mbunas breeding...

**Northerly** · 04-26-2012, 01:17 AM

ok so ive noticed some strange behavior in my zebras in the mbuna tank lately and sure enough, when rearranging my caves for a new addition, i saw 2 itty bitty fry swimmin around. my question is what in the world do i do with the fry to come? leave them in the tank to be eaten? i have a green terror but im not sure if they take feeder fish. should i take them out and maybe get a 20-29 gallon as a fry tank? i would probably sell these fry back to my lfs for some store credit or something. any feedback is appreciated, i have no clue about breeding/raising fry.

**Northerly** · 04-26-2012, 01:49 AM

ive done some reading and ive decided ill be buying a 20 gallon long, setting it up with some caves and whatnot. maybe a fluval c2 for filtration? looking for some suggestions on fry tank set up. i will be letting the female hold the fry for 20 days or so, then stripping the fry into the 20 gallon. is this acceptable?

**deathtroll** · 04-26-2012, 11:37 AM

I would put a sponge over the filter intake. When you strip the fish make sure the fry are able to swim or you will need to put them in a tumbler until they can.

**Northerly** · 04-27-2012, 04:40 AM

what if i were to create a breeding colony? with say a 30 gallon long for the colony, and maybe a 10 tall and 20 long for fry/growout tanks.

**deathtroll** · 04-27-2012, 11:36 AM

For mbuna I would recommend a tank at least 4ft in length. For raising the fry the 10gal and a 20 long could work. Keep in mind that you will have to keep different size fry away from each other.

**Bigge3415** · 04-27-2012, 11:43 AM

Originally Posted by deathtroll

For mbuna I would recommend a tank at least 4ft in length. For raising the fry the 10gal and a 20 long could work. Keep in mind that you will have to keep different size fry away from each other.

+1
I have a 10g as my grow out tank. But you have to be careful when you have different sized fry in there. The larger will kill the smaller fry. I'm debating on getting another tank for mid to large size fry myself. Fyi one they start breeding they breed like rabbits usually.

**Northerly** · 04-27-2012, 08:49 PM

i am either going to go with a 30 tall or 40 long for the breeder tank. i am also going to be cleaning out my 10 gallon and repurposing it for use as a fry tank. i will be adding the 20 gallon growout tank as i get deeper into the hobby of breeding, for now we'll just have to see how this goes.