Spawning Cycles
With domestic angels, each pair will get into a routine but they typically spawn about every 10-15 days. If you have 3-4 pairs in the tank, weekly spawnings should be the norm. On the bright side, if you don't want to raise them you probably don't need to worry about it as most are not good parents and if they don't end up eating their own eggs or fry, the other fish will. The problem is the level of aggression they will display toward the other if they decide to actually defend the eggs. Oddly, wilds are generally much more effective parents and aren't as obnoxious about guarding the eggs. Wild fish are generally seasonal spawners though there are exceptions. In nature, they generally spawn when the waters rise and the forests are flooded as there is a lot more food available at that time. In captivity, they tend to spawn at the same time of year that they would in the wild.
Altums are an interesting choice but I only recommend them for very advanced hobbyists. I talk a lot more people out of buying them than I sell them to. They have very specific requirements in terms of water conditions and bacterial count that can't be met by the average hobbyist. I also would definitely not recommend keeping them with any other type of angelfish. For most people, the various fish sold as scalare are a much better choice. Leopoldi, commonly known as dumerilii, are also good and can be kept with the scalare types. I believe that when an ichthyologist takes a serious look at the genus Pterophyllum there will be at least 7 species and it may quite possibly hit double digits. There is a great deal of variation in pattern, body shape, finnage and behavior between the various locations of 'scalare.' There are fish with black spots, fish with red spots, fish with red fins, fish with longer fins relative to the body size and a variety of stripe patterns. A number of them are fairly readily available. I routinely get wild angels in from a number of locations in Brasil, Colombia, Peru and, as often as I can, Guyana. There are a number of other importers who do the same. A good, independent LFS should be able to get at least one or two types of wild angels for you, as well.
Mark
:jaw: weekly spawns...mg: seriously, will they spawn that regularly? will i need to remove the eggs then as i dont wish to raise the young ones, i dont think! i can imagine id soon be over run with baby angels if i end up with 3 or 4 pairs :uhoh:
With domestic angels, each pair will get into a routine but they typically spawn about every 10-15 days. If you have 3-4 pairs in the tank, weekly spawnings should be the norm. On the bright side, if you don't want to raise them you probably don't need to worry about it as most are not good parents and if they don't end up eating their own eggs or fry, the other fish will. The problem is the level of aggression they will display toward the other if they decide to actually defend the eggs. Oddly, wilds are generally much more effective parents and aren't as obnoxious about guarding the eggs. Wild fish are generally seasonal spawners though there are exceptions. In nature, they generally spawn when the waters rise and the forests are flooded as there is a lot more food available at that time. In captivity, they tend to spawn at the same time of year that they would in the wild.
Altums are an interesting choice but I only recommend them for very advanced hobbyists. I talk a lot more people out of buying them than I sell them to. They have very specific requirements in terms of water conditions and bacterial count that can't be met by the average hobbyist. I also would definitely not recommend keeping them with any other type of angelfish. For most people, the various fish sold as scalare are a much better choice. Leopoldi, commonly known as dumerilii, are also good and can be kept with the scalare types. I believe that when an ichthyologist takes a serious look at the genus Pterophyllum there will be at least 7 species and it may quite possibly hit double digits. There is a great deal of variation in pattern, body shape, finnage and behavior between the various locations of 'scalare.' There are fish with black spots, fish with red spots, fish with red fins, fish with longer fins relative to the body size and a variety of stripe patterns. A number of them are fairly readily available. I routinely get wild angels in from a number of locations in Brasil, Colombia, Peru and, as often as I can, Guyana. There are a number of other importers who do the same. A good, independent LFS should be able to get at least one or two types of wild angels for you, as well.
Mark
