Blackwater guru
Fish Fanatic
So I have had this blackwater biotope aquarium for almost 5 months now and I was thinking of breeding some of my wild caught cardinal tetras of which I have a school of 15.
I am aware that these fish are notorious for being challenging to breed but I am willing to challenge myself and I have done tons of research regarding cardinal tetras and the native enviroments of these fish.
From what I have read regarding breeding this species I will have to set up a separate breeding tank of some sort that mimics the natural enviroment of this fish species which means having a low pH but also plenty of darkness in the tank which can be accomplished with floating plants.
In my current aquarium of 145 liters I currently use bags of tea along with dried leaf litter and seed pods to add the necessary tannins to to the water.
In my breeding tank I will also use tannins which will make the water darker which is exactly what I am looking for because the eggs and fry are very light sensitive in the beginning.
I will also have to condition a pair of cardinal tetras to make them ready for breeding which I could do by using frozen red mosquito larvae which is what I usually feed my fish anyways and if I could I would probably feed them a larger variety of insects.
As for triggering spawning there are a few ways and those include doing a larger water change of 25-50 % then waiting for a few hours and afterwards adding colder water which simulates the rain season which is when these fish would breed in nature and after they have mated and laid the eggs I will have to move the female and male to the home aquarium .
Once I do get the fry I will have to prepare food such as infusoria or finely crushed egg yolk for the baby fish so that they won't starve along with frequent water changes because they are highly sensitive to water quality.
I do have a pair of german blue ram cichlids a male and a female but I don't think they would breed or make good parents even though they are technically easier to breed because so far they have been quite agressive to each other but they have not injured one another at least not yet.
As for the equipment I don't need very much besides a smaller aquarium along with a heater and sponge filter + a dimmer with weaker lighting and a filter outtake to protect the tiny baby fish from getting sucked into the filter.
I am aware that these fish are notorious for being challenging to breed but I am willing to challenge myself and I have done tons of research regarding cardinal tetras and the native enviroments of these fish.
From what I have read regarding breeding this species I will have to set up a separate breeding tank of some sort that mimics the natural enviroment of this fish species which means having a low pH but also plenty of darkness in the tank which can be accomplished with floating plants.
In my current aquarium of 145 liters I currently use bags of tea along with dried leaf litter and seed pods to add the necessary tannins to to the water.
In my breeding tank I will also use tannins which will make the water darker which is exactly what I am looking for because the eggs and fry are very light sensitive in the beginning.
I will also have to condition a pair of cardinal tetras to make them ready for breeding which I could do by using frozen red mosquito larvae which is what I usually feed my fish anyways and if I could I would probably feed them a larger variety of insects.
As for triggering spawning there are a few ways and those include doing a larger water change of 25-50 % then waiting for a few hours and afterwards adding colder water which simulates the rain season which is when these fish would breed in nature and after they have mated and laid the eggs I will have to move the female and male to the home aquarium .
Once I do get the fry I will have to prepare food such as infusoria or finely crushed egg yolk for the baby fish so that they won't starve along with frequent water changes because they are highly sensitive to water quality.
I do have a pair of german blue ram cichlids a male and a female but I don't think they would breed or make good parents even though they are technically easier to breed because so far they have been quite agressive to each other but they have not injured one another at least not yet.
As for the equipment I don't need very much besides a smaller aquarium along with a heater and sponge filter + a dimmer with weaker lighting and a filter outtake to protect the tiny baby fish from getting sucked into the filter.