# Will females take back their eggs?



## punman (Oct 24, 2003)

I stripped a female too early in an ice cream bucket. I left the wriggling fry-eggs and the mom in the bucket for 15 minutes hoping she would pick them back up (I have had Malawi cichlids that would do that). She did not pick them up in that time period so I put mom back in the main tank and am tumbling the fry/eggs.
Do they usually pick them back up?


----------



## IrkedCitizen (Apr 26, 2007)

It depends on the female really. some will scoop them back up instantly But some of them are like "To heck with you, punk!" The punk being you.

Your female was just one that didn't want them back.

The two females that I have stripped so far have taken fry back in but I strip at 30-32 days and the fish are a good 3/8". It's a sight to see them take them back in their mouth. Of course it just meant that I had to take those ones back out of their mouths.


----------



## myjohnson (Dec 28, 2007)

You seen females do this with the eggs?


----------



## Xenomorph (Aug 6, 2007)

myjohnson said:


> You seen females do this with the eggs?


If the female is experienced she'll pick the eggs, or fry back. I've seen one of my big Duboisi females go after a little wriggler that she accidentally lost.


----------



## BrownBullhead (May 15, 2005)

If she won't pick up right away, let her rest for 10 minutes. Come back, "swirl" the water a bit, assuming it's several inches deep; when she sees the egg "zoom" past her face, she'll usually suck it back faster than you can say "gulp". That's how I got hesitant females to pick up eggs again.


----------

