# breeding



## Aquariuman (Nov 28, 2011)

what species of aquatic organisms are easy to breed? this includes anything tht can breed in an aquarium whether it be fish crustacean or clam. How do u breed them? i would prefer egg layers. suggested tank setups, etc apreciated! *c/p* THX!


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

In a nutshell, hundreds of things!
So approach it this way - what do you like/ Name a group or two of fishes, and then someone can help you by saying which ones are easy.
Look at your local water. Soft, hard, in between? These are key questions for fish breeding, as different creatures have evolved to reproduce under different conditions, and they often can't adjust (especially eggs) to different conditions.


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## Summer (Oct 3, 2011)

I agree, you have to look at what is available to you with water or are you goin to use an RO/DI system? What size tanks you have, what other fish will be in those tanks or will they be species only tanks. Once you decide on the fish, you need to figure out if the fry can be in w/ the parents or need to be removed, and then make sure you are set up for a fry tank.


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## Aquariuman (Nov 28, 2011)

Ok, I like practically any fish, so thts not gonna help. I have 2x75gal, 1x125gal, probably like 3x20gal, a couple small ones (5-10gal), and one tht might be a 30-55gal. I dont kno if i mentioned it b4, but i would like to start out w/ some tht are easy to breed. I'll try and see exactly what i got at home, but im at school right now. I kinda want barbs/tetras/loaches/cichlids/crayfish/shrimp/crabs/.......lol just use those listed. Remember, i want only those tht r easy to breed. I'll also have to check what my water perameters are when i get home too. I'll update this ASAP. *c/p* Thanks!


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## scooterlady (May 10, 2011)

For egg layers, a fun fish that's easy to get to breed is the Bolivian Ram Cichlid. They're one of the few fish out there that care for their eggs and young. I currently have a pair with babies, and it's been fascinating to watch. My Lemon Tetras a always spawning and I have lots of fry from them. I have a 20g long that's heavily planted...


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

Let's try another angle - why do you want to breed fish? If it sounds like a dumb question, it could be:
a) to make money
b) to study different breeding behavior
c) to maintain endangered fish
d) to impress attractive people.

Narrow it down, and maybe people can suggest species. I've bred 200 species, and there are three times that many that aren't super difficult.


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## Aquariuman (Nov 28, 2011)

navigator black said:


> Let's try another angle - why do you want to breed fish? If it sounds like a dumb question, it could be:
> a) to make money
> b) to study different breeding behavior
> c) to maintain endangered fish
> ...


LOL! I'd have to say all of those, but if I could only pick 2 I'd have to say B and C. But that's in the long run, at least C is, but right now it's mainly to get more experience while I do B and to lead me up to C when I have enough experience. You see, i want to be an Aquatic Biologist when i grow up, and im about to graduate high school and i have no experience with breeding egg laying species. i would like to save all the Aquatic Organisms from extinction, but I need more experience in breeding egg laying fish and other Aquatic Organisms. Remember, I not only want to breed fish, I also want to breed inverts. My ultimate goal is to be the first non-commercial person/company to breed the Bala/Silver Shark, Roseline Shark, and Reedfish. These are my favorite fish and they've never been bred in the aquaria. But, again, I need more experience. So, plz tell me easy fish and then give me harder fish as i progress in exp. BTW, the 3 fish listed above are either endangered, or going to be because of overfishing. One last thing, I forgot to check on the things i said i would, but I'll be sure to do tht by the weekend. the last day you can expect me to do it is this saturday. *c/p* THX!


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## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

If you want easy, Red Cherry Shrimp are fun. A 10 gallon planted tank with a sponge filter is perfect. A fairly large colony can be kept in a 10 gallon but when you have too many they should be easy to sell, or some people use them as live food for other fish.


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

If your goal is, for example, the bala shark, I would start by exploring _Puntius[species - the barbs. Rosy barbs, cherry barbs, tiger barbs, etc all are good starters, and will put you into the same broad family.

If you are interested in broodcare, cichlids are easy - pelvicachromis pulcher, the kribensis, is a fine choice. When they breed, it's a beautiful spectacle.

There are billions of cherry barbs in the hobby, but in nature, they were fished almost extinction at one point. I haven't read any recent reports to see if they've bounced back, but that might be fun to start with - easy to keep and breed._


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## Aquariuman (Nov 28, 2011)

Ok, then let's start on the fish side of things. I think, if my water is the correct peremeters, tht I'll start w/ Cherry Barbs. Besides, the roseline shark is actually Puntius denisonii. So, then I also want a cichlid to breed, but we can wait on tht until I get my water peremeters figured out, as tht should help us decide. Meanwhile, Snail, what water perems do the Cherry Shrimp need (to live/breed)? Of course, based on wat mine is, I may or may not be able to breed them. I want to start out on the easy and inexpensive side of crayfish too. So, I was thinking the all too common Red "Lobster": Tropical Inverts for Freshwater Aquariums: Red Lobster Anyway, thx for the replies thus far! Keep 'em comin' Plz. *c/p* THX!


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## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

Aquariuman said:


> what water perems do the Cherry Shrimp need (to live/breed)? Of course, based on wat mine is, I may or may not be able to breed them.


I have a high PH which they like but they are really not that fussy about PH etc as long as your water is in normal range you should have no problems breeding them. As with most inverts they are sensitive to poor water quality and copper is poisonous to them so be careful of meds. They will do best with plants in the tank, moss like java or Christmas moss is good. Babies are miniature replicas of the adults. Parents don't eat the young but most fish will so if you want to breed they are best in their own tank. Really they need no special care at all to breed just a stable tank.


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## Aquariuman (Nov 28, 2011)

snail said:


> I have a high PH which they like but they are really not that fussy about PH etc as long as your water is in normal range you should have no problems breeding them.


Normal range as in neutral (7.0-ish)?


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## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

Aquariuman said:


> Normal range as in neutral (7.0-ish)?


I mean they should do fine with any normal tap water. I have heard of people keeping them anywhere from 6.0 to 8.0.


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## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

Here is a linnk about RCS:
Red Cherry Shrimp .:. Neocaridina heteropoda sp. "Red Cherry" .:. Freshwater Aquarium Shrimp Species Information Page
I like Red cherry shrimp as a starter because they are so easy but you still get to learn some of the basics of water quality etc. You can keep 100+ in a 10 gallon tank and if you do have too many usually a store will buy them or trade them for credit. 

Don't forget with breeding you can quickly become overrun with offspring. Fry tend to be very sensitive to water quality and usually require special food so can be a lot of work. Some don't mind to simply cull unwanted offspring or use or give them away as feeder fish. If you don't want to do this make sure you can either sell or house the babies when they grow. Crayfish or bettas for example usually can only be kept one per tank as adults so housing can quickly become a problem if you have hundreds of babies. Some fish are easier to sell than others. Fish that are too easy to breed like guppies are hard to sell because everyone has them. To get round that find something that people want, for example show quality guppies will sell better, even if they are more expensive to begin with. Wild strains of some fish are often in demand. Or simply your perfect community fish like corries that are fairly easy to breed, but not as easy as guppies, and are always popular.


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## Aquariuman (Nov 28, 2011)

Snail, do u kno anything about crayfish/crabs? If so, can u tell me if Tropical Inverts for Freshwater Aquariums: Red Lobster would be a good choice? Also, if crabs would be a good choice for a beginner. And if so, what species of crabs?


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## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

I've never had crabs or lobsters so cant give you personal advice.


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