Try and Try Again

I have a plan for my betta fry...if i ever get any again! Well i should soon here...betta are spawning again as i type. Instead of keeping them in their own small tank, im going to keep the fry in a breeder net hanging in the main 55 gallon tank. that way the babies can have the best chance of actually growing in the best water there is. More info when i actually have eggs/fry later...and when i feel more motivated to write

:O

When I got Back Home...

I wasn't happy to find out two things when i got back home:

1. While i was away for the weekend no one turned the lights off on my baby betta.
2. lots were dead.

At first I was really mad but after some thinking I figured, well, at least i still have some fry (at least 5 REALLY healthy looking ones) and i can always get another spawn. Now that i know i am capable of getting fry, i can push forward with more hope in getting adults.

I'm trying to get the same pair to spawn again. they have the most experience and maybe after his first try, this daddy may know what hes supposed to do this time around.

Another Spawning Update

The last pair spawning on my last post did not yield any eggs as you may have read. He ate the eggs. I tried to get him and the same female to spawn again later on but that was another failure. He just beat her up so bad her belly was cut up and she dropped eggs despite all her advances to try and spawn with him.

Failed spawn images. Female in cup. Betta embrace.

After the female was fully healed and re-conditioned (she healed beautifully by the way) i added her with a different male. He was building nests for a while and i thought they would make lovely babies together. Well they spawned just fine. LOTS of eggs but after they were done and i removed the female, the father stopped caring for the eggs and let then drop from the nest.

New pair under bubble nest spawning. Blurry pic of dad. Pair in the tank they spawned in.

I decided to take the eggs away from him before he ate them all. I put the eggs in a separate tank and kept an eye on them. A lot of eggs in the end had fungus and had to be tossed but guess what? I actually had fry after all that! I wasn't home when they hatched or anything. By the time i saw them they were already free swimming. So right now i have about 25 or so betta fry. They have grown quite a bit. I'm not home right now but my mother and sister have been keeping an eye on them. I will see my little fishies tomorrow and i hope they look even bigger.

On July 4th was when i saw them free swimming so i wanna say its been a little over a week since they hatched. I've had many spawns but this is my first batch of fry! i hope they make it to adulthood and i hope to get many more batches of fry in the future even if they are small.

Update on Spawning

Well I woke up, looked at the tank, and saw no eggs anywhere. He ate them. So I guess we'll just try again.

I at least know the kind of setup this particular pair needs. They need bright lights and little to no plants in the tank. The male will then need to keep the female in view. He stopped caring when he didn't have any other fishy motivation. I also read some other fish are like this....they will not care for their eggs if they dont have any other fish in view. That seems to kick the instincts into gear and keep them there.

Also, I should not be expecting a bubble nest from this male. Apparently some betta don't make nests until there is something to put in it and people have had successful batches with the small nest that result or no nest at all! So size doesnt matter.

I really want this pair to give me some fry. They are a beautiful pair and i think they would have beautiful babies BUT i think until they have a rest i'm going to try another pair.

Well Now!

The betta have been spawning for a bit now! Surprise surprise! Even stranger...they didnt have a nest built and are building it as they go. They are also working together. The female picks up eggs from the bottom and adds them to the growing pile at the surface.

When did all this happen? I let the female out the cup (i do that a few times a day so they can get the real spawning feeling) i did a water change and i fed them some freeze dried blood worms. Some time later i check on them and poof! eggs. hopefully i get some babies out of this even if its just a few.

Tough Time

Well now...I don't remember my first spawn being so difficult and taking this long...when i was just a rookie, i threw some fish together, in a few days there was a nest and then eggs and it went fine and smooth (well..he ate the eggs but that wasnt my fault)

and now i have extensive knowledge and am doing things "right" and nothing. not a single bubble. i'd like to get some fry...even just a few would be nice.

Feeding Time!

Top down view of the tank chowing down. Pretty sure everything in the image is a betta minus the obvious pearl gourami.