Advise On Breeding Angel Needed

[regimail]

Hi,

I have a breeding pair of angel. They spawned about 4 weeks ago. It was my first time so I was very excited. So I watched them spawn for couple of hours. This took place in my community tank where I have 7 angels and few other fish. They spawned on the filter spray bar. I was in 2 minds whether to leave the eggs in the tank or remove them from the tank. After some time I saw one of the other angel fish going for the eggs. The couple defended it very well. Although they lost a few eggs. Now I was more inclined to move the eggs to another tank. After some time I saw female chasing male away from the spawn site. I thought this was a definite sign of removing the egss as the male was going after the egss as well. Later I read that he may just be removing the bad eggs. And on other hand I also read that there are chances that the angels will eat their eggs as the parental instincts are lost due to captive breeding.

So here is my first question. Is it normal for female angel to chase the male away and take care of the eggs on her own. Should I have left the egss in the community tank for longer.

Story continues...
I moved the filter spray bar with the eggs in a separate small tank which I filled up using tank water from the main tank. Added methylene blue as I read somewhere that this will help with fungus problem. Everyday I saw few eggs turning white which I removed from the spray bar. After about 3-4 days I saw tail coming out of the eggs. I was excited. I thought I will have some free swimming fries very soon. Next day morning all eggs disappered from the spray bar. Maybe fell down. I had gravel left in the tank. I think this was a big mistake. I waited for few days but nothing happened. So I thought I have lost them. Maybe next time I will use tank with no gravel.

It has been more than a month now and there is no sign of angels spawning again.

Here is my second question. How fequently do angels spwan. Will they spawn again or have they gone into shock because I removed the eggs from them.

Any help is appreciated. If you can point out my mistakes and things I should and should not do next time then that would be great.

Here is the picture of my breeding pair.
The one on the left is male. The one in the center is female. The one on the right (in the background) is the one who went for the eggs

 

[ReMz]

Very cool angels!

Free bump. I have no idea.... Anyone?

 

[Straydum]

if you are keen on breeding angels, you might want to take the pair out from the main tank into say a 29g if you have one. i removed my pair after the parents starting going hell on the other angels and it became painful to watch. other fishes would stop at nothing for the eggs. its fresh caviar for the picking.

And on other hand I also read that there are chances that the angels will eat their eggs as the parental instincts are lost due to captive breeding.

not exactly true. first or second spawns often get eaten by young parents. mature pairs on the other hand are less likely to do so.

Is it normal for female angel to chase the male away and take care of the eggs on her own. Should I have left the egss in the community tank for longer.

yes but not as aggressive as compared to chasing away other angels or fishes. if you've left the eggs there they'd most likely be eaten by other fishes when the lights are off. even though the parents would be there to guard and care for the eggs its still not advisable.

Here is my second question. How fequently do angels spwan. Will they spawn again or have they gone into shock because I removed the eggs from them.

no they will not go into shock. spawn rates depend on your water conditions. as well as how often and what you feed them. meaty foods are said to promote spawning. my previous pair had a batch every two weeks for so for twelve or thirteen times in a row (i lost count after that). all the times i had the parents in the tank so there wasnt really much to do. i also didnt add methyl blue as adult angels cannot tolerate as high an amount of methyl blue as compared to the eggs.

your spawning tank should have no substrate at all for ease in many ways. i used a sponge filter so that the fry wont get sucked up and have a piece of slate held at the side (almost vertical) where the angels spawned. you might want to minimize the traffic around that area so as not to freak them out too much.

 

[regimail]

Thank you very much for your response. I have a 10g tank. Dimension 18in x 12in x 12in. Will it be OK if I put the pair in this tank. I can put the tank in a spare room which no one uses.

I have a fluval 1 filter with me. Can I use it for now and get a sponge filter later on when they spwan.

Will I need an air stone in this tank?

If I dont use any substrate there wont be any bacteria's in the tank. I have few wood in my main tank can I put one of them in this tank?

Sorry to ask you so many questions. I have not done this before so have now clue what I should and should not do.

Many thanks.

Very cool angels!

Free bump. I have no idea.... Anyone?

Thanks for the complement. I am going to get few more pictures of other tank mates and will post it here.

 

[ReMz]

Very cool angels!

Free bump. I have no idea.... Anyone?

Thanks for the complement. I am going to get few more pictures of other tank mates and will post it here.

right on . glad you got some advice

 

[Straydum]

Thank you very much for your response. I have a 10g tank. Dimension 18in x 12in x 12in. Will it be OK if I put the pair in this tank. I can put the tank in a spare room which no one uses.

I have a fluval 1 filter with me. Can I use it for now and get a sponge filter later on when they spwan.

Will I need an air stone in this tank?

If I dont use any substrate there wont be any bacteria's in the tank. I have few wood in my main tank can I put one of them in this tank?

judging from your pictures, a pair wont do in a mere 10g. have you got a bigger tank?

you can use the fluval for now but your best bet is still the sponge filter. angels tend to lay their eggs on the filter if there isnt anywhere else suitable. everyone and then the parents may also shift the position of the eggs as they wish so you might want to prevent the eggs going up the filter as soon as possible. no you dont need an air stone. bulk of the bacteria would live in your filter sponge so you're safe there if you're concerned about the nitrate build up and all.

 

[regimail]

judging from your pictures, a pair wont do in a mere 10g. have you got a bigger tank?

you can use the fluval for now but your best bet is still the sponge filter. angels tend to lay their eggs on the filter if there isnt anywhere else suitable. everyone and then the parents may also shift the position of the eggs as they wish so you might want to prevent the eggs going up the filter as soon as possible. no you dont need an air stone. bulk of the bacteria would live in your filter sponge so you're safe there if you're concerned about the nitrate build up and all.

Unfortunately I dont have a bigger tank. I will move the pair in th 10g tank with fluval filter a slate and 2 plastic amazon sword plant (dont have the real one) and lets see what happens. I probably will give the pair 2 weeks. If they dont spwan in that time I am thinking of moving them back to the main tank as it is much bigger and I guess they will be more comfortable there.

Readers, please let me know your views.