Ram breeding advice?

[boogaloo]

Hi,

I have some red rams in one of my tanks, and two of them have started digging out pits in the gravel and keeping the other fish away.

Tank is 180 litres, 25C, pH 6.6 - 6.68, nitrates max 20ppm, water changes of 40 litres weekly. Other inhabitants are 10 head/tail light tetras, 8 Columbian red fin tetras, 6 small platys, a male bristlenose and 6 of these rams.

It will probably come to nothing, but just in case they do decide to breed, is there anything I should / shouldn't do? Will the other fish eat the fry (I read that the parents guard the youngsters), and what should I feed the fry? I'm going to Google this, but if anyone has previously bred these fish and can offer any advice, I would be really grateful. I'll be honest, I didn't think the tank conditions were ideal for breeding them - I thought the gravel size was too big for them to move for a start, but clearly not!

Cheers guys.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

Will the other fish eat the fry (I read that the parents guard the youngsters), and what should I feed the fry?

Rams are hopeless parents, the fry swim in a big cloud all around the parents, and other fish just pick them off. I'm told that they are often the only fish in their pools.

If you have a smaller tank (but not smaller than 18") you could try setting them up on their own. I used a piece of broken pot for them to spawn on and a lot of Java moss for the fry. The water needs to be warm, acid, good quality and with a low conductivity.

Have a look here for details: <http://www.dwarfcichlid.com/Breeding_Blue_Rams.php> the whole "dwarf cichlids" web site <http://www.dwarfcichlid.com/Aquarium_care.php> is well worth a read.

cheers Darrel

 

[bigbird]

Hi,

Agree, in a community tank, to breed Rams successfully is a miracle. Tetras are great hunters and your fish would pick these off one by one. Ideally a seperate tank is ideal. Looks like you water is good and hope at least that they do lay and then you can consider to set up a seperate tank. cheers jk :thumbup:

 

[D-MAC]

Please ignore this...I hit the wrong key and post went up before I was ready

 

[D-MAC]

I take it you are talking about the Bolivian Ram Microgeophagus Altispinosa?

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

I take it you are talking about the Bolivian Ram Microgeophagus Altispinosa?

I hadn't thought of that, I did wonder about the "Red Ram" bit. Same advice applies, but the water doesn't need to be quite as warm or soft, and the fry are a bit easier to raise.

cheers Darrel

 

[boogaloo]

Sorry it's taken me a few days to reply - insane week at work.

Yes, they are Bolivian rams. They seem to have settled down again now, so it looks as though it has all come to nothing. I was a bit concerned, as the tetras in that tank are pretty big and always hungry - my hubby calls that tank the "piranha tank", as those tetras are crazy. I do have a small emergency tank in the cupboard, so guess I have that option if there is an issue.

Thanks guys.