Pregnant Clownfish

[SWIMCOACHTOM]

My clownfish have mated! I bought a nursery for the female and put her in it. Now what? How long until she gives birth? She has a pretty big belly already. Does it give live birth or does she lay eggs? After the birth, what do I feed the fry? Any advise will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[dzeadow]

I'd let the female be in her normal environment w/ the male. They lay eggs and the male has to fertilize them. If you're not prepared, which it sounds like you're not, you won't have time to set up the appropriate equipment. No fret, once they start, they should lay eggs like clockwork. The rearing process can be very labor intensive though. In the mean time, I suggest reading Joyce Wilkerson's book "Clownfishes" and also reading this thread:


http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...hreadid=240158

[SWIMCOACHTOM]

Thank You.

[BristlewormKing]

Start monitoring how long for the eggs to hatch after they are laid. Also record how long before the next eggs are laid. You will have to know the cycle to get prepared if you want to raise the fry. It will take a couple of cycles for the clownfish to get on a regular schedule. Reading Clownfishes by Wilkerson as suggested by dzeadow is an absolute must in my opinion! Good luck!

[BristlewormKing]

Oops - thought I had stopped the first one before it posted - sorry!

[Cowfishesrule]

the female lays eggs, the male fertilizes them, and he take care of the nest, fanning and preening, the female guards the nest..

follow that link above, it gives valuable info on the process
good luck

[Tennyson]

I would definitely put the female back into the original tank for fertilization, otherwise, you'll just end up with a bunch of dead eggs. You might also want to prepare live food like brine shrimp and have them ready when the eggs hatch. The brine have most nutrients before being 4 hours old. Good luck.

[patmack]

where do you get phytoplankton and rotifers?

[dzeadow]

i think inlandaquatics.com has all the starter stuff