Our new winter pond

[Somethin' Fishy]

What will you do if they keep producing babies, half off me would like my fish to spawn, but the other half is please don't make babies.

If they keep producing with too many babies surviving, I'll have to catch them and try to rehome them. Years ago there was a mom n' pop pet store that was happy to take them off my hands, but it has since gone out of business. I haven't checked the big name stores yet to see if they will take any (I'm sure they have policies regarding that), and the closest pond supply place told me no. So I imagine I'll have to put them on Craigslist or Facebook, post flyers, etc. Same for my blue velvet shrimp that are currently loaded with eggs! I don't know what it is, I spill a bucket of water around here and stuff breeds in it!

These four little guys I currently have will be the exception... What are the chances I would remove plants from the pond that happened to have fertile eggs on them, and that they would survive the transfer to our little tank?! If they're that determined, I should give 'em a chance, and if they survive, they can go back to the pond.

 

[Tara]

spill a bucket of water around here and stuff breeds in it!

, better be careful then.

 

[Somethin' Fishy]

Seriously! Talk about, "Don't drink the water!"

 

[Tara]

no thanks, ill stick with my own.

 

[Somethin' Fishy]

@ nearly 3 weeks old. All four are still doing well.

 

[j.w]

Will be fun watching them grow!

 

[Telion]

Congrats, seems exciting. We plan to do something similar to house our tropical plants.

 

[Somethin' Fishy]

@Telion - Actually, I put together this little nano tank so that I could keep some sprigs of anacharis, hornwort, water lettuce, and frog bit over winter, so that I could have fresh starts for next season. Finding healthy hornwort and anacharis around here is especially difficult.

I figured on stocking the tank with some shrimp and tetras for our entertainment, but I did not expect that the few plant clippings I took from the pond would have fertilized eggs on them! But, it has been a total blast watching these little guys develop! I hope they survive, and I can't wait to see what colors they will turn. I am pretty sure the female that laid the eggs is this one:

This was the only fish that looked fat with eggs, and EVERYONE was chasing it in about the right time frame to produce these fry. And who the baby daddy is, is anyone's guess! There are various comets and shubunkins in the pond, so we may end up with something interesting out of the mix.

I moved the fry to an "upgraded" habitat, which happens to be a small cheapy aquarium kit from Wal-Mart. We are leaving for vacation soon, and I'll be leaving the tank with family members while we're gone. So I had to come up with as simple a system as I could, and we'll just have to hope that they'll still be alive when we get back!

 

[Telion]

@Telion - Actually, I put together this little nano tank so that I could keep some sprigs of anacharis, hornwort, water lettuce, and frog bit over winter, so that I could have fresh starts for next season. Finding healthy hornwort and anacharis around here is especially difficult.

I figured on stocking the tank with some shrimp and tetras for our entertainment, but I did not expect that the few plant clippings I took from the pond would have fertilized eggs on them! But, it has been a total blast watching these little guys develop! I hope they survive, and I can't wait to see what colors they will turn. I am pretty sure the female that laid the eggs is this one:
View attachment 115693
This was the only fish that looked fat with eggs, and EVERYONE was chasing it in about the right time frame to produce these fry. And who the baby daddy is, is anyone's guess! There are various comets and shubunkins in the pond, so we may end up with something interesting out of the mix.

I moved the fry to an "upgraded" habitat, which happens to be a small cheapy aquarium kit from Wal-Mart. We are leaving for vacation soon, and I'll be leaving the tank with family members while we're gone. So I had to come up with as simple a system as I could, and we'll just have to hope that they'll still be alive when we get back!

That's the exact reason we are setting up our tank, and to house our tropical plants hoping that they will over winter. I am looking forward to see what your fry become too.

 

[Tara]

@Somethin' Fishy you may just have inspired me to set up an indoor aquarium. I have plants to move inside and an old 20 gallon tank, that just sits doing nothing. I may just go for it this weekend.

 

[addy1]

Finding healthy hornwort and anacharis around here is especially difficult.

Mine comes back every year. I don't bring any in for the winter. It grows back gang busters.

 

[Sparky]

Congrats!

 

[Somethin' Fishy]

One month fry update:

Fry #1 - First born and the largest - color clear/brown
Fry #2 - Second to appear - color clear/brown
Fry #3 - 3rd. - White/Pink with dark around eyes
Fry #4 - 4th. to appear and the runt - color clear/brown
(Also had four freebie baby cherry shrimp in the tank)

At three weeks all 4 fry were active, eating, and developing fins. Fry #1 and #2 had fully formed fins, and Fry #1 was already more than double the size of the others. (Baby shrimp disappearing one by one... One day I'm pretty sure I spotted EYES in the digestive tract of Fry #1!)

A day before our vacation I cleaned the baby tank so that it would be all set for the fish sitter, (fish sitter would be feeding only, and not cleaning). I counted all four fry, one remaining shrimp, and thoroughly inspected the dirty water before throwing it out to make sure I didn't siphon anyone up! But, a few hours later, Fry #4 - the smallest, was missing! No evidence of it anywhere, inside or out!

So we go on vacation.... A day or so into our trip the fish sitter reports only 2 fish in the tank. Hmmm.... Upon returning home, I expected the missing fish to be the next smallest, #3. Oddly, it was Fry #2 that was missing, and the last shrimp was gone! Again, not one trace of a body anywhere.

Currently, Fry #1 is a fully developed fish, baby bronze, and is 3 to 4 times larger than Fry #3. Probably about the size of a small neon tetra. Fry #3 is turning whiter, and still developing fins. The bottom fork of its tail has a kink in it, but I can't tell if its a deformity, or just still developing.

So, my assumption is that Fry #1 has attained its size by eating baby shrimp and two of its siblings! And maybe the only reason Fry #3 has survived is because Fry #1 prefers dark meat!

It has sure been interesting!

 

[Tara]

I need to hurry up with my tank. I am researching minnows for mine, as I love those fish. Want something to watch for the winter, and it sure sounds like a tank will be interesting. Thanks for the update.

 

[Somethin' Fishy]

Today I transferred the two remaining fry that I've been raising indoors into the original tank I found them in (where the eggs/fry came in on the plant I put in there). I also managed to catch three babies from the pond. My "guess" is that the babies from the pond are a couple months old.


The three pond babies (floating in the bag), checking out "Hitch" on the outside.

This is "Shmoo" - It is maybe 8-10 hours younger than the brown one above, but is developing and growing slower, and has a kink in the lower fork of its tail.

I'm thinking one of our shubunkins were involved in this spawning.

Size difference in the month old vs. the pond babies

All those speckles!