Dharmie Posted February 15, 2010 Report Share Posted February 15, 2010 I have a fish with eggs in her mouth, and one i noticed today with what i think are FRY in her mouth! How long does it usually take a Eureka Peacock cichlid to hatch her eggs? This is a firs time for me and im so excited. Any tips would be great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted February 15, 2010 Report Share Posted February 15, 2010 I have'nt had cichlids for a bit and I am just slowly getting back in to them. I would say 3 to 5 days for the eggs to hatch and 18 to 28 days before they spit. I did have a yellow lab hold for 32 days once, her head looked like it was ready to explode. I moved her over to a ten gal tank and she puked them out within 5 minutes, and wanted nothing more to do with them (except maybe lunch).Congrats on the spawns, hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punman Posted February 15, 2010 Report Share Posted February 15, 2010 The eggs don't really hatch like a chicken with a discarded shell. The egg develops eyes and then a tail. What seems to be the egg eventually becomes the belly. For mouth brooders the egg often becomes a "wiggler" at about 10 days and free swimming at about 18 days but it varies from species to species. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dharmie Posted February 16, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 Yes, that is exactly what i see in one of the femals mouths. A bunch of sets of black eyes lol The other female has about 20 eggs or so in her mouth maybe. Is that about right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLake Posted February 16, 2010 Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 She could easily have twenty depending on her age and size. Also the type of cichlid plays a role as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punman Posted February 16, 2010 Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 My tiny cyprichromis sometimes have as few as three eggs; yet I had a Blue dolphin (C moorii) who at just over 4 inches once spit over 90 fry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dharmie Posted February 17, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2010 (edited) Oh noooo!! I fed my fish some blood worms today, but they proved too tempting for the one with eggs. I seen her grab a bit of food in her mouth, then SPIT OUT all of her eggs. The other fish promptly ate them. I was sooo upset! lol I still have the other female with the fry in her mouth, so i wont be feeding them those worms for a while! haha Edited February 17, 2010 by Dharmie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLake Posted February 17, 2010 Report Share Posted February 17, 2010 Hahah the same thing happened to me earlier on but she swallowed all the eggs herself! But the next time she had eggs in her mouth she kept her lips sealed and stomach empty. She was prolific after that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dharmie Posted February 17, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2010 Well that is good to know. I know a few of them are in amungst my pebbles. Is there any chance they might hatch? I am keeping a diligent eye on the one with the fry in her mouth. I hope she keeps doing a good job as mommy! lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLake Posted February 17, 2010 Report Share Posted February 17, 2010 depending on how big the fry are, you may consider stripping mom of her fry if you think they will be in trouble in the tank. or moving mom away Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dharmie Posted February 17, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2010 I dont think they will be trouble. Im going to wait for a bit and see what she does. From what i can see, the fry are still very tiny. What is 'stripping' the fish?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLake Posted February 17, 2010 Report Share Posted February 17, 2010 making mom spit em out in a breeder net or another tank, numerous methods to acheive this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLake Posted February 17, 2010 Report Share Posted February 17, 2010 imo i find that if mom thinks the fry are in trouble she will hold them for as long as possible Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted February 17, 2010 Report Share Posted February 17, 2010 I find that letting the mom hold to full term, will give you fry that are stronger and more on the healthy side. After all, the people in Africa don't go wading into the lakes to strip the females of fry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dharmie Posted February 18, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 18, 2010 I find that letting the mom hold to full term, will give you fry that are stronger and more on the healthy side. After all, the people in Africa don't go wading into the lakes to strip the females of fry. I was thinking the same thing. Feels like id be violating the poor thing, making her spit out her babies! lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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