oh my god it's a boy or girl....!!!!

[truttle]

Well I?ll be buggered?.

I am now in need of your guy?s help and advice more then I have ever been.
I looked into my tank today and saw what I thought was a bit a dirt or something on the inside of the tank, so went to wipe it away, when it moved.

I bent down to look at it and bugger me?.

It?s a baby bristle-nose?

So now I know why my two have been in hiding and not out as much as they where before.
I have only seen the one so far, but even if he/she doesn?t make it, I now know that my two can ?get it on? and will breed.

So I am left with a couple of interesting questions?

1. What does a baby bristle-nose eat?

2. I am about to change the carbon filter in my bio-wheel will it hurt him/her?

3. I am going on holiday in two days and am setting up the auto feeder to do
it?s thing, will the baby get some or should I put in some stuff just for him,
and what?

4. the wife has brought a betta fish (male) will he get on with them?, seems
ok so far.

5. What do I have to be careful of now?


Bloody hell I am a dad?.

Help..


Stu.

[truttle]

Ok, here?s question number 6.

Is it normal for the female to lay on her back under a piece of wood??????

She?s not even hanging on she?s just laying there, moving now and then?.

Now I am worried, I have also counted 6 babies.

Help guy?s I don?t want to lose any of them?.

She looks big in the tummy as well????

[Barbie]

My male bristlenose sleeps on his back regularly at the door to his spawning cave. I haven't seen the female doing this, but I'd definitely not panic. It used to scare me also, but it seems to be normal.

Go ahead and change the filter cartridge in your filter. You might buy a piece of romaine lettuce before you leave for vacation and stick it in the freezer for 15 minutes, then weight it down by rubberbanding it to a rock, or weaving a butter knife through it, to keep food in the tank for the babies at all times. The biggest problem I have with my albino bristlenose is keeping enough food in the tank for them without fouling the water.

You may have some predation of the babies with other fish in there, but a betta will probably ignore them. I do regular 30% water changes at least once, if not twice a week on my bristlenose tank, depending on how many fry I have in it at the time.

Hope that helps

Barbie

[Steen]

Nice to know that others have vitnessed their pleco's "sleeping"/resting on their backs too, I have been a little nervous vhen i first saw it, my ancistrus are doing it as well as my Bary's (L177).

[Pectorale]

My male Ancistrus temmincki usually rests upside down in it's cave too, he's a real acrobat anyway, watching it eat cucumber is like watching a contorionists show.

Pectorale.