Pajama Cardinals with Eggs
 

What a cool find. I just started keeping a marine tank a few months ago. It's a very modest 29 gal with three [I]Sphaeramia nematoptera[/I] (Pajama Cardinals) and one [I]Cryptocentrus cinctus[/I] (Yellow Watchman Goby). Yesterday I noticed my largest Cardinal wasn't eating which I thought strange since they have always had ravenous appetites. Today I thought the same one looked swollen in the face and very square jawed. I remembered the LFS telling me that sexing them was difficult but the males tended to have a squarer jaw so I started researching online. As soon as I learned they are mouth brooders the pieces started to fall into place. I again attempted to feed them and again the largest wouldn't eat. It did, however, let out a small burp allowing an egg to float out of it's mouth.

Since then I have seen it gulp several times, repositioning it's hold and occasionally an egg will escape. Unfortunately there was very little online as to how to breed these fish and raise the fry. Although I missed the spawning process I would still like to learn more about these fish and how they breed. My first question, is it the male or the female that is holding these eggs? What will happen next and if I choose to raise the fry, what is the best method?

Thanks!

I would search for Bangaii Cardinal breeding :) They should be exactly the same and you will find ALOT of information on them.

It's the male holding the eggs :)

hth.

Scott.

Nippy-
Congrats on your breeding success. Please start off w/ a search here for pyjama breeding. i have answered this question a number of times.

Given this, Pyjamas and many of the cardinal species bred frequently in the home aqiarium, and as you have discovered they are mouthbrooders.

HOWEVER, all apogons(cardinalfish) except pterapogons (banggais, mirificas) produce 1000s of eggs all very tiny (~2mm), the fry hatch in 7-12 days, and are released as plankton.

Banggai's and mirifica are the only 2 cardinalfish that produce large eggs that directly develop, meaning everything you learn about banggai breeding is NOT applicible here.

So if you want to "try" and raise the pyjama fry you'll have to isolate the male and collect the planktonic fry when released. The fry are tiny, tiny, and require an enriched live food, prolly "ss" rotifers or smaller.

The good news is pyjamas cardinal fry have been raised commerically---so if they can do it, so can you. Just remember banggais and pyjamas use 2 different development strategies, and you cannot compare them
frank