Breeding My Kribensis... for the fish lovers.

7/3/08... Kribensis Video 2

2008-07-03T20:15:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately Mama ate the eggs but that is to be expected with a couple who are new at spawning.

In memory of her first batch here is a the video footage I shot of Mama and her eggs...

Hopefully she will try again in a few days. I did a 15% water change which I am told is very relaxing to the Kribensis because of where they come from. My fingers are crossed.

Until then... Just keep swimming!
Nessxxx

7/1/08...Eggs!!!

2008-07-01T12:49:00.000-07:00

I know its been a little over a week since I lost posted but I decided to give it some time and maybe if I wasn't watching her all the time the female would lay her eggs! I was right!!!

I was talking to Mark on the phone and I told him that she hasn't left the cave for a couple days. His reply was "She laid eggs". I looked deep under the cave and there they were! I turn my back and she lays them. WOW! So when I got off the phone with Mark I immediately took pictures.

Click pictures to see full view

Mama with her babies...

This is Mama protecting her eggs,it was actually hard at first to get a picture of the eggs because every time I would move in close she would jump in front of them... I felt like paparazzi...

A close up shot of the eggs...yes you can see the camera lens but its what I had to do to get this shot...

Ok, now I am off to do video.

Until then...Just keep swimming!
Nessxxx

6/22/2008- Kribensis Video 1

2008-06-22T14:18:00.000-07:00

I know it took me a while but here is a few minutes of video with the Kribensis.

For a bigger screen...Breeding My Kribensis- Video 1

You can most likely tell that I am new at the video making thing so bear with me and they should get better.

I hope you enjoyed what I have so far!

Until Tomorrow...Just Keep Swimming!
Nessxxx

6/21/08

2008-06-21T12:09:00.000-07:00

I am working on the video right now and should have it up soon. The female and male are back in their spawning routine and it should be any day now. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

I will be back shortly with an update and I should have the video up.

Until Then... Just keep swimming!
Nessxxx

6/18/08

2008-06-18T07:54:00.000-07:00

After the remodel it looks as if things have settled down and the Female Krib is staying in the cave area. She still comes out once in awhile to see what her male companion is up too. She flickers her tail in front of him and it seems her belly has gotten bigger. I read that the female extends her belly to appeal to the male because this is what he prefers.

He is responding to her and joins her in the cave once in awhile. Most of the time though he is outside the cave scaring away the other fish. That is a sign he is being protective while she is getting ready to lay eggs.

I have my fingers crossed.

I am going to work on the video today. This week has been very hectic.

More to come, until then... Just Keep Swimming!!!
Nessxxx

6/15/08

2008-06-14T22:06:00.000-07:00

Not really a lot went on today...

The female Krib hasn't come out from under the cave except when I throw some blood worms in her side of the tank. After that she goes back under the cave. I am taking video also and will put it up tomorrow.

The male is swims around the tank for a bit and then waits outside the cave. Lets hope he is waiting for her to lay eggs.

Crossing my finger's!

Until Tommorow... Just Keep Swimming!!!
Nessxxx

A darker picture of the moon glow lights,
the only fish you can see if the Neon Tetras...

6/12/2008

2008-06-12T18:47:00.000-07:00

Oh boy what a hectic day...

I got a gift certificate for my birthday to Petsmart because my mom got it mixed it with Petland, where I usually go. Its ok though... Petsmart has lots of freshwater fish items and amazingly they are low in prices. I went to Petsmart on a mission to find some decent plants to put in the 10 so the fry will have somewhere to swim about once they are born. The fish guy there was helpful(not as helpful as Mark) and I asked him about a few plants. I thought the Cobomba plant looked nice and it looked like the fry would enjoy them. I bought ten of them... OMG!!! I put one in... just one in the tank and it EXPLODED all over the place! My filter was covered in less than 2 minutes. These plants are defiantly not good for a 10 gallon tank. There was pieces of it everywhere and the only ones really enjoying it were the Kribs. My other fish were going nuts! I was almost in tears because the way the tank looked I was going to have to do another water change after I just did one a a few days ago. I personally don't mind doing water changes but I didn't want to stress the fish out, especially while they are spawning. So I pulled out the 1 Cobomba I had and then went back to Petsmart for a refund or exchange. After that incident I decided to go with fake plants. They are very beautiful and I do have some sprouting plant buds that are growing everyday. I also bought a 8 inch net to catch some of the Cobomba flying around the tank because my 2 inch wasn't cutting it.

When I got home I was pleasantly surprised... the filter had nearly sucked up most of the Cobomba. Of course I had to pull the filter out and remove all the plant that was stuck to it. Wow I didn't think that it did that good of a job. I was wrong.

I took the new plants and rinsed them off with warm water and then I placed them in the tank. I have to say they look fantastic! They look so real and i think the Kribs and the fry will be happy now.

I forgot to mention I bought a Moon light white and a Moon light link in blue. I read that the colors look so natural that they help in spawning. The lights look really pretty and it is very calming.

I hope that with everything going on in the tank today that I did startle the fish too much. After this I plan to do no more remodeling for awhile. The Kribs don't need any stress if they are going to breed.

After I put the plants in the female returned to the cave and hasn't left there. The male is moving around the plants checking things out. Hopefully now that things have settled the spawning should continue. It is now a watch and learn process from here on in but I will keep you posted.

Until Tomorrow... Just keep swimming!!!
Nessxxx

Tank with new plants...

Tank with moon lights and regular light on...

6/11/2008

2008-06-11T18:09:00.000-07:00

This will be a quick blog because today is my b-day and there is a lot going on.

I have noticed that the male and female have chosen the cave. I am hoping that the cave is where the female chooses to lay her eggs. Not only is it dark and secluded, it is also a good place for great camera shots.

The female has been settled there all day and the male sits outside the rock and whenever someone comes around he shoos them away.

Until Tommorow... Just Keep Swimming!!!
Nessxxx

Here is a couple of pics of them in and around the cave-

Female poking head out of cave...

Male standing guard...

Female in cave with male in background protecting his love nest...

6/10/2008

2008-06-11T13:28:00.000-07:00

Well day two and things seem to be good. As I said in my last post I was concerned about where the female was going to lay the eggs, the Egyptian vase I purchased was much too small for 50 to 100 eggs, so I decided to do some remodeling. I took out the flower deco that was in the right corner of the 10 and I replaced it with a shale rock that was originally in the 45 . It's now in the corner leaning up against the tank wall making a dark cave with a nice roof to lay eggs. No worries I wedged in it really well. The Kribensis took to it right away but they still swim back in forth between the Egyptian Vase and the cave. I am pretty sure in the end they will choose the cave. It is bigger and darker and the other fish seem to stay on the side of the tank with the Vase.

The female is doing well and her belly is now a VERY bright red. She is arching her body, curling her fins, and vibrating to entice the male.

The male is following her around back and forth wherever she goes. Once in awhile he will move away from her but it isn't very often. They are connected.

More to come soon, until then... just keep swimming!!!
Nessxxx

Day 2 after the remodel...

Day One...6/9/2008

2008-06-10T22:51:00.000-07:00

Well lets start from the beggining...

I went to Petland just to check to see if my Blue Moorii had come in yet. My fish-guy Mark let me know they had come in about a week ago but they were too small to put in my 45 Gallon so it will be about three weeks for them. I am really looking forward to getting them.

Ok back to the Kribensis... I walked around the store looking for a new fish to add to my 45. Right now I have a Fantail, a Red Blood Parrot, a White Skirt Tetra, a Loach and a Pictus Catfish. Mark showed me around, speaking of Mark he is a terrific fish guy and should be owning his own place rather than work for Petland. I really wouldn't go in there if it wasn't for his amazing knowledge of fish. He knows everything and he doesn't try to sell you anything you are not capable of handling. He is from Africa but he has been all over! He knows his fish. When I show him a picture of a fish I want I don't even have to label it, he automatically knows. I consider myself very luck to have a fish-guy like him. They are hard to find.

Ok now really, back to the Kribensis... I like colorful fish and I think that is what caught my attention at first. The colors on the Kribs are beautiful! They are called diffrent names like Purple Cichlid, Rainbow Krib and Pink Kribensis Cichlid but I think its scientific name says it all...
Pelvicachromis Pulcher, Pelva meaning belly, cromis meaning color and Pulcher meaning beautiful and when I first saw them swimming around that is the first word that come out of my mouth... beautiful.

When I asked Mark about them he pointed out to me that they were paired breeders ready to start spawning. I kinda jumped back a little bit because I had never bred fish before and I told him that I don't think they would be safe in my 45 Gal Tank. He knew I had a 10 gallon tank and he suggested, if I really wanted to, I could add them to that tank. I have three Neon Tetras and 3 Serpe Tetras and they are all community fish so I wasn't worried. The two Kribs are bigger of all the fish I have in the 10 Gal. I decided that I would go for it. I was really excited and I still am as you can see, I wouldn't start a blog about just anything. Mark scooped a pair up that were already spawning and ready and he gave me a few tips on breeding. I bought a small(very small in fact) Eygyptian type vase for your fish tank. I wanted to get a bigger one but even though Mark gives me good deals on fish, Petland itself does not lower prices on their merchandise.

When I got home I acclimated the Kribs with my usual technique, 20 minutes in plastic bag floating in tank water while adding tank water to the bag. It went fine as usual.

I am going to do some research on the Kribs like Mark suggested. There is plenty room in the tank and I am trying to think of better ways to create a home for the female to lay her eggs. I am worried that the silly little Egyptian Vase isn't big enough for 50 to 100 eggs.

Until tommorow... Just keep Swimming!!!
Nessxxx

Picture of 10 Gallon Tank before the Kribs...