aggressive Anglefish

Question
Hello, I have a 38 gallon Tank. I started it with 2 angelfish, 2 guarami, a loach and a placosamus (sp)..All young fish, my levels are good, and I empty the entire tank and hand wash the rocks & plants etc. monthly.  The 2 angelfish have over a 4 month span killed off everything else in the tank. They are spawning, But they never let the babies live for to long.  They let them live a little bit longer each time they have a set of babies.  What do I do? Do I try to section off the babies? Do I just get rid of them or the parents? I want a populated tank, I also have children. It is hard to explain to them at 5 & 6. That they mom & dad eat their babies.. Help Please..

Answer
Hi Sara:  Angelfish are cichlids... and as such they usually make very good parents.  Cichlids are one of the few fish that take care of their young after they have hatched.  There are a variety of reasons why cichlids eat their own young.  Most of this stems around the possibility that something else is going to eat them... this is why they drive off or kill everything else in the tank. Sometimes when fish keepers approach the tank or spend hours staring into it... the fish will eat the babies because they feel as though they can not drive off whomever is staring at them.  So it is important to approach the tank calmly and indirectly.  Another potential reason would be the abundance of food.  Make sure the baby fish have something to eat. I recommend cultivating micro-worms because they are easy to care for and great for fish.  You can find micro-worm cultures on ebay... they are very small and you will probably not be able to see them.  All that you would need is a jar with a hole in the lid and some mashed potatoes.  Make sure the parent fish are well fed too.  The female guards the eggs and by the time everything has hatched she may not have eaten for several days.  Frozen brine shrimp makes a great food source for parents.  You can also place the pair in a ten gallon tank until they  lay the eggs and then remove them back to the larger tank.  The eggs and young will do fine by themselves.   If you have additional questions please let me know... dave