What are the Easiest Fish to Breed?

[GuppyBreeder180604]

the male pleco will take care of the eggs and the babies are super resilient by the moment they are born, and, they become independent by the first or second week

 

[vanalisa]

Of course, using the word "easy" in this context is subjective and different people will have vastly different experiences in breeding fish. But, in general, is there one species of fish that is universally seen as being one of the "easiest" to breed? I'd really like to start breeding some species in my new tank, but I'm not sure what a good starting point would be.
Right now, I've got male guppies and will probably be getting females in the future, so I'm expecting those to be the first that I try to breed.
If you have any experience with breeding different fish, please let me know which species you had the easiest time with.

My White Cloud Moutain Minnows have produced fry without any special conditions or help from me.
I keep an eye on gravid females to see when it is obvious that she has scattered her eggs. I also look for the eggs. They hatch quickly and when I find fry I will put them in a grow out tank.
Much to my delight I have also discovered older fry that appear to have survived in the tank without removing from main tank.
In my experience and several others' , on the internet, they do not bother their fry or, obviously those eggs that survive. Maybe they do eat the eggs but I've never witnessed that.

WCMM fry look like neon tetras at first.

I love them. Very forgiving, can withstand temperatures as can be present in the White Clouds..., where I assume it is cold.
I don't remember ever putting a heater in a tank with them unless there were other fish that required warmer temperatures.
That being said, they much prefer cooler temperatures. They are peaceful fish and healthy ones are quite stunning ☆

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

Some pet shops sell live Daphnia or you can collect your own from ponds in spring. You can also buy dry daphnia eggs online and hatch them and grow them in green water.

The following link has information on culturing live food for baby fish.

Back to Basics when Breeding Fish

STARTING OUT Make sure you have a pair, (1 male + 1 female). There is nothing worse than spending your hard-earned dollars buying a couple of fish to try and breed and ending up with a pair of fish of the same sex. Let's face it, to reproduce fish you need a male and a female. Two males won't do...

www.fishforums.net

Thank you for the link!

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

well the tank size depends on your species but you basically have to provide a cave or a place for the pleco to dig a cave, then you add male and female and simulate a rain season with colder temperatures and bigger water changes with softer water, feed their preferred diet in larger quantity and in theory that is all, now everything else is luck (the female wanting to produce eggs and the male wanting to care for babies) this actually works with most catfish, not only loricariidae, channel catfish breed in the same way!

That's lovely!!

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

My White Cloud Moutain Minnows have produced fry without any special conditions or help from me.
I keep an eye on gravid females to see when it is obvious that she has scattered hee eggs. I also look for the eggs. They hatch quickly and then I will put them in a grow out tank.
Much to my delight I have also discovered older fry that appear to have survived in the tank without removing from main tank.
In my experience and others' they do not bother their fry or, obviously those eggs that survive. Maybe they do eat the eggs but I've never witnessed that.

WCMM fry look like neon tetras at first.

I love them. Very forgiving, can withstand temperatures as can be present in the White Clouds..., where I assume it is cold.
I don't remember ever putting a heater in a tank with them unless there were other fish that required warmer temperatures.
That being said, they much prefer cooler temperatures. They are peaceful fish and healthy ones are quite stunning ☆

They're gorgeous fish! I'd love to see the fry if you have any pictures!

 

[GuppyBreeder180604]

the shape of the cave will also change from pleco to pleco, for example, a bristlenose will turn almost anything it can get under in to a cave but rubber nose plecos prefer to cave under a flat stone

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

the shape of the cave will also change from pleco to pleco, for example, a bristlenose will turn almost anything it can get under in to a cave but rubber nose plecos prefer to cave under a flat stone

My sailfin has taken a great liking to a stack of slate around a rock with two holes! He's too big for it though, his tail hangs out whenever he's in there!

 

[GuppyBreeder180604]

I remember that some people were using old semi-truck mufflers as spawning caves for channel catfish

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

I remember that some people were using old semi-truck mufflers as spawning caves for channel catfish

I can definitely picture that!

 

[GuppyBreeder180604]

My sailfin has taken a great liking to a stack of slate around a rock with two holes! He's too big for it though, his tail hangs out whenever he's in there!

From what I know he is just trying to use it as a chilling spot since the only breed on high flow streams in nature so you would need something like a river manifold to provide the river bottom feeling that they like in your aquarium if you ever want to breed him you would need a cave where both him and the female fit at the same time and with their entire bodies inside and the caves opening should be facing the current so that the flow enters the cave and

 

[GuppyBreeder180604]

From what I know he is just trying to use it as a chilling spot since the only breed on high flow streams in nature so you would need something like a river manifold to provide the river bottom feeling that they like in your aquarium if you ever want to breed him you would need a cave where both him and the female fit at the same time and with their entire bodies inside and the caves opening should be facing the current so that the flow enters the cave and

sadly most of the babies will die for unknown reasons until they reach the 5cm mark, no one knows why and no matter how good you feed, clean, water change or even try to diagnose and medicate they will still die, for example from 200 babies 120 will die before reaching 5 cm after reaching 5cm the mortality almost completely vanishes

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

sadly most of the babies will die for unknown reasons until they reach the 5cm mark, no one knows why and no matter how good you feed, clean, water change or even try to diagnose and medicate they will still die, for example from 200 babies 120 will die before reaching 5 cm after reaching 5cm the mortality almost completely vanishes

Ah, that's very sad

 

[GuppyBreeder180604]

Ah, that's very sad

indeed it is :,(

 

[vanalisa]

They're gorgeous fish! I'd love to see the fry if you have any pictures!

Here you go!
A fry I found a few days ago. I like to give them a few minutes private meal in a cup before i add to grow out tank. Then I put fry and remainder into tank

Other picture is of two that grew up in the tank along with the parents and "extended family, " one of which, a male, partially appears in bottom left.
The granules in the cup are Hikari First Bites. Note, there is WAY too much food for this fry in the cup! I don't leave the fry in the cup like this for more than a few minutes, the rest is for everyone else in my grow out tank!☆

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

Here you go!
A fry I found a few days ago. I like to give them a few minutes private meal in a cup before i add to grow out tank. Then I put fry and remainder into tank

Other picture is of two that grew up in the tank along with the parents and "extended family, " one of which, a male, partially appears in bottom left.
The granules in the cup are Hikari First Bites. Note, there is WAY too much food for this fry in the cup! I don't leave the fry in the cup like this for more than a few minutes, the rest is for everyone else in my grow out tank!☆
View attachment 131105View attachment 131108

Adorable!!