When the tank is set and the temperature tested, we introduce the fish we have chosen for the spawning.

We place the male in the tank the day before the female. He may or may not build a nest during that period. We place the female in the chimney at least a day prior to the earliest planned release. It doesn't always work out that the day we want to release her is the day we do...but we like to think and plan ahead.

Don't ask why, but when something works we continue to do the same process until we screw it up and discover something that works better. So when we introduce the female to the male, we always do it the same way. When we don't, the female seems to get damaged in magnitudes of 100s.

Although we hope that the event will take place the day after she is placed in the chimney, the female may have been in the chimney for several days. If we don't see the signs that she is laden with eggs, what would be the point of getting the male and the female together? When she is plump and looks likes she may have swallowed a marble we know that she's about ready or perhaps...perhaps...ready. In dark colored females, vertical bars being expressed is a good sign as is the famous "head down" posture in the presence of the male. Not all females "bow" to the male from inside the chimney. Light bodied females, while perhaps barred, because of their coloration make the barring difficult to see. There can be a bit of calculated guessing done on the part of the "breeder."

When to introduce the two fish is not a guessing game but a calculated gamble. We don't gamble well so make up with calculations. Your calculations will get better with experience.

During the last day before the anticipated pairing, we continue to feed heavily, perhaps as many as 10 or 12 small meals throughout the day. Eating seems to relax the fish. These meals are always live food such as; blackworms, mosquito larvae, daphnia, Grindal worms and whiteworms. We do not feed any pellets or flakes during the last few days of the conditioning and pre-spawning period.

In the evening, just before the lights in the hatchery go out, we gently lift the glass cover and slowly remove the chimney, releasing the female into the tank. We always introduce the female in the late evening and frequently find a spawn occurring when the lights are going on in the morning. Nearly always, whether the spawn is started at "dawn" or not, the spawning will take place the next day.

When the chimney is removed there is not more than about 10-15 minutes of light left in the room and we watch the fishes reaction to each other. Usually the female will glide under the nest cover. The cover is only 4-5 inches from the chimney. She has probably had her eye on it. When she glides under the cover, the male will usually swim gently toward her. She is normally barred or changing into bars at this time. The male and female may do a few gentle circles under the next and then the fire works begin. The female will head for cover (the Java Moss) and the lights will go out.

Out of sight is out of mind with these fish. If they don't know another fish is in the area, they are fairly docile fish. The male doesn't see the female in the dark and in the moss, so peace reigns.

If the female has been eating a healthy diet, the temperature is warm enough and she is showing some, if not all, of the normal signs of readiness, one should expect that the spawning process will be eminent. It is a good thing to have the spawn take place early in the day to minimize the damage done to either the male or (usually) the female.

We have a procedure for those rare times when the pair has not spawned during the first day.

Good notes help.