Housing Cp Juveniles with Adults

[jewett]

At what size would it be safe to house year old morphs with their parents? I have three morphs from last years breeding that have grown to about 2.5 inches total body length. It would be nice to keep them with the three adults in the 30 gallon tank (just to have one less tank to worry about water changes for). The juveniles are mostly aquatic and eating the same food items as moms and dad. The water is much deeper in the adults tank than what the youngsters have been housed in thus far - 14 inches vs 3 inches. What have you experienced C. pyrrhogaster breeders done? Thanks in advance for your input!

 

[Jennewt]

I have housed C.p. juveniles together with adults as soon as the youngsters were fully aquatic, which is usually around 3 inches in length. The adults don't seem the least bit inclined to eat the smaller ones. I also raise C.p. larvae in the tank with the adults, and I've never seen any evidence that the adults eat the large larvae or morphs. I doubt that they would, unless there were a serious underfeeding problem.

 

[jewett]

Thank you, Jen. I was a little hesitant to try because of the depth of the water, and also because every now and then I find larvae with missing tails (presumably bitten off by the parents). I think I will wait till the end of summer and try the juveniles in with their parents. I really appreciate your input,
Heather

 

[Benny2k1]

I have also got a juvenile in with 4 adults, and they are totally ignoring it to be honest. so no problems here so far either