This weekend I put together my one male and two female ABN in their own tank, a 10 gal outfitted with a fine gravel bed, driftwood, java ferns and java moss, and one 5" long, 1" diameter bamboo pipe for a cave. The tank is heated to 78*F (pH 6.6, ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 20) and is supplied with a glass-mounted sponge filter and a 4" air stone.
First of all, within hours they (the male I presume, but I'm not sure; I never saw it happen) started excavating the gravel under the bamboo cave, creating a large pit under the opening of the cave (I didn't know BNs were excavators). Not thinking anything of it, I leveled out the gravel, and an hour later they had moved it again, so I left it alone.
Anyway, one day later, I awoke to find a pile of about 30-40 fresh eggs (mostly in one mass, and about 5-8 loose) in the gravel pit under the mouth of the cave. Woohoo! My first pleco spawn ever. Yes, I know that when it comes to spawning common BNs, they have been described as "roaches" because it's so easy, and one BLOG states, "Just add water" to get them to spawn. So I realize that this isn't a great feat, but I'm still very excited.
I used a turkey baster to inject some loose eggs back into the cave, and the male inside quickly threw the eggs back out... three times I tried, and three times he kicked them out again! I searched the forums for solutions to save the eggs and I read about egg tumblers and how to make them. I didn't have the right parts at home to do this, so I jury-rigged my own solution: I placed a hanging net-style fry basket into the tank and I placed a small stone to the basket in order to pull the netting taught and to make the netting sag downward towards the center of the basket. Then I placed the long air stone directly under the basket and added the eggs. The bubbles hit the netting under the stone, then roll around the sides of the basket as they float to the surface. I can see some (miniscule) agitation of the main egg mass inside the net; I just don't know if that is sufficient to keep the eggs alive. In the forums, I didn't find anyone else using this specific arrangement as an egg tumbler, but this has some superficial similarities (very superficial) to a contraption described in an old thread and in the S. lucipinnis COTM (except that setup dumps the water into the basket from above, rather than pushing water up from underneath).
In your opinion, can I expect that this arrangement will be sufficient to keep the eggs viable until they hatch? Or do I need to buy parts and make a real egg tumbler as fast as I can?
Thanks! Cheers, Eric
Of course, I did put them together on Valentine's Day - it could have been the candle-lit algae wafers and the mood music (airstone) that set this in motion.
), as you say I may reach a point that I can't get rid of them fast enough. In which case, I'll either separate the sexes again, or start feeding my other fish caviar! 
Some look like they've fungused (arrow in photo) and I don't know how to get those out, or even that I can or should, since I don't want to disturb dad too much. The eggs in the fry net are still developing too; of these, so far I've lost only 4 to fungus. Lookin' good! 
Oh well, out comes the fry net and airstone again. 
I've already have a trio of Spiketail Paradise fish laying eggs every fortnight (tho fortunately few fry survive the females hunting once the male kicks the fry out)*
; 400 or so babies is enough right now!
)
). Do you think he'd appreciate that, or would it drive him crazy? LOL
)
