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Photos of pregnant Microdevario Kubotai


Lauren A
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Hi, I’m just curious if anyone has any photos of a pregnant Green Neon Rasbora/Microdevario Kubotai.  I have a school of 10 and I know most likely the eggs and fry will be eaten by them if they aren’t bred in a separate container.  I don’t plan to breed them but I’m still curious what the females look like when they are pregnant.  My water and the tank are within the parameters they thrive in and the tank has lots of plants and botanicals - Indian almond leaves.   This is purely out of curiosity!  
 

Thank you!  

 

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On 10/1/2022 at 3:04 AM, TheSwissAquarist said:

@Lauren A, the correct term is 'egg-bound', I expect you can find some pics on the web.

“Egg bound” is the term for when the animal can’t produce the eggs (no matter the species).  It means that the eggs are stuck and not physically able to be produced without intervention.

There are many different terms for when the female is loaded with eggs (but not egg bound).  “Gravid” would be a better term since that crosses species and doesn’t specify as to what is expected to be produced (eggs or live birth).  More casually, a female can be termed “eggy” when she looks full of eggs but that certainly isn’t a scientific term.  😃  I’ve heard others, but none coming to mind right off.  “Pregnant” isn’t correct for egg layers since that’s used for live birth species only.  Hope this is helpful.

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On 10/1/2022 at 4:04 AM, TheSwissAquarist said:

@Lauren A, the correct term is 'egg-bound', I expect you can find some pics on the web.

 

On 10/1/2022 at 8:36 AM, Odd Duck said:

“Egg bound” is the term for when the animal can’t produce the eggs (no matter the species).  It means that the eggs are stuck and not physically able to be produced without intervention.

There are many different terms for when the female is loaded with eggs (but not egg bound).  “Gravid” would be a better term since that crosses species and doesn’t specify as to what is expected to be produced (eggs or live birth).  More casually, a female can be termed “eggy” when she looks full of eggs but that certainly isn’t a scientific term.  😃  I’ve heard others, but none coming to mind right off.  “Pregnant” isn’t correct for egg layers since that’s used for live birth species only.  Hope this is helpful.

Hi!  Thank you for your replies.  Sorry, I was using the term “pregnant” loosely.  I actually had a female betta become egg bound so I’m definitely familiar with the term.  Her eggs went stale and became infected and she passed away very quickly and tragically.  So yes, eggy is definitely what I was thinking for photos - an eggy female Kubotai.   
 

i’ve done lots of online searches for photos, but they are surprisingly difficult to find, so I figure if anyone has experience with Kubotai or breeding them, they might have a pic.  
 

I really appreciate your help!   Have a great day!
 

 

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On 10/1/2022 at 9:20 AM, Lauren A said:

 

Hi!  Thank you for your replies.  Sorry, I was using the term “pregnant” loosely.  I actually had a female betta become egg bound so I’m definitely familiar with the term.  Her eggs went stale and became infected and she passed away very quickly and tragically.  So yes, eggy is definitely what I was thinking for photos - an eggy female Kubotai.   
 

i’ve done lots of online searches for photos, but they are surprisingly difficult to find, so I figure if anyone has experience with Kubotai or breeding them, they might have a pic.  
 

I really appreciate your help!   Have a great day!
 

 

It took me a hot minute and a bit of searching to come up with “gravid” as the “most appropriate” scientific term.  😆  I usually end up using “eggy” because as casual as it is, it’s easily understood.

I’ve got some thick Kubotais that I’m nearly certain are females, and a couple have a decent chance of being eggy, but they’re in my 100 G nanofish tank and I don’t think I’d ever be able to get a decent pic.  They’re so active that it would be just a blur every time.  I’ve not seen them breeding, but it’s an active tank, so if the upper water nanos get amped up, there could be some breeding among them.  The other fish would be eating eggs as fast as they’re produced, I’m sure.  I would suspect they might eat their own eggs, too.  Many, many species do.

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On 10/3/2022 at 3:44 PM, anewbie said:

Will kubotai actually produce viable eggs in 'normal' water or do they require near blackwater conditions ? I think emerald eye rasbora do require extremely soft water to breed successfully ?

I don’t know the answer to that.  I’ve not checked into it before.  Let me go look and see what I can find.

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Seems most of the info on a quick search shows a fairly neutral pH is preferred, 6.0-7.0 but a wider range is tolerated.  They seem to be typical egg scatterers so preventing predation of eggs and fry is key to success.  Abundant spawning mops and/or moss provided for appropriately conditioned adults, transfer a small group to a breeding tank to minimize predation, then remove adults after a 2-3 days even if spawning isn’t noted, just in case it wasn’t witnessed.

If nothing has hatched after another 5-6 days, then try again with adults.  Check very carefully before trying again because babies will be tiny and will likely need to start with infusoria.  Might be able to start with vinegar eels.  Baby brine shrimp will be too large to start with.

Here’s a list of live food options starting with worms smallest to largest, then various other foods smallest to largest.  I didn’t go to “big” foods, just smaller stuff.  Pardon the formatting and font size.  It doesn’t transfer or edit well from my notes app.

Live Fish Food Sizes

Worms: Sizes by length x width, (binomial), survival time in freshwater. 

Vinegar eels - 1-2 mm x 0.005 mm (Turbatrix aceti), up to 7 days. 

Banana worms - 1.5 mm x 0.004 mm (Pangrellus nepenthicola), over 12 hours. 

Walter worms - 1-3 mm x 0.005-0.01 mm (Panagrellus silusioides), over 12 hours. 

Microworms - 2-3 mm x 0.005-0.007 mm (2 sp. - Pangrellus redivivus and Anguillula silusiae), over 12 hours. 

Grindal worms - 10 mm x 0.5 mm (Enchytraeus buchholzi), several days. 

Whiteworms - 2-4 cm x 1 mm (Enchytraeus albidus), several days. 

Blackworms - 2.5-4 cm (up to 10 cm) x 1.5 mm (Lumbriculus variegatus), indefinitely. 

 

Other Live Foods:

Infusoria - 0.005-0.5 mm (multiple different organisms), indefinitely for the overall culture, days for individual organisms.  

Baby brine shrimp - 0.4-0.5 mm x 0.15 mm (Artemis sp. - in US is A. franciscana), 30 minutes or so. 

Adult brine shrimp - 8-20 mm x 4 mm (Artemis sp), 30 minutes or so. 

Fairy shrimp - 6-25 mm (multiple species - like a freshwater brine shrimp), life - 1-8 weeks. 

Daphnia - 0.2-5 mm (multiple species), life span -10-30 days. 

Moina - 0.7-1.4 mm (multiple species), lifespan - 3-6 weeks. 

Scuds/amphipods - 1-8 mm (multiple species, some up to 3 cm), lifespan - up to 1 year depending on species. 

Fruit flies - 1.5-3 mm (multiple species and strains), can walk/float on water and will escape if not eaten or drowned. Live 8-15 days. 

Mosquito larvae - 3-12 mm (multiple species), 4-14 days before becoming adult mosquitos. 

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On 10/3/2022 at 1:57 PM, Odd Duck said:

It took me a hot minute and a bit of searching to come up with “gravid” as the “most appropriate” scientific term.  😆  I usually end up using “eggy” because as casual as it is, it’s easily understood.

I’ve got some thick Kubotais that I’m nearly certain are females, and a couple have a decent chance of being eggy, but they’re in my 100 G nanofish tank and I don’t think I’d ever be able to get a decent pic.  They’re so active that it would be just a blur every time.  I’ve not seen them breeding, but it’s an active tank, so if the upper water nanos get amped up, there could be some breeding among them.  The other fish would be eating eggs as fast as they’re produced, I’m sure.  I would suspect they might eat their own eggs, too.  Many, many species do.

 

On 10/4/2022 at 1:33 AM, Odd Duck said:

Seems most of the info on a quick search shows a fairly neutral pH is preferred, 6.0-7.0 but a wider range is tolerated.  They seem to be typical egg scatterers so preventing predation of eggs and fry is key to success.  Abundant spawning mops and/or moss provided for appropriately conditioned adults, transfer a small group to a breeding tank to minimize predation, then remove adults after a 2-3 days even if spawning isn’t noted, just in case it wasn’t witnessed.

If nothing has hatched after another 5-6 days, then try again with adults.  Check very carefully before trying again because babies will be tiny and will likely need to start with infusoria.  Might be able to start with vinegar eels.  Baby brine shrimp will be too large to start with.

Here’s a list of live food options starting with worms smallest to largest, then various other foods smallest to largest.  I didn’t go to “big” foods, just smaller stuff.  Pardon the formatting and font size.  It doesn’t transfer or edit well from my notes app.

Live Fish Food Sizes

Worms: Sizes by length x width, (binomial), survival time in freshwater. 

Vinegar eels - 1-2 mm x 0.005 mm (Turbatrix aceti), up to 7 days. 

Banana worms - 1.5 mm x 0.004 mm (Pangrellus nepenthicola), over 12 hours. 

Walter worms - 1-3 mm x 0.005-0.01 mm (Panagrellus silusioides), over 12 hours. 

Microworms - 2-3 mm x 0.005-0.007 mm (2 sp. - Pangrellus redivivus and Anguillula silusiae), over 12 hours. 

Grindal worms - 10 mm x 0.5 mm (Enchytraeus buchholzi), several days. 

Whiteworms - 2-4 cm x 1 mm (Enchytraeus albidus), several days. 

Blackworms - 2.5-4 cm (up to 10 cm) x 1.5 mm (Lumbriculus variegatus), indefinitely. 

 

Other Live Foods:

Infusoria - 0.005-0.5 mm (multiple different organisms), indefinitely for the overall culture, days for individual organisms.  

Baby brine shrimp - 0.4-0.5 mm x 0.15 mm (Artemis sp. - in US is A. franciscana), 30 minutes or so. 

Adult brine shrimp - 8-20 mm x 4 mm (Artemis sp), 30 minutes or so. 

Fairy shrimp - 6-25 mm (multiple species - like a freshwater brine shrimp), life - 1-8 weeks. 

Daphnia - 0.2-5 mm (multiple species), life span -10-30 days. 

Moina - 0.7-1.4 mm (multiple species), lifespan - 3-6 weeks. 

Scuds/amphipods - 1-8 mm (multiple species, some up to 3 cm), lifespan - up to 1 year depending on species. 

Fruit flies - 1.5-3 mm (multiple species and strains), can walk/float on water and will escape if not eaten or drowned. Live 8-15 days. 

Mosquito larvae - 3-12 mm (multiple species), 4-14 days before becoming adult mosquitos. 

Hi!

 

Thank you so much for sharing!  You are so right, they are very hard to photograph!  

I have read they will eat their own eggs and fry.  I read somewhere online recently that if they appear to be fighting than they are spawning and that this happens daily, given the right conditions.  I notice my females looking thicker and my guess would be that they are gravid.  Both males and females always have beautiful coloration and display that pretty blue/purple color on their fins.  One thing that is new is that the males are looking even shinier - flashier.  


The water in this tank is quite soft with a Ph around 6.8-7.  So, I’m thinking there’s probably some spawning going on but also that the eggs are being quickly eaten.  Of course, I know nothing about fish breeding and don’t intend to breed them at the moment or maybe not ever, but it’s always nice to know they feel safe and comfortable enough to reproduce or try to anyway!  
 

Thanks So much to both of you!!!

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