maddog10
10-01-2006, 6:44 PM
Just a quick note on
breeding Cynotilapia afra, IMO the best MF ratio is AT LEAST 3 males and 8 females. I know you can
breed with just a pair but you really have to watch out for aggression. I have a group of afra
(Puulu) with 6 males and 15 females, it is a very productive group, that I keep in a 40 long (have
also kept the same group in a 20 high). The group is large enough that aggression is dispersed
through the group and no significant damage to any one fish occurs. I have a single pile of rocks
which the fish use for breeding. The subdominate males are always testing the alpha male but no
real challenges to his throne yet. Just about any change (water temp, water changes) seems to
trigger the fish to breed. I generally allow the females to hold for 7-10 days before I remove and
place them in a 2-1/2 gallon tank and allow them to naturally spit the fry. I will then, within a
day, remove the mom and place her in a 10 gallon tank for about a week so I can monitor her health
and make sure she is feeding well. If all is well she goes back into the main tank. Once I have
enough fry (which can happen in a week) I remove all of the males and place them in 2-1/2 gallon
tanks. If you want to try your hand at breeding cichlids Cynotilapia afras are a good choice. They
breed in small tanks, are relatively inexpensive and are EASY to breed.
[attachment=120:attachment]
breeding Cynotilapia afra, IMO the best MF ratio is AT LEAST 3 males and 8 females. I know you can
breed with just a pair but you really have to watch out for aggression. I have a group of afra
(Puulu) with 6 males and 15 females, it is a very productive group, that I keep in a 40 long (have
also kept the same group in a 20 high). The group is large enough that aggression is dispersed
through the group and no significant damage to any one fish occurs. I have a single pile of rocks
which the fish use for breeding. The subdominate males are always testing the alpha male but no
real challenges to his throne yet. Just about any change (water temp, water changes) seems to
trigger the fish to breed. I generally allow the females to hold for 7-10 days before I remove and
place them in a 2-1/2 gallon tank and allow them to naturally spit the fry. I will then, within a
day, remove the mom and place her in a 10 gallon tank for about a week so I can monitor her health
and make sure she is feeding well. If all is well she goes back into the main tank. Once I have
enough fry (which can happen in a week) I remove all of the males and place them in 2-1/2 gallon
tanks. If you want to try your hand at breeding cichlids Cynotilapia afras are a good choice. They
breed in small tanks, are relatively inexpensive and are EASY to breed.
[attachment=120:attachment]