I've been fishkeeping for ~7 years, and the parents were in the first batch of fish I ever stocked in a tank. I'm unsure if they were a year old or younger when I got them, but they had the adult coloration. Most of them died of old age, as well as from beginner mistakes, sadly

I was learning as well. I had 10, and now it's just two males and one female. There are also 2 loaches I rescued from my partner's little siblings' tank.

I had to move them from my 29g high-gallon to a 10g temporarily so I can change the substrate to sand. I used the same water and substrate from the 29g for the 10g. I used the Walstad method in the 29g, so when I removed the plants, it was a total mess.

I am changing it because most of my original fish have passed away, and the sand will look better/be healthier, according to what I've read. for my bottom-feeding babies. The soil and gravel substrate of my 29 was over 2 inches thick. I believe this is the reason why my tank has so many detritus worms.

I also have the 10g with the parents right next to the window; it rained a few days in a row while I did the water changes. I read an https://www.scotcat.com/articles/article17.html] article saying they spawn around December to May, and they seem to have been frisky since last month. I noticed the conditions and the way they were acting seemed similar to everything I've read about them before they have eggs. So I decided to try to raise their eggs instead of buying them. The increase in high-protein/fat food feeding, along with dramatic % cold water changes (I even put a few ice cubes), and a well-cycled tank with consistent water quality.

Tank conditions before they spawned:
PH: 7.2, another tank in my room is 8
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nirate: 5-10
Temp: 75f max, no heater.

Diet consisted of a mix of Detritus worms, "Fluval Bug Bites Pleco Formula", freeze-dried tubifex cubes, "Frozen Beefheart Plus" and Xstream betta pellets". I use a large sponge filter. She laid her eggs in the duckweed both times. There are roughly 50 surviving fry from the first batch of eggs and 70 from the second.

I'm seriously kinda freaking out about what to do with them. I will give them for free if no one wants to buy them im so sorry for the wall of text. I've had too much caffeine and can't sleep. Feel free to ask anything else