soliver Posted December 9, 2008 Report Share Posted December 9, 2008 I bought 3 2" polits (1m/2f) from fairdeal about 1 month ago. I had them in my 210 then about 2 weeks ago i decided to put them in a 15 gallon tank to pair off. They were in there for about a week and a half before they paired off and last night they spawned. Im extremely excited about this since i haven't had them for long, and they were just moved into a new tank. I took the other female out and put her back into the 210 so the two could have the tank to themselves. So im wondering if anyone has experience with breeding polits and if they are good holders? How long should i wait till i strip her? I was thinking 2 weeks. Is this too short or too long? Any input would help. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
African_Fever Posted December 9, 2008 Report Share Posted December 9, 2008 Your best bet is to take the male out of the 15 and leave the female with the eggs alone in there. He'll continue to beat on her, as they don't form pairs in any way shape or form. The male will breed with any females that are available, and if you don't have female polit, he'll breed with other females of different species. They can be good parents, but if it's her first time I would't expect her to hold them the whole time. Many times they will, but not always (polits because they haven't been around for too long still have pretty good instincts so there is a good chance she'll last). Depending on what other fish you have in your large tank there's a good chance that the male will spawn with your other female as well. Congrats! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firestorm Posted December 10, 2008 Report Share Posted December 10, 2008 (edited) Congrats on your spawn African Fever has good advice. IMHO you should keep no less than even 4 females for each male, because the males can be terribly aggressive towards his females. I have had my male harass a female to death before when I had only 2 of them. My best suggestion is to keep them in the bigger tank as well, trust me, he will find them and still breed with them. And ALL mbuna need to have at least 3-4 females per male for the most part. No mbuna ever just pair off with any female. They will breed with any female polit you have in the tank. My group of polits are the most prolific breeders in their tank compared to all my other mbuna I have in there. They are definitely a great fish to keep :thumbs: Typically females will carry their babies for 21-28 days. My best advice is to not strip them, rather keep them in a small separate tank by themselves until they decide to spit. I do this with all my female mbuna and the turn out is usually still pretty high. I would definitely recommend giving her a good week or 2 to recover feeding her well before you put her back in the main tank, but you might want to remove her and put her in another separate tank away from her babies for this. Edited December 10, 2008 by firestorm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soliver Posted December 10, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 10, 2008 Thanks for the replies. My male has been harassing the female a bit but she has found a spot to get away from him. I don't want to put them back into the 210 because i would have to rip it apart to catch the female later on. Do you think its a good idea to keep the other female in the tank as well to give him "another target" haha. I do have another small tank that i can put the female when she gets closer to spitting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soliver Posted December 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2008 So i got home from school today and my female polit was dead. Lost her and all the fry. I guess the male harassed her to death. I should have done something about it sooner. So i think im going to let them breed in the 210. If i catch her great, it not then oh well. So much for all the fun i was having. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firestorm Posted December 11, 2008 Report Share Posted December 11, 2008 I'm so sorry to hear that. I always find it best to leave them in the main tank to breed, then try to catch the female after she has been holding for a couple of weeks. Try using 2 nets and herd the fish to one end of the tank with one net, then use the other net on that side of the tank to try and catch her. I have had to tear my 75 apart to get holding fish, but a 210 would definitely be a pain. Does Harold have any other females left? If not I do have 3 F2 polit fry I am growing out, but they are still only about 1/2" big. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soliver Posted December 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2008 I do still have one other female left in the main tank. Im going to put the male in there with her and then turn my 15 into a planted tank or something. Do you think its big enough for a couple rams? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted December 11, 2008 Report Share Posted December 11, 2008 In a small tank like that, if you dont' want to take the male out after breeding, try putting in a divider to separate them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
African_Fever Posted December 11, 2008 Report Share Posted December 11, 2008 You could always try to catch the fish at night when the lights are out, and after they've been out for a while. As long as you're quick and they don't wake up you can have them in a new tank before they even really know what's going on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairdeal Posted December 12, 2008 Report Share Posted December 12, 2008 PM'd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soliver Posted December 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2008 I would try to catch them at night but they all have there spots in the rock where they sleep. When i go down in the morning to turn on the light. It looks like the tank is empty. Its funny to see where they sleep. One of my convicts wedges herself tight into a plant. Actually thought she was dead one morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firestorm Posted December 12, 2008 Report Share Posted December 12, 2008 What I have done before is in the evening, I turn out the lights for about 20 minutes or so (even the room lights), making it nice and dark in the room. When the time is up switch back on the lights and they probably won't all be sleeping yet, and by then their eyes have adjusted to the dark. Sometimes this works to stun the fish so you can catch em easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordo Posted December 12, 2008 Report Share Posted December 12, 2008 Sounds like it could be a good trick. I might have to try that. I have been successful in scooping them up when they come up to eat. But if im catching a holding female then she won't be eating. Ill have to try that some time. Thanks for the info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soliver Posted December 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2008 Just noticed i was on the wrong account. So the above post from sgordon was from me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firestorm Posted December 14, 2008 Report Share Posted December 14, 2008 Haha, no worries. That is the only problem with catching holding females, is that most of the time they like to hide in the back when you feed them, so it can be a difficult trick with them. Good luck with them in the future Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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