Pseudocrenilabrus nicholsi

[degrassi]

I bought a pair of Pseudocrenilabrus nicholsi at our club's auction this past sunday. They are about 1 1/2" for the male and 1" for the female. The male is very fiesty and was constantly chasing the female. This morning i turned on the light and noticed that the female was hiding in the vallisneria and not coming to eat. I looked a bit more closely and noticed that her throat appears to be full(looks exactly like a holding malawi african). Is it possible that they are already breeding? I assumed they were too small.

Anyone have any info about breeding these guys? Is it the same as other mouthbrooding africans? How long does the female hold for? How many fry do they have at a time?

I can't really find much info about them on the net. So any help would be appreciated.

 

[tjudy]

The size of your female is not too small for her to reproduce, but her broods will be very small. She should hold for 15 - 20 days. If possible I would separate her from the male for a few months and let her get larger. Breeding will not bas as stressful and her broods will be larger.

 

[degrassi]

Well this afternoon i removed the female and put her into a 10g that has a couple endlers. I removed her becuase she was hiding in the corner pointing up. I thought she would be less stressed if she was in her own tank.

So i guess i'll wait and see if she produces any babies

Thanks, I guess i'll also leave her in that tank untill she has a chance to grow a bit more too. I dont' want to loose her due to the male picking on her since i dont' know where i'd find anymore females to replace her.

 

[degrassi]

Well its been about a 8 days since i found the female holding. I was wondering how big nicholsi babies are when she spits them? I was planning on putting the female in a Lee's breeding trap but i want to know if the babies will be small enough to fit through the holes or not.

Also whats the best food to feed the fry?

 

[Randall]

Pseudocrenilabus nicholsi

Hello degrassi,

After your female releases her brood, she will take the fry back into her mouth at night or when disturbed for an additional week or so. For this reason, a breeding trap is not recommended. After parental care ceases, the female can go back into the main tank, and the fry can be grown out separately. Feeding the fry is easy: any appropriately sized food will do; bbs, Golden Pearls, Cyclops Eaze, crushed flake, small granulated foods, etc.

Good luck!

Randall Kohn

 

[Mike Wise]

If you plan to use a net breeding trap, may I suggest putting the male in it instead of the female. After a 2 week fast, she needs time to regain her lost weight & not be harrassed by a testosterone enraged male.

 

[degrassi]

The male is in a seperate tank then the female. I have the female in a 10g with some endlers and ghost shrimp. I was going to put the female in a breeding box to spit the babies becuase i was concerned that she might eat them after releasing them or the shimp or endlers might get them also. So i was hoping to grow them out a bit in the trap before releasing them into the tank.

So would your recommendation be that i just let her spit in the 10g and leave the fry be? I don't have a problem doing that i was just concerned that the fry would be eaten. The tank does have some java moss and some other floating plants.

 

[Randall]

Pseudocrenilabus nicholsi

So would your recommendation be that i just let her spit in the 10g and leave the fry be? I don't have a problem doing that i was just concerned that the fry would be eaten.

Hello Degrassi,

Yes, I'd leave well enough alone. If you're concerned that the fry will be eaten by the tank's other inhabitants, remove them, but leave the female to care for her brood. At least this way you can benefit from observing the experience.

Good luck!

Randal Kohn

 

[degrassi]

Ok thanks,

I'll remove the endler. Do you think that ghost shrimp will eat them?

 

[Randall]

Pseudocrenilabus nicholsi

Do you think that ghost shrimp will eat them?

Gee, I don't know, but with a little white wine, garlic, and butter, that shrimp might taste delicious. ;-)

RK

 

[degrassi]

So once the female spits them will she continue to care for them? OR after a couple of days will she try to eat them?

 

[Randall]

Hello degrassi,

After your female releases her brood, she will take the fry back into her mouth at night or when disturbed for an additional week or so. For this reason, a breeding trap is not recommended. After parental care ceases, the female can go back into the main tank, and the fry can be grown out separately. Feeding the fry is easy: any appropriately sized food will do; bbs, Golden Pearls, Cyclops Eaze, crushed flake, small granulated foods, etc.

Good luck!

Randall Kohn

Please reread the first sentance.

R

 

[degrassi]

I did read that but if i leave the female in the tank with the fry will she eat them? I dont' really have another tank to put her in. So my options are leaving her with the fry(will she eat them after "parental care ceases"), putting her in the breeding trap or putting the fry in the breeding trap.

 

[tjudy]

Degrassi... if space is an issue, you might want to try to get a net breeder or build an incubator like this one:

www.tedsfishroom.com/incubator.html

The female is not likely to eat the fry after she is done raising them, but the male might. Separating the fry and growing up to 1/2 inch or so is a safe thing to do. You can put the female into the incubator while she is holding and let her spit out the brood in there.

 

[degrassi]

The male isn't in this tank. He is in a different one as he was constantly chasing the female.

I think my best bet might be to get a divider and keep the female/ghost shrimp on one side and the fry on the other.