breeding question

[tenpaull]

Oh. I'm glad to hear that :D

I'm on Day 14 now but it's morning so not much updates. Updating on Day 13

Day 13:
Fry are looking GREAT!
Very easy to see now that they've grown quite considerably
Added unrinsed BBS to the fry tank. What I had in mind is for the SW from the BBS to be benificial in keeping other diseases in check.
Since I added SW, I also added little freshwater to dilute it a bit. Was scared to fry my fry ;)
Refrigeration of BBS seemed not to work :(
BBS were still pretty orange in color but not moving, they would be similar to decapsulated brine shrimp eggs now because of lack of movement. I want my fry to enjoy and practice hunting for live food :p
Also added a cup of Indian Almond Leaf water(Refrigerated for long use) because I felt I already diminished the water in the fry tank greatly when i do my twice a day "poop patrol".
[ I was particularly obsessive compulsive in removing the infusorians left in the tank lately ]

Hope this will help/inspire all the budding breeders out there!
Gurus please suggest/comment if you can, will appreciate it much! :)


Note:
I log everything that I do for my fish, for future references. haha!
I think it's a good idea for everybody to do the same as well.
Maybe I could post it someday ;)

[Lindsey88]

I have enjoyed reading this! I am planning on breeding very soon. Next week i'm having a pair of halfmoon plakats shipped to me. :D

[Stillwater]

Hi again Tenpaull,

Where do you get infusoria, I have not seen them in the pet shops with the
fish foods?

I too have thought about breeding in the future, I am not sure though and am definitely not ready yet. My local mom pop fish store has told me they will purchase all the youngsters, they prefer to purchase from breeders. But right now I'm just still thinking and learning.

One of the reasons I enjoy your updates. Keep them coming if its no problem for you. Thanks!

[tenpaull]

infosoria is a collection of different microscopic organisms usually found in water with decaying matter. They can include paramecia, rotifers.. and the list goes on.
bottom line is they are good food for the fry because of their size, availability and they are natural:P one of the few "free" things we can use w/in our hobby :)

There are many ways in culturing infusoria, but basically you let aged water with decaying organic matter(lettuce for example) sit in the sun for a few days and wait for it to be cloudy and voila! fry food :p
[letting it sit in the sun will hasten the culturing process]
Some people however discourage its use because it can also bring "bad" water into the fry tank.

In my case, a week or more before the spawning session, I fill my spawning tank with treated water, and add a few leaves of Indian Almond leaf into the tank, along with an airstone to keep the water moving. This is good because the IAL gets to "bleed" the substances I want for my water, like tannins for example, which bettas love. :D At the same time, I can culture infusoria in the spawning tank itself, with the IAL being the "rotting media". After a few days, you will see 'dirt' on the ground or attached to the leaves, these are "probably" infusorians thriving in your water. They are cloudy in appearance and sometimes clump together.

Note my use of the word "probably", I have read that what you may think of as infusoria may also be a bacterial bloom, making us go back to what i've said in the danger of using this as food. In my case, it's just an added benefit of the way I treat my water. I don't go out of my way just to make infusoria to feed the fry :P In my experience, they are a lot of help because if sometimes, I am not able to feed on time, my babies can snack on the infusoria while i'm away ;)

This is a timely question since I was delayed by about 4 hrs on my feeding schedule due to work :))

Updates updates!... for later :p haha

Ask more questions, maybe we can help other people when they read this :p

[tenpaull]

Wow lindsey88, I bet they are gorgeous!

for my first breeding I tried a VTmale and CTfemale.
male is pinkish in color with blue washes on his fins.
CTfemale is darkblue with red washes on her fins.
Kinda curious already as to what the fry will look like :))
I've read that the VT gene is dominant, so I'm expecting majority of VTs on my spawn ;)

this served to be my 'experiment' or my trial into the breeding world.
no offense meant to my 2 beloved fishes and their being a regular VT and CT. I love them both and especially the way they look. It just so happens that they were the first bettas I have acquired :)

good luck to you and your breeding!
maybe you can ship me some after you're done, eh? ;) just kidding!

Regards!

[Stillwater]

Thanks Tenpaull,

I printed that out for quick ref.( hope that printing it was OK, if not let me know.)

Does the water that you attempt to produce the infusoria in need to be at any special temp?. Is there a to low end or to high temp. range that is not good?

Are these infusoria any thing that adult fish ever eat? Or are they to small for adults to bother with?

Would snails or shrimp ever be interested in eating them?

Any thoughts about whether or not other water parameters, ammonia, PH, etc. has any bearing on their development?

Do you know if these can be harvested and frozen for feeding these like other frozen fish foods?

Do you know if infusoria breed,or are they strictly cultured for?

Do you think a microscope would assist in determining if infusoria or bacteria were being produced? So one could know if in doubt, what they were getting before placing in a fry tank.

Hope I didn't ask to many question, my mind just kind of runs away with questions some times

[tenpaull]

It's perfectly fine as long as it helps someone ;)

I don't really know the specifics of culturing infusoria.
I live in the tropics maybe that's why it's easy for me.
However, I have reason to believe that they would prefer warmer temperatures to proliferate. :)
Maybe you can look it up and tell us what you've found out.
Bettas are naturally surface feeders, I am sure however if adult bettas will be particularly interested in eating them. [Heck, some even don't bother to eat anything other than FBW in my case]
I would think that a microscope will definitely help, although I don't know exactly their physical differences :)

Sorry if I wasn't much help! Maybe some gurus will wander along and help you with your queries ;)

best of luck!

[Stillwater]

Thanks Tenpaull,

I think I will try to look up the info. to my questions. Guru,s coming by would be even better, they probably know more than I could research. :)

[fishygal852]

Congratulations! I read on this site that you are supposed to feed babies twice a day I'm not sure what though. Sorry!

[tenpaull]

yes you should feed them at least twice a day. with WHAT, there are a wide variety of food to choose from.
Some include microworms(my favorite), Baby brine shrimp(BBS), infusoria, Egg yolk and the list goes on :)

choosing what will depend on what's best for YOU and your BETTA :D