Convict Laying Eggs

[SDWalters]

So my convict has laid eggs today do they do this even if they have no partner or does this mean she has bred with something else? Now I have a blue acara which has paired with her but i don't know if the acara is male or female!

 

[Davo86]

afaik it is not possible for those to to cross breed however they will sometimes appear to pair up,

The eggs will be infertile and therefore will be white in colour,

 

[hamfist]

Yes, quite possible for a female cichlid to lay eggs on its own. Not sure if cons can breed with BA's. Time will tell if the eggs are viable.
Convicts will try to breed with absolutely anything though. They are some of the most efficient reproduction machines on the planet !

 

[SDWalters]

I quite like the idea of breeding in my tank (already have a pair of regular spawning BN Plec's - 27 caught fry as of today in this batch) so was thinking what i could do?

I don't want to cause major problems with agression ( I know convicts are a bit mental during spawning) but would adding a male Convict work/be a good idea? Remembering it seems as thought the convict has paired with a Blue Acara (I think a female). Would this be an issue?

 

[Davo86]

what size tank is this? breeding convicts differs from breeding bristlenose in that the convicts will do their best to annihilate all of the other tankmates in order to protect their future offspring. This means that your average mixed community is not a suitable place for two convict cichlids.

Also generally people don't want convicts, which means rehoming them is usually a big issue, If anything I'd try breeding Acaras over convicts anyday, it is a far bid harder to do but at least they should be much easier to rehome.

 

[SDWalters]

what size tank is this? breeding convicts differs from breeding bristlenose in that the convicts will do their best to annihilate all of the other tankmates in order to protect their future offspring. This means that your average mixed community is not a suitable place for two convict cichlids.

Also generally people don't want convicts, which means rehoming them is usually a big issue, If anything I'd try breeding Acaras over convicts anyday, it is a far bid harder to do but at least they should be much easier to rehome.

Oh I know it is a completely different kettle of fish!

The tank is a 5ft 100gal with 7-8" Chocolate Cichlid, 5-6" Blue Acara, The convict 4-5", Blood Parrot 5-6" & a Firemouth 3-4" (To be rehomed on the weekend) and thats it in terms of cichlids, other than those i have 4 congo tetra's 4 Tiger barbs, 2 BN plecs & 1 Snowball Plec.


The Blue Acara route sounds interesting, i.e. adding a male. Do you think that would be a better idea?

 

[Davo86]

IMO in the current setup a pair of acaras would struggle to protect young against the likes of a Convict, BP and Choc which are all either bigger or more aggressive, plus the three plecs which would be gunning for the eggs after dark, Also and again i don't want to sound negative but there is no guarantee a pair would develop from the two individuals,

That said without trying i guess we'll never know if it could be successful, if there is a secure area in the tank for them to spawn then you may get lucky