C. Pygmaeus: Sometimes it's easier than we expect.

[Aquafinatic]

Hello everyone,

About one month ago, I made my first post on this forum. In that post, I asked for information to help me determine if my (24) C. Pygmaeus were sexually mature. (At that time, and still today -- I believed that they were not full grown, but thought that they might be "mature".) I learned a few things from some of you, and that was great.

Here's a quick update, that I hope someone will find to be informative, and perhaps a bit entertaining.

They are in a 10-gallon/37.9 liter tank, with a bare bottom.

This is a list of the decor and equipment in that tank:
--one airstone, running on "low",
--one 4" x 4" sponge filter,
--one small Stealth Pro heater,
--one small piece of driftwood/bogwood,
--two Marinbo Moss balls,
--one Java Fern plant (free-floating or hung up on something else),
--one 4" mat of floating Java Moss,
--two coconut shells, with Java Moss attached.

Needless to say, this is one CROWDED tank. There is only one small open space on the bottom of the tank, and that is right in the front. I try to drop the food in that spot.

Here are some parameters:
--Ph = 7.2
--Temp = 75 degrees F.
--Water is "very soft". I don't have a measured value.

I had planned to give these fish at least a few more months before attempting to trigger a spawn. So my husbandry amounted to doing water changes, and feeding.

I've been using RO water, with Kent Marine "RO Right" added. With regard to how MUCH of this product I use, I follow the chart on the back of the container, and use the amount that is labelled "discus/very soft".

With regard to feeding, I have used some live foods and frozen/meaty foods, but not very often. I simply rotated through every food that I have in my house, except for those that are too big for the Pygmaeus' tiny mouths. That included several types of crushed flakes, New Life Spectrum .5mm pellets, brine shrimp nauplii (in a jar), and frozen blood worms. I had intended to switch to a steady diet of live and meaty foods, as a spawning trigger, when the "proper time" came.

Most of you can probably see this coming... Last night I approached that tank, to give their last meal of the day. That's when I spotted some "little invader" in their tank. "What's that invader doing in that tank?", I said aloud. "Hmmm... that's no invader, that's a Pygmaeus fry!" Boy was I SURPRISED. From what I could tell, (having never seen one previously), it appeared as though the little guy was just about to run out of yolk sac.

So there you have it. I didn't witness any spawning activity. I saw no eggs. I saw nothing. But we all know what happened inside that tank.

I wasn't able to find any siblings. I don't know if he is an "only child", or if it's just too easy for them to hide, due to the large amount of vegetation that I have in that tank.

I hope someone can get a helpful idea from this. Cheers!

[corycrazy]

Congrats on your new wee pygmy

I'm still a learner on pygmy spawning,i put 10 pygmys into a 30l tank,week later i had eggs now i have 17 fry in a separate net,i have seen several fry wiggling around with the adults in the 30l,i think they hide very well and may find more

Have a read up on my topic http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/view ... =6&t=29511 -theres a good write up on pygmys breeding by apistomaster

[Aquafinatic]

Have a read up on my topic http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/view ... =6&t=29511 -theres a good write up on pygmys breeding by apistomaster

Hey there, corycrazy! Great job on the spawning.

Thank you for the pointer. I'll go read it straight away!
With regard to any "straggler fry" that are hiding in your tank... if it helps to know this, mine doesn't seem to have any problem finding something nutritious to eat. I NEVER see him eat, and yet, every time I see him, he is NOTICEABLY bigger. Real cool! Cheers!

[corycrazy]

Thanks

Hows your wee babe coming on?

I have more eggs,so hopefully more fry to come

I have a fry thats invading capture to the fry tank,so i've left him in with the adults and it seems to be doing fine


One of the fry in fry tank

Pygmy fry in adult tank- this wee one keeps avoiding capture

[Aquafinatic]

Thanks

Hows your wee babe coming on?

I have more eggs,so hopefully more fry to come......

Hey! Thanks for the great photos, and for the encouraging news about the new spawn. It sounds as though you have a good thing going there.

My lone fry looks similar to yours, except a bit bigger. But he never goes near the bottom of the tank -- at least not when I'm looking. Whenever I see him, he's checking out the java moss, sponge filter, or java fern, and occasionally "picking" at something - seemingly swallowing a tidbit of food. When he is out at feeding time, he eagerly eats the microworms, daphnia, or flake food. But I think he's 'lonely', because he has no siblings. Hmmm.... or maybe I'M the one who wants him to have siblings...