I have read that the white cloud mountain minnows are easy to breed but I never see anyone selling any. Does anyone have them and had success breeding them?
White Cloud Mountain Minnows
- Thread starter Moesmom
- Start date
They're very easy to breed. I've bred them outdoors in a small pond before. You can do the same with a larger rubbermaid tub. I started with a couple dozen and by the end of the summer I had hundreds. My pond was filled with anacharis and water lettuce. They fattened up nicely on a diet of mosquito larvae and flake food.
I would love to put out a large tub as an outdoor pond but I am in South Carolina and the lake water is 90 degrees I can't imagine how hot the water would get in a tub. Can the White Clouds be kept inside in an aquarium?
I think depth would be friend in our climate. You could bury a barrel shapped container and the ground would help insulate the water and prevent it getting too hot... the surface temperature might stay high though. I think as long as 3ft were buried it would be enough.
I don't know how they'd handle the winter though what you would do with the fish when December rolls around - here in SC we have a mild and short winter- but I suspect the frosts and cold nights will still kill the fish.
I don't know how they'd handle the winter though what you would do with the fish when December rolls around - here in SC we have a mild and short winter- but I suspect the frosts and cold nights will still kill the fish.
You could sink the tub in the ground and keep it away from direct sunlight to help keep the temps down. I'm not sure how warm they can take it but they can survive temperatures down into the 50's. Yes, you can keep and breed them inside your home in an aquarium. A heater is not necessary.
OK a quick google says they can survive in waters as low as 5C (40F).
Although a buried barrel/tub or pond may freeze over- I doubt as long as you have it 3ft deep the entire container would get below 40F here (assuming it's a decent size). You might float some heat packs on the very coldest days and there may be some die off- but I bet it's doable.
A barrel or an extra large rubbermaid tub sunk deep in the ground could work year round.
Although a buried barrel/tub or pond may freeze over- I doubt as long as you have it 3ft deep the entire container would get below 40F here (assuming it's a decent size). You might float some heat packs on the very coldest days and there may be some die off- but I bet it's doable.
A barrel or an extra large rubbermaid tub sunk deep in the ground could work year round.
Back to my original question then. If they are so easy to breed why do I never see them for sale by anyone here?
maybe not that many people are breeding them? or they are kept outdoors so they can keep all the fry?
i breed mine indoors. i take the parents out of my 50g and put them in a 20 for a couple days. when i take them out of their breeding tank, the tank looks all empty but after a day or two you start to see fry, there are usually between twenty and fifty. i sell mine locally for $1 each. i bet if you put a wanted thread in the classifieds you will find some.