Scarfaze Posted December 15, 2004 Share Posted December 15, 2004 hey everyone can someone please tell me at what age/size do zebras start to mate and also any tips that u can pass on thanks people Scarface Role Model Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeWs Fish Posted December 15, 2004 Share Posted December 15, 2004 which ones are u talking about? generally, very generally, at around 6-7cm but you hear stories of them breeding at 3-4cm I'm far from an expert - ive only bred 3 types - but what i do know is that they like flat rocks -by flat i mean REAL REAL flat. The male will start to beome territorial around the rock and dtart displaying and shaking when trying to see of other males The male will dart around the female in funny swimming patterens, sometimes bumping her and making her swim off balance to woo her to his rock. When she wants to breed, she will hang around the rock and them male will take small pecks at the rock showing her a good place to lay eggs. When they actually breed they swim head to tail in circles and shake, it sorta a funny dance, ;like a cat chasing its tail. The female will lay 1 or 2 eggs and then pick them up in her mouth, the male will fertilize them both on the rock and in her mouth. the female tries to pick up the males egg spot off his anal fin and get a mouthful of fertilizer - hehehehe theyll do this for about 45 mins or so. If they get interupted dont worry they will get back to it in a matter of minutes. female generally lays about 20 eggs but can vary gratly for different species. acei can lay up to 120 eggs even more sometimes. Breeding tips: Feed them plenty of veggie pellets/flake. Theyre real pigs. It a good sign if they come to greet you when you see em. it means theyre hungry and healthy. this is a bit contoversial - but i personally stip most of them to get them eating and breeding quicker. there are other people that say DONT do this becase holding imprints onto the fish as it is held in the mothers mouth - thus stripping itt may stop the baby fish from holing full term as an adult. anyways HTH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarfaze Posted December 15, 2004 Author Share Posted December 15, 2004 thanks heaps for that reply it really helped! do i need to do anything special to try make them sporn? i beleive the ones i have are called "red/blue" or icey blue zebras Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeWs Fish Posted December 15, 2004 Share Posted December 15, 2004 how big are they and how big is your tank? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarfaze Posted December 15, 2004 Author Share Posted December 15, 2004 i would say about 6-7 cm and i have a 4fter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeWs Fish Posted December 15, 2004 Share Posted December 15, 2004 ok my advice 4fter is a good size for zebras put lots of caves/rocks/hiding places in the middle of the tank. The majority of the fish will congregate here. have 2 BIG FLAT rocks at either end of the tank. This is for the 2 dominant males. There will be 3 max in a 4 ft tank. try and take out or sell any subdominat males - but keep one as a spare. buy as may females as you can get ur mits on. 10 is enough for a very sturdy breeding colony. gr4ab a beer or 2 over a week or so and let it all unfold. they willl breed sooner than later with that sorta of a setup Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarfaze Posted December 15, 2004 Author Share Posted December 15, 2004 thanks alot for taking the time to reply! i read in 1 article that males have egg spots and in another females have them more dominently but anywho i have a zebra thats about 13cm and it has egg spots that i have made a cave for and it gets agressive if any other fish go near it. so im not sure if its male or female! but it acts weird Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeWs Fish Posted December 15, 2004 Share Posted December 15, 2004 sounds like a mle to me. to be sure catch it flip it over, if it has two dots the same on its gentials its a boy. will look like this: . . girls will look like this . 0 The 0 is where the big eggs come out of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarfaze Posted December 15, 2004 Author Share Posted December 15, 2004 thanks a heap for that mate its helped me out a sh!t load Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeWs Fish Posted December 15, 2004 Share Posted December 15, 2004 no worries mate - i love them to bits - so i hope you have as much fun breeding them as i do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burek Posted December 15, 2004 Share Posted December 15, 2004 Hi, IME, Zebras like L.Fuelleborni, P.Saulosi, etc usually start to breed at 5-6cm Provide lots of rocks, Slate and good food! and you will be rewarded! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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