Robby Dittmann wrote in a message to All:
 RD> I need some helping breeding my convicts.  I have a pair that seems
 RD> to be mating.  She is laying a batch of eggs on a flat rock every
 RD> few weeks.  Each time the eggs get layed the pair stand guard for a
 RD> few days, then the eggs just seem to disappear.  The tank is 33
 RD> gallons.  It contains 2 other convicts (one male, one unknown), a
 RD> Dempsey, and a large plecostamus.  My first thought was that the
 RD> pleco was doing it, but he seems to be very frightened by the
 RD> convicts, and I've even taken to over-feeding him when there are
 RD> eggs present, just in case.
I have bred convicts before and typical to cichlids, they take great care of 
their young.  I believe you're problem is with the other fish in the tank. 
They will readily eat the eggs.  You'll have to remove the other fish for 
this to work.  If you remove the convicts, they will not continue to breed 
until they become very used to the new surroundings.  Also, the convicts 
themselves may eat the eggs if they feel threatened or are grossly underfed.
In a 33 gallon tank, the convicts will breed readily if they are by 
themselves, and there is no reason to remove the male or female after they 
hatch.  Both parents will guard over the brood will take turns eating rather 
than leave the brood unattended.  The adults will often look like they are 
eating the young (they pick them up in their mouth), but that is just how 
they move the fry and keep them together.  Cichlid parenting is incredible to 
observe as one would hardly believe that a fish would have such care for the 
young.  If you remove the parents, you'll miss out seeing an incredible 
display parental care.
Anyway, remove the other fish for a while, and you'll soon have a couple of 
hundred convicts.  Let them grow to the size of a quarter, then sell them to 
a fish store.  Not all stores will take the fish (they have regular 
suppliers), so you'll have to hunt around a bit.  Sometimes you can trade 
your fish for more equipment etc., and this allows you to make some return on 
your hobby.
 RD> Any advice?
I hope this helps, good luck.
 --Doug 
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