Breeding gardneri

[Eldest8325]

Hi everyone, I'm new to the group and very happy to be hear. I've always liked Killies and have wanted to get into them but never really had the chance until recently. I've picked up a few pair of Gardneri that I have setup in 10 gallon aquariums with a ton of plants, driftwood and low light, they are doing very well and I expect that they will spawn soon. My questions are as follow: 1. Do I have to remove the eggs or can they stay in the tank? 2. If I can leave them will the parents eat them or the fry? 3. Why are the eggs removed in the first place?

I have kept various fish for 30 plus years so keeping fish isn't new to me, just Killies.

Any help would be great.

Thanks,
Craig.

[timebomb]

1. Do I have to remove the eggs or can they stay in the tank?

It may not work with other Killies but with the Fp gardneri's, it's okay to leave the eggs in the tank.

2. If I can leave them will the parents eat them or the fry?

It's just anecdotal evidence but once, I saw an adult gardneri gulp down a fry only to spit it out the very next minute.

3. Why are the eggs removed in the first place?

Probably because Killifish keepers are just fond of picking eggs but seriously, with most of the plant spawning Killies, chances of breeding many fry are far higher when eggs are picked and hatched separately.

With the gardneri's, you can spot the fry easily because they tend to swim at the surface. Wait till it's dark, shine a light and watch out for the reflection from their eyes - that's the easiest way to find them.

By the way, welcome to the forum, Craig.

Loh K L

[Eldest8325]

Thanks for getting back to me on this topic, so far I've spotted several eggs in the plants I have in with them, they are ignoring the spawning mop i've put in with them but hay whatever works.

[TyroneGenade]

Hi,

Welcome to killifish!

I must echo KL's sentiments. With GAR fry will normally appear with the parents. But, as you are staring with them, you may want to increase your numbers early on to allow you some lea-way for trial and errors that come with learning to keep killies.

Spawning them is easy. You need a small tank, about 30 x 20 x 20 cm witha lid. Put them course gravel in the bottom or peat and then place 1 pair in it to spawn for a day or two. I normally condition the females seperately first. Each day for a week put in a differnt male/female combination. Then wait. After 2 to 3 weeks fry will begin to appear in the tank. You should be able to get about 100 fry like this if not more!

You do not want 100 fry. Keep about 30 of the fry and place the rest with the parents or fedd them to something else. Of the 30 fry, when they mature, you can sell themback to the pet shop or keep them.

This is a nice learning experience. You will certainly want to keep other killies soon, and you may need to work a little harder with them than with the GAR. The GAR give you a nice way to experiment and learn what is needed without putting too much at risk.