Baby Hillstream Loach

[Ellabellaboo]

Hello there

This is my first posting on the forum, and I would be grateful if you could advise.

I have had 2 hillstream loach in my 30 litre qt tank for 2 months now, they are due to go in my 90 litre when my goldy goes into the pond that we are currently digging out - was hoping that it would have been completed by now, but delayed due to problems.

Anyway the little tinkers have been breeding, about 2 weeks ago they were very lively and there was lots of tail swishing in the gravel. Tonight we definately have babies, not loads, but what do I do ! Are they better on their own - should I move mum and dad into the other tank (it has the goldy, 1 other hillstream, and 8 white cloud mountain minnows), the goldy i have had for 15 months. What should I feed them if anything? Are mum and dad going to eat them anyway ?

Sorry for all the questions, and a big hello

[Jim Powers]

Congratulations!!
Any idea what species of hillstream you have? If not, check out the species index on this site.
Baby hillstreams tend to fend for themselves. They will graze on the rocks and glass in the tank and eventually will feed on the same pelleted foods that the adults eat. The adults will not eat them but some other fish might. I would not keep them with goldfish.

[Ellabellaboo]

Thanks Jim

They are Butterfly Plec, so will remain quite small.

They are only in with their parents - thankfully!

My main worry now is tank cleaning... worried about sucking the littlies up

Ella

[Jim Powers]

Butterfly pleco? That could be many different types of hillstreams as that is a trade name.
Did you check out the species index?
Could it be P. cheni?
http://www.loaches.com/species-index/ps ... yzon-cheni
Note the link at the bottom of the page to the article about sexing and breeding this species. There is info and pics of the young.

[Ellabellaboo]

Hi Jim,

What a fantastic article - thanks for the link!

Yes they look very much like the cheni, I have only seen about 5 babies at the minute - but they are not easy to see (started using a magnifying glass which is good, they are gorgeous!).

Thanks for your advice, I was gobsmacked last night when I saw them!

I have some pebbles in a sunny spot at the minute which I intend to pop in the tank, but will also look into other foods that are mentioned for variety.

Ella

[Jim Powers]

Glad to help! Keep us posted on their progress.

[Ellabellaboo]

Hi Jim, and everyone else

My babies are 5 weeks old now, 2 have dissapeared and 3 remain - they are really growing! They love half a grape

I am trying to source another tank via ebay to put the goldie in, I can then move my loach into the 90 litre. At the minute in the 90 litre I also have one other cheni and 8 white cloud mountain minnow, when i move the family of cheni into the 90 litre will the minnows be a problem - if the cheni keep breeding would they eat the babies ? I have fed them (the minnows) live daphnia, which they manage, but they never eat the small pellets when i put them in.

I would like to leave the minnows in with the loach, but if they will eat the babies...

Many thanks

Ella

[Jim Powers]

I had chenis breeding in a tank with white clouds and had plenty of babies. The white clouds might eat some, but if you provide plenty of cover such as plants, you should get good survival.

[Ellabellaboo]

Thanks Jim

I was hoping that you would say that, I would like to leave them together - plus goldy is growing and will probably see minnows as lunch soon...

Ella

[Ellabellaboo]

Hi

Well I have lost another baby, so only 2 left now - but they are a decent size and doing well.

I purchased a second hand 180 litre tank, which is now fully cycled and home to my Goldie - he looks so happy !

Last Saturday teatime I moved my hsl family (mum, dad and 2 babies) into the 90 litre to join the existing residents, 8 White Cloud Mountain Minnows and 1 Hong Kong Plec (they have all been in since January 2011).

The hsl family have settled in so well, it is a joy to see them after been stuck in the 30 litre. The minnows are fine to, but my Hong Kong Plec.... not seen since I presume he is hiding, and may do a tank clean today to see if I can flush him/her out - is this a good idea ?

I was hoping they would be okay as they are all part of the hsl family ? They do however have different markings.

Do fish normally hide like this, he does dissapear sometimes (only for a few hours though) and I can never find him. I have 2 fluval u2 filters in the tank and I think he gets between the back of the filter and the casing that holds it to the tank - no chance of seeing him

Any suggestions / ideas please

Thanks

Ella

[KittyKat]

[…] but my Hong Kong Plec.... not seen since I presume he is hiding, and may do a tank clean today to see if I can flush him/her out - is this a good idea ?

Hi Ella, by "Hong Kong plec", do you mean a hillstream loach or an actual plec?

Regardless, I recommend that you do not bother it unless you need to know if it is alive or not (for example, for stocking purposes) because any bothering is likely to cause some stress. Have you ever tried sitting still a couple of metres away from the aquarium right after feeding? Some shy fish will come out if there is no movement in the room and most can be trained to eat during the day.

[Ellabellaboo]

Hi Kittykat

It is another strain of hsl, I think slightly smaller (not much) and probably a bit rounder in body - but until I see them together I cannot be sure !

It is not normally shy, that is what is worrying me. Yes, it dissapears off sometimes but then it pootles about the tank quite happily. It is unusual not to see it.

[Jim Powers]

Could you look through the species index on this site and see what hillstreams you have?

[Ellabellaboo]

Hi Jim

I can't be a 100% sure , but I think the family are the cheni species (looks like them in the picture). The other one (that is missing ) is a beaufortia kweichowensis I think, it has much smaller dot markings all over and it is rounder bodied than the others which appear to have a slightly longer body . I am hoping I have got this right - it would be nice to see them together to compare

[Jim Powers]

Those two species could come in the same shipments. Beaufortia tend to be a bit shy so hiding may not be cause for concern.
However, sometimes it can be an indication that something is wrong. I just had that with two different gastromyzon species I recently purchased. Both started hiding. One is still alive and seems to be grazing on algae, the other, which looked healthy, died.
Hillstreams can be difficult to acclimate.