Among the most popular inhabitants of aquariums, the interest in which has not faded for centuries, goldfish occupy a special place. Breeding and growing the representatives of this group in captivity is a very entertaining and interesting process. Goldfish feel good in a spacious and wide aquarium with good aeration and a layer of soil at the bottom. Water temperature should be from 15 to 24 degrees, hardness from 8 to 200, pH - 5.0-8.0. These are peace-loving creatures, which should be kept separate from representatives of aggressive species. The most suitable option for breeding goldfish is a species aquarium.
If the fish grow in favorable conditions, their maturity occurs after a year. In order to control the spawning process, you need to know how to distinguish the gender of goldfish. It can be difficult to do this without any experience. But if you look closely, you can see that the male has notches on the front rays of the pectoral fins. Females are more complete. During the spawning period, which usually occurs at the beginning of spring, gender differences increase. The male has small warts on the gill covers, and the females are noticeably rounded due to the presence of caviar. At this time, the behavior of the fish also changes: the males begin to chase the females, driving them into the thickets of plants and shallows.
From this moment, goldfish, the reproduction of which is taken under control, are deposited in a separate (spawning) aquarium. You can use another container with a volume of 20 liters or more - a basin, a bowl, etc. Soil is laid on the bottom of the spawning ground and small-leaved plants like an elodea or a cinnamon leaf are planted. The water level in such a container should not exceed 20 cm, while it is important to ensure normal aeration and good lighting.
The most beautiful, large and healthy goldfish should be selected, the reproduction of which will give a guaranteed good result. To obtain more fertilized eggs, it is recommended to use group spawning, choosing 2-3 large males for one female. At a height of 1-2 cm from the bottom, you can stretch the net, which will protect the eggs from eating. After the female lays the last portion of eggs, the producers are removed, and methylene blue or tripaflavin is added to the spawning aquarium to prevent the development of fungi. After a few hours, a whitish, unfertilized caviar appears, which must be removed. Now the main thing is to maintain a stable temperature of the water, and after 3-4 days the first larvae will appear, which after a couple of days will gradually turn into fry and begin to swim.
At this stage, consideration should be given to how to feed the goldfish. The fry are very voracious and require a good food base. At first, they can be given ciliates, rotifers and microalgae. Serving fry food every three hours, you need to ensure that it is constantly in the water. As the fish grow older, small daphnia and cyclops, artemia nauplii are added to their diet, and after the first month, a tubule and small bloodworm. At the same time, defective young growth is discarded and sorted by size. Upon reaching 4-5 months, the fish grow to 4-6 cm, already having all the species characteristics by this time.
To obtain a successful result, it should be remembered that the optimal environment for the development of goldfish is clean water, well filtered and saturated with oxygen. An additional incentive for their spawning will be an increase in water temperature to 25 C. If the early spawning should be delayed, it is enough to cool the water in the aquarium by a couple of degrees. Under favorable conditions, healthy goldfish will grow in the reservoir, the reproduction of which will bring good results.