Characodon pregnancy and fry care questions

[Giggletons]

Hi all, I've just got my hands on some characodon lateralis "los berros" from Mexico - they're pretty rare, so I'm excited. One of the females looks pregnant, and I'm looking for some advice on how to care for the fry when they arrive. @Emeraldsea, I came across your website and saw that you have some experience with characodon - would you be able to offer some guidance?

Is it a good idea to move the female to a separate breeding tank for her to give birth?
Also, I have a few more questions:
Will the characodon fry be able to coexist with guppy fry? The adults can be pretty aggressive, so I'm not sure if that's a good idea.

[Emeraldsea]

Hi all, I've just got my hands on some characodon lateralis "los berros" from Mexico - they're pretty rare, so I'm excited. One of the females looks pregnant, and I'm looking for some advice on how to care for the fry when they arrive. @Emeraldsea, I came across your website and saw that you have some experience with characodon - would you be able to offer some guidance?

Is it a good idea to move the female to a separate breeding tank for her to give birth?
Also, I have a few more questions:
Will the characodon fry be able to coexist with guppy fry? The adults can be pretty aggressive, so I'm not sure if that's a good idea.

In my experience, Characodon lateralis abandon their young, a common trait among goodeids. As for feeding, it's essential to wait until they've absorbed their trophotaneniae. If you plan to keep the C.lateralis fry with guppy fry, that's fine initially. However, once the guppies develop larger fins, I'd recommend separating them to prevent fin nipping. Although C.lateralis are considered one of the more peaceful goodeid species, they can still be fin-nippy towards others.

[Giggletons]

Giggletons said:

Thanks for the info Emeraldsea. That's helpful to know. So in my case, separating the female into a breeding tank would be a good idea, I assume? I have rasboras in the tank and I'm worried they might see the fry as a snack. I'd rather not take any chances.

[Shark]

Characodon lateralis don't always leave their newborn young alone, in my experience. For best results, I'd recommend moving the female to a well-planted tank - this seems to promote a more peaceful environment. The brood size can vary, but expect between 7 and 15, occasionally up to 20 fry. If you notice the trophotaneniae is still attached to the newborn baby goodeids, it's usually a sign that the fry have not long been born - this usually drops off after 2-3 hours. As a general rule, I'd advise against feeding the fry within the first 24 hours.

[Emeraldsea]

Hi all, I've just got my hands on some characodon lateralis "los berros" from Mexico - they're pretty rare, so I'm excited. One of the females looks pregnant, and I'm looking for some advice on how to care for the fry when they arrive. @Emeraldsea, I came across your website and saw that you have some experience with characodon - would you be able to offer some guidance?

Is it a good idea to move the female to a separate breeding tank for her to give birth?
Also, I have a few more questions:
Will the characodon fry be able to coexist with guppy fry? The adults can be pretty aggressive, so I'm not sure if that's a good idea.

You can definitely separate the female into a breeding tank for her to give birth, I think that's a great idea considering you have rasboras in the main tank that might eat the fry.

[Emeraldsea]

Characodon lateralis don't always leave their newborn young alone, in my experience. For best results, I'd recommend moving the female to a well-planted tank - this seems to promote a more peaceful environment. The brood size can vary, but expect between 7 and 15, occasionally up to 20 fry. If you notice the trophotaneniae is still attached to the newborn baby goodeids, it's usually a sign that the fry have not long been born - this usually drops off after 2-3 hours. As a general rule, I'd advise against feeding the fry within the first 24 hours.

I've had a great experience with my Characodon lateralis being friendly towards their fry, it's been that way for years now.

[Giggletons]

Characodon lateralis don't always leave their newborn young alone, in my experience. For best results, I'd recommend moving the female to a well-planted tank - this seems to promote a more peaceful environment. The brood size can vary, but expect between 7 and 15, occasionally up to 20 fry. If you notice the trophotaneniae is still attached to the newborn baby goodeids, it's usually a sign that the fry have not long been born - this usually drops off after 2-3 hours. As a general rule, I'd advise against feeding the fry within the first 24 hours.

I've set up a breeding tank with just a few guppy fry, and moved the female in - hopefully she'll give birth soon and I can relocate her afterwards.

[Giggletons]

Hi all, I've just got my hands on some characodon lateralis "los berros" from Mexico - they're pretty rare, so I'm excited. One of the females looks pregnant, and I'm looking for some advice on how to care for the fry when they arrive. @Emeraldsea, I came across your website and saw that you have some experience with characodon - would you be able to offer some guidance?

Is it a good idea to move the female to a separate breeding tank for her to give birth?
Also, I have a few more questions:
Will the characodon fry be able to coexist with guppy fry? The adults can be pretty aggressive, so I'm not sure if that's a good idea.

In my experience, Characodon lateralis abandon their young, a common trait among goodeids. As for feeding, it's essential to wait until they've absorbed their trophotaneniae. If you plan to keep the C.lateralis fry with guppy fry, that's fine initially. However, once the guppies develop larger fins, I'd recommend separating them to prevent fin nipping. Although C.lateralis are considered one of the more peaceful goodeid species, they can still be fin-nippy towards others.

I'm glad I could help out. There are now 3-4 characodon babies in the small tank, they're quite large, similar in size to guppy fry that are a month old.