"Less Strains" Going On

I started to put my plans into action. Doing the transition is quite tricky but I know I'll get there. I can not really follow the list I have written down but I will get there when I am able to out/sell/give away my excess fish.

Here are the steps I have taken so far.
1. Combined spawns of different strains and different fish. Here's how I do it.
2. I separated the females of my choice to my 20gal tanks and those that I will no longer use are kept in my 100gal tanks.
3. As much as possible, I empty tanks that are adjacent. These
4. I started labeling tanks. I have labeled the tanks that I will use to raise my bettas and guppies because these are just the tanks that are segregated.
5. For some gut feeling, I segregated two pairs of Scalare breeders and placed a pair each with my female community tanks.

Next on the agenda: Fixing the leaks of the dividers.
I use tanks that have dividers and some of them have leaks. Both sides level out but the problem is, they are not flexible this way. So, I drained them. I dried them up and wiped clean. I will be sealing with silicon in 2-3 days.

The Pearlscale Betta

When we say Pearlscale, the round golf ball-like Goldfish with protruding scales comes into mind. You ask people to think some more, people then think of Angelfish, or Scalare. But, I now want bettas to come into mind when we say Pearlscale.

What is pearlscale? It is the characteristic protruding of the scales. the scales are not necessarily round as the Goldfish version. The betta pearlscale is more similar to the Scalare version. The scales appear to be more like diamonds (so maybe it should be Diamondscale). However, the Scalare pearlscale has a rather random pattern. The betta pearlscale is diamond-shaped and is arranged in parallel rows of scales. But, one problem of the line is the appearance of "wrinkles". Wrinkles are defects that makes the scales look like they were twisted. This has been almost eliminated by choosing my breeders without the wrinkling. The pearlscale pattern is not yet as prominent as I would like them to be and I will be breeding for more pearlscale expression.

I have been working on the line for a year now. I got my initial broodstock from a fellow breeder who had these fish popping out of his grow-outs. He didn't really care about them much but I talked to him about developing the line together. He agreed and stopped ignoring those fish. However, his pearlscale line has crashed and is still to be revived. Here are some pictures of the pearlscales I have bred.

EESDA Guppy Breeding

Guppies are live-bearing fish and are one of the easiest fish to breed. Because of their ease, their population can easily boom. Here are just the methods I use in breeding my guppies. Males and females are easily told apart. Males are more colorful. They also have smaller bodies and bigger fins. The females have bigger bodies, shorter fins and duller than the males. The females also have a more rounded body compared to the males.

1. Prepare a trio or a quad of guppy breeders. Male to female ratio is 1:2 or 1:3. Just place them in a tank with plants for fry's hiding places. Take care of them as you would as other fish and wait for them to give birth. Female guppies can give birth 6 times using the sperm from one mating.

2. When the fry are born, I do not remove them unless they are being eaten. If plant cover is sufficient, eating will not be a problem. I give the fry baby brine shrimp at first but they are also big enough to be given daphnia.

3. When I can discern the males from the females, I remove only a handful of females (6-10pcs). You can also choose to remove all of them but it is not necessary. This is important to keep them virgin so they will be flexible for future use because you know which male mated with them. You can identify females by the black spot at the back of their bellies. The pointed anal fin of the male (or the gonopodium) is not yet developed so anal fin shape will not be an effective tool.

4. Raise the main spawn group and selected females separately. When they reach about half an inch long, adult food can be given. No need to crush the food. The water will soften those up for the fry.

5. When you see your potential breeders, separate them and prepare for another generation.

The challenge with guppies is that they can easily boom. So be prepared with what to do with your excess fish. Well, you can sell them if you have enough space to raise a lot of fry to sell. If not, you can also opt to use them as feeders to carnivorous fish or turtles.

UPDATE (11/04/2013)
Here are some tips!

1. Choose a fry tank that is not too wide. Position it so you that you face the "short breadth" of the tank.
2. When your guppies give birth, catch all fry and move them to the fry tank. Grow them out together.
3. Every time you feed look for males. Catch them and transfer them to another tank. I put my juvenile males along with the adult males in the community tank.
4. You can now choose your potential breeders!

Good luck on your guppy breeding!

EESDA Betta Breeding

To start off, I think I should identify with sexing bettas. Some might think that plakat (short fin) males are females. To prevent you from putting two males together and end up with massacre, I am going to give some tips to identify if your "female" is really a she.
1. ovipositor: this is a small salt-looking organ behind her belly, before the anal fin. Be warned though because some chubby males have a similar looking thing on some occasions.
2. triangular belly: the belly of a female is more of a triangular swelling compared to a stuffed male's round belly. Looking from above, the female is wider and still has a triangular outline. If you look at a male from above, the belly is circular and round while the rest of the body is streamlined.
3. generally short fins: female bettas have short fins, even shorter than plakat males. However, I have seen long-finned females lately.


Now, here are simple steps I do to breed my bettas:

1. Prepare a barebottomed 2.5gal tank*. Place a few live plants and a piece of styrofoam for a bubblenest anchor.

*I have spawned in bigger tanks (10gal+) and with a fine substrate but not quite as fine as sand.

Here are more common set-ups.

2. Add the conditioned male and female. Some would use a chimney to separate the pair first but I have long stopped using those. Just let them be together.

3. Wait. Check the pair occasionally to make sure that none get too hurt. Although the wife-beating is part of betta love, there is a point where a female betta is too abused. The breeder must use his personal discretion.

4. After 2 days to a week, the bettas would have spawned already. The spawning process involves the female approaching the male's bubblenest in a bowing, submissive way. The male tries to flip the female and wrap his body around her. The female will release her eggs and the male will fertilize them.
At this point, you will have eggs. Betta eggs look like small pieces of salt hanging on the bubblenest. Remove the female. The male will kill her if you don't. Trust me. I tried.

5. Wait. After 24-48 hours, the eggs would have hatched and you will have fry hanging vertically. Just let them be. Wait again.

6. 2-3 days from hatching, the fry will be free swimming. You can remove the male at this point or opt to keep him with the fry as this method in these links:
http://www.bettysplendens.com/articles/page.imp?articleid=809
http://www.bettysplendens.com/articles/page.imp?articleid=839

7. If you opt to remove the male, use a coarse net to avoid taking any fry. When you catch the male, do not remove him immediately. Just dangle the net in the spawning tank for around 10 minutes. This will allow the male to spit out any fry in his mouth.


So there you have it. Betta breeding is easy. It might be tricky at the start but when you get the hang of it, it will be a breeze. Good luck on your spawns!

UPDATE (11/04/2013):
What I forgot to add in this post are tips!

1. Aggressive breeder = more volume, example: add water to a half-filled tank
2. "Too Battered" breeder = depends on you...if you think they will spawn, add more water; but if you think otherwise, scratch the pair
3. "Not Aggressive Enough" breeder = less volume, example: drain water to half level
4. Short-finned male = more volume
5. Long-finned male = less volume
6. Female is larger than male = more volume
7. Male is much larger than female = more volume
8. No bubblenest = normally, I let the pair be...this type of male builds a small one after he squeezes the female; but other times, I scratch the pair
9. Female is not moving anymore = separate the female, out of other fish's sight...if she swims fine/properly/upright, put her back in; but if she doesn't, scratch the pair
10. Judgement and gut feel and intuition = breeders develop some kind of instinct as they breed more fish; trust your self!

EESDA Angelfish Breeding

Before we start, we should identify a male and a female scalare.
Most would buy around 6 juveniles [or even more] and let them pair off at maturity. This is a viable strategy and you will surely end up with a pair. However, I have had an experience where two females paired. I found out eventually because both laid eggs. On the other hand, if you are like me, I choose adults and hope they are the sex I think they are. I also choose from sub-adults of my grow-outs to sort them. Most of the time, I am correct at my guesses but it is not a perfect science.
I use this webpage as my guide: http://fish-info000.blogspot.com/2011/05/difference-between-male-and-female.html The sketch is really helpful.

But here are the criteria I have for male and female scalare. I ranked it to from the most reliable to the least reliable but still usable.
Male:
1. a pointed and thin tube near the anal fin
2. round body
3. hump on the forehead
4. splits on the ventrals
Female:
1. broad tube near the anal fin
2. "diamond" or box-ish body
3. round belly especially obvious at the front view
4. smooth ventrals


Here are the steps in breeding my angelfish (scalare):

1. Clean a tank. I use a 18" x 18" x 12" tank without aeration or anything. It has a bare bottom too.

2. Place 2 clay slates inside. One on the left and one on the right.

3. Place breeders. I keep my males and females separate. I just put them together when breeding.

4. Wait for them to lay eggs.

5. [The pair has laid eggs] Wait for eggs to hatch

6. When the eggs hatch, remove the parents.

7. Slide the slate some more to make it less steep. Put something to prevent it from sliding all the way flat.

8. Wait for the fry to go free swimming (around 5 days from hatching).

9. When fry are free swimming, feed with baby brine shrimp twice or even thrice daily.

10. As the fry grow, increase water level until full. Once full, do 50% water change once/twice a week.


Perhaps, the challenge with scalare are first time parents. Because of their inexperience, they might not fan the eggs enough and some are stressed so much that they eat the eggs. But, there are still times where first time parents are fantastic and successful. There is not really much we can do with first time parents. That just what they are, first timers. All we can do is be patient and give them another chance until they get it right.

Pictures:

This is the reason for the two slates. The slate on the left is where the eggs were laid. The parents are transferring the newly hatched fry to the slate on the right.

This is a sample of the slate. I lower the water level too. This makes the fry more confident to explore the tank and also make it easier for them to find food. 

These are the fry attached to the slate.

And if you want to find out what your breeders will produce, you can try this genetic calculator. It gives you the possible results and also the percentage of those possible results will pop out. It is really helpful when you're aiming for some purebred line.

Less Strains, Less Strain

It's been a while since I last posted. I've been busy with the fishroom then not busy [got sick]. During my sick days, I started to think how complicated it is to maintain a lot of lines. My dreams of getting a really large farm for my fish has faded because it can only come later. I now just want to maximize the tanks I have so far.

Here's a breakdown of my tanks:
3pcs 100gal tanks
3pcs 20gal tanks
4pcs 35gal tanks
8pcs 18"x18"x12"
30pcs 12"x18"x12"
1pc 36"x18"x12"
1pc concrete pond (around 55-70gal)
16pcs 4"x6"x8"


Here's what I'll use them for:
16pcs 4"x6"x8" = Male Individual Tanks: These tanks will be used as they are.

4pcs 35gal = Female Betta Community Tanks: I will have one tank for the form betta lines I will maintain. Formwise, most of the fishes will be halfmoon plakats (HMPK) carrying doubletail (dt). The offspring will be a mix of singletail (st) and dt fish. I will have one specific form line, CTPK. At first, I really segregated and diversified my lines numbering to more than fifteen. I decided that I should integrate some lines together.
1. Copper-based Line = Copper + Platinum + Pastel + Grizzle + Marble
Since my Marbles have red, I might inject some red loss genes or maybe even yellow. I have a copper-based spawn that produced no red in the offspring. The lineage is:
Copper DTPK x Copper DTPK             Copper DTPK x Red HM
               Copper Marble DTPK      x     Multicolor SD                    (half-sibling cross, same father)
                         Green marbled, no red expressed
2. Bicolor/Butterfly Line = Copper Red + Copper Orange + Copper Yellow + Platinum Red + Platinum Orange + Platinum Yellow + Cambodian + Butterfly + Blue Black Lace
I will be producing red/black butterfly bettas. To further integrate my lines, instead of using the red gene to produce the red color in my lines, I will use a combination of nr1 (yellow) and nr2 (orange) genes. A fish with nr1 and nr2 does not produce yellow nor orange but it produces red. Crossing two of these nr1nr2 fish will produce 25% yellow, 25% orange and 50% red in the offspring. I have all three colors in one combination.

For Lines 3 and 4, I do not really care about the color but am focusing on form. I will be solidifying the Pearlscale body and CTPK form.
3. Pearlscale Line = I just combined the different pearlscale lines I have = Copper + Marble + Platinum Red
Actually, these lines are very related. I have actually one male that started as a Copper but Marble-d out and now he is a Platinum Red. It's like magic.
4. Crowntail Plakat (CTPK) Line = CTPK line, any color/pattern
For this line, I specified "any color/pattern" because I want to fix the form. Currently, the colors of my CTPK are iridescent and metallic. However, if I see a CTPK with a really good form in the future, I will try to get it and if I do, I will not hesitate to breed it no matter what color it may be.

However, I do not intend to rigidly and strictly implement these divisions. I would like to keep my options open. I recently noticed a broad-dorsal female from my F2 CTPK line and that would perfectly match the broad-dorsal (almost sailfin) HMPK I have. I will not hesitate to cross them. Development could be hastened this way.

The Orange Betta and My Thoughts

Here are my thoughts about the expression of orange in bettas.

Before...

I believed of three genes in expressing red and its variations (yellow, orange)

NR - red, dominant* (this is just a representative of the "normal" red color)

nr1 - yellow, recessive**

nr2 - orange, recessive** as well

*dominant = only needs one gene to be expressed; it takes over the recessive gene

**recessive = needs two genes to be expressed

Therefore, doing a punnet square of nr1nr1 x nr2nr2 would yield 100% nr1nr2

Here's a little guide to genetics: http://bettaterritory.nl/BT-AABtermgenetics.htm

Since both nr1 and nr2 are recessive and need two copies to be expressed, nr1nr2 fry will turn out to be red. My friend did a cross with yellow and orange fish, although he used bi-colors. True to my expectation, all the fish are red.

I got two fish from my friend for my own crosses. I did two crosses of his fish with my fish:

(1) Yellow x Red Dragon (my friend's)

nr1nr1 x nr1nr2 = 50% nr1nr1, 50% nr1nr2

(2) Red Dragon (my friend's) x  Red Dragon (carries nr1)

nr1nr2 x NRnr1 = 25% NRnr1, 25% NRnr2, 25% nr1nr1, 25% nr1nr2

However...

Aside from getting my expected mix of yellow and red, I got two orange fish in each spawn.

Theoretically, that would be impossible. How could the nr2 gene be expressed with just one copy?

I wonder what could other factors do in expressing orange. 

So, my hypothesis on orange now is that (1) it is not based on a single gene. Another friend noted that orange is highly recessive. So maybe, yes, another gene is being neglected. (2) Another possibility is the effect of some marble gene limited to only red and produce the orange color - a sort of cambodian gene for the entire red layer.

Another question to be raised is...will these "orange fish" breed true? That will be the ultimate test of their true genetics. I would do an F2 of each orange to a sibling. If they do produce orange fish, they are certainly orange.

On a side note, I will try these crosses with an orange fish I got.

(a) Orange x Red Dragon (my friend's; fish in cross #1)

(b) Orange x Red Dragon (my line; fish in cross #2)

But for now...
The idea of the nr2nr2 to produce orange still holds but I am still curious on what else is there...

UPDATE (11/03/2013):
So, I came back to answer...did those oranges breed true? Yes. I also added another trait. I saw an orange dalmatian VT (even when people would say it's a stupid decision) and crossed that to fish from my line. Then, the offspring are bred to the orange and nr1nr2 as well. The nr1nr2 cross yielded me with cambodian reds and platinum reds. The orange cross yielded this fish:

Here is the result. It's an orange dalmatian DTPK. The spots on the fins are from the orange dalmatian VT ancestor. Both the color and fins need work. The color is washed out and is very light. Most likely, it is the effect of the cambodian gene. The finnage needs more spread and branching especially the caudal. Still, this will be a worthy piece for my projects.

Tropical and 'Cold Water' Fishes Together?

It has been always told to keep tropical with tropical and to keep cold water with cold water. This is true and correct. However, there are some ways to go around this rule. One can keep tropical and cold water fish together in such a peaceful way. With this type of approach, the hobbyist have better variety on the contents of his fish tanks. Cold water fish like goldfish have been placed in planted tanks with no ill effect. Then, why not go a step further and put the goldfish in a tropical planted tank?

Assuming the hobbyist is already aware of the considerations in size, food and behavior; what else should he consider in order to keep these two different classifications of fish?

It is best to have fish that are both born and raised in the same country. Why? It is because both fish have adapted to the same climate and same waters which make it easier for them to go together. Similar parameters mean they can share the same aquarium.

If the optimal consideration above is not met, the fish hobbyist can opt to slowly acclimatize both to a common parameter then slowly adjust to a warmer temperature. It is better to keep fish in warmer temperature for them to be less likely prone to infections. Also, the cold water fish will be more active than in the usual cold water environment they used to be. However, since the fish are more active, the filter needs to level up and clean the additional waste created.

Here is a rough guide on slowly acclimatizing the fish:
1. Start of with using water from the same source (not only the same tap but also the same aging tub) during water changes.
2. Place the aquariums beside each other. This is unnecessary if the tanks share the same room.
3. Exchange the two tanks' waters. 2gal (less if the one or both tanks are less than 5gallons) every 15minutes and do this thrice every 2 days.
4. After 2-3 weeks, you can try joining the fish together. Add 1 fish first and observe. If the fish is doing well, then transfer the rest.

Raising Mixed Spawns

Having many fry and few tanks is a problem especially if the fry are not yet at the point where one can choose the best and cull the rest nor is it at the point where they can be sold or given away. Or maybe one just wants to make space for other fish and fry. One may resort to raising mixed spawns. It can be one of four cases:
Case 1. Same species, same strain just the different birth dates and/or parents
Case 2. Same species, different strains
Case 3. Different species
Case 4. Combinations of the other three cases.


Here are some tips and considerations:
Case 1. There is little to no chance of differentiating. Size is a clue but not always because there can be runts and shooters in the spawns thus obscuring any size differentiation. However, for genetics sake, keeping fry of the same parents together is recommended.

Bad Luck From The Survivors

A while back, I had difficulty raising my spawns. Thus, I end up with only one or two fry only. It is fairly recent (during the summer when it was not rainy yet) that I was able to increase the size of spawns.

Why "Bad Luck From The Survivors"? In bad conditions, there will only be less than a handful of fish or fry left. There is little chance that you can find a suitable pair especially with obviously one or two survivors. Also, the spawn could be huge but with a strike of bad luck, they are all males or all females. Although, this second incredibly unlucky scenario has a small chance of occurring but it still happens. Then, the continuation of the line is now a problem for the breeder.

Going on Holiday

Sometimes we can't avoid going out of town and of course, we can not bring any of our fishes, so here are

MY TEN COMMANDMENTS FOR VACATION

1) Get someone to feed your fish if (a) you'll be gone for more than a week and/or (b) you have eggs/fry.

2) Instruct that person face-to-face and provide a demonstration on feeding.


3) Label the tanks accordingly with what, how much and when to feed.

4) Give instruction on the preparation of these foods (e.g. hatching Baby Brine Shrimp (BBS), harvesting microworms (MW), catching mosquito larvae, etc.)

5) Pre-pack food to make it easier for the caretaker!

6) Make a manual. This will summarize everything you have taught about feeding, food preparation and everything else.

7) Do a water change (WC) a day or two before leaving.

8) Do not leave any aggressive fish pair together.

9) If parents are with eggs, leave them together. Don't if the parents won't show any parental care. If parents with fry, remove the parents. Fry have less likely to die than eggs to have fungus.

10) Provide a simple solution (fool-proof) to any problem that might arise while you are away. For example, WC in goldfish tank in case fish show difficulty breathing.

How Low Can You Go?

At one point in our fish-keeping hobby, we aimed for high-tech and almost completely automated tank while at the same time, housing so many colorful fish of many different species. Maybe, some are still dreaming of it to this point. It is easy to get these ideas of technology and fish-keeping in planted tanks. There is a lighting system, a filtration system, a CO2 diffusion system and of course, fish and plants. There are also some fancy sounding items like rain bar unit, gravel jet, undergravel filter, etc. It is so easy to plan this high end tank with all its high end components. But, it is also easy to go beyond a reasonable budget.

So, let us start trimming down the tank system. How low[-tech] can you go? Remove the rain bar unit, gravel jets, CO2 diffuser and every other fancy apparatus. What's left? All that remains is the lighting system, the filter (or maybe an aerator), gravel (and maybe some decor) the tank, water and the inhabitants. This is considered as the "basic" system. But, how low can you go? Remove the lighting system and also the filtration (or aeration). Using natural light is fine for most hobbyists. However, some would say that taking out the filter might be too much already.

The "below basic" system would include the tank, the water and the fish. The plants and gravel are other components that can be explored. The "Below Basic Tank" (BBT) is maintained like any other more equipped tank. Feed everyday. Water change weekly or on any other schedule the hobbyist desires. Remove algae. Everything is the same. However, there are some adjustments the aquarist must make for a BBT.

My Old Betta Drip System

This system is a few years old. DIY with what I have at home.

I revived it recently and changed the tanks used inside. Upgraded the 4"x4"x4" tanks to 4"x6"x8". Here is the link



top view

pump & sponge filter

pipe

drip to tank

Basically, this is how it works:
1. Pump brings water up the PVC pipe then distributed to the tanks with the air hose
2. Water overflows from the tanks and flows to the catch basin (bigger tank)
3. Water in the catch basin is filtered by the sponge as it is sucked in again by the pump

Fish Zone: difference between male and female angelfish

Fish Zone: difference between male and female angelfish

This helped me in finding breeders

New Goals in Breeding

GA Symmetrical HMPK x HM
GA Symmetrical HMPK x CT
GA Symmetrical HMPK x EESDA DTHMPK
EESDA DTHMPK x HM
EESDA DTHMPK x CT

GA = Gerry Antonio, I think he is the first to develop a stable Symmetrical HMPK line in the Philippines

My Betta Breeds

Copper Red HMPK male (descended from Copper Red PK-geno Delta and Copper HMPK)


Cellophane HMPK male (descended from Red Dragon x Marble)


Melano PK male (descended from Metallic Steel HMPK x Copper PK)


Grizzle HMPK male (brother to Cellophane)


 Metallic Steel HMPK male (brother to Melano)


Copper PK female (niece of Melano and Metallic Steel)



Black Lace HMPK male (sibling of Copper PK female)


Metallic Steel Blue Marble (sibling of Copper PK female)
This one has a really promising dorsal but I can't say that for the rest of the fins. This fish is related (albeit, very, very distantly) to my current Copper Line. I would say the line is really inclined to broad dorsals.

Here is a link to the new one: My Betta Breeds 2

BabyFishBreeder Mini-Farm

Outside


20gal tanks (top), 100gal tank (bottom)


100gal tank (top), Water Reservoirs (bottom)


100gal tank, community


Gold Marble Scalare female with eggs on the clay slate

 


Betta tanks