I'm very excited. We got a fish tank as a Christmas present for the family about four years ago. Since then, we have had a lot of fun with various aquatic life... Fish, snails, a few crabs... Would you like to see?
It's really prettier in person. We have some cute decorations, and some pretty silk and plastic plants inside. I have been practicing taking photographs of the tank and the fish now and then. Fish are hard to photograph, you know? They move fast and there is a lot to learn about the lighting.
Sooo... Last Christmas, my friend Angie gave us some of her Dad's guppies. We hadn't had guppies before. I heard that they were easy to breed, and that sounded fun. So started my adventure.
Let me tell you that I have done a lot of Internet reading about tank conditions and etc. to make the fish breed. Now let me be honest... Our tank is "established" meaning that we have had it for a long time, with the same fish and plants in it for years. I don't remember the last time that I did anything fancy like checking the pH. We keep it at a pretty constant 78-82 degrees. It is filtered and aerated nicely, and we rarely clean it. Aside from the guppies, we have the same tetras, algae eaters and mollies in it that have lived there for 4 years. The guppies started breeding as soon as we added them to the tank. I noticed the females having babies a few times, but the other fish would quickly eat them up. :( Sad day! Our plants weren't sufficient hiding places for them to get big enough to survive.
A few weeks ago, I added this isolation tank to the corner of our little fishy home. It wasn't long before one of our two female guppies started looking pregnant again. I decided to move her to the isolation tank today, because she started looking "close" and I didn't want to miss the birth again.
Here is Momma fish. The dark spot on her belly is the babies inside. This female is pretty translucent. You can even see the individual eggs inside of her. Each one has a tiny black dot. I wonder how many babies she has inside!!
Here is a video I made of the Momma fish. The other two guppies that you can see are very colorful and animated. They are both males. They are much smaller than she is. I love their bright colors and spots! I am hoping for more pretty male babies to add to the tank. I have also noticed that the males really chase after the females when their birthing time is close. Even now that she is isolated, they are right outside her little holding tank, giving her grief. Silly boys!
Here is another great shot of the Momma fish, and you can see the eggs really well. There is the tail of one of the males, right outside the isolation tank. I have been feeding her the usual flakes and a dried meal worm now and then. Just like any other pregnant momma, she seems hungrier than usual and eats a lot. At this stage, she doesn't seem to mind being separated from the other fish too much. It actually seems like a bit of a relief to me to have her in the separate tank so that she isn't getting chased around so much.
So! We are hoping for babies, probably by the weekend. I am hoping to catch some of this little miracle on film. It's so much fun! Thanks for stopping by, I will update as soon as something exciting happens. Let's have a baby guppy shower! :)
It's really prettier in person. We have some cute decorations, and some pretty silk and plastic plants inside. I have been practicing taking photographs of the tank and the fish now and then. Fish are hard to photograph, you know? They move fast and there is a lot to learn about the lighting.
Sooo... Last Christmas, my friend Angie gave us some of her Dad's guppies. We hadn't had guppies before. I heard that they were easy to breed, and that sounded fun. So started my adventure.
Let me tell you that I have done a lot of Internet reading about tank conditions and etc. to make the fish breed. Now let me be honest... Our tank is "established" meaning that we have had it for a long time, with the same fish and plants in it for years. I don't remember the last time that I did anything fancy like checking the pH. We keep it at a pretty constant 78-82 degrees. It is filtered and aerated nicely, and we rarely clean it. Aside from the guppies, we have the same tetras, algae eaters and mollies in it that have lived there for 4 years. The guppies started breeding as soon as we added them to the tank. I noticed the females having babies a few times, but the other fish would quickly eat them up. :( Sad day! Our plants weren't sufficient hiding places for them to get big enough to survive.
A few weeks ago, I added this isolation tank to the corner of our little fishy home. It wasn't long before one of our two female guppies started looking pregnant again. I decided to move her to the isolation tank today, because she started looking "close" and I didn't want to miss the birth again.
Here is Momma fish. The dark spot on her belly is the babies inside. This female is pretty translucent. You can even see the individual eggs inside of her. Each one has a tiny black dot. I wonder how many babies she has inside!!
Here is a video I made of the Momma fish. The other two guppies that you can see are very colorful and animated. They are both males. They are much smaller than she is. I love their bright colors and spots! I am hoping for more pretty male babies to add to the tank. I have also noticed that the males really chase after the females when their birthing time is close. Even now that she is isolated, they are right outside her little holding tank, giving her grief. Silly boys!
Here is another great shot of the Momma fish, and you can see the eggs really well. There is the tail of one of the males, right outside the isolation tank. I have been feeding her the usual flakes and a dried meal worm now and then. Just like any other pregnant momma, she seems hungrier than usual and eats a lot. At this stage, she doesn't seem to mind being separated from the other fish too much. It actually seems like a bit of a relief to me to have her in the separate tank so that she isn't getting chased around so much.
So! We are hoping for babies, probably by the weekend. I am hoping to catch some of this little miracle on film. It's so much fun! Thanks for stopping by, I will update as soon as something exciting happens. Let's have a baby guppy shower! :)
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