What Color Are Angelfish Eggs? What You Need to Know
If you are looking to breed your favorite pair of angelfish, you have certainly already done your research and know all the conditions you need to meet.
These monogamous beauties produce by spawning, which means that the female will release her eggs on a nesting surface of their choice and the male will later fertilize them.
However, angelfish can often produce eggs also when they are not ready to spawn, and even when there is no male present. In such cases, the eggs will obviously not be able to hatch and there will be no babies swimming around your tank.
In order to know whether you can expect any angelfish fry soon or if it is a false alarm, it is good to distinguish the various coloration. What color are angelfish eggs supposed to be in the first place?
Normal Color of Angelfish Eggs
Healthy eggs should be translucent brownish once that a male angelfish fertilizes them. And he should fertilize them immediately after the female releases them onto the nesting surface.
Indeed, male specimens are quite the responsible and caring parents, so they tend to spend a lot of time around the eggs before they hatch, keeping an eye on them and making sure that everything is all right.
That said, if you notice semi-transparent tiny eggs and the male in their vicinity, you can be almost sure that they have been successfully fertilized and will hatch any time soon.
Angelfish Eggs Change Color
Here are some of the main reasons why angelfish eggs change color; and also some tips on how to prevent discoloration:
– Unfertilized Eggs
If after observing the previously released eggs you notice them changing coloration in any way, your first consideration should be connected to them actually not being fertilized.
In fact, this is the most common reason which leads to eggs ˝going wrong˝. In cases like these, they should slowly start turning to an opaque variation, mostly white.
Furthermore, if you do not see your male specimen spending time around the eggs or if you do not own a male at all, this is an almost confirmed indication that these eggs are empty and not going to hatch.
Sometimes, it may happen that just a certain amount of the eggs will turn white, while the others remain translucent. If you want them to hatch, you should not try removing the white eggs from the group, as parents can then become hostile and eat even the fertilized ones.
Oppositely, if all of the released eggs have turned white or if you are not planning on raising any angelfish baby, you may remove them from your tank to avoid them rotting and worsening the water quality.
– Poor Water Quality
Angelfish require specific water parameters in order to thrive, and so do their eggs and fry. If these are not provided, there will obviously be no predisposition for them to hatch, even after being successfully fertilized. Eggs tend to turn white in such cases, terribly similar to unfertilized ones.
To rule out this concern, the most efficient task to perform is a freshwater test with the help of an appositely designed kit. The ammonia and nitrite levels should be at zero.
Additionally, you can also have a look at your thermometer and perhaps to even check your pH levels, as inappropriate temperature and acidity values can all lead to the inability of baby fry to hatch from their eggs.
– Strong Water Flow
Angelfish love having a mild water flow around their tanks. If this is too strong, however, the eggs will not be able to hatch. Actually, they will not even be able to get fertilized in the first place.
This happens because the sperm released by the male will simply get re-directed a bit further because of the current, and the eggs will be left empty.
In situations like these, the eggs will start turning into an opaque white color pretty soon, and you can either remove them or leave them to get eaten by the adults.
– Fungus Infection
Both successfully fertilized eggs and those which remain empty can be witnesses of bacterial infections and fungus. This is not something that you, as their keeper, could have prevented. Indeed, infections like these can basically happen to any fish species and they can occur even in their natural habitats.
If your tank is affected by such state, eggs will be pretty easy to distinguish as they will become not just white but also fuzzy. If not treated soon, fungus can quickly spread all around the nesting area.
You may use a simple remedy with the help of some methylene blue to treat your tank and angelfish eggs from fungus. And finally, for future references, the higher the water pH is the more prone will eggs be to developing a fungus infection.
– Damaged Egg
Sometimes, angelfish eggs can get damaged. They may fall onto a sharp surface across the tank, the male may try to supply them with more oxygen but ends up accidentally hurting them, other fish species try to eat them deliberately, or you may injure them while moving them into an isolation tank.
Whatever the reason may be, damaged eggs are not likely to ever hatch.
Do Angelfish Eat Discolored Eggs?
Angelfish are greatly responsible parents, and they consistently take care of their eggs until they hatch. If some of the eggs are damaged or turning into an opaque white color, the parents will decide to eat them.
This is done with purely good intentions, as they are basically saving the remaining healthy eggs from a potential infection.
Can You Treat Angelfish Eggs with Methylene Blue?
Methylene blue is basically an aquarium disinfectant and is absolutely safe to use for treating fungus infections on angelfish eggs.
Wrapping Up
Healthy adult angelfish are able of spawning quite often and it is not unusual to see hundreds of eggs across a tank. However, not all of them have to be fertilized, and neither healthy.
Observing their coloration is extremely important as this is the best way of distinguishing the healthy eggs which are ready to hatch from those which should be removed or left for the parents to eat them.
