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Unintentional Neon Tetra breeding!

4K views 1 reply 2 participants last post by  tankman12 
#1 ·
So today a short while after I turned the lights on my tanks to feed everyone breakfast, I saw some interesting behavior in my neons. Yep, sure enough they were breeding. I have a planted 10g full of cyanobacteria [ugh], 3 nerite snails, and 1male betta. I've had four of my neons for about 2 1/2 months and the other two [total of 6] for about a month and a half. They were all in quarantine until I moved them to the 10g about 3 weeks ago. Things have gone quite well so far and my half-blind betta has stopped sulking but hasn't stopped trying to starve them to death.

Enter mating.

I have some interesting luck. One reason I had chosen neons was because they were so difficult to breed. I figured I would never run a problem with being overrun then! WRONG. I had not one but TWO pairs of neons spawning on opposite sides of the tank this afternoon. My tank is currently unheated at a steady 80 degrees, filtered with a 20g rated filter, planted with various species and way too much cyanobacteria due to high nitrates in the tap water with a 7.6pH. I haven't done my parameters in a long time and actually I'm due for a water change but last night I simply topped off the water before bed. I guess that was all the simulated rainfall they needed! Both sets of eggs were seen being laid in a bunch of lace java fern. Specifically the roots.

I'm so unprepared for any babies! I'm sort of hoping that they don't survive while at the same time I'm really excited as I'm really curious about spawns and fry and I've never had a fish spawn before. That's even assuming the eggs are still viable! They should hatch, if they're going to hatch, sometime while I'm at work tomorrow. I figure I'll turn the filter off for a while because I don't like the idea of them getting sucked in there =/

Not really sure what I -want- to do about it either. I don't have another tank to use. I don't have any room for any babies either so I guess for now I'll just turn the filter off and see what happens. They may not even hatch, after all. I'm pretty sure I've got plenty of infusoria to keep them fed for a while and I do have some daphnia but that's the smallest food I've currently got [I feed my bettas NLS Betta, my neons Omega One tropical flake, and my snails some brand algae wafers]. There is a chance that is 30-50 hatch from each clutch that a few may actually survive by hiding in the plants.

It's interesting though! I hope they don't make a habit of this or I'll be overrun way too quick! I looked at them and said, "I thought you were supposed to be HARD to breed!"

Silly fish.

Any suggestions?
 
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#2 ·
I would say they will most likely not survive. The nerites if find may eat some eggs. Once they hatch they will be very small and the neons, betta, and filter will kill most of them. The couple that survive may eat micro stuff off of the plants. I highly doubt any will live to adult.

Also nerites cant breed in freshwater.
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