My Tiger barb

Question
Hi, I noticed today that my tiger barbs belly looked like a balloon and i was wondering if you have to put them in a seperate net or some type of thing and how long does the female stay pregnant? how many babies can she have?
                                            halie

Answer
Hi Halie;

Tiger Barbs don't actually have live babies, they are egglaying fish. You have to have male fish with the female in order for her eggs to be fertile. The parents need a separate tank from your other fish in order to spawn in and then you have to remove the parents so they don't eat the eggs and the babies. The male fertilizes the eggs as she lays them, and she will be scattering hundreds of eggs all over the tank during spawning. They hatch in a couple of days. Here is a web page with more info about tiger barbs, their care and breeding habits;

http://www.tropicalfishcentre.co.uk/tigerbarbs.htm

Good luck!

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins