My kribensis have bred!

[MotorcyclesFish]

My kribensis have bred! (pics + questions)

well finally, after a few different tries, i've managed to breed some fish.

I know kribs aren't exactly new ground for breeding, but i have a smile this wide:
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there's probs 25 or 30 of the littl'uns, kind of hopping about. I've turned the filter off for the time being whilst i consider my options. The parents killed a rainbow this morning, i wasn't awake early enough to stop it, so i've evacuated the remaining rainbow to safety in my 3ft community.

I read up on this a few months back, but have since forgotten, thinking it would never happen. Can someone please give me pointers re:

1. feeding the fry. it's a sand-bottomed 2.5 ft x 1ft x 15in tank with a fair bit of detritus on the bottom in the form of algae and vallis leaves. please note - the tank is not a waste tip, it's just a little mucky round the edges.
2. filtration. Should i leave the filter off? i turned it off cos it was too powerful for the fry, and i daresay i've lost 1 or 2 already, but what should i do? it's a Juwel tank (german) with an integrated filter/pump/heater all boxed off in one corner.
3. water changes. I intend to do 10 - 20 percent every couple of days. the tank holds 96l.

thanks for any replies, and

 

[MotorcyclesFish]

*bump* i kind of need to know how long to keep the filter off?

or do you lot want me fry to die

 

[Z Man]

The best I can suggest is to get a Hydro-sponge filter or any sponge filter available where you are. The fry don't take too long to grow but you have to have some type of filter going. Never heard of your type of tank. We don't have them here or I just haven't seen them. The only other way would be to remove all the fry to a different tank.

 

[firetank]

heya there....
can you get some sort of sponge over the filter intake????

id suggest getting a 15x8x8 tank (roughly £10 or so from any lfs)
an airpump, and algarde biofoam sponge filter. get it running and cycling now, and in about 2\3 weeks, syphon the young into that tank...

i did this with my thomasi (another dwarf african) and have 30\40 1\2" fry now growing on well..)

good luck.
hth.

 

[ChilDawg]

I'd start a sponge filter in a mature, healthy tank so that it can have bacterial growth ready for the fry tank.

 

[MotorcyclesFish]

yeah, the day after i posted i went and got a sponge filter which is filtering the tank at the mo. The fry are still quite small, they're less than a week old i think so i don't know how long till i have to sort something out. I have an old 15x8x8 tank laying about somewhere, so i'll get that set up maybe... but how do i syphon the fry over? and won't that distress the parents and the fry?

 

[firetank]

get some 15mm diameter tubing, and just syphon them out as you would if you were doing a water change.....

tip: get a fry holding net, and put it into a slighty larger tupperware box
,then the tupperware>into a bowl large enough to hold the water you are syphoning with the fry.......
syphon water until the tupperware bowl overflows to the larger bowl, then start on the fry,,,

that way, all the fry are in a small enought container to dip straight into the new tank(use water from the tank, not new...)

you will lose a few, but it does work.........

they are my fry, murdering an alge\a wafer..(poor quality piccy, i know.. )