Hatching baby dwarf gourami

[Krisvalkyrie]

So the past several days I noticed the corner of my planted tank get foamy.  I was a little worried about it, until I saw a male gourami swimming underneath it, and realized it was a bubble nest.  Next thing I know, I see the female 2 nights ago looking really fat.

Yesterday morning when I woke up, I saw tiny eggs in and around the bubbles,  and I was so excited!  I wasn't planning on breeding them, and they are in a community tank with rainbows.  

Due to the process though, the bubble next broke up some and half the eggs went floating towards the part of the tank where all the rainbows are.  I was worried, so I used a shrimp net to scoop up that half and put it in an empty already established tank I had.  I wasn;t sure they would survive moving and being put in a tank with no bubble nest and no daddy fish to take care of them.

Last night while I was acclimating my auction purchases, I noticed that some eggs turned whitish meaning they were no good, but many had little black dots in them.  

So this morning, I check on the eggs, and was sad because the only ones I could find were white.  But then I saw something moving in the duckweed!

I have 15+ itty bitty tiny tiny fry!

They are swimming around in their little egg sacks... I am so excited that I managed to save some!!!  Now I am in a panic trying to figure out what the %^$^% to feed them...I have hikari first bites, and I am hoping that it will be small enough.

[szidlon]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

Congrats on the fry  :dance: .

I've never had gourami's but I'd guess the fry would like pretty much the same as most fry.  They can live off their yolks sacs for a day or so if they have to.  That will give you time to get a batch of BBS hatching if you have the supplies, or try to find some liquifry.  

If only you'd known, you could have picked up one of the microworm starters at the auction yesterday.  Microworms are great for tiny, tiny fry.  I think Phish Phreek said banana worms are even smaller and survive longer in the tank.  There was a banana worm starter at the auction yesterday too.  Maybe one of the sellers has more and is close enough to you to make it practical for you pick some up.

[dblondfemme]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

I had two mbunas spit WAY before time.  I put the pre-squigglers in a water bottle with a bubbler and some methylene blue..
Until their yolk sacs were almost gone, I didn't feed them anything.  When I finally put them into a tank, they ate or rather picked at leftovers on the bottom.  Then I used frozen brine and frozen blood worms.  I also put in some flake leftovers from the bottom of a flaker container....the itty bitty pieces.  I would wager most fry are good at finding little bits of food.
.

[Krisvalkyrie]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

They are too small to eat the tiny flake food I have.  I make my own fry food by grinding things and mixing them with decapsulated brine shrimp eggs.

I have hikari first bites, which is pretty small.

I also remembered I have frozen bbs and frozen daphnia.  Is daphnia small enough do you think?

[Tiapan]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

not yet, but as long as they are with live plants (and lots of them) they will have lots of little things to eat that we wont see. just dont leave excess food in there at all and do frequent small water changes, or just throw them up in a critter keeper with live plants anywhere u can like i am doing right now sincei have fry in like 5 or 6 containers lol. but yeah dont feed if they still have yolk sacs, just let them do there thing.

[CichlidFan]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

Good Luck with them, I hope they make it.... :)

CF

[nacra99]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

Dwarf gourami fry are tiny!
most of them won't be able to eat bbs till at least after the first week or so.
You're going to need either vinegar eels or infusoria.

[Cameo]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

This is really, really cool, Krisvalkyrie. I'd hie myself on over to PetsMart and buy the beginner baby brine shrimp hatchery. It's a black plastic box with bbs packets.  It takes at least a day to hatch. At least, this would get you started.
What kind of dwarf gourami are they?

[Krisvalkyrie]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

Red honey dwarf.

I have a hatchery, but I have never had any luck with it.

:(

where can I find liquid fry?

[szidlon]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

I would just start calling the lfs's closest to you and work out from there.  You can post in the Fish Market with a WTB for some starter cultures of microworms, vinegar eels or banana worms as well.

[nacra99]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

Here's some info which may help
http://www.fishpondinfo.com/honey.htm

I MAY have vinegar eels....
I left a culture under my kitchen sink about a month an a half ago... they should still be viable.
I'll go home at lunchtime to go check... if they are viable, you may have the entire jar.

[szidlon]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

I would offer a microworm culture but the one I got at the auction is not doing as well as others have done in the past.  I'm still waiting for the first one to migrate to the sides of the container, so I'm in a wait and see position.

[Cameo]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

I drop an airstone in the fish hatchery; that might help. Also, PetsMart had liquid fry, but at least with angelfish babies, it never took with them.  Good luck and keep us updated.

[Krisvalkyrie]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

Oh dear, work went so late tonight, and all the pet stores are closed...

If people do have vinegar eels, I would love to get some or buy some...  I hope that the other food will be ok until tomorrow...

[roberte]

Re: Hatching baby dwarf gourami

See if you can get "green water" from a pond or even someone's water left outside in the sun. It will be full of rotifers, infusoria etc. You can also take a gallon of water from a tank and mix maybe a 1/2 tsp of baby food sweet potatoes and leave it near a light source and around 80F. In a few days you should see sort of stationary "clouds" of tiny tiny tiny white paramecium near the surface of the water -- a great food. A few feeder goldfish in a 10 gallon tank with a plant light on 24/7 and fed well will make for "green water". Microworm cultures need to be pretty moist or the worms don't do well. Plus start new ones often. You can use hard boiled egg yoke completely blended into a little water and with an eye dropper feed some drops near where the babies hang out. Don't over do it as it will easily dirty the tank. Hatching baby brine is easy. Get a couple of 1/2 gallon glass milk jars. Keep them near a light source and at 80F. Fill them with tap water to the level where the jar starts to curve in. Use 4 tbsps rock salt and a 1/2 tsp of epson salt (or what is recommended on the can of eggs you use). Optional: add 2-3 drops of Clorox for bacteria control. Add good air flow from an airstone. Add 1/2 tsp of eggs and if they are good eggs (brineshrimpdirect.com) they will hatch in 24-48 hours. Take out the air. Let everything settle. Then siphon off the red shrimp using a 1/8" piece of rigid airline tubing attached to a long piece of flexible airline tubing. Clean the jar and restart using new water, salt, eggs, etc. Good luck finding a good brine shrimp net anymore. The Florida Fish Farmers Co-op sells a great one for $20. The retail store ones all have too big of mesh now for some dumb reason. You could use a good quality thick weave men's cotton hankerchef to siphon the shrimp into -- place it over a bowl and wet it before use and push the middle down some so it will stay put in the jar or bowl. Good luck.