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Hans - some males may still be "catching" free swiming fry and blowing them back to the nest as though he doesn't want them to get too far from the nest - maybe nature instinct to protect them from straying away and be someone else's meal.
therefore in a controlled environment like a breeding tank, I too think it's ok to remove the male early; I don't have problem even as soon as it hatches - and with the water level just a few inches for fry to swim upwards easily when it does.
in fact, for me, it'll depends on how tired i think the male is. since i won't be feeding him anything right from the introduction of the female, he can be very work-out with all the chasing, mating and picking up fallen eggs (esp. when you leave the lights on 24x7). i'll usually let him rest early... I ever heard that a male can die of exhaustion (not sure if it's true but why risk?)
there are ways to help the male actually, for example to cover the breeding tank pitch dark immediately after taking out the female - since the first day there'll be no activities for the father (it can rest!) until it hatch the second/third day. again, not tried, but sounds logical to me ;)
also, it's okay to just fish out the father with fry sticking on the net, just use a dropper to suck out the fry at the father's small container. in fact, the father will most likely have a few fry carried in his mouth when you're chasing him around the tank to net him! even when you thought the net is clean, you'll find a few fry at his own tank after 10 minutes or so! it always happens to me!
- Jan 8, 2001
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rhinoivory - Opinions on this subject can vary greatly.
Some people will advise to leave the male for as long as possible, as long as he is not eating the fry.
Others will say to take him out when the fry are free swimming (as yours are) to give him a rest.
As for how to get him out, depending on how adventurous your newly free swimming fry have become, you may be able to herd the male into a corner w/very few fry and net him there. Or, you can use a combination of a net and a plastic betta cup, herd the male with the net towards the cup (if it's a clear cup he may not see it until too late) and then scoop him up in the cup. If you catch any fry with him, you could carefully try pouring them out.
It may be tricky, so good luck.
- Jan 8, 2001
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