I'm about to have black swordtail babies!

[Polardbear]

It's only taken me 7 months but I finally have a black swordtail that's about to have babies! Yeah!!!

Nicky (my regular fin black female swordtail) is about to have her first batch of babies. I'm wishfull thinking/hoping that Terrel (my black swordie boy) is the father but I've only had the two of them since Jan 13th so it could be someone she had a fling with prior to coming home. I moved her to the maternity ward tonight when I noticed that she was looking more square than round.

Over 30 years ago I bought my first aquarium and my first pair of fish were a wonderful pair of black swordtails who gave me lots of little black babies. They were and always have been my favorite fish. I got back into fish keeping 7 months ago and have been trying to get black swordtails without a lot of success. The only ones I've been able to find were not healthy and all died within 2 or 3 weeks of getting them, never with any visible signs off illness. I had just about given up on them when I found Nicky and Terrel a month ago. I was overjoyed that they've actually passed the one month mark and you can't imagine my elation that Nicky is actually pregnant. Cross my fingers and knock on wood that she successfully delivers! I'm hoping that she'll drop in the next couple of days. She looks like a little barge so I'm hoping for a bunch!

Here she is tonight after moving to the maternity ward -

 

[Ben]

wow!congrats

post pics when the fry are born

DD

 

[Elisabeth83]

Oh my gosh..guess what? My black female is giving birth as I write this!! How funny is that?

I wonder if I stressed her too much catching her though and putting her in the breeding net

I feel so horrible though...I accidently killed the first born fry He was born before I got her in the net and I was catching him with the net and I smushed him..it was so gentle but it was too much for him. Ugh my heart sank..I feel terrible

Shes only have 2 so far ...I hope she doesnt abort or something. I put lots of plants in the breeding net and turned the lights off.

edit: I took her out of the breeding net...too stressful I think.

 

[Polardbear]

Elisabeth83 - That's cool your girl is having babies too! We'll have to swap pictures! I'm glad your girl at least has some experience, I worry so much about first timers!

I know the feeling I smushed one of Spotty's babies the first time she had them. I felt horrible. But, hopefully she'll have lots more.

Nicky didn't eat dinner last night and normally she's a little piglet, I was hoping to find babies in her tank this morning but not yet. She's picking at her breakfast flakes now but not eating with her normal appetite.

Keep me updated on your girl! Will let you know when Nicky drops! :

 

[Elisabeth83]

I think I might of stressed my girl I only had her in the net for about 10 mins before I let her back out. She only had 5 2 black, 3 orange the one I accidently smushed was one of the black ones. Well I still have my bigger black one which is looking like a real fish now and a smaller black fry who is about 3 months old. The biggest black one is the only surviving black fry out of 13. 12 of his/her siblings died

My boyfriend and I just got home from the movies and I was hoping to come home to see more little fry but nope none to be seen. Do you think she'll have more or do you think she aborted the rest? Even though she usually has small batches 5 is just too small.

I hope your girl gives birth to many fry!! I will try and get a pic of the only little black fry tomorrow. Gosh to me the black ones look like little submaries. Funny shaped I think

I know what you mean about first timers...I am not sure if you were a member here yet but a couple months back my black girl was giving birth and one or two got stuck for hours and I was so worried. It wasn't her first birth but only her 3rd or so. I woke up to find about 10 fry and out of the bunch 2 survived. Sadly though one died so now I only have the one 3 months old.

 

[Polardbear]

5 seems like an awful small batch. She might be taking a break and going to have the rest later. I know when Lupe had babies last month she had 36 and then stopped for about 12 hours and I moved her to the recovery tank. The next morning I found 5 more in the recovery tank that thankfully she didn't eat.

I was going to ask you if you could tell if they were black right away or if it took a couple of days before they colored up but it seems you answered that for me already!

I was so excited about Nicky I forgot that Lupe was due as well, looks like she had them in the 55 gallon though as she suddenly has her girlish figure back! That and the other swordies are suddenly real interested in the plants. I grabbed some of the plants out of the 75 gallon and stuffed them back into the 55 gallon so that some of Lupe's babies will have a chance. My 10 gallon tank is already full of Lupe and Lucy's babies from last month and my spare filter died on me so I can't set up another tank. That reminds me, Lucy should be ready to drop any time now too! Those two are usually 3-4 days apart. (Lupe and Lucy are the red/orange lyretails). Hmmm, I've got a sponge filter hiding somewhere...I'll have to see if I can dig it up and set up a ward for Lucy.

Can't wait to see pictures of your little submarines!

 

[Elisabeth83]

I just snapped a couple pics...although they arn't the best. I couldn't get a clear shot of the new black swordie but I did get a couple of my balloon mollies and one of the unknown fry. You can see in the pic of the balloon mollies and the unknown fry how much smaller the unknown fry is compared to the balloon mollies and they are only a day apart. Balloon mollies are born like 3 times bigger than swordtail/platy fry which is a good thing as the parents cant fit them in their mouths

I don't have a fry tank set up at the moment though so I just hope the little black swordie will make it. My tank is HEAVILY planted though and those fry ping away so fast from the bigger fish that I think theres a good chance it will.

Yeah 5 is a small batch so I hope your right that shes taking a break...I hope I wake up tomorrow to find a bunch more

Do you keep your fry in your main tank or always move them to a fry tank?? I had a fry tank set up but I turned it into a female betta tank because I got rid of my guppies and my swordies dont give birth as often as them so I didnt think I'd be needing it. Well then I went out and got balloon mollies and another male swordie and platies I couldn't help myself!!!

I just have to upload the pics....

 

[Elisabeth83]

 

[Elisabeth83]

It's so hard to get clear pics of fry this small The camera just wants to focus on everything else Anyways you get an idea of what he/she looks like

 

[Elisabeth83]

 

[Elisabeth83]

You can see the little unknown fry to the right. Maybe the 5 I found 2 days ago are from my black mamma. Though they were all orange...although she did give birth to 3 oranges tonight.

 

[Polardbear]

Ohhh...they look like little torpedos! How adorable. Your little mystery fry does look like swordies, but it's hard to say since you have Platys as well. Time will tell.

With my fry it depends on who the mother is. With Spotty (red painted sword) I let her have them in the main tank or I'd be overrun with Spotty kids. I kept 6 from her first batch that are now 4 months old and currently have 2 more that are a couple of weeks old that were born in the main tank and are big enough now to not get eaten. Meri the marigold wag usually has her in the main tank because I can never catch her in time. She has small batches and doesn't show very much when she's pregnant. I've got 3 of her kids growing up in the main tank that are about 3 months old. I'm hoping now that she'll breed with Donovan the hi fin marigold wag male and give me more hi fins. She seems to prefer his company over Terrels (black male) so maybe I'll get lucky. I wish I could set up another large tank for the wags exclusively but I put all the lyretail males in my 75 gallon since they were intimidating Donovan and Terrel. I do keep Lucy's and Lupe's babies in a seperate fry tank since they are the only lyretail girls that have had babies so far. Once I feel I've got enough lyretails to sustain the lyretail population I'll relax and let them have them in the main tank. I'm hoping Nicky will hurry up and have hers before Lucy does so that I can move Lucy to the maternity ward and save her babies.

I was just doing a water change on the fry tank and looking over last months crop. It's kind of strange, all of Lucy's babies are the same color as her (orange/red) while Lupe's are like 80% creamy white (which I hope will turn out to be pineapples) and about 20% orange/red. I'm guessing that Lupe had a pineapple parent and petty certain that she was bred by a pineapple hi fin.

I can't wait to see what Nicky throws. Since I don't know her background I don't know what color I'll get besides black.

Thanks for the pictures of your new babies and I'll keep my fingers crossed that you have more in the morning.

 

[WILDER]

There cute little fry, getting me broody thinking of letting one of my female wagtail platys have some fry with a black mickey mouse platy.

 

[Polardbear]

Go for it Wilder!

 

[WILDER]

Will do, thanks, haven't had fry in a while you lot make me broody with your little fry.