Which Is Easier To Breed?

[Thomas 2507]

So, I'm a little undecided on which fish to buy as a breeding pair. Hail the shortlist!

- Angels
- Rams
- Cockatoos
- Kribs

It will be my first time breeding these fish, so I would just like advice on which species is easier to breed. I'm going to leave the young in the tank so do all of these fish care for their young by themselves?

I have a heavily planted 140l tank.

 

[Nim]

In my experience it goes in the order below (top as the easiest)

Kribs
Angels
Rams
Apistogramma

Nim

 

[stang1]

Kribs and Angels are pretty easy to breed as long as they have plenty of space.
Rams are quite sensitive and a PH of about 6-6.5 is better for breeding. The female will lay her eggs on a flat surface and will become quite territorial.
Cockatoos will lay eggs inside a cave and again will become very territorial, especially towards the male. The male generally has to be removed once the fry are hatched. When the fry become a little bigger, the female may also need removing to prevent her from attacking the fry. She will start to see them as competition and becomes quite aggressive.

 

[Thomas 2507]

Thanks for the advice. I thought Kribs were the easiest although I prefer Angels. How can I sex Angels?

 

[stang1]

Almost impossible until they start to mature and pair off, I'm afraid.

 

[Nim]

I think it is fairly impossible to sex Angels unless a pair is formed and you can see them spawning. Though some males tend to have a lunp on their head by my female Angel has that too

Nim

 

[Thomas 2507]

Hmm.. so my best bet is to buy about four from my LFS and wait until they pair off? How will i know when they pair off?

 

[stang1]

They'll just hang around the tank together and might become a little territorial. You may end up having to rehome the other two as Angels that have paired off can sometimes bully others.

 

[Nim]

Dont think that you MAY have to end up with rehoming the other 2 but you WILL have to do that I had to do it in my 5 footer which was planted like a jungle.

Alternatively, you can look on classifieds etc. for a already formed pair.

Nim

 

[Thomas 2507]

Cool, thanks for that. As much as I love Angels, I will probably end up getting a pair of Kribs. Much easier all round.