Breeding spoonface whiptaiks?

[Phoenix.L]

The breeding reports for planiloricaria cryptodon kind of leave something to be desired in the way of information.
I think these are just awesome looking fish and I have been playing with the idea of purchasing a male/female pair. I have pretty much decided to do it now that I have set up another 75 gallon tank with an environment that happens to be perfect for these guys.
If they never spawned for me I would still have 2 really cool whiptails…. But as a breeder I obviously would prefer that they do spawn for me.
If anybody has experience with these fish specifically an would like to chime in that would be cool.
Thanks!

[bekateen]

Hi Phoenix.L,

Often times there is more information in the forums than in the BLOGs. Have you tried a search of the forums? Here are some results I found, just searching for "cryptodon."

search.php?keywords=cryptodon&terms=all ... mit=Search

There's a lot there, both about keeping and some about breeding. Hopefully you find something helpful.

Good luck with them if you get them!

Cheers, Eric

[aquaholic]

It's extremely difficult to breed with a single pair, especially if one dies. I suggest you start with six or ten fish in a species only tank. Hopefully 6 males and 4 females.

You will have even better odds with a second tank containing 6 males and 4 females too.

And even higher probability of spawning with a third tank...

I speak from experience breeding a lot of different species.

[Bas Pels]

Groups always do better.

In some species males need competition in order to even try. In others, the group helps the fishes to feel at home

In a tank, we always select on the ability to adapt to life in a tank. Some do better than others, and if you start with more, chances are much better you have a male and female which accept your tank enough to breed.

Obviously if the fish are rather large, keeping a group will become a problem, but that is not the issue here.