Thats it right there! I dont want it to be self-sustaining! Just thought it would be cool to watch the fry getting eaten every few weeks. problem solved.
Livebearer in-tank food supply
- Thread starter mr.bigglesworth
- Start date
The fact that you're asking for what amounts to be nutritional value of the fry is what is making people assume you mean for them to be a significant source of food in the tank. You're asking the question in a very loaded way as if it's not the real question you have.
If all you really want is to see fry eaten in a tank from time to time then you just need to put a couple livebearers of any kind in the tank and it will happen.
He never asked the nutritional value of the fry. He just wants livebearers that drop the most amount of fry every now and then so his fish can get treats. Its kinda like feeding bloodworms and such without the risk of overfeeding his fish with live/frozen food.
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I didn't pick that up from the OP - the original question was basically asking which livebearer would produce the most fry biomass (either because they have smaller broods but more frequently or bigger broods). Again, still seems like a reasonable question to me given what the OP is looking for in his tank, it doesn't at all suggest to me he was hoping not to feed his fish otherwise. I don't have any guppies in my tank right now, but when I did I was kind of thinking their drops would be a nice, IRREGULAR supplement of hopefully safe live food for my other fishes. I just couldn't figure out if the real issue here was that people were thinking one shouldn't let fry get born and then eaten in a community tank due to .... some reason? Possible overfeeding/bloat right after the drop which could be bad for the other fishes? I do know almost everyone here knows more than me in practical terms about fishkeeping so I am totally open to the idea there may be a reason this isn't wise that I just haven't thought of. Or when I was talking about my guppies, people did tell me it wasn't the best idea because I should expect that some fry would live (I didn't really want any to) and I'd need to have a plan for later as my guppy stock slowly increased. I was just trying to figure out if that was what people here were getting at, because the mere fact that it is an intermittent treat seems like no reason this couldn't "work".
In my case I personally don't really want to watch the fry getting eaten, nor do I have any particular interest in breeding livebearers, what I am interested in is helping my adult fish engage in as many natural behaviors as possible, so that they experience low stress from thwarted behavioral drives and don't develop some of the stereotypic behaviors I've seen in some fish in tanks (mindless and neurotic "pacing" type swimming, for example). Fish have a foraging drive and I thought that allowing an outlet for that drive could only help them, and as a plus, it adds variety and fresh, hopefully safe live food to their food source over the long term which I also imagine can't be a terrible thing, even IF it is not intended to be their main source of food or a steady source of food. I feel the same way about any egglayers I might get to spawn - hope the other fish will get some fresh eggs every now and then from my cories someday, for example. I understand all these benefits would also happen if you just kept a separate tank of livebearers and dumped the fry into the main tank as they came, but in my mind the downside there is you need another tank.
the title of the thread 'livebearer in-tank food supply' and the OP's initial question of 'Which livebearer gives the most fry in the least amount of time?' would lead many people to assume that the OP wants a viable live food source in the tank that is readily available, aka a re-populating food source that would replenish itself quickly via fry drops. nowhere in the initial post by the OP did they say they just wanted a 'i want live fish snacks for my fish some of the time' scenario.
BOTTOM LINE: Swordtails and Mollies don't play well with others in some cases. Both species can be nippy or even territorial, especially males. Guppies or platies would be your best choices.
There is some merit here. Food variety is good especially with growing and developing discus. In fact, it may be a good idea for all angel/discus keeprs/breeders to have some sort of livebearer around to provide them with some live food from time to time.
Quite honestly this thread is getting pretty crazy and I would suggest that everyone keep it on topic. All opinions are to be repsected.
There is some merit here. Food variety is good especially with growing and developing discus. In fact, it may be a good idea for all angel/discus keeprs/breeders to have some sort of livebearer around to provide them with some live food from time to time.
Quite honestly this thread is getting pretty crazy and I would suggest that everyone keep it on topic. All opinions are to be repsected.
I for one just wouldnt want any other fish in a tank with discus. Why have the added waste when you have to work so hard to keep a discus tank spotless? Plus, livebearers are food hogs. They could easily overeat on all the food before the discus get it.
I think it is a good idea to feed fry discus to diversify their diet. However, I would raise them in a separate tank and make sure they are gutloaded with a quality flake before feeding. My guppy fry will eat powdered flake food and powdered FD bloodworms the day they are born. Also, the risk of predation while giving birth can stress out a female livebearer and stress during birth is a high cause of death for them. You'd get much more bang for your buck by keeping the livebearers happy and healthy in their own environment.
I think it is a good idea to feed fry discus to diversify their diet. However, I would raise them in a separate tank and make sure they are gutloaded with a quality flake before feeding. My guppy fry will eat powdered flake food and powdered FD bloodworms the day they are born. Also, the risk of predation while giving birth can stress out a female livebearer and stress during birth is a high cause of death for them. You'd get much more bang for your buck by keeping the livebearers happy and healthy in their own environment.
I had a pair of orange platies in my community and they dont get stressed when they give birth. I think they don't even notice it. I remember feeding them and the platy mom was just eating the flakes and fry were dropping from her tube. Of course they get eaten right away cause it's a community setup. None of the fishes in there could eat the platies but everyone there can eat their fry.
A tank can only be as clean as you want it to be. More fish = more frequent water changes. The OP just wanted to know which livebearer produces the most fry when giving birth. Just answer the question and let him do whatever he wants.
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That is not educating about the hobby, which is what the members of this forum are all about. I think that were we get mixed up is that there are some of us here who genuinely care about the hobby and want to educate whereas so many other boards simply "answer the question and let them do what they want".
