Missing Babies

[Photoman]

Hi I have a 10 gal tank. The tank has 5 rice fish, platy,2 small cory cats. When my Bristal Nose Plecos has babies I put them in this tank. Figuring the tank mates are small and the babies are pretty big when born. The babies cling to the glass. I had 20 BNP babies. I am down to 2 all within 3 weeks time. The platy is around 3/4 anchorice fish are 3/4 inch and the cats are 1 1/2 inch. The babies are 3/8 inch. I want to be prepared when the adults have babies again. Which fish is the baby eater? I had all those fish in there to keep a bio load on the tank. I bought small fish just for this reason. To keep babies. I thought these fish would leave them alone because of size.

[Crazygar]

I'm putting $$ on the Platy. Then again as well, if the food supply is low in the tank, the babies will die off quickly as they have nothing to eat. Try rearing the babies separate of the main tank to see if this changed the mortality rate.

Gary

[Diana]

I would get another rearing tank.
Keep a lot more food available to them, and keep on cleaning it out often.

Foods to try include pretty much all the vegetables we eat. Steam the hardest ones (pumpkin, butternut squash, yams) until barely tender, not too soft or they will fall apart in the tank. Blanch the fairly tender vegetables like kale, spinach, zucchini. Offer the softest ones (cucumber for example) raw. Frozen vegetables should simply be defrosted.
There are some fairly new gel foods that might be good, too.

Favorites in my tanks include peas, the inner stem of broccoli, and green beans sliced lengthwise to expose the tender inside.
The fish did not seem to like carrots.

[Photoman]

Thanks CrazyGAr and Diana: I think you are both right. Panty will be put in a different tank. As for another tank. I ran out of room. So I'll keep the ten gal strickly as babies. I have been feeding the babies small bits of pleco food and cucumber. I heard but never seen gel food. I check that out. Thanks to both.

[ballpc]

A bare bottom 10 gallon is perfect for baby plecos. Mine really go for the Repashy Solient Green gel food.....



https://youtu.be/vCZFquCZ6tA

https://youtu.be/HED0zHW4Hvk

Best of luck with your next batch!

Dennis