Pitch Black Rams

[jwcarlson]

Thanks everyone! I think if they're still alive tonight after work, it will be the longest they've gone with free swimmers. The parents are hyper defensive, which is neat to see. If I get close to the glass they flip out. They, of course, need a water change. But I'm not doing anything for awhile. This morning I added a little clump of java moss since there's not much cover at the bottom of the tank. They moved the fry about halfway across the tank and then the parents were taking turns going over and attacking the moss. I can't say it wasn't entertaining. The dad really thought a little piece that he broke off was going to kill them all.

[mleibowi]

If anyone has any to ship, please let me know!
Thanks
Mike

[jwcarlson]

20240430_160026.jpg

They seem to have taken. I think there's quite a few less than there were, but it's tough to know for sure. It's possible that it's just hard to see them. The parents sometimes have them in two groups. Babies are getting nice orange bellies (might be tough to see in the pictures). I'm a huge fan of fry that eat baby brine shrimp right off the bat.

[brewmaster15]

Looks like your pair is throwing half gold /half black fry

Congrats on the bbs acceptance.

[jwcarlson]

The fry have dwindled down to maybe 1/3 of the original group. I'm not upset by this, but am wondering if it's normal. They've grown quite a bit now and seem to be eating well. I'm enjoying watching the parents "take care" of them. They do some interesting fin twitching and it's interesting watching the parents tag team guarding them.