GBR breeding set-up

[Jarred Darque]

ok, I am having to restart my GBR breeding operation. I lost my female a while back, and according to this site, was because she was being over-breed by the male, at least twice a month.

ok, so I need 1 male, 2 females. The breeding tank will be a 10 gallon planted tank, one of my two display tanks. The eggs will go into a 5 gallon tank, and the fry will be in there till maybe a few days or a week after they are free-swimming. Then they will go to a 10 gallon grow out tank where they will spend time with guppy fry about the same size before they go up for sale at the pet store.

Anyways, can I keep both females in the same tank at the same time? Will they stil lbe overbred. or do I need to move the females out of the tank after they have bred for a few weeks to regain strength? should I just swap them out every two weeks or so in the breeding tank?

If (prolly) the females cannot be with the male all the time, and they need antoehr home as well. Which tank? I also have a 10 gallon guppy breeding tank, but am worried that a GBR in that tank may disrupt the breeding operations of the guppies, at least slow them down or end up eating the guppy fry before I can remove them, is this a reasonable concern?

The other tank is my 75 display tank, problems with that tank right now are small, but in the future, there are some fish in there that will grow big enough to view a full grown ram as a snack...(Senegalus Bichir and soon a Delhezi Bichir)

Any tips/suggestions would be nice,

BTW, what are some triggers I can use to keep the fish breeding? (I sitll have to pick up two females, Iwas sent 3 males instead of the 1 and 2 I had ordered. :/ oh well, LFS will swap them out directly.

 

[Kilgore]

Hello,

First of all, which post said that your female ram's death was due to being overbred? I have two pairs of rams in my 46-gallon and one pair has spawned twice this month, so I'd like to know. I have my doubts as to whether or not that would be the case, assuming she received adequate nutrition. Do you feed any frozen or live foods in addition to flakes or pellets? How long had she been spawning twice a month?

As for keeping all three together, you should know that rams generally form bonded pairs. The females will most likely squabble with each other (mine do), especially in a 10-gallon tank. It is possible your male will be able to go back and forth between nesting sites and keep each female happy, but I doubt it. Some people claim they are harem breeders but that is not my experience. When the less dominant female approaches my spawning pair, both the male and female chase her away. Now, if I did not have another male, though, who's to say my dominant male wouldn't try and sneak off with her? Hard to say. Just make sure that you at least have several ideal spawning sites (flat stones, leaves, or wood) and clear territorial boundaries in the breeding tank.

The female rams would most likely try and eat the guppy fry but they would probably not be overly aggressive with the juveniles and adults, especially if they are not spawning (which they wouldn't be if the male wasn't kept with them). So you will either have to get another tank, or risk losing some guppy fry. Look at this way - the guppy fry that do not survive are the ones that you would probably end up having to cull anyway. And the adult guppies are just as likely to eat the fry as the female rams, so their presence isn't necessarily bad. They are a little faster and much smarter, though.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

As for GBR's, I've never heard of them as being harem breeders, but anything is possible. As for the 2 females, it shouldn't be a problem. I had 7 pairs in my 75G, recently lost 1 male, unknown cause. Was feeding fine the night before, then when I woke up, was laying on the bottom dead. Either 1M and 1F or 1M and 2F should be fine. And after you get a pair, depending on aggression issues, you may or may not need to remove the 2nd female.