A hundred or more baby convicts!!

Question
Went to feed the fish tonight and much to my surprise saw a cloud of a hundred or more babies!! Obviously convicts..

The parents are keeping the other fish at bay, isolated to about 1/3 of the 30 gal tank. These other fish include blood parots and a couple fire-mouth's.

Do I leave the tank "as is" with these other fish and the babies in care of the parents???

Answer
Hi Patrick,
 The choice is yours.  Personally I would leave them in the large tank and let nature take its course.  A few of the larger/stronger babies might survive.   One thing to keep an eye on is that the parent convicts don't hurt the other fish.  You might consider putting in some plastic plants in a row about 1/2 way across the tank, effectively isolating the one end of the tank (with the babies) from the other end (where the other fish can stay).  In the worst case, if the parents get REALLY aggressive you will have to take out the other fish in the tank (i.e., the blood parrots and the firemouths).

-- Ron
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
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