how often can blood parrots lay eggs???

[daveolejnik]

I have a 90 gal. ciclid tank with aprox. 15 ciclids in it. I have 2 blood parrots that are the largest fish in the tank. They are aprox 7-8" . I thought both were females , but Im not sure. They have paired up and layed eggs 2 times now, I know they are almost all sterile so I was hoping that another ciclid would fertilize the eggs. I dont even know if any of the other ciclids are capable of breading with a parrot, But I was wondering how often they will lay eggs, and if there is anything special you do to make them lay eggs like raising the temp of the water or feading them something special?? Also what type of ciclid would be the best type to get to have it fertilize the eggs? Im going to probably have to get them from the LFS so Im sure It will take a while for them to mature. What type of fish would you reccomend getting to breed with a parrot, and how many should I buy and put into the tank?? Theres plent of room in the tank most of the ciclids are small and I have another tank I can move some of them into if needed. Thanks and sorry about all the questions Im new to the whole egg laying breeding thing...

 

[oddball_freak]

Parrots can lay eggs about once a month. Mine lay eggs about every 2-3 weeks. Getting them into breeding mode is easy. Frequent water changes about every 7-10 days, fill back up with cold water, stimulates like a good spring rain. Feed quality food 3-5 times a day, small portions of course. There are a lot of cichlids that can breed with a parrot. My suggestion is if you really want some babies, figure out which one is female, move her and a male cichlid to another breeding tank. Split up the parrots, they will pair off if you dont and 99% of male parrots are sterile. In my breeding tanks I like to put a convict in with pair. If the fish have an "intruder" they have to ward off, they will grow a stronger bond and be more likely to pair up and breed.
Fish to cross with a parrot: Red Devil, Red Terror, Convict, Trimac, Salvini, pretty much anything but these fish make really awesome fry when crossed w/ parrots.

I hope this all helps