Breeding tetras are doable if you have an isolated tank for this purpose only. If not, there will be fish in your community tanks that will end up eating the baby tetra. That is not good.
To succeed with breeding tetras, you’ll need a breeding tank. A breeding tank mean different water parameters than your regular tank. It also means patience.
Step by Step Guide to Breeding Tetras
Setting Up the Breeding Tank
Controlling the environment are key. The twenty-gallon long tank make a good breeding tank for tetras. It provides enough surface area for the fry to swim freely.
It provides enough surface area for the fry to swim freely. Keeping it clean isn’t difficult. Put some dechlorinated water in there.
Water Parameters and Lighting
Set the temp same as your main tank. Set the pH between six and six and a half. A slightly acidic pH will trigger the breeding instinct.
The lighting affects their spawning cycle. A twelve-hour light cycle mimic spring or summer conditions to trigger tetras to spawn. Provide them with full spectrum, bright lighting during the day.
Total darkness should of occur during the night. Turn the lights on for 12 hours per day. This copies nature’s changing seasons and helps regulate there hormones.
Tank Decorations and Spawning Mops
Use minimal decorations. The more rocks and caves there is, the more egg damage you will have. Hornwort or Java moss are good choices because they’re fine-leaved plant that give eggs a place to stick.
A spawning mop is another option. Plants and spawning mops gives the eggs something to cling to, which keeps them off the bottom to help avoid bacteria. This leads to less bacterial growth.
Conditioning Tetras Before Breeding
Provide the tetras with high nutritional food. Two days prior to the breeding, provide frozen/live food as well. Brine shrimp and bloodworms works well.
This diet contain fats and protein. When the female are prepared for breeding, you’ll notice she’s visibly round. Nutrition impact sperm and egg viability.
Spawning Process and Parent Removal
Add a pair or small group of them to your tank. If your male is aggressive, remove him. Cardinal or Neon tetra pairs is typically good.
They will spawn at first light. What you will notice is a chase, then release of eggs. He immediately fertilizes those eggs.
It’s all done in short burst. Immediately remove the adults after they spawn. Tetras consumes their eggs.
No fry will survive if you leave the adults in the tank. Remove the parents within minutes of the final egg. Why?
Because if you don’t, then none of your eggs will survive. Yes, it sucks to do this but it’s a necessity. You are protecting the eggs.
Raising Tetra Fry
Within 24-48 hours, eggs will hatch (depending on temperature and species). Fry will hold close to the plants initially. They absorbs their yolk sac.
Don’t feed yet while fry are still holding. This may be an additional day or two. Feed your free swimming fry commercial food or infusoria.
The latter and these foods is sized for their tiny mouths. Feed them small amounts several times daily. Maintain good water quality by performing small water changes using aged water.
Poor water will kill fry quicker than not feeding them. Ammonia spikes from poor water are avoid by maintaining good water quality. They grows fast.
After several weeks they are eating crushed flakes and baby brine shrimp. Their color start to show. The iridescence you breed for shows up.
Tetra breeding is an accomplishment. You’ve produced another generation of fish. The work pay off with healthy, thriving tetras.
