I. Purpose:
To recognize and award achievement for the breeding and raising of fish by the aquarium hobbyist; to encourage research into the spawning of the more difficult species; and to make accounts of successful spawning techniques available for publication.

II. Certificates and Awards:
A. Certificate of Spawning: A certificate of paper will be presented to the breeder each time a different species of fish is spawned. The certificate will contain the name of the species, the date on which it was spawned and the class.

B. Breeders Award: A certificate of paper will be presented to the breeder after the requirements of a particular class have been met.

C. Advanced Breeders Award: This award is presented in recognition of different levels of competency in the breeding of fish. Points are awarded for successful spawning · These points are accrued and a plaque presented according to the criteria in part V.

D. Grand Master Breeder: This award is presented in recognition of outstanding achievement in the spawning of fish and will be presented after the completion of the criteria in section V. The member receiving this award has reached the highest level of excellence in fish breeding in the TBAS Breeders Award Program.

III. Requirements: Before any award can be presented the following must be met:
A. Notification: Within Two (2) weeks of the date of the spawning a member of the BAP committee must be notified by phone, mail or verbally.

B. Verification: Six (6) live fry must be brought to the general meeting for visual verification by a BAP committee member. The fry must be between sixty (60) and one hundred twenty (120) days old. In extreme hardship uses (when moving the fry may endanger them ) and upon request, a BAP committee member will visit the breeder's home to verify the spawn.

C. BAP Report: A completed spawning report, E-Mail or Paper , must accompany the fry when they are brought in for verification. The BAP spawning report, E-Mail or Paper, should be completed and signed by the breeder. It is the responsibility of the breeder to include the scientific name of the species, classification and any request for more than the normal number of points for that spawn.

D. Only one (1) of the following must be met:
1. Auction: The donation of six (6) or more of the fry for the BAP auction.

2. Newsletter Article: The writing of an article concerning the spawn for publication in the TBAS Newsletter. The report should include: the conditioning of the breeders, the water chemistry, the types of food fed, the temperature, any special materials used to aid the spawning, size of the breeders, care of eggs and/or fry and foods fed to the fry.

3. Presentation: The presentation of a short program on the spawn to the general membership.

4. Auction of the Breeders: The breeding pair or group may be brought into the general meeting and auctioned for a 50/50 split with the BAP.

Upon completion of the four requirements in section III, a Certificate of Spawning will be issued to the breeder certifying the spawn. Certificates will be issued only once to any breeder for a species in any calendar year. Certificates will be issued for the continued breeding of the same species F1, F2, F3, etc. generations, not the repeated breeding of the same generation. This will reward the achievement of species maintenance for participants that specialize in a particular group of fish. Certificates will be issued to individuals only, not to families or partnerships. Certificates will be issued for distinct species only, not for hybrids. Color varieties and/or finnage varieties are considered to be the same as a fish of normal coloration and finnage.

IV. Classes:

The Breeders Award will be presented for the completion of each class of fish. The requirements are as follows:

1. Live bearers: Spawning five (5) distinct species.

2. Catfish: Spawning two (2) distinct species.

3. Barbs and Minnows: Spawning five (5) distinct species.
Barbs: three (3) species
Minnows: two (2) species (minnows to include rainbows, danios and white clouds.)

4. Rasboras: Spawning two (2) distinct species.
5. Tetras and Characins: Spawning three (3) distinct species.

6. Killifish: Spawning four (4) distinct species:

two (2) top spawning species
two (2) soil spawning species

7. Anabantids: Spawning four (4) distinct species.
8. Cichlids: Spawning six (6) distinct species.

three (3) substrate spawning species
three (3) mouth brooding species

9. Sharks. Loaches and Eels: Spawning one (1) species.
10. Marine: Spawning one (1) distinct species - either vertebrate or invertebrate.

11. Native fish: Spawning three (3) distinct species.

One (1) live bearing species
Two (2) egg laying species.

The three species submitted for this class must be native to U.S. waters and not an introduced species.
12. All other species: Spawning one (1) distinct species - this includes puffers, archerfish, scats, etc. and any fish not included in any other class.

Spawns cannot be submitted for consideration of a certificate in more than one class. For example the spawning of the Florida Flagfish ( Jordanella floridae ) can be considered either in the Native fish class or the Killifish class but not both. The choice is that of the individual breeder and must be so stated on the BAP spawning report under class.

V. Points for fish spawned:
In addition to the certificate of spawning, points are awarded for each species of fish spawned. These points are accumulative and noncompetitive. All participants will receive the same number of points for the same species spawned regardless of when participation begins (with the exception of a first ever reported breeding). Points will be awarded for the successful maintenance of the same species; points will be given for successful generations of a species (F1, F2, F3, etc. not the repeated breeding of the same generation) on a yearly basis

VIII. Notes:

1. The BAP is open to all members in good standing of the TBAS.

2. All spawnings are subject to review by the BAP committee and may be denied if deemed unacceptable. Decisions of the BAP committee are final.

3. Fry and/or eggs must be spawned in the breeder's tanks; not obtained from an outside source.

4. It is the breeder's responsibility to see that the requirements are met and properly credited.

5. Eligibility: Any species may be turned in for recognition; however, hybrids will not be accepted. Color or finnage variations do not constitute a different species.

6. Verifiable points are transferable from and to other aquarium societies.

7. In addition to the regular awards, a Chairpersons Award may be presented for outstanding achievement in the breeding of fish.

8. The BAP committee will consist of at least five (5) volunteers from the general membership, if five (5) are not available, the balance will be made up from the BOD. No member may be involved on a vote for a deviation in points on the member's own spawn.

Download Spawning Report here (MS Word format).