what does it take to keep a COPPERBAND BUTTERFLY alive/thriving?

WarrenAmy&Maddy · #1 01/04/2008, 11:55 AM

there is probably no one (right) answer here
about this question but considering that i am interested in getting one thought i would ask anyway!

have already turned one down i had on hold at lfs bec wasnt eating

from what have read here on RC
to get one to live over a year - one is lucky to do so...

and there seems to be about a 25% chance
of keeping one long term... iow from what have read the odds are not in the fishes favor for surviving

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40dB_VNwVuY

here is a link that shows a video of a CBB eating out of someones hand... the guy who posted this video on the reef fishes forum said it was healthy/eating - then just died one day

better to get a juvenile/smaller size ?

feed best on aiptasia ?
(have heard they dont always eat aiptasia - as many seem to hope for)

does anyone have any recoms, insights, secrets to share on how to best keep one of these fish alive?

justinpsmith · #2 01/04/2008, 12:04 PM

Mine just suddenly died the other night. This is the second one to suddenly die on me for no reason I can figure out. I have also had 2 die because they never really ate. Just kind of picked at their food...

Personally, I will most likely not ever try again...well not anytime soon. I hate watching fish die and it always feels like my fault somehow. This last on one was weird though because I had him for quite a while and he was my brothers before I got him. Between the two of us, we had him for about 1.5 years. I had fed him the other night and walked away. About an hour or two later I went back to the tank and he was dead!

Make sure you find one eating though. Even then, I have seen them eat at the LFS and then had them starve at home. Seem like such a hard fish to keep...Too bad.

Good luck though!

deansreef · #3 01/04/2008, 12:20 PM

i have been lucky to keep this beautiful fish for the past 2 years in my 180 reef. The fish will only eat mysis shrimp and fresh little neck clams.

Dean

Salty Prata · #4 01/04/2008, 12:23 PM

I managed to keep one for about 3 months, once it ate all of my aptasia it suddenely died. The fish never took to any type of food. A friend at the fish store told me he keep's his by harvisting aptasia in his sump then placing it in the main aquarium for the fish to eat.

mpdharley · #5 01/04/2008, 12:57 PM

A LFS close by has been having very good luck with feeding them clams (might've been oyster, but pretty sure it was clams) on the half shell. They just drop several of the half shells in and the CBBs go right for them.

Of course, being a LFS, they don't have the fish long term; but they have had good luck getting new arrivals to eat immediately.

YMMV

Mike

eskymick · #6 01/04/2008, 12:57 PM

IMO, getting one that is an aggressive eater is key. They should get a diet of mysis, clams and blood worms ... and a treat of live brine, too. All fortified with vitamins. In a healthy reef, they should be able to suppliment this diet by picking on the live rock.

They are timid eaters, and it's important to make sure the get their fair share. In general, I feel they do best in a tank with only other passive fish.

Sk8r · #7 01/04/2008, 12:59 PM

I'd say a 5 year old very large reef and a very unusual copperband.

LobsterOfJustice · #8 01/04/2008, 01:02 PM

I've tried this fish twice, with the same result twice. The fish was eating within a few days, looked great, but then after about 2 weeks it would suddenly die.

nauticac4 · #9 01/04/2008, 01:04 PM

The smart alec answer "Leave it in the ocean"

I tried one that was eating Brine and mysis. It lived for about a month and I came home and found him sucked up against one of the closed loop intakes. I haven't tried again.

My buddy has one the he has been feeding food soaked in garlic and vitamins and it is doing well he has only had it a couple months though. Best of Luck

Hal · #10 01/04/2008, 01:07 PM

I've had mine for 9 months. It's my third attempt, and at 5-6 inches, is the largest one I've had. Seeing it eat at the LFS is a must.

The other secret: P.E. brand mysis shrimp. They're much bigger in size than the other brands.

m2434 · #11 01/04/2008, 01:22 PM

established tank, good eating fish, but mostly luck...

m2434 · #12 01/04/2008, 01:24 PM

However, I should add: if you have that much luck, don't waste it on a fish, buy a lottery ticket

jrobison · #13 01/04/2008, 02:06 PM

i have found that they eat "white" food best, or only. Mine has been with me a couple months. It is starting to pick at some LPS though, so if I can catch him he's gone. Very aggressive feeder though.