Fish eggs?

[beejaymorg]

Hey guys, sorry if I've posted this in the wrong area,

Just has a peak inside a log inside my tank and noticed what I've attached in my pictures

My two parrot fish occupy the log and haven't allowed any other fish In it since starting my tank in feb, are they fish eggs??

 

[Andy Sager]

Sure looks like it. Especially by the fish's behavior.

 

[beejaymorg]

I thought so, they have been making a nest since I got them a few months ago, although I did think from their size they weren't quite sexually mature yet. With these guys being blood parrot fish how can I tell if they are fertile or not? What's the next step. There looks to be loads of eggs!

 

[Andy Sager]

I thought so, they have been making a nest since I got them a few months ago, although I did think from their size they weren't quite sexually mature yet. With these guys being blood parrot fish how can I tell if they are fertile or not? What's the next step. There looks to be loads of eggs!

For starters, if they weren't sexually mature, they wouldn't have spawned
so obviously they are.
Since the parrotfish is a man made species, size vs maturity can be a hard issue and them spawning may be your only sign of it.
Lastly, unless you are going to try to artificially hatch them, you will know if they are fertile if you get at least one egg to hatch. First time cichlid spawns usually don;t have a high success rate but with these not being "normal" cichlids, anything can happen. As I said, the best guide is that 1 egg hatching. That proves they are a definite male and female and that they are fertile.

Hope this helps


( You may want to ask that your thread be moved to either the cichlid forum or the breeding forum. The saltwater forum is not the right place for this conversation. )

 

[beejaymorg]

Thank you! That does help of heard apt of them could be infertile, I'll keep a close eye on them!

Thanks it was somebody else that moved it to this one lol

 

[Swicicki]

I thought parrots were infertile crosses between severiums and Red Devils ?

If this is the case....they may lay eggs but will not be viable.

 

[beejaymorg]

Yeahh, I had read somewhere that if they were white they wouldn't be but if they are translucent they could be? Have you heard anything about that? ??

 

[Andy Sager]

Yeahh, I had read somewhere that if they were white they wouldn't be but if they are translucent they could be? Have you heard anything about that? ??

Yes, S.A. Cichlid eggs are dead when white and alive when translucent.
As for the hybridization of the fish, there seems to be a few combinations of S.A. Cichlids that supposedly, when crossed, produce a parrot like fish so exactly what made them to start with may actually be a secret by the creator.
Some background info on hybrid fishes: not all hybrids will be fertile. Some are and with careful breeding, can produce new generations of these "hybrid" species. Back when Gold Severums were first introduced, the ratio of fertile to sterile was approx 1/300. That was 1 fertile male per 300 male fish available. Now, this color adaptation has produced nearly all fertile fish. So this may be the same situation with your fish as well. You will know for sure if you get one egg to hatch.

Keep us posted