24 hours in, and it looks like all of them were properly fertilized except for 4 out the outer limits of where the eggs were laid. Mom is making a pretty lousy egg watcher, but the male has proven very attentive, and hasn't strayed far from the pot unless the female is firmly inside and fanning them.
If they develop, they should hatch in about 30 hours, and be free swimming by this coming Thursday.
JTK,
Glad to see another fish nut! What do you have swimming around at home? From my mid teens onward, I had mostly saltwater (a 55gal reef, a 29g seahorse tank, and a 55gal goldfish aquarium) which definitely primed me for some of the finickier freshwater fish.
When I lived in California, I had a planted Discus tank that knocked peoples socks right off. This is my first aquarium back in Florida, and I wanted something simpler but still nice and colorful. I really lucked out with these guys, but likely benefitted from PetSmart here getting their fish from Seagrest farms, instead of them being Asian imports.
I usually change 20% once or twice a week, whatever I need to keep things balanced and nitrates under 15. I try to keep it detectable for all the crypts and the 2 aponogeton that I have. I've always found anubias and banana plants to be bullet proof, so I'm not really fretting over them.
I'd crank the heat up to 82 if I could, but I originally didn't plan rams, so I went with a heater that is internally set to 79 degrees. If this batch actually develops to the point of hatching, I'll invest in a new heater when I pick up all the necessary supplies for a grow out for the next round. I fully expect the school of tetras (neons) that are in there to pick them off to nothing if they make it to swimming.