surprise spawning?

Question
Dear Karen:  
Out of all the experts you seem to be the most polite, friendly, and non-judgemental...so I'll ask you...
I currently have four tanks.  The tank in question is a mix cichlid tank.  They are all young, and my plan was to separate the South Americans from the Africans in the future if needed.  The current tank is 80 gal., heated, containing a backside of box filters.  I do frequent water testing with the API master test kit.  Most of the fish are about 3 inches or smaller.  Most of the fish are a mix of Mbunas.  There are also 3 peacocks total.  A young covict (about 1.5 in.) Two Jack Dempseys, the largest being close to 4 in.  Two Red Terrors, the largest being closest to 4 in.  Like I said, most of the them are more or less 3 in.  Everyone gets along great.  I decided to slowly switch from a gravel bottom to a sand bottom.  So last weekend, I took out approx half the rocks, and added a bag of Seachem Gray Coast Calcite sand (for greater pH) and a bag of the beautiful Tahitian Moon sand.  I think I am having a small bacterial bloom from this action.  When that clears, I plan to add two more bags of the T. Moon sand.  Well, just last night I noticed one of our Red Zebras acting strangely, looking like she had a mouth full of something.  She is about 3 in.  It turns out she is holding a lot of little white balls in her mouth.  Eggs I suppose.  I have no idea who the dad could be.  I also have no idea what to do.  There is a lot of conflicting information out there.  Most seem to think a mixed cichlid is a really horrible thing.  I certainly did not expect one to try to spawn...  She hides behind a fake vine right now.  She does not seem to be eating.  I have heard that they carry these eggs for quit a while (21 days?) How long can she keep from eating?  Can she eat with the eggs in her mouth?  What should I do?  Should I let "nature" takes its course and not make any special preparations for her since it is most likely a mixed flavor of cichlid?  Is there a guarantee that the eggs are even fertilized or is she carrying duds?  I certainly have not seen any males digging around.  We have a plecostomas and a Raphael Catfish in there. Should they be taken out in order to preserve fry?  IF the fry hatch, what should I do about the intakes on the filters?  I could probably clear a tank for her somewhere, but it is hard to catch mbunas when they don't want to be caught.  I have heard that stressing them out will either make them spit the eggs out or swallow them.  And the pH and everything would not be the same in the "breeder" tank.  I don't feel good about disturbing her.  No one seems to be bothering her and she is not bothering anyone else.  At feeding, she appears to be interested in the food, getting somewhat closer to the swarm of hungry fish, but retreats back to her corner without taking a bite. Should I buy a tank partition and give her her corner to herself?  Should I buy her a flower pot? Or both?  Since this fish seems to be spawning, can I expect more to follow?  Isn't she too young for all of this?  Sorry for all the questions.  I am really caught by surprise by all of this.  I really thought they were all too young to be thinking of that!  If the fry hatch, what in the world would I do with all of them?  From what I have read, mixed cichlids are not wanted by anyone.  And I do not think I could keep them all.  Please give me advice.  I LOVE my Cichlids!
Thanks in advance for any help,
Jennifer

Answer
Hi Jennifer,
I am so jealous! Your tank sounds awesome. Anyway,back to the female that is carrying eggs. It seems that with this particular mouthbrooder, that the female carries the eggs and they are not fertilized in the usual manner. They are fertilized in her mouth. The male and female then seperate and she is responsible for their care. Lucky male! Some people do move them into a seperate tank but it will be alot of work to try to catch her and it will stress her. You could just try leaving her in the tank and see how it works out. The eggs do take quite a while to hatch (I've heard some mouthbrooders can take up to 3wks.) and then it takes around 20 days before they absorb the egg yolk. By then they are pretty large babies and can be fed crushed flakes or daphnia if you can find it. If they are in a community tank they will probably find bits of food also. When they feel danger they will probably  try to retreat into mom's mouth or any rock structures you might have in your tank.
Usually mouth brooding mothers don't eat while they are holding the eggs and don't suffer any health problems from it. They are designed to be able to handle the abstinance of food. I would make sure, if you haven't already, that she has enough cave like structures or you could use the flowerpot as you had mentioned.
I don't know if any of your other fish will attempt to eat the fry. It is always possible, though. I know how it is to have too many fry and not know what to do with them. Sometimes small pet stores will take them. If you know of one in your area you could ask them if they would. I have had good luck with small fish stores taking my fish.
It is always possible that you could start having more spawns. Of course, if you do have some of your other fish eating the small fish then you won't have quite as many babies.
As for the filter intake. I usually put some type of netting or even pantyhose over the intake and attach it with a rubberband. Then you don't have to worry about any babies being sucked into it.
I know how it is to have too many babies and most people just feed them to other large fish but sometimes that can be a hard thing to do.
Best of luck!
Hope this has helped,
Karen