breeding white clouds

Question
i want to breed white clouds and i want to know how many kids they can have in one mating. and i want to know how big a tank they need and does the female have to have places to hide because white minnows are schooling fish and i heard they are non violent. can i keep the babies in the same tank with the adults and what do i feed them? can i feed them crushed flake food? some one said i can keep white minnows in the same tempuature as goldfish. i thought it was from 5c to 27c. i also wanted only to have 3 or 4 babies cause i dont want to many. how can i do that? do white minnows eat some of their young? thanks for helping me!

Answer
Dear Caren,
White Cloud Mountain minnows are a perfect little beauty to spawn for beginners.

White clouds can be kept in unheated aquariums ranging from a temperature of 16-22C (61-71F) If you should happen to have them in warmer waters, most likely they will do just fine just insure there is adequate oxygentation.

White clouds can have up to 200 fry. And can be spawned in aquariums of a size around 10-20 gallons. The spawning tank should have an established sponge filter and can with or without gravel. As for a place for the white clouds to lay their eggs, this can be large amounts of Java Moss or perhaps even hornwort on the bottom of the tank. This provides cover for the eggs and fry. Next you can place 4-5 pairs of your most colorful white clouds and have them spawn in this aquarium. It can take up to two days before they spawn even though the male may chase the female regardless, when they do spawn the male and female will come close together and with a trembling motion, will release a few clear and tiny eggs. Many white clouds spawn over a day, usually on the second day is when you should remove them. The tiny eggs will hatch within 48-60hrs. and the very tiny, yolk-sac larvae can be seen amongst the sides and plants. Do not feed them until they become free-swimming. They need to use up their yolk reserves before they can eat other food. Because they are very tiny, foods like baby brine shrimp are not suitable right away. A homemade infusoria is good for the tiny white clouds first food. But some aquarists immediately begin feeding baby brine shrimp. Tiny and varied foods can also be included especially after the fry are a week old like microworm and grindal worms. Some very finely powerded flake food could also be tried. It is perfectly safe to leave the mature fish in with the fry.

I would imagine leaving the white clouds in the spawning tank may yield smaller sized broods. I'm not sure how you could end up with only 3-4 babies unless perhaps the mature fish do some of that for you or you try to remove the majority of eggs laid yourself. Extra white clouds could be given to a good petstore if you'd like.

I really hope this helps answer your questions!
Best wishes and Best of luck with your white cloud spawning!
Karen~