Kribensis Tank w. Breeding Pair

[Big Vine]

Despite the recent loss of my female krib, I am not giving up hope.
In fact, I've researched keeping/breeding kribensis, and I am now more determined than ever to do so successfully.


I need feedback from cichlid experts every step of the way, so please chime in with lots of advice/comments, and constructive criticisms.

The tank (10 gal.) as it stands right now.

Proposed alterations...
-thicken-up middle portion of tank with more foxtail and/or more of the brown plant that is located on the left side of the tank
-remove the grey cave on the right and replace it with another rock cave that is similar to the one by the skull


What are your thoughts?

Big Vine

 

[Orion]

Man sorry to hear about the female. But glad to see your not discouraged over it. Sometimes these things happen despite our best efforts.

The best way to get a pair is to get several, and let them pair up on their own. The biggest down side being that you have to figure out what to do with the extra's after you have a pair.

To me, the tank looks a little bare. They like lots of caves to choose from to hide in when they feel threatened. Clay flower pots work great for this, although the bright orange does look a bit unsightly. But I think you've got a good start!

 

[f8fan]

I have to agree - lots of caves and hiding places. Also - the more plants (fake or real) the better. The fry will swarm the plants picking at and feeding off the food that settles there, or algae or whatever it is.

Watching kribs raise their young is fascinating. I just noticed last night that my remaining two kribs I kept after my tank conversion have had babies! This is a second generation. (The parents are brother and sister... ) Watching them herd their 'lil posse of babies around the tank is so neat.

 

[Big Vine]

The best way to get a pair is to get several, and let them pair up on their own.

So you can't just buy 1 male and 1 female and assume they'll become a pair?


If that's the case, then how many should I get (keeping in mind the tank is only 10 gallons)?

How do I tell when they 'pair-up,' and how long does this usually take to occur?

The biggest down side being that you have to figure out what to do with the extra's after you have a pair.

Depending on just how many 'extras' there are, I will probably put them all in my 6.6 gallon tank, in which there are caves and hiding spots for Jerrica and her future offspring. They would fit the theme nicely.

I have to agree - lots of caves and hiding places. Also - the more plants (fake or real) the better. The fry will swarm the plants picking at and feeding off the food that settles there, or algae or whatever it is.

Excellent!
I will get more plants/caves in there prior to introducing any kribs.

I've moved the male krib into my 12 gal. platy tank, as outlined in my thread in the Disease section of the forum. The plan is to put some danios in there ASAP and see how they fare, then take it from there.

Watching kribs raise their young is fascinating. I just noticed last night that my remaining two kribs I kept after my tank conversion have had babies! This is a second generation. (The parents are brother and sister... ) Watching them herd their 'lil posse of babies around the tank is so neat.

This is a big part of the reason why I'm so determined to raise these guys! The whole idea of fish taking care of their offspring---and me being able to witness it---is totally fascinating!

Anyplace on the forum where I can see pics of your kribs and their babies, Kelly?


Thanks for the help, guys & gals.
Keep the suggestions coming! *thumbsups

Big Vine

 

[Lotus]

I'd take out the holey rock. That stuff raises pH and hardness most of the time.

 

[Lovingmytank]

Kribs are a cichlid that 9 times out of ten you can get away with throwing a female with any male and they will breed and pair off it doesn't take much so I personally would go out buy another female and then introduce the two into your planned breeding tank together to give her a chance to establish a territory.

When I bought my first pair the original male died in two weeks so I purchased another male and the problem wasn't getting them to pair it was getting them to stop breeding!

They are excellent parents and as Kelly stated when you eventually get babies they will thrive initially off of the algae from your plants and rocks it is truly fascinating to watch.

The one watch out with Kribs in my experience is they do need other fish to take out their aggression out on during breeding time this keeps both the female and male occupied with defending their babies together as opposed to fighting each other which can happen when the little one's arrive!

For info I kept mine with Tiger Barbs which were fast enough to get away from the kribs, my pair managed to successfully raise multiple broods of 30-50+ without the barbs eating the babies, they really are excellent parents!

 

[Big Vine]

Lovingmytank,

Your reply was very helpful. Thanks.
Do you happen to have any pics of your old krib setup? Were they in the same 20 gal. tank as what you currently have?

What about the apistos---are they in the same type of setup as the kribs were? I'd love to see pics if you happen to have any.

Based on what you said, I'll probably just go ahead and get one female and add her and the male back to the tank at the same time.

Oh...and I'll add some gold danios as dither fish before I add the kribs.


How long do they take to 'pair-up,' and what if they don't happen to do so?
Will they just harass each other to death for no apparent reason, or will they just keep ignoring each other and not breed?
(I'm not quite sure what to look for, although I've read that the females bellies will turn really red and she'll start displaying to let the male know she's ready...does that sound about right?)

I'd take out the holey rock. That stuff raises pH and hardness most of the time.

Hmm...
I don't have tests to check hardness, but I know that my pH is 7.2
What is the optimal pH for krib breeding?

I've had that piece in previous tanks and it has had no effect on pH, so I think I'll stick with it. It should be fine since it isn't interfering with my pH, right?

It fits perfectly as a part of the cave structure I've set up, so I'd hate to have to dismantle it.

Thanks for the help.
Big Vine

 

[f8fan]

**EDIT** Sorry for the huge pic!
oh...you'll know when they have paired up and fallen in love. They will start to show off to each other, and the female will wiggle and vibrate all over the place wherever the male is to show she is one hot chick and she wants some lovin' They will start defending an area, a cave, or wherever they choose as the site of their love shack. They will do the deed, then you won't see the female for a few days, she will be sequestered in the cave or hole. Mine chose a hollow stump ornament. (I'll post a couple pics below of my old tank setup, now I have them in a smaller tank and haven't taken any pictures of it). Then - she will reappear with a little swarm of fry and they share parenting and defending duties.

My two didnt take long to pair up - in fact they are a young brother and sister, maybe 7-8 months old. But as soon as the female started to color up she was a little tart with her brothers, vibrating her body in front if them when she was no larger than a thumbtack.

Here's my old 55 gallon setup when it was a FW tank, the tall stump is where they chose to breed:

And here is my old pair of kribs with their fry.

 

[Big Vine]

Awesome pics, Kelly! Thanks for posting those so quickly.
Those fry are so cute swimming together like that with their mommy. Can't wait to see it firsthand in my tank.

I bought some more fake plants and a cool-shaped rock tonight. Oh...and a large piece of driftwood that has a nice cave-like shape to it (but it barely fits in the tank, LOL).

I'll put it all together in the morning, do a water-change, and then get some fish with which to make sure the cycling of the tank has truly completed prior to adding kribs---I was thinking danios, but now I'm strongly leaning toward silvertip tetras, which are on sale for $0.99 each at Petco. They have some nice-looking ones too!

Big Vine

 

[Big Vine]

Update w. Pics

Desert theme has been flushed...

In fact, the tank now doesn't really fit any theme at all, but I still think it happens to have turned into one of the best-looking tanks I've ever set up. Of course, I'll let you guys be the judge of that once I post in the Freshwater Rate My Tank section of the forum at a later date.


What I really need answering now is this...
Is this a more suitable setup for the pair of kribs I'll be getting?


No Flash:

Front...

Back...

Flash on:

Front...

Back...

***Note:
-the "no-flash" pictures are actually a lot brighter in real life
-hard to tell from pics, but the driftwood/rock/plant combo actually serves as a cave-structure
(I can post pics of how I put the 'cave' together, if you want)


Big Vine

 

[Cichlid-Man]

Looks pretty good to me. As long as you have a flat surface in kind of a cave like area they will be fine as far as breeding spots. They'll find a suitable place i assure you.

 

[Big Vine]

have a flat surface in kind of a cave like area

Does it need to be on the floor of the tank, or can the flat space be something like a smooth interior wall of the driftwood?


Here's what my 'cave' looks like on the inside.

The gravel inside of it is barely one layer tall (the tank is practically bare-bottom in the middle of the cave).

Will the kribs clear the gravel and spawn the eggs onto the bottom glass, or can they spawn the eggs onto the inside of the driftwood?

Is my gravel too thick for this?

Big Vine

 

[Mahamotorworks]

You can always add a small piece of Slate to have a flat bottom.

MAHA

 

[f8fan]

I have noticed that kribs really like a fine substrate - like playsand. They pick it up with their mouth and sift through it and spit it out.

I bet they will like the inside of that piece of driftwood. My kribs spawned on the inside of a vertical hollow stump - as long as it's a smooth surface they'll be happy

 

[Big Vine]

I have noticed that kribs really like a fine substrate - like playsand. They pick it up with their mouth and sift through it and spit it out.

Like when they clear out an area for spawning, you mean?
Does this mean I'm screwed because my gravel is too large?

I bet they will like the inside of that piece of driftwood. My kribs spawned on the inside of a vertical hollow stump - as long as it's a smooth surface they'll be happy

So it doesn't need to necessarily be on the floor of the tank then?


What I'm getting at, is do I need to swap out my gravel with finer stuff, or am I okay as is? If I need to swap it out, I'll need to tear down the whole damn setup (a.k.a. pain in the _ss) and do it prior to getting fish. *sigh*

Big Vine

 

[Big Vine]

Still Cycling

Here's what's happening now...
Very low to no ammonia; high nitrites; low nitrates.

So, here's what I've done to help speed things up:

Big Vine

 

[MOsborne05]

What are those? They are pretty but they don't really go with the 'desert' theme

 

[Big Vine]

Morgan,

I agree...they don't go with the theme at all.
In fact, the whole 'desert theme' has pretty much been scrapped since the new addition of fake plants and driftwood took place.

They're zebra danios...5 of them.
The only reason they are in there is for cycling the tank. Once it's done, I'll replace them with a school of something else...possibly silvertip tetras. The danios will then be placed in my long 6.6 gallon tank with Jerrica and the black phantoms.

If you look closely at the top left corner of the tank, you'll notice a breeding trap (the snail is on it in the pic) filled with black gravel from one of my established tanks, which should help speed up the cycling.

Big Vine

 

[MOsborne05]

Ah, they look much blue-er than any zebra danios I've seen, but maybe its just the lighting.

Yes the gravel should help speed up the cycling, as long as it is able to get in the tank. You might be better off sticking it in a pantyhose and putting it in the filter.

 

[Mahamotorworks]

That is a big Snail. I like its stripes. THe Gravel will help speed the cycle.

MAHA