Are angelfish some of your favorite fish that you have in your community tank? These fish are super popular because of how colorful and beautiful they are.
They’re easy fish to take care of, and this makes them perfect for people who are just getting used to keeping aquariums in their homes. You might want to get into breeding more angelfish so that you can have even more fish for your fish tanks.
Angelfish will breed quite a bit, but you might notice that the angelfish will eat their own eggs sometimes. This is troubling because you want as many of the angelfish eggs to hatch as possible.
You might want to move the eggs and take care of them yourself. However, knowing how to do this without harming the eggs is important.
How are you supposed to move angelfish eggs? Can this be done safely or is it something that you shouldn’t attempt
Keep reading to get all of the information that you need about angelfish eggs. This should help you to take care of the eggs so that you can have more angelfish in your tank soon enough.
Moving Angelfish Eggs Won’t Always Be Easy
It’s not always going to be a good idea to move angelfish eggs. Frankly, you’re not always going to be able to move them safely without damaging the eggs.
Whether the eggs will be able to be moved or not might depend on where the eggs are located. If the female angelfish laid the eggs on the glass wall of the fish tank, then moving the eggs will be next to impossible.
You see, angelfish eggs are very sticky, and this means that you can’t remove them from surfaces easily. If you try to get the eggs off of the surface that they’re stuck to, you’re almost surely going to damage the eggs.
This probably makes it seem as if the eggs cannot be moved at all. It’s possible for the parent fish to move the eggs safely because they’re equipped to do it.
You’ll often see angelfish parents moving the eggs around a bit for various purposes. You can’t really replicate this, and this is why many people say that it’s best to let the parents deal with things.
There are going to be some caveats to consider that you’ll learn about later. For now, just know that moving angelfish eggs won’t always be practical or safe.
Breeding Slates and Breeding Cones
One method for moving angelfish eggs involves trying to get the angelfish to lay the eggs in a specific spot. There are things known as breeding slates and breeding cones that you can purchase.
Some people make their own breeding slates and breeding cones. It’s likely easier to purchase these items from a retail store, though.
These are good spots for angelfish to lay their eggs. It’s very possible that an angelfish will choose a breeding cone if you place one or two of them in the tank.
When the angelfish lays the eggs on the breeding cone, you’ll then be able to remove the entire cone from the tank. You can place the cone in a special tank that you have set up where you’ll take care of the eggs.
The same thing can be said for a breeding slate. They’re just two different types of objects that make for good spots for angelfish to lay their eggs.
What If the Angelfish Lays Eggs on a Plant?
If the angelfish lays eggs on an aquatic plant, then you can move the eggs by moving the entire plant. Sometimes this might not be practical, but it’ll likely be easy to cut a piece of the plant off to move the eggs.
For example, angelfish will often lay eggs on the underside of big leaves. You could cut the leaf at the stem and then place the leaf in a different tank.
This gives you a chance to separate the eggs from the parent fish. The aquatic plant will be okay, and you’ll be able to move the angelfish eggs without it being a big deal.
Overall, this is a good idea, and it’s recommended to keep live plants in any fish tank that contains angelfish. They feel more at ease with the plants around, and this makes it more likely that the angelfish will lay eggs that will actually get fertilized.
Sometimes male angelfish get a bit shy or wary of fertilizing eggs that are out in the open. It’s theorized that the male fish won’t fertilize eggs if it feels that they will be in danger.
When the eggs are laid on a good spot that is easy to protect such as a plant or a breeding cone, the male angelfish will do what needs to be done. Angelfish eggs that don’t get fertilized will run the risk of having fungal growth issues, and this will cause them to turn white.
If you notice angelfish eggs that have turned white in the fish tank, then you can safely discard them. They aren’t viable and you don’t want to keep organic debris in the tank.
Sometimes the angelfish will simply eat eggs that have turned white. You can wait a bit to see if they do this, but it’s likely more practical to just remove the eggs yourself.
What If the Eggs Are in a Dangerous Spot?
There is the possibility that the angelfish will choose a very unusual spot to lay its eggs. Some angelfish owners have noted that female fish have laid eggs in very inconvenient locations.
For instance, the fish might choose to lay its eggs right on the filter. This means that the eggs would be in danger of getting sucked up by the filter.
If this occurs, there are some options that you can consider. You could remove the filter and place it in a separate tank. Of course, you’d need to put a new filter on the tank for the fish so that everything will be okay.
When an angelfish lays its eggs on something such as a filter, you should usually have the option of turning things off and moving the entire filter to a safe location. You can then care for the eggs normally and all should be well.
Try to encourage the angelfish to choose better spots for its eggs. Ensure that you have aquatic plants at the bottom of the tank that the angelfish can utilize.
It’s also highly recommended to put a breeding cone or two in the aquarium. This makes it more likely that the angelfish will choose those spots for its eggs rather than a bad spot such as the filter.
If the eggs are ever laid in a bad spot that you won’t be able to move, then you’ll just have to deal with it. See what happens with the eggs and hope that some of them survive.
Remember that there’s always next time. If something goes awry, it isn’t going to be too long until the angelfish will lay more eggs.
When to Move Angelfish Eggs
You don’t necessarily have to move angelfish eggs. Letting the parents care for the eggs is a viable choice.
However, it’s fine to move the angelfish eggs as soon as they’ve been fertilized basically. Wait a few hours and then place them in a separate tank so long as you can move them safely.
How to Protect Angelfish Eggs
Caring for angelfish eggs isn’t necessarily easy if you’re a novice. However, it’s not so difficult that you can’t figure out how to do it.
You’re going to be responsible for keeping the eggs clean, giving them oxygen, and keeping them safe. If you place the eggs in a tank by themselves, then you’re not going to need to worry about protecting them from other fish that want to eat them.
Your main concern is going to be providing the eggs with oxygen. Doing this is about placing air stones in the fish tank.
These will help to provide oxygen to the eggs so that they will be able to get what they need. Eventually, the eggs should reach the “wiggler” stage if all goes well.
It takes around sixty hours for angelfish eggs to hatch. This is assuming that you’re keeping the eggs in water that is 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
The wiggler stage is when the eggs hatch. You won’t see fish swimming around just yet because the wigglers will remain attached to the yolk of the eggs.
You aren’t supposed to feed the newly hatched fish during this stage. The fish will be getting nutrients from the yolk.
This wiggler stage should last for around five days. After this, the wigglers will become free swimmers, and they’ll be true angelfish fry.
The angelfish fry are still developing at this point. If they were with the parents, the parents would try to protect the fish until they develop fins.
You’ll need to feed the angelfish fry very carefully. They have tiny mouths, and this means that they’ll have to eat very small things.
Newly hatched brine shrimp will be what most people give to angelfish fry. Small and frequent feedings are recommended for angelfish fry when you want them to thrive.
After about three or four weeks have passed, you should be able to start feeding the angelfish fry crushed fish flakes. When the angelfish fry are between four and six weeks old, they’ll be big enough to eat normal fish flakes, shrimp pellets, and other normal food that you would give to a standard angelfish.
Why Do Angelfish Eat Their Own Eggs?
You’ve learned a good bit about moving angelfish eggs now, but you could still be wondering why angelfish eat their own eggs sometimes. Is there a practical reason why angelfish would choose to do this?
Admittedly, it does seem to go against the purpose of protecting the eggs. Angelfish are very protective parents and will generally work dutifully to protect their eggs from harm.
So why would they eat the eggs on certain occasions? Well, it could be because they feel that they must do so.
Sometimes angelfish will choose to eat some of their eggs if they feel that they need the extra energy. If they aren’t getting enough food, then they might eat some eggs to keep going.
In a fish tank setting, it’s unlikely that the angelfish are eating the eggs for this reason. Unless you’re starving the fish, they likely don’t need to eat the eggs for energy.
There are times when angelfish will eat their own eggs for pragmatic reasons. They might feel that there are too many eggs to care for.
Giving all of the eggs enough oxygen might seem impractical, and this means that sacrificing a few eggs to make it easier to care for the rest of them will make sense to the fish. It could be that having fewer eggs will make it more likely that more angelfish fry will survive.
Of course, angelfish will also eat their own eggs due to stress. If the angelfish get stressed due to poor water conditions, loud noises, or problems with aggressive fish, then they might panic and eat the eggs.
This is why you should try to limit the stress that the angelfish experience. Don’t put the angelfish tank right next to loud speakers or in a noisy room.
Angelfish can be good parents, but you might see them eat their own eggs from time to time. They’ll even eat the angelfish fry under the right circumstances.
It does make sense to separate the parent fish from the eggs if you want as many new fish to be hatched as possible. Just take the advice above into account so that you can have a good experience.
Final Thoughts
After learning about how to move angelfish eggs, you should be much more prepared. It’s not going to be that difficult to get good results if you take the right steps.
Moving angelfish eggs will be easy enough if you get the angelfish to lay the eggs on a breeding slate or a breeding cone. You can also have good luck if the eggs are laid on a plant leaf.
Otherwise, moving eggs from a glass wall will likely be impossible for you. The parent fish can move the eggs, but you’ll be unable to do so without damaging them.
It does make sense to care for the eggs yourself when you want to avoid the risk of the parent fish eating the eggs. You simply have to decide on whether you want to take on that burden.
For some, it’ll be too much of a hassle. The parent fish can successfully care for the eggs if you leave them to their own devices, but some breeding cycles might go better than others.
Jeff has always enjoyed having pets, but as a child, he was drawn to his family’s fish tank. Being able to maintain a small ecosystem and observe the behaviors and interactions in the underwater world peaked his interest early on and has kept him hooked until this day. On Avid Aquarist, Jeff shares everything he’s learned about helping aquatic life survive and thrive in a home aquarium.