How to Breed Characins

Characins encompass several types of freshwater fish, including hatchets, silver dollars and tetras. All of these species breed in a similar fashion and need little encouragement. But, like many fish, characins are prone to eating both their eggs and their offspring. This makes some intervention necessary to ensure that the offspring thrive. With some special care, the fry (hatchling fish) can make it to adulthood.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Three Freshwater Tanks
• Three Water Filters
• Three Aeration Pumps
• Aquarium Gravel
• Aquarium Thermometer
• Aquatic Plants
• Male Characins
• Female Characins
• Flake Food
• Infusoria

1. Start with two tanks. Once tank should house the male or males and the other should house the females. Keep the males and females separate for awhile and feed each of them live food. Once they have had a steady diet of live food they will be ready to mate.

2. Put the males together with the females. The tank that you will use for breeding should be at least five gallons in size and should have plenty of plants. Characins will seek out dense vegetation to deposit their eggs and sperm. Without the plants, the characins may not deposit either.

3. Keep the temperature in the tank at 78 degrees. This will give the characins the right temperature for breeding.

4. Continue to feed the males and females live food once they are in the breeding tank. Once the eggs are dropped and the males have had time to fertilize them, about two days, the adult fish should be taken out again. Even with dense vegetation the parents may find the eggs and eat them. Once the eggs are fertilized, they should hatch within 36 hours.

5. Feed the characin fry infusoria for the first month. These are tiny creatures that are often found in ponds. After the first month, the fry will be big enough for live brine shrimp. After two to three months, the characin fry should be large enough to be housed with the adult characins.

Tips & Warnings

• Infusoria can be cultured at home to make the perfect fish food for young characins. To get infusoria, start with about a gallon of water and two large lettuce leaves. Tear up the lettuce and put it into a large tub that will hold at least 11 gallons. Boil the water and pour it over the lettuce and let it cool overnight. Then, pour about 10 gallons of water over the cooled mixture and allow the tub to sit for two weeks. The result will be a tub full of infusoria ready to be fed to the fry.