Today was the day!!! I have swimmers......with a twist tho.
Okay, this is the original 1/2 Black pair's spawn. They were the only ones to have a good spawn since July. This one was a large spawn and a large hatch out as well ( bigger than their successful spawn) but the fry were staying very close to the bottom so I ran some tests on the water using my new test liquids. At this point, the tank had just an airstone in it with no filtration. Much to my surprise, there had been a rise in ammonia in the tank.
This was a first for me as I had been checking other failed spawns and no ammonia was present. So I quickly added some PRIME and a cycled sponge filter and thankfully, tonight the ammonia level was back to 0. (whew!) I fed the tank some BBS and using a magnifying glass, I could see that the fry had eaten but they are just hanging out at the bottom. I have no idea how long there was ammonia present and this may have something to do with it but then again, this is a type that is known to be genetically weak and difficult to raise so I can't say for sure that "I am cured!!!"
of the fry issues. The real test is going to come from the next spawn by a proven pair. If their fry survive and swim, then I will declare the issue solved ( it would have been the diet.
) Of course, the 2 best pairs to try just spawned the other day and those eggs are all gone now.
But their next ones are just around the corner.