I might have accidentally bred my otos?

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I can't be sure... but I keep seeing an oto on the glass that appears much smaller than any of the ones I've added to that tank! I've added eight adults of varying subspecies, but I can't get a headcount without tearing the tank down, since it's heavily planted. It is my "magical" tank (that's how I think of it!) where my pygmy cories colony breed and produce dozens of babies so prolifically that I need to sell off some youngsters, and the fry raise themselves in the tank.

It's softer water; around 125 GH since I'm in a hardwater area, and I use half tapwater and half rainwater for that tank. I also let algae grow everywhere but the front pane, add almond and oak leaves, and find a lot of microcritters in there like seed shrimp. So it's pretty suitable for otos, which seem to get on well with pygmy cories.

This is an old photo of the tank itself, doesn't look quite like that now, but it's mostly the same, I don't change the substrate or remove plants, just tidy it up now and then during water changes:

I can't be 100% sure. I do have a rescue oto that's larger than any I've had before, so maybe he's thrown my perspective off, and the small one I'm seeing is just one of the others I got in a different batch. But I really don't think it is, I think it's a juvenile! Haven't added any other otos for a long time except that really big rescue one which was months ago and is easily four times the size of this baby.

Will try to get some pics next time it's on the glass (he dashed away when I just tried, so I only have a blur) and perhaps I'm wrong, but I'm excited by the possibility! And wanted to make a record of this here in case it turns out I'm right! My fishkeeping dream is to breed otos, since I hate how much wild-caught ones go through, how hard shipping is on them. I haven't been trying to breed them, so if it is, it's a lucky spawning!

 

[Byron]

There are some species that have proven difficult formost of us to spawn, but for the majority if you provide them with what they need/expect, they will often spawn and may be unobserved by us. I had three otos in a 90g several years ago, I know there were three because I bought them and added them after I moved to the house. The tank ran for just over a year when I tore it down to move it. There were five otos, three just slightly larger. Obviously two of the three had spawned and two of the eggs survived predation and hatched. In the thick plant growth it was difficult to ever see one oto, let alone three or five. You probably had a similar occurrence. Happy days.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

There are some species that have proven difficult formost of us to spawn, but for the majority if you provide them with what they need/expect, they will often spawn and may be unobserved by us. I had three otos in a 90g several years ago, I know there were three because I bought them and added them after I moved to the house. The tank ran for just over a year when I tore it down to move it. There were five otos, three just slightly larger. Obviously two of the three had spawned and two of the eggs survived predation and hatched. In the thick plant growth it was difficult to ever see one oto, let alone three or five. You probably had a similar occurrence. Happy days.

Yay! It's a really great feeling, isn't it? I know that @seangee has had it happen as well, also without deliberately attempting to breed them, just finding youngsters appearing in his tanks!

 

[Rocky998]

Idk why, but your title reminded me of those "help I've accidentally..." memes

No but seriously that's really cool!! Congrats on your little baby oto!

 

[Back in the fold]

Very cool !