sevs breeding

[sevs]

Earlier this week my gold severums spawned (in a slightly overcrowded tank too). I was ecstatic because this was my first fish to ever spawn (hell when I had guppys they wouldn't even give birth). I called my lfs immediately and the guy told me to move the ornament that they had laid the eggs on away from the filter because they were dangerously close, any fry that would have hatched would be instantly sucked up, and he advised me to buy a tank divider so the parents wouldn't be overstressed with all the commotion of the busy firemouths and pleco tearing up the water. I moved the ornament away from the filter and the sevs began eating the eggs as soon as they reached their new location. I later went to get the divider and told the guy what happened and he said that he had never heard of sevs eating their own eggs but as I discribed it further he exclaimed "Oh yeah our sevs at the store eat their eggs all the time! We've never had a successful spawn!" I was ticked off, first the guy lied and told me he never heard of them eating eggs, and also advised me to mess around with the eggs but said he's never heard of sevs spawning successfully in a community tank, gee that's real reasuring I mean obviously this guy knows what he's talking about. I need RELIABLE advice from someone who has bred these fish. I have a ten gallon aquarium that I can place fry in just in case their next spawn is successful if that means anythingl. For the short period that the eggs were healthy I noticed two different colors of eggs, white and yellow, which are fertile?

 

[snowyangel]

White usually means fungus, so the yellow are the fertile. My keyholes cichlids i always see eating the eggs that turn white with fungas..... then they go ahead and be brats and eat the fetrlized ones too.

 

[sevs]

Well the sevs were at it again last night but this time they laid about 50 eggs on the side of the aquarium! I immediately set low stantards for the eggs for the following reasons: 1. My tank is overcrowded 2. The parents are still really young 3. I've read that eggs laid on the side of the aquarium usually don't survive. I was right to suspect the eggs wouldn't survive because less than half an hour later, when I fed the fish the firemouths and uaru had a great big severums omelete. I now wonder how many times we will have to go through through this process of me getting extremely excided then disappointed. Any advice on what to do, other than moving fish because it really isn't a current option until I get a new tank, because I would like to eventually have one successful fry, just once even if only one survives?

 

[CFC]

In the confines of a average sized community tank it is highly doubtful that your severums will have a successful spawn. Eating their own eggs is a natural response that the fish have when their instincts tell them that there is no chance they will be able to raise any fry at that particular time, spawning takes a lot of nutrients out of the fish (especially the female) so if they are not going to raise any fry the fish eat their own eggs to claim these nutrients back.
I have a pair of severums in my 200g community of large fish which have spawned every 3 to 4 weeks for the last 6 months but have so far never got past the "wrigglers" stage before the female panics and eats all the eggs.
To have a successful spawn you will either have to move the fish or divide the tank so that the severums have an area to themselves and even then it will probably take them a few attempts before they get it right.