Geophagus abalios Breeding Guide
Breeding Geophagus abalios, an Orinoco eartheater that is an ovophilous biparental mouthbrooder taking eggs into the mouth at spawning.
Overview
Geophagus abalios is an eartheater from the Orinoco basin of Venezuela. According to Seriously Fish it is a substrate-spawning, ovophilous, biparental mouthbrooder: the pair spawns on a surface and the eggs are taken into the mouth immediately. It is a sand-sifting species best kept in a group, and it occurs sympatrically with the larvophilous G. dicrozoster.
Sexing
No external differences have been observed except during spawning, when the female's ovipositor is visible. Because juveniles cannot be sexed reliably, raise young fish in a group and let pairs form naturally.
Conditioning
There is no special trigger for spawning; the main requirements are a good diet and a stringent maintenance regime with relatively large weekly water changes. Well-fed adults in clean water spawn readily.
Breeding Setup
- Soft sand and a flat spawning surface; a tank base of 180 × 60 cm or more for a group
- Temperature: 26-32 °C (Seriously Fish maintenance range)
- pH: 4.0-7.0 (Seriously Fish)
- Hardness: 18-179 ppm (Seriously Fish)
- Large weekly water changes
Spawning Behavior & Trigger
Spawning occurs in typical substrate-spawning fashion, with the female laying one or more rows of eggs before the male moves in to fertilise them, the process repeating numerous times over several hours. No specific environmental trigger is needed.
Egg & Fry Care
Maximum brood size is around 200 eggs. Eggs are normally assumed by the female, though occasionally both adults participate from the start, and parents may exchange brooding duties daily or simultaneously. At 25-28 °C the fry become free-swimming at 8-11 days of age. Fry are easily fed, accepting good-quality powdered dry foods, Artemia nauplii and microworm.
Common Challenges
Reliable sexing is impossible outside spawning, so a group is the surest route to a pair. The species needs a large footprint and soft, slightly acidic water; coarse substrate can interfere with natural feeding and brooding behaviour.