View Full Version : Mating Pair of Convicts
Rocketman
07-25-2003, 2:38 PM
In the Pet Store I work at, (Pet Supplies "Plus" in Rochester Hills, MI,) we had a mating pair of Convicts, just by chance. They were in their own 10 Gallon Display Tank, raising the babies and all. We have a lot of good fishkeepers here, so they had everything they needed, (right t pH, hiding spots, so on,) and I was going to Purchase the 'Parent' Convicts after the Babies got big enough. However, the Male killed the Female, (in the usual matter - a few hits on the side.) My co-workers and I were joking that the Female was getting fin from another fish, and the Male wasn't having any of that, and it was over. But seriously, why did the Male kill the female? And any suggestions on how to 'create' a breeding pair of convicts? I'm simply not willing to pay $60-$80 to a breeder for them.
The tank is too small first off and that probably caused the female to dispose of some of the young due to lack of space. This causing the male to take action on the female for destroying his brood. And now you have a dead female. Convicts are like guppies on breeding terms. Basically get a male and a female in a tank together and sooner or later you'll have fry. Thats what I've done for a long time now. Not as complicated as most other cichlids.
ChilDawg
07-25-2003, 2:45 PM
Creating a mating pair of Cons:
1.) Buy six juveniles.
2.) Watch to see which two pair off.
3.) Give them more hideouts so that the female can be safer from the male's advances.
4.) Ask yourself why you wanted to do this so badly.
I put in step four because there are quite a few Cons in the world, and there really isn't a market for them...except as feeders. I would recommend them as feeders for large cichlids if you breed them, but I can't imagine any other reason to do it unless you have a large, large tank and someone who'd take a few off your hands once the colony takes over that tank and still needs to expand.
I agreed with optix. I was reading this article by Paul Loiselle. He mentioned about the same thing, that male will kill female if she doesn't really care for the young.
As for mating...Loiselle stated how some female cichlid thinks, "When I'm not near the boy I love, I love the boy whose near!"
Molino
07-25-2003, 4:03 PM
My pair of convicts are in a 33 gallon tank, and I wouldn't consider putting them in a smaller tank. Every once an awhile the male convict really goes after his mate. If they were in a 10 gallon tank the female would surely have been killed several times over.
Tightdog1
07-25-2003, 7:42 PM
the smallest tank for a breeding pair of cons in 20g long and thats pushin it i would go with at lest 30 if i were you guys, they can get up to 6" remember and they are very aggressive.
To reiterate ten gallons is way to small. I think, Childawg, you only probably need a male and a female in a decent size tank and they will mate. Of course your method will incure one hundred percent results, but I would wager two fish would be adequate, provided there is escape space if the female isn't in the mood. The fry do make great feeders, just make sure they get eaten. I somehow had one female elude my oscar, JD and blackbelt and now she freely swims around the tank. What a pain in the well you know.
ChilDawg
07-25-2003, 8:22 PM
I was just going for the guarantee as you guessed...but there are some threads here on sexing Cons if I'm not mistaken...was it a pronounced orange-ish sheen on the female's belly for the "Convict Original"?
Female Con has more colors than male Con. My female Con does have redness on belly. The fins are blueish and purple.
Childawg, is that really you, or just a mirage, quick water!
Yes orange belly on the female, especially when she's ready to rock and roll.
Rocketman
07-25-2003, 10:03 PM
Yeah, I would be breeeding them as feeders...
The only reason the Convicts were in the 10 Gallon was because those are all the tanks we have in the store for selling fish. So how many of the fry should I take when they are ready to leave the care of the father? Keep it mind, I can't tell if they are male or female yet, (although I know how to once they are bigger,) and I also have nothing to do with the fry-turned-adults that don't 'hit it off.' I guess I'll be getting a bigger tank, but how many Convict Fry?
peifc
07-25-2003, 11:01 PM
For me, I will take more than 4. Make it 6 or 8.
ChilDawg
07-26-2003, 6:51 AM
It really is me! :) I just have to hope that I can get time online when I get back home.
I'd get six for an almost-guarantee, though nine would be very very close to a mathematical certainty that one pair will form...but you probably will get more than one pair that way...just get a whole bunch of big fish and let them enjoy their nutritious little meals!
Rocketman
07-26-2003, 1:07 PM
Yes, but I was kinda asking how few I could get...
I think I will get grown Convicts at PetsMart ("Traitor...") even though I work at Pet Supplies Plus. This is because we don't have Convicts - not because they are unhealthy. The problem is, I only have space for 1 pair, and I have nothing to do with the extra pair.
ChilDawg
07-26-2003, 2:59 PM
I'd get two, then...the female first, and the male a bit later so as to reduce aggression, and give the female an upper hand in territorial disputes. Look for the color differences (more color on female bellies), as well as the pointed fin of the male.
If you are going to use as feeders it is best to use before four weeks. This is when the spiny rays on the dorsal become hard. Convicts can be sexed by and inch and a half.
Rocketman
07-27-2003, 6:39 PM
4 weeks, the fish aren't that big then are they... I plan on feeding them to Oscars, a Gar, 2 Large (7 inch) Tin Foils, two 4 inch Jewels, and two 3-4 inch Albino Clawed Frogs. The only other fish in that tank is a Red-Tailed Black Shark.
Also, is it true that as soon as you move the babies out of the tank, the parents will reproduce again? Yet you don't want to do it too early or else...well, the babies aren't ready to leave yet.
So, do you guys think a 20G (Any tank with a 24in hood, as I already have an extra,) 15lbs of African Cichlid Gravel, a Whisper 'E' Filter, (left over from the 15 Gallon tank, although I may buy another filter if I decide to keep the 15G running...then again a 20G isn't much bigger then a 15G...) and a 100W heater is sufficient? I already have one peice of slate and a hollow skull that makes a good hiding spot...how many more should I have?
Any other tips on Convicts would be greatly appreciated, as I have no experience, and am just going off of things I learn here and from one of my co-workers at Pet Supplies Plus who has a *gasp* 120G Cichlid tank.
Thanks again.
Why are you using African Cichlid Gravel? I would not recommend it. They usually have crushed coral in them to raise the ph, and could effect the breeding of the convicts, maybe. I would buy a bigger filter checkout bigals (www.bigalsonline.com) they are pretty cheap. The cleaner the water the faster and more often the fish will breed. And breed they will, wether or not you remove the fry.
Four weeks is only a recommendation as after that the dorsal spines become hard and can injure the fish you are feeding them too. I would add some plastic plants to break up the sight line but it is not necessary. Clay pots make excellent caves for breeding and are fifty cents at wal mart.
Rocketman
07-27-2003, 8:35 PM
Thanks for the tips.
I work at a Pet Store though and get 20% off all that stuff - I used Big Als to setup my 60 Gallon though.
So, you say 4 weeks is "just a recomendation." Can I use the convicts as feeders after 4 weeks or not?
I may up the filter...
Again, what size tank? Also, as I will probably be keeping this 15G going, could a transfer the young to the 15G from the new tank, (again, what size?) before I use them as feeders? If so, what age?
ChilDawg
07-28-2003, 7:21 AM
It depends on the fish...Cons might chase away some of the more timid fish when they are 4 wks. old.
Also, the parents will need some time to recuperate between spawns because their babies eat their slime coats a la Discus (but to a much-lesser extent). Feed well, and this MIGHT not be a problem...
Rocketman
07-28-2003, 1:57 PM
About how old are the Convicts at 4 weeks? Would they chase away a Gar, Large African Clawed Frogs, Large Tin Foils, and Oscars at 4 weeks?
I still haven't gotten any input as to whether or not I should keep the 15 Gallon running, buy a 30G for the Mating Pair, and put the offspring into the 15G. If this would work, what age can they be placed in the 15G