Yesterday I watched my female guppy giving birth to many babies! I quickly arranged a new temporary “home” for them out of a 3-liters glass decorative jar.
Weeks ago I promised to leave any newborn in the main aquarium with adults. If some survive, good. If not, well… that’s the Nature. But I failed. I just wanted to make sure they have enough peace to grow up, without hiding all the time…
Well, I took my Java moss carpet from the main aquarium, some stones (which I boiled in water before) and some plants from my plants’ experiment. To complete, I used gravel also from my experiment and water from the main tank.
So, this is their new home…
My main concerns right now are about the water parameters. A small body of water (3 liters only) can change parameters much faster than my main tank. So, what should I care about?
- Temperature decreases at night. Since I am not using a heater, I should at least be aware that the room’s temperature is always within their acceptable range. Too much oscillation may also cause diseases, specially Ick. Well, at least it is Summer already.
- Ammonia, Nitrites and Nitrates may increase a lot if the “jar” begins the cycle period. So, I should exchange water with the main tank every while, to make sure their parameters are equally stable. Also, tiny fishes, even in the amount I got (around 20), may not make enough debris to contaminate the water. Finally, special care when feeding them, because the remaining food can impact a lot the water parameters.
- Oxygen levels should be high enough. I am trying to ensure that by adding a lot of plants (heavy layer of Java moss).
pH, water hardness etc should not be a problem. They do not oscillate before some of those parameters above get out of control. In any case, the regular water exchange with the main tank should also prevent these issues.
Aquaria 
Que tiernitos!!! 🙂