Firemouth question

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amezzy77

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This is my pair of Firemouths, assuming male and female. She’s had her egg tube out for weeks and is pretty plump, again assuming she’s about to have her eggs...this is all new to me, have never owned cichlids before...the 2 stay together, he follows her everywhere and have claimed the center of the tank. Am I right thinking they are breeding and how long will she hold before laying her eggs?
Is there anything I need to do differently? They are in a 40g with 1 other FM that hangs out by him/herself, 1 dwarf gourami, 2 male BN plecos and a mystery snail. I have a 55 that I’m cycling to upgrade to but hoping to keep them all together in the long run. Parameters are watched and I do 20% water changes weekly and more if needed. Temp is about 78f. Any guidance or suggestions are welcome...I’m just a worried newbie impatient fish mom ?
 

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Pretty firemouths! One of my favorites. You might not know for sure until you see clouds of fry hanging around them. They are really good parents--fun to watch.

Your stocking is probably OK, but you do have some possible aggression issues, between the 2 bnps, and between your happy couple and the third wheel FM, and between the cichlids and the dwarf gourami. Make sure there's adequate cover for the fish to get away from each other if they need to, and be prepared to rehome someone if you start seeing a lot of chasing, torn fins, or other signs of stress.
 
Pretty firemouths! One of my favorites. You might not know for sure until you see clouds of fry hanging around them. They are really good parents--fun to watch.

Your stocking is probably OK, but you do have some possible aggression issues, between the 2 bnps, and between your happy couple and the third wheel FM, and between the cichlids and the dwarf gourami. Make sure there's adequate cover for the fish to get away from each other if they need to, and be prepared to rehome someone if you start seeing a lot of chasing, torn fins, or other signs of stress.
Yes, the BN have been getting a little naughty, if they continue once I get them in the bigger tank I will rehome one. The dwarf is in there temporarily, but they are doing good together as of now. The 3rd wheel FM stays to himself most of the time but they chase him if he gets too close, I’m trying to figure out a plan for him because I really don’t want to rehome...and this is how we end up with tanks in every corner of the house ?. Thanks for your input!
 
The pr will probably breed in the next 24-48 hours.

I would remove the 3rd firemouth so it doesn't get killed.


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I would do bigger water changes and gravel clean the substrate whenever you do a water change. A 50-75% water change each week will dilute nutrients and disease organisms better than a 20% water change, which leaves 80% of the bad stuff in the tank.

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There's nothing major to worry about when breeding these fish. The parents look after the eggs and fry (fry are baby fish) and take care of them for the first month of their life. The fry can be fed on newly hatched brineshrimp when they hatch.

The following link has information on culturing food for baby fish. It also has a section on hatching brineshrimp eggs.
 

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