Wigglers!
We have wigglers! My blue gene Jack Dempsey's finally reached wiggler status. Wigglers are South American cichlid babies at three to four days old. It's a long story about how this pair arrived in my tank and I look forward to sharing it with you very soon. My blue gene pair is special to me. They have the potential to produce many Electric Blue Jack Dempsey's which happen to be my favorite cichlids.
(blue gene Jack Dempsey pair)
The above picture is the pairs first clutch or batch of eggs on a clay dish. They were unsuccessful with their first two batches of eggs. It normally takes new parents two to three times to get wigglers. Well, third time is a charm for these guys! I could go on and on about these two fish alone but I won't right now. I had to give an update on their success.
(first clutch)
This is a picture of what their eggs look like. Super sticky little eggs from the mom. She's currently doing a great job raising her new babies and I couldn't be prouder. Even if she decides to eat or kill her babies it's ok. I know she's making progress each time she lays eggs. Watching South American cichlids hatch little ones and raise them to adulthood truly is a sight to see! I hope to have many photos and updates regarding these young parents success.
(wigglers)
Above is a photo of the wigglers. Hard to see anything clearly but they are there I promise. They are the little brown spots on the bottom of the clay pot. In a lonely 40g tank in my fish room magic is happening. I'll keep you updated on the status of the little guys.
Alright, exciting stuff... Desmond Sandy submitted a question in the comments! Not sure how I'm going to address these in the future, but I'm going to answer his question at the end of this blog.
Q:
I have one
cichlid in a 30 gallon tank with sand, a couple of river rocks, and a live
plant. It's a Jack Dempsey (I think) and he seems healthy and happy in
his tank, but I'm worried about some algae that's growing on everything.
I'm a little lazy about upkeep and rarely do water changes, and (to finally get
to the actual question) I'm wondering if you know what causes this algae to
grow and if it is going to be bad for the fish (Marco). Thanks.
A:
Desmond, thank
you for the question! You have a 30g tank and one Jack Dempsey cichlid, that’s awesome,
he must be a happy guy with no roomates cramping his style. I completely
understand your concern about the algae build up and Marco’s wellbeing. A: The
algae is good for your tank. It is breaking down the nitrate levels in your
water. The three levels you need to worry about in this order: ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Your filter,
sand, walls of tank and décor have beneficial bacteria which break down ammonia
and nitrite leaving the end product nitrate. Nitrate is commonly used to help
plant growth. No difference with algae. So, the algae is actually helping with
filtration and Marcos environment. As far as algae build up is concerned, it’s
probably green all over your tank (feel free to email me a picture of your
tank, ill post it on my Facebook!). The buildup
normally has to do with the amount of sunlight the tank is exposed to or a powerful light. Try turning the light off for a week, it may reduce the algae. Reduce
the sunlight by keeping the blinds closed or move the tank. For advanced hobbyist
and a fun project you can create an algae scrubber. I like the home made version for simplicity
and cost. Check out this link, it should describe what an algae scrubber is all
about. Hope this helped out!
If you have any questions regarding fish please leave me a comment or subscribe, thank you!
-YA
