Barbuses, their reproduction at home - this is what will be discussed in this article, which can be useful for all lovers of the beautiful.
Great choice for beginner aquarium lovers - barbs. Reproduction in captivity of most of their species will not be difficult, because they are unpretentious and quite peaceful. Their moving and nimble flocks perfectly complement any aquarium. Fish can be both small (from 4 to 6 cm), and grow to large sizes. How many barbs live? The answer to this question depends on the specific type of this restless aquarium fish, but in general its life span is from three to five years. The most common type is Sumatran barbus. It is distinguished by a magnificent yellowish-golden tiger color with a greenish tint.
To reproduce the Sumatran barbus, you will need a spacious aquarium of at least 20 liters in volume. Fish do not like bright light, so the aquarium needs to be planted with dense thickets of plants with small leaves, moss and a pair of spawning panicles. Since the parents themselves do not care about their offspring, the plants will also act as a natural defense of the eggs. Comfortable water temperature for fish is from +23 to + 25C. To spawn successfully, it must be raised to + 26-28C. For spawning, it will be enough to plant a couple of barbs in the aquarium. Before spawning, do not forget to plant them for about a month, and lower the water temperature by a couple of degrees. In this case, the female should be fed mainly with plant food, and the male with protein. It is very easy to distinguish a female from a male: they are smaller, and their belly is rounder. From this pronounced swelling, one can determine whether the female is ready for reproduction.
Useful advice: for successful breeding, the female should be three to four months younger than the male.
As a rule, spawning does not take long to wait and begins one day after the barbs reunite in the aquarium after transplanting. Reproduction is as follows: first, the male takes care of the female. Then, when she starts throwing eggs, he follows her, leaving traces of seed, so that the fallen eggs can be fertilized. In one spawning, a female can lay several hundred eggs. It is better to plant a couple to spawn in the evening. At the same time, the aquarium should be positioned so that in the morning sunlight will fall on it .
Useful advice: you can improve the fertilization of eggs by adding a little salt to the water: one teaspoon - per ten liters of water.
When spawning is finished, the pair should be removed from the aquarium, as they can eat laid eggs. However, if you cover the bottom of the aquarium with pebbles, your parents will not be able to get to the caviar. When maintaining the temperature in the aquarium at + 26C, in five days you will have a small floating Sumatran barbus. Breeding fish, therefore, will not cause you much trouble and will be quite an exciting process.
The best diet for fry will be ciliates, nauplii of brine shrimp or rotifers, due to their small size. When the barbs grow a little, they can be fed small crustaceans. The young of Sumatran barbs grows fast enough, therefore, to avoid cannibalism, they need to be sorted periodically by size. Already in 8-10 months with abundant and proper feeding, they can multiply.
To prevent caviar stagnation in females, it is necessary to stimulate spawning several times a year in a common aquarium, in which barbs live. Reproduction may be unsuccessful if the fish are kept on a feed rich in protein at elevated water temperatures. In this case, obesity of their genitals occurs.
Useful advice: change the water in the aquarium more often, because when it is stagnant, the Sumatran barbus is prone to obesity and overeating, and is also often sick.