Re: Fw: please help!

[richard.moore2@btinternet.com]

Hi Rosie

Nice to hear another UK voice on the list.  I have just 
spawned Cacatuoides in my community tank also (the 
fry are now 3 weeks old and around 10mm long).

My humble advice would be to remove the cover and let 
the parents do their thing.  My cockatoos ate their first 
couple of spawns also, but they soon get the hang of it.

Incidentally, my fish left the eggs alone when I went 
away for a few days, so I might consider covering the 
tank for a while with perhaps some newspaper or light 
material if you want to avoid spooking the fish and the 
subsequent egg-eating. I also had a deep blue marine 
light which I accidentally left on 24hrs without a timer, 
and I think the removal of the sudden on/off 
environment helped reduce stress as well.

Even if you lose another 1 or 2 egg clutches to the 
parents, I think it is worth it in the long run to be 
patient and have a set of parents who have learned to 
be a good mum and dad.  Stick with them!!

Please contact me off-list if you want to ask any more 
questions, no matter how trivial. I have a month of 
trying to keep my cockatoo fry happy and healthy and 
would be happy to share my experiences.

Good luck!!

Rich Moore
North London

ps - if you are in the South East, I would be interested 
in any recommendations you have as far as 
dealers/shops go...cheers


>
>Hello
> 
>I've just joined this group in the hope of getting some 
urgent advice >regarding breeding cockatoo dwarf 
cichlids. We have a community tank >including two 
female and one male cockatoo. About two weeks ago, 
the >male bred with one of the females, but within two 
days, she munched up >her eggs. We agreed that the 
next time we found eggs, we'd remove them >to allow 
them to hatch safely. Well, already he's bred with the 
second >female, and I've just found the eggs. The 
thing is, my other half is >currently half way over the 
Atlantic, en route to the US, and I won't be >able to 
speak to him for another 20 hours....also, neither of us 
knows >much about this, as we've never bred fish 
before! 
>
>Right now, I have covered the rock they're on with an 
up-turned >rectangular box made of net, used for the 
fry I think. I've anchored it >down with other stones and 
built up the sides with gravel and stones so >no-one 
can burrow inside. Both parents still seem interested in 
>protecting the eggs, so everything seems ok. The 
problem is that the >stone is on the gravel, so when 
they hatch, they'll be on the floor of >the tank, so I 
don't know how to feed them without either them 
escaping, >or other fish swooping in and gobbling them 
up. I think the eggs are >about 2 days old, so need to 
decide whether to move the stone NOW, or >not.
>
>I have another heated tank with four bumbling fantails 
and a fiddler >crab, but could conceivably move fish 
around. 
>
>I would be enormously grateful for any advice, we've 
been so excited >about successfully breeding these fish!
>
>Many thanks
>
>Rosie
>
>
>
>
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