right away? I have got some infusoria but not sure about the quality or contents so could potentially contain some nasty stuff.

Will keep you posted

Cheers

Betta breeding can be rough for sure and I know some people use the Almond leaves to prevent any infections. I'm an old time breeder and just use medicated water after spawning to prevent any of the damaged fins from getting fungused or bacterial infections once the fish are removed from the spawning tank. (What can I say? Old dog, new tricks kinda stuff :ROFLMAO:)
As for the first food, there are 2 schools of thought on this: Infusoria, Live newly hatched brine shrimp. As for me, I breed with either a live plant or piece of lettuce (which is an inoculator of infusoria cultures) in the breeding tank. I have had fry start immediately on BBS but have also had fry too small for BBS so they needed infusoria for a few days to get them to size for BBS. I figured that this way, I was covered because I start feeding BBS the day after they become free swimming. The bigger fish would go for the shrimp leaving the smaller fish to the infusoria. (It must be working because I don't have as many losses this way. ;))

Anyway, good luck and keep us posted. PM me if you have any questions (y)
 
I have had a quite similar problem. the spawning is a success and the male put all the eggs in the nest but the nest did not completely dissapear but the eggs did... like he ate them or something... now that i have a better set up i cannot get the male to build a bubble nest at all
 
I have had a quite similar problem. the spawning is a success and the male put all the eggs in the nest but the nest did not completely dissapear but the eggs did... like he ate them or something... now that i have a better set up i cannot get the male to build a bubble nest at all


Here's a couple of things to consider:
  • If it's the same male that has built a nest before, you are not re- ceating the right conditions for him to want to spawn.
  • He is now too old to want to spawn
  • He is not in the proper condition to spawn
If this is a new/ different male: Not all male Bettas will build a nest prior to spawning. Try exposing the male to a protected, ready female and see if he builds a nest. If not but exhibits all the other signs of wanting to breed, leave the 2 fish together and see if they spawn. If spawning occurs, a nest of some form should be made by the male or pair for the eggs.

If you'd like the specifics on how I breed my bettas, just PM me (y)
 
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