Key Barb Breeding
Given the right conditions, the Spanner Barb is easy to breed. Remember this is a big shot. You can’t expect a fast swimming 7 inch fish to be comfortable breeding in a 20 inch tank.
sexed
The males are a bit more colorful. Females tend to be plumper. These differences become more pronounced when the fish are in breeding condition.
Breeding
Before attempting to breed, select a good-sized, healthy-looking pair. Separate the male from the female and feed them well with rich foods such as mosquito larvae, baby worms, frozen bloodworms, and high-quality plant foods.
The Spanner Barb is an egg spreader. It will eat its own eggs and babies. I suggest copying the fish’s natural water conditions, with a neutral or slightly acidic pH, a temperature of about 82 degrees F (28 degrees C), and a hardness of less than 6.
Although this fish will spawn easily, there seems to be a requirement. Give your fish plenty of space. For breeding, the smallest aquarium would suggest three feet (90cm) long.
method
Set up this aquarium so that it gets the morning sun. Have about 6 inches (15 cm) of water in the tank. Put marbles or a thin layer of very coarse gravel on the bottom. Put a few bunches of fine plants left in it.
Fish usually spawn early in the morning after being placed in the breeding tank.
raising the fry
Adult Spanner Barbs are very fond of eating fish roe. They may even start eating their own eggs before they have finished spawning. A female Spanner Barb can lay up to 3,000 eggs. Parents should be removed as soon as possible after spawning.
The eggs should hatch in about 2 days. At first they will cling to surfaces, but when they are free swimming they will eat things as big as newly hatched brine shrimp and the finest Daphnias. They also eat infosoria. These things can be supplemented with commercial fried foods.
