Macropod (Macropodus opercularis) is a labyrinthine fish that lives in stagnant water bodies, in grooves of rice fields. In nature, it lives in countries of southeast Asia (China, Vietnam, Korea, Taiwan). Due to the epicarbula (a special labyrinth organ), a macropode can live for a long time in water with a lack of oxygen.
The size of the male is 10 cm, the female is about 8 cm; in the male, in contrast to the female, the fins are longer, especially the caudal, and the female's body is wider, oval, compressed laterally. The color of the fish is very attractive. The body is crossed by wide strips, from dark red to crimson, alternating with dark green, turning into blue. The fins and tail feathers are red-brown, the fin is blue, the tail and fin fins are dark red, the lower fin is bordered by a narrow strip of blue with yellow. Gill cover dark blue with a red-yellow border. For its colorful coloring and lush plumage, the macropod is also called a paradise fish. There is a macro black, whose body during spawning is painted black.
Breeding of macrophages
To the temperature of the water, the macropod is not exacting, it can also live at 18-20 ° C, but then it becomes inactive, the coloring becomes not so bright, fading, becoming gray-green with barely noticeable strips. If you stay in such water for a long time, the fish fall ill. Only the temperature rises, as the fish become mobile and brightly colored, the optimum temperature is 22-26 ° C. For successful spawning of macropores, the water temperature should be 28 ° C or higher. The end of April and the beginning of May is the ideal period of the year for spawning. 2-3 weeks before spawning, the female and male are separated, feeding live food. To keep the macro-aquariums, the aquarium takes a small (10-30 liters) with old water, with a small number of aquatic plants and starts the steam, raising the temperature to 28 ° C. The male circling around the female, playing a little, begins to build a nest. It forms a foam on the surface, blowing out air bubbles. Construction lasts 1-2 days, during this time the male limits the food. After the creation of the nest, the male intensely cares for the female, blowing the fins and staining with bright colors. This game lasts several hours. The female weakens and hides in the thickets of plants. The main thing is not to miss this moment and to set the female off, as the male can kill her to death.
From fry to adult fish
The male constantly cares for caviar, collecting eggs in the nest, constantly adding foam. During courtship for caviar, he does not eat anything. Caviar is reddish and very shallow. In a day there are larvae. Within 2-3 days the male takes care of the larvae, the foam begins to melt, forming lumens. For 4-5 days, the male must be removed from the fry, otherwise it can eat them. At this time the fry should be given "live dust". Growth they do not stand out from each other, growing evenly.
At 5-6 months, puberty occurs. Aquarium fish are very prolific macroplants and can breed several times a year. A one-year-old couple under good conditions of maintenance for one litter gives up to 600-700 fry.
The aquarium in which the macropods are located must be covered (for example, with glass), as the fish can
There is a certain feature in the content. Fishes are violent in adulthood, so they should be run at the age of 2-3 months in a common aquarium, excluding contact with aquarium fish-valechvostami and telescopes.
Macropods are not demanding in content and breeding. Inexperienced beginners aquarists will be very interested in watching their behavior, and breeding and caring for the macro-pop can become for you and your children a real hobby.