# Kribensis Fry... Awesome!



## jamesbaptista (Jul 20, 2012)

My Kribensis pair laid eggs inside a seashell in my community tank about a week ago. Today was the first day that they brought them out. They are so small  Its really cool to see the parents taking care of the fry as well. If one of them starts wandering off they will suck the the wayward fry into their mouth and spit them back into the group! Here are some pictures of their first day out:







Has anyone here raised Kribensis fry before? I know its a little different than a lot of other fry because you don't separate them from their parents. I am wondering if I need to do anything special to feed them or if the parents will take care of that.


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## stevenjohn21 (May 23, 2012)

I usually take the fry out after a week of free swimming otherwise i find the parents killing each other.


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## jamesbaptista (Jul 20, 2012)

stevenjohn21 said:


> I usually take the fry out after a week of free swimming otherwise i find the parents killing each other.


Do they stop when you remove the fry? 

And how do you care for the fry after that? Any special filtering or other equipment?


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## stevenjohn21 (May 23, 2012)

As soon as you take the fry out they spend the rest of the day looking for the fry so dont have time to argue with each other lol By the next day they have forgotten they even had any and the process of breeding starts again in a couple of weeks 

I place mine in a 10 gallon tank with a sponge filter and some java moss. I feed mine microworms up until 4-6 weeks old and then start with BS.


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## DBlauj (Apr 17, 2012)

I have a bare bottom tank with a sponge filter and java moss for my apisto fry, it makes cleaning a lot easier during water changes. As for care my apisto fry are pretty hardy so after about a week they can care for themselves. I feed my guys baby brine shrimp atm, their natural instincts kick in and it's pretty cool to watch the little guys hunt and gobble up the BBS.


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## jamesbaptista (Jul 20, 2012)

What is the purpose of the java moss in the fry tank? Is it just to provide shelter for them?

And the brine shrimp, do you hatch them yourself or buy them?


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## stevenjohn21 (May 23, 2012)

The java moss houses micro foods for the fry to eat whenever they are hungry and like you said for shelter. I buy frozen brine shrimp....too much hassle hatching them although it was fun for a while.


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## jamesbaptista (Jul 20, 2012)

stevenjohn21 said:


> The java moss houses micro foods for the fry to eat whenever they are hungry and like you said for shelter. I buy frozen brine shrimp....too much hassle hatching them although it was fun for a while.


ok... makes sense. Where is the best place to buy frozen brine shrimp? 

Also, is there anything else equipment wise needed for the fry tank? Heater or anything?


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## stevenjohn21 (May 23, 2012)

i get my BS from a local guy who buys them in bulk but you can get them at most LFS. You might not need a heater since you live in FL. If you aim around 80 degrees and do a 10% WC everyday and feedings 3 times a day the fry should grow fast.


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## jamesbaptista (Jul 20, 2012)

stevenjohn21 said:


> i get my BS from a local guy who buys them in bulk but you can get them at most LFS. You might not need a heater since you live in FL. If you aim around 80 degrees and do a 10% WC everyday and feedings 3 times a day the fry should grow fast.


awesome! Thanks for the great info!


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## Shanster (Jul 23, 2012)

How long were your Kribensis together before they had there first fry? Our male selected a mate about 2-3 weeks ago... when the two females were in the tank there was constant shimmy-ing and quarrels between the females. 

Now there is peace in the tank and shimmy-ing happens a little less often. Just wondering I can't wait until some baby fry are born.


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## jamesbaptista (Jul 20, 2012)

Shanster said:


> How long were your Kribensis together before they had there first fry?


I bought my Kribensis as a proven breeding pair from a local guy. They took a while getting used to my new tank. I'd say it was about a month and a half after I got them that they spawned.

Shanster, make sure you have some caves for them to choose from and spawn in. That's how they like it. I have two caves but mine actually chose to lay their eggs in a shell. Guess they thought it was the safest.


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## kamikazi (Sep 3, 2010)

I have a pair of kribs in my 15 at work. I have had them for quite a few months now and they breed all the time. Every time they do I get free swimming fry. They usually work together watching the little guys for about 1-2 weeks. Then start to turn on each other, this last time the male took over guard duty and was chasing the female alot, but she stuck it out till they got tired of the fry when she was ready to spawn again. When that happened they ate the fry. Luckily I removed about 20-25 fry prior to that and took them home and put them in my shrimp bowls (see the link for those in my sig). In one of my youtube videos you can see the fry in the bowls. They have been in the bowls for 2-3 weeks now and are still alive and kicking. 

My fry are eating snail eggs, algae, flake food and pellets once they get soft and start to break down. They were eating tiny particles of flake food from the beginning of free swimming stage when they were still in the tank with the parents.


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## jamesbaptista (Jul 20, 2012)

Is it possible to remove the fry to soon? I guess I'm looking for the best time to remove the fry. When would that be?


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## kamikazi (Sep 3, 2010)

jamesbaptista said:


> Is it possible to remove the fry to soon? I guess I'm looking for the best time to remove the fry. When would that be?


I was told it was best to wait till the yolk sac is gone and they are starting to look more like a little fish than a tadpole. 

Based on the pictures looks like yours still have some yolk sac left.

You could always remove a few fry and leave the rest to see how they do. If they don't make it, grab some more a week or so later. Worst that can happen is you end up waiting another few weeks till the parents decide to spawn again.


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## jamesbaptista (Jul 20, 2012)

*Update:*

I decided to keep most of the fry with the parents and let them care for the fry for a bit longer. I figured as long as they can take care of them without causing any trouble then the less I'll have to try to take care of them  so far they are doing well and still growing. I did remove a few fry and they are doing well in another tank, although I'm not sure they are growing as fast. But I don't have the food sources I would like for them. I have bbs, Walter worm, banana worm, micro worm and vinegar eel cultures on the way so I should be able to provide the fry with plenty of good food in a couple weeks when I move them all to the fry tank. I'm sure the rest of my fish will be happy when they are not being chased away all the time


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## jamesbaptista (Jul 20, 2012)

Moved the fry to their own tank. Its a 10 gallon with sponge filter. Its hard to figure out how many there are bug I would estimate I have 25-35 fry. I've begun my micro/Walter/banana worm cultures and I've been hatching bbs for them. Can't wait for them to grow bigger and start to look like kribensis


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