One of my Mbuna (about 3 inch Kenyi cichlid), who had been holding for almost 2 weeks, died. I'm not totally sure why; I went away for a day and came back and the fish was dead under a rock. I suspect she was killed by another aggressive cichlid. However, my question is what should I do with the body of this dead fish? She was pretty close to spitting out the fry, and I think I actually see a few very tiny fry swimming around near her body. I am wondering if there are more fry still stuck in her mouth that I should get out. What should I do with the body to ensure maximum survival rate for the fry? FYI, I am not concerned about leaving a dead fish in my tank, as I know eventually my other fish will just eat the body (this has happened more than once in the past). I am only concerned about what I should do with the body of the dead mother to ensure maximum survival rate for her fry, and I am worried that some fry are stuck in her mouth.
Some other details (not sure if they are relevant):
I do not plan to remove the fry from this tank.
I have a ton of rocks with small holes for the fry to hide.
I have about 12 cichlids in the tank at the moment, some adults and some juveniles.
My only question is about what to do with the mother's body for the fry, specifically if I need to get trapped fry out of the dead mothers mouth. I am not asking about why the fish died or anything like that.
If there is a better place to post this question, please let me know.
Some other details (not sure if they are relevant):
I do not plan to remove the fry from this tank.
I have a ton of rocks with small holes for the fry to hide.
I have about 12 cichlids in the tank at the moment, some adults and some juveniles.
My only question is about what to do with the mother's body for the fry, specifically if I need to get trapped fry out of the dead mothers mouth. I am not asking about why the fish died or anything like that.
If there is a better place to post this question, please let me know.