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Breeding / Egg scatterers
Ticto barb
Egg scatterers · Easy

Breeding the ticto barb

Egg scatterer with no parental care; spawns over mesh, marbles or fine-leaved plants, and adults eat the eggs so should be removed.

Full species page

Step by step

Pairing

Keep a group of 6-8 and condition them with live and frozen foods; choose the fattest female and the most colourful males. A trio (1 male, 2 females) also works.

Breeding tank

20-40 L bare tank with a mesh grid or a layer of marbles over the floor, java moss or spawning mops, a gentle sponge filter and water at 24-26 C.

What starts it

Heavy feeding for 2 weeks, then a cooler (about 2 C) water change and morning sun or a bright light.

Eggs and young

About 150 eggs laid in batches of about 20; they hatch in 1-2 days and fry swim free about a day later.

Raising the fry

Feed infusoria or liquid fry food for 3 days, then newly hatched brine shrimp and microworms; grade the fry as they grow quickly.

Common mistakes
  • Leaving the adults in with the eggs (they eat them)
  • Skipping the conditioning period
  • Keeping the breeding tank too cold or too dirty
Setup blueprint

Home setup

One breeding tank for the ticto barb, drawn to scale from the breeding guide.

75 cm long · 15 cm deep20 cm123456
  1. 1
    Breeding tank: 20 L · about 75 × 15 × 20 cm, 20–40 L from the breeding guide
  2. 2
    Sponge filter and air pump · named in the guide
  3. 3
    Heater, 24–26 °C · temperature from the breeding guide
  4. 4
    Spawning mop · named in the guide
  5. 5
    Java moss · named in the guide
  6. 6
    Egg grid or marbles · named in the guide

Water: 24–26 °C · pH 6–7.5 · bare bottom

A plan from the breeding guide and an adult size of 12.5 cm. Tank shape is a standard 2 : 1 : 1.2 box, at least 6 adult lengths long. Check each step in the guide above.

Setup blueprint

Business setup

A 120 cm rack for breeding the ticto barb in numbers.

12234120 cm rack, 3 shelves
  1. 1
    1 breeding tank, 20 L · about 75 × 15 × 20 cm, set up like the home tank
  2. 2
    2 grow-out tanks, 72 L each · about 75 × 30 × 35 cm; twice the breeding tank, never smaller than this species' smallest tank
  3. 3
    Shared air pump and air line · one line along each shelf feeds a sponge filter in every tank
  4. 4
    Heat the room or each tank · 24–26 °C

In total: 3 tanks, about 164 L of water. A litre of water weighs about 1 kg, so check that the floor and rack can take the weight.

Sizes are worked out from the breeding tank in the guide. Tanks fit a standard 120 cm rack when they can; bigger tanks go on their own stands.

Male or female

Adult males are slimmer and more colourful than females, especially on the fins; true ticto males have no red-orange on the body.

Can I breed it in my tank?

  • Use a separate small tank with a sponge filter and spawning mops, so the eggs aren't eaten.
  • Good for a first breeding project.

Day-by-day plan

Typical for egg scatterers

  1. 14 days beforeCondition the parents

    Feed live or frozen food twice a day. Keep males and females apart if you can.

  2. Day 0Spawning

    Eggs are scattered over mops or fine plants, often at first light. Remove the parents straight after.

  3. Day 1Eggs hatch

    Most eggs hatch in 1–2 days. Keep the tank dim and remove white (fungused) eggs.

  4. Day 4Free swimming, first food

    Fry use up the yolk and start swimming. Feed infusoria or liquid fry food several times a day.

  5. Day 8Baby brine shrimp

    Switch to newly hatched brine shrimp or microworms. Start small, daily water changes.

  6. Day 21Crushed flake

    Add finely crushed flake. Sort fry by size so the big ones don't eat the small ones.

  7. Day 60Ready to move

    Most small fish reach about 2 cm in 2–3 months and can join the main tank.

A general guide for this breeding type. Days change with temperature and species.

Simulator: guided

Stage 1 of 7Condition the parents

Feed live or frozen food twice a day. Keep males and females apart if you can.

Simulator: try it yourself

Set up a virtual breeding tank and see what would likely happen.

No spawning
  • Without live or frozen food the parents aren't in breeding condition.

An educational estimate from the breeding rules, not a promise.