Angel fish breeding question?

Question

I was told that Angel fish would not spawn on anything but a piece of slate that has to be at a 45 degree angle within the tank. However, I have noticed that my pair of Angels have laid eggs on the tube of my filter intake. Now the parents are eating the eggs off the tube. Will they spawn again, and should I put a piece of slate in the tank for them to lay eggs on? Also, it is common for Angel fish to egg their eggs? They are very protective of the eggs against my other fish within the tank, however, they are eating the eggs themselves. Thanks in advance for your help.

Answer 1

It is recommended you have a piece of slate but they will spawn on anything convenient. Such as tube intakes, the actual filter, broad leafed plants, flat surfaces, side of the glass, etc. Anything big enough to hold a clutch of eggs. Mine have always bred on Amazon Sword plants (fake) and they have once on the outside of a filter.



Typically it is said that Angels only breed if they are happy. They don't always have to be happy to breed, such as mine. Once I took my Angels out to clean their tank, and they spawned on the side of the holding tank I had for them. It was a 10 gallon.. Mine seem to do it on everything, and any time. So it really depends on the Angels you have.



Also, have these Angels just paired off? Newly paired Angels usually always eat their eggs due to being nervous, or they aren't sure what to do, because they're still learning. Some Angels will even just eat their eggs because they don't like the way things are going. Mine have done this. If the Angel pair isn't a "strong" pair, or have a strong bond, one or the other will end up eating the eggs. It just happens and there's nothing you can really do about that. Over the years of Angel fish breeding, people have made some Angelfish lines less caring for their brood. They will lay them and protect, but end up eating them. In these cases, you will have to take the babies out, and raise them.



All Angelfish are protective of their young, and it is good that they are doing that. When my Angelfish pair started out, they would protect and then as soon as the babies hatched, eat them. I learned they just didn't know what they were doing. After a few more tries they started getting the hang of caring for the babies themselves. The last brood they had survived for a couple weeks, but died suddenly when our power went out during a storm. It just takes some time for them to learn what to do. Feed them a highly nutritious diet (and especially Bloodworms) make sure you have an air pump in the tank for the fry, that way a lot of oxygen gets around in the water.



If you want though, you can try raising the fry yourself. Most people put them in a heated jar with an airstone, but I put mine in a breeding box (in the parents tank, they protected the box) with an airstone, and regularly added methane blue to stop any fungus/bacteria from killing them. After they are free swimming, you need to feed them Baby Brine Shrimp. The shrimp moving initiates them to eat, therefore they won't eat anything else until they get bigger.



I know how it it is and it can be frustrating sometimes (it was for me) but it takes a lot of patience having the parents raise the fry and some pair aren't equip for it. Good luck! Hopefully your Angels produce a successful spawn!

Answer 2

I think they "prefer" the surface of a slate rock for the spawn, but a mated pair of angels will get themselves busy anywhere they can. Mine have laid eggs on the intake tube twice, and I have slate in my tank. I've also heard of them spawning on broad-leaf plants, like Amazon swords. I think it's just whatever's most convenient for them really. The breeding literature I've seen always suggests having a flat slate rock in the tank because it's the easiest way to remove the eggs from the tank for raising the fry separately- you just pick up the slate and take the whole batch right out with it.



Yes to the second part - it's very common for angels to eat their eggs. As I've said, mine have spawned twice now, and both times they've eaten all the eggs in a matter of hours. I've read about angelfish being really bad parents. It's funny they still "guard" their eggs though, which mine have done as well. I guess they still consider it their "territory."



What I'd suggest for you, and what I might do next time: separate the eggs from the parents and try raising them in a separate breeding tank. Might take some patience, but if just one or two survive out of the whole lot it might still be worth the effort.



Good luck.



- Chris

Answer 3

Angel fish wont just spawn on slate when i first started out some of mine spawned on the out let pipe to my filter and yes they will eat the eggs i remove mine to stop this from happening i do have some Angelfish that do not eat the eggs but i just take the eggs out and put them in a breeding tank which is 20 gallons