pregnant BN?

[Whiskas]

How do i tell if my BN is preggy?

She is only about 5-6cm long and is looking a bit fat in the belly.

Also I have 2 boys, one about 10cm the other about 6cm (at least i think he is a he, just has a small bristle on either side of his head), will they be OK together once one is in charge of the eggs?

The BN's are in a 65 (?) litre communtiy tank with neons, guppies and platies.

[Steves Killies]

Hi Whiskas,

one sign that she may be holding eggs is if her stomach is getting slowly larger, like you have said. If you get a chance to view her underbelly when she is on the side of the tank(this always works for me),you could shine a small torch on her belly( between her pectoral fins and her vent)and it may appear an orange colour.If so, those will be eggs.when they arnt pregnant the belly just appears a normal white/brown colour and she wont be as fat.

Also you may be able to notice the males "cleaning" an area that is suitable for her to lay eggs. bamboo or pieces of Driftwood that has a cave are good ones. She will be lured to this area by the male,who will then leave her closely guarded, to lay the eggs.Then he will return to fan them. They take about 3-4 days to hatch. The large male will defend the eggs quite well so it should be ok to have another male in there,another female would be better though.

You can try different things too, such as adding an airstone into the tank,which may simulate more rain-increased o2. Thats how mine first bred,when my filter broke so i put an airstone in the tank and a week later,baby fry galore,about 140 i think.

They will be ok with the other fish species so long as there is cover for the baby bn.

Hope this helps,good luck,once they start they dont seem to stop