# Red jewel Cichlid Pregnant??



## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/11382990865/
Is that cichlid pregnant??


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

no.....cichlids cannot become pregnant.....but she is certainly full of roe...which means that she will be looking to spawn soon..


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> no.....cichlids cannot become pregnant.....but she is certainly full of roe...which means that she will be looking to spawn soon..


Sorry , i dont know what you mean , you mean is she about to lay egg soon or she will find a mate?


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

the term "pregnant" infers that there are living young inside of her and she will bear those young in the same way as guppies and such do..
a male and a female jewel will pair up and go through a ritual before spawning..they will choose a suitable spot and clean it off...the female will deposit a string of adhesive eggs and the male will come behind her and fertilize them..after all of the eggs have been laid (as many as 300) the pair will guard them and will fan them and keep them clean...after the eggs hatch the parents usually move the wigglers to a safe place..when the fry become free swimming mom and dad will herd them around...
it is best with jewels that a pair should be kept by themselves as they will kill anything and everything in the tank when they spawn..
i had a pair of jewels in a 75 gallon tank with a 12" red devil..they had spawned on a friday when i was going out of town for the weekend..when i got home sunday night the jewels were in a corner fanning their eggs and had beaten the red devil to death...


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> the term "pregnant" infers that there are living young inside of her and she will bear those young in the same way as guppies and such do..
> a male and a female jewel will pair up and go through a ritual before spawning..they will choose a suitable spot and clean it off...the female will deposit a string of adhesive eggs and the male will come behind her and fertilize them..after all of the eggs have been laid (as many as 300) the pair will guard them and will fan them and keep them clean...after the eggs hatch the parents usually move the wigglers to a safe place..when the fry become free swimming mom and dad will herd them around...
> it is best with jewels that a pair should be kept by themselves as they will kill anything and everything in the tank when they spawn..
> i had a pair of jewels in a 75 gallon tank with a 12" red devil..they had spawned on a friday when i was going out of town for the weekend..when i got home sunday night the jewels were in a corner fanning their eggs and had beaten the red devil to death...


thnx for that info, she is now hiding in the cave (shes the only one who keeps hiding) and a male which comes near her often , is this her mate?? and also is spawning near?


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

yes , that is her mate...and it is possible that they have already spawned....


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> yes , that is her mate...and it is possible that they have already spawned....


She hasnt spawned yet , she is still fat and also why are there two male cichlids going with that female?


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

both are vying for her favor..she may not have made up her mind yet..


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

*Urgent!!!*



lohachata said:


> both are vying for her favor..she may not have made up her mind yet..



Hello guys , my red jewel just spawned!!! i removed anything which the 2 red jewels attacked(is this a 100% sure that theyre a pair if they dont attack each other??), and also how many days does it hatch?? i use a overhead filter with a sponge , under the sucking thingy to avoid babies getting sucked , i slightly moved the cave which they spawned too near the side of the tank as the current is too strong , and also how many days does it have to hatch? and also will the parents care for them?? any advices will be appreciated!!


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

2 or 3 days to hatch..3-4 days as wigglers..parents are very protective of fry..you should have some high protein,high fat powder food available for the fry...


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> 2 or 3 days to hatch..3-4 days as wigglers..parents are very protective of fry..you should have some high protein,high fat powder food available for the fry...


i dont have substrate , should i place a small container with sand for them to build a nest?? 
here are pics:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/11490470185/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/11490563716/


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

nope...none needed...they will be fine just the way they are...if they move the fry they will probably just put them in a corner or something...


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> nope...none needed...they will be fine just the way they are...if they move the fry they will probably just put them in a corner or something...


Thnx, once the fry hatches will i be able to see them?? and are the eggs fertile? they look pale brownish


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

If they aren't fertile, they will turn bright white with fungus. But jewels are usually frighteningly fertile.


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

emc7 said:


> If they aren't fertile, they will turn bright white with fungus. But jewels are usually frighteningly fertile.


Hello , an update , why are the jewel's eggs lessening and i think theyre moving the position of the eggs , are these ok? and also i saw one egg changing shape the shape is like a peanut.


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

Update , the jewel eggs , some were gone , both parents on the end of the tank , what's happening!!! did it fail?


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

Update , eggs were lessening idk what had happened , remaining eggs i see two little black dots , the jewels arent inside the cave anymore , but they moved to the side of the tank , i cant take a good look on the side of the filter of the tank as the wall is blocking it , if there were eggs in there.
Did they eat their eggs?? , they are still together and just on the side of the tank. what happened? im very upset!! pls help!!!
here's a pic of eggs and my tank:
tank ---http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/11493735635/
egg ----http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/11493833283/


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## TheJakeM (May 11, 2013)

Cichlids sometimes keep their eggs in their mouths. Look very closely and see if you can see them.


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

TheJakeM said:


> Cichlids sometimes keep their eggs in their mouths. Look very closely and see if you can see them.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


will check on em tomorrow thnx for tips ,will post updates


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## TheJakeM (May 11, 2013)

Your welcome.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

you will find no eggs in the jewel's mouths..jewels are substrate spawners not mouth brooders.many species of cichlid will eat their first spawn or even the first few spawns..they also will eat any eggs that are bad to keep them from infecting the good eggs.if you see black dots on eggs , those are eyes and the eggs should be hatching soon..most likely by tomorrow morning..

relax....take a breath....let mother nature take care of things....jewels are some of the best parents of any fish i have kept....i may not be an expert but i do have some experience with them..


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> you will find no eggs in the jewel's mouths..jewels are substrate spawners not mouth brooders.many species of cichlid will eat their first spawn or even the first few spawns..they also will eat any eggs that are bad to keep them from infecting the good eggs.if you see black dots on eggs , those are eyes and the eggs should be hatching soon..most likely by tomorrow morning..
> 
> relax....take a breath....let mother nature take care of things....jewels are some of the best parents of any fish i have kept....i may not be an expert but i do have some experience with them..


Hello , the eggs were all gone , and the female is inside the cave and wont go out , she just stays there all the time guarding something , did the eggs hatch and she is taking care of it?? i dont see any fry or larvae ( , whats happening pls help!!


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

the eggs may have hatched and were moved around a little and she is guarding them....
or she could just be staying out of the males way...
like i said..relax and take a breath....things will work themselves out..


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> the eggs may have hatched and were moved around a little and she is guarding them....
> or she could just be staying out of the males way...
> like i said..relax and take a breath....things will work themselves out..


When do i get to see the babies?


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

when mom and dad show them to you...usually free swimming in 3-4 days..


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> when mom and dad show them to you...usually free swimming in 3-4 days..


update , the female looks stressed out  , and the male this time was guarding the cave.
Will update after a few days.


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

Update , one of the pair was guarding the cave where they laid eggs , no fry to be seen , will update again soon )


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

Hello , i need help, how do i know if the breeding failed? will they separate and go out of the cave?? , mine now are guarding the place they spawned , but can you guys answer my questions , just curious about it thnx.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

i am curious as to why you are freaking out about this...
if there are fry ,spawning was a success..no fry , failure..
if the spawn failed it is not such a big deal as they will spawn again within a few weeks..


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> i am curious as to why you are freaking out about this...
> if there are fry ,spawning was a success..no fry , failure..
> if the spawn failed it is not such a big deal as they will spawn again within a few weeks..


its my first time to ever have eggs like this , and now the parents are still in the cave , idk what they were doing , ill give them a few days more and see if they go out of the cave or show me the fry


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## Guest (Dec 25, 2013)

Patience is key when you want to see the fry. I know it is hard. We have a member here that has Red Jewel Cichlids and his spawned and he got to see the fry. So just be patient like lohachata said. It will be worth the wait. Yes they are very good parents.


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

Angelclown said:


> Patience is key when you want to see the fry. I know it is hard. We have a member here that has Red Jewel Cichlids and his spawned and he got to see the fry. So just be patient like lohachata said. It will be worth the wait. Yes they are very good parents.


oh , after 4-5 day and still no fry visible does it mean , they had been eaten? ill still wait for 2-3 days , they have already reached Day 3


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## Ice (Sep 25, 2006)

Tell you what. Open a bottle of wine and sit back and relax. Stop being so excited. Things will happen as nature lets it. Patience...


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Do they take turns coming out? Do they attack you if you come near? If yes, then there are likely still eggs, wigglers or fry. Do not feed babies until you see a little cloud of swimming lines. But get a very small food now. A microworm culture, a package of frozen bbs, that sort of thing.


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

emc7 said:


> Do they take turns coming out? Do they attack you if you come near? If yes, then there are likely still eggs, wigglers or fry. Do not feed babies until you see a little cloud of swimming lines. But get a very small food now. A microworm culture, a package of frozen bbs, that sort of thing.


Yes , they take turns , they dont attack me , 3rd day today


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

here is a general timeline for these fish....
Day 1............spawning...48-72 hrs later eggs hatch.....3-4 days later fry become free swimming , but are still kept hidden..
they may start swimming around with the parents a couple of days after that..


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> here is a general timeline for these fish....
> Day 1............spawning...48-72 hrs later eggs hatch.....3-4 days later fry become free swimming , but are still kept hidden..
> they may start swimming around with the parents a couple of days after that..


Oh well , i think they ate their spawn , anyway the female is getting full of roe again , will clean the tank tomorrow...


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

many cichlids will spawn on a weekly schedule if maintained properly...


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> many cichlids will spawn on a weekly schedule if maintained properly...


Hello , she laid lots of eggs today , this time i placed a container with sand , well they made like a hole in the middle of the sand i think theyre making a nest? and also why are the eggs white?


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

if they are white it means that they are not fertilized..fertilized eggs will be an amber color...most cichlids are substrate spawners , meaning that they lay their eggs on a firm surface such as a rock or leaf or piece of wood...once the eggs hatch they usually move the wigglers to a pit that they have dug out or a protected spot..


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

lohachata said:


> if they are white it means that they are not fertilized..fertilized eggs will be an amber color...most cichlids are substrate spawners , meaning that they lay their eggs on a firm surface such as a rock or leaf or piece of wood...once the eggs hatch they usually move the wigglers to a pit that they have dug out or a protected spot..


will the male fertilize them soon?


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## Obsidian (May 20, 2007)

If the eggs are white I believe it is too late for those ones to be fertilized. It does not mean that none of them were. Sounds like your Jewels might be practicing a bit for parenthood  Like has been said- they will sometimes eat the first spawn, or few spawns. The big thing is not to get discouraged. That she filled that quick means that they are "going for it" so give them a chance and enjoy the show!


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## jeromeetabuzo (Nov 1, 2012)

Guys , thank you very much for your replies and advices , i finally saw the baby jewels wiggling in the substrate container!!!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/11721481756/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/11721071484/
Sorry if it isnt clear its hard to take a picture , theyre too small


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