Greenbanded Goby (Elacatinus multifasciatus, Gobidion etc..) Breeding Log - Page 2

mwp · #26 07/24/2006, 11:11 PM

@#!$!!! - the cardinalfish got a good meal of live baby gobies sometime while I was at work today. Oh well...maybe the next spawn will be due to hatch more around Tuesday of next week...

MP

mwp · #27 07/26/2006, 02:27 AM

Well, sometime in the last 27 hours or so THE GOBIES SPAWNED! This is pretty sweet; now that I've found where they lay their eggs it's going to be pretty easy to check up on 'em and hopefully figure out when to capture them etc...now that I know they're back on a weekly routine, it might be time to build a larval collector and make those gobies earn their keep (and possibly help fund more efforts with the Synchiropus!)

MP

mwp · #28 08/01/2006, 12:03 PM

8-1-06, 10:00 AM - WE HAVE A HATCH! - Well FINALLY, it seems like it's been months since I was around for a hatch! Approximately 100+ larvae made it. They've been placed in the larval tank (10 gallon) which is currently filled wtih 6 gallons of saltwater and a bunch of SS-Strain Rotifers AND some phytoplankton, all in there for the Mandarin larvae that as usual have not made it very far. There is actually 1 mandarin still in there that I saw this morning.

I added in 6 "basters" of mixed phytoplankton (T-Iso, Nannochloris, Nannochloropsis and Tetraselmis) that I harvested Sunday night and refridgerated...the tank had recently "significantly cleared" and the rotifer population skyrocketed, thus the additional phyto.

I ALSO got some great vids and pics of the newly hatched GBG larvae under the microscope; I'll post those soon.

Matt

mwp · #29 08/01/2006, 12:40 PM

Newly hatched GBG's under the scope!

Green Banded Goby Larvae at 10X

Video - http://www.cichlidrecipe.com/nanoree...ly_hatched.avi

Greenbanded Goby Larvae at 60X - major ruler units are 1mm

Video - http://www.cichlidrecipe.com/nanoree...wlyhatched.avi

FWIW,

Matt

Kathy55g · #30 08/01/2006, 03:55 PM

very sweet! Isn't it nice to have a lot of larvae?

mwp · #31 08/01/2006, 06:03 PM

IT IS, IT IS Kathy! Now if I can just not kill these too!

Matt

mwp · #32 08/01/2006, 06:45 PM

Just a quick update, the water was already pretty clear and the larvae had moved from the middle water column to the surface, so I added in another 6 basters worth of mixed live phyto.

Matt

mwp · #33 08/01/2006, 11:23 PM

More pictures...this is a larvae around 12 hours old. I wanted to see if they were feeding or not, so I spent 15 minutes chasing larvae with the pipette before finally getting lucky and catching one! Some of these pix are 60X, others are 200X, and the vid is a full view of the larvae from the ventral and lateral viewpoints at 200X (it's a big vid, 21 mb). BTW, if you have problems viewing the video, my suggestion is to save it to your hard drive and then open it from the viewer...for some reason opening it directly or double clicking doesn't work!

VIDEO - [url[http://www.cichlidrecipe.com/nanoree...tralateral.avi[/url]

Enjoy!

Matt

mwp · #34 08/02/2006, 01:40 PM

Well, the tank is now CLEAR so another 6 basters of my regular phytoplankton mix went into the tank. I suspect it's not enough this time; more will go in later after the temps stabilize.

(added in 2 more after the fact, 8 basters total. EAch baster is about 3 fl. oz.)

Matt

danfrith · #35 08/02/2006, 10:41 PM

hey matt, do you flaming prawn gobys would be hermaphroditic?

also goodluck luck with your pair.
thanks.

mwp · #36 08/03/2006, 12:05 AM

I have no clue on Greislinger's Goby (aka. Flaming Prawn)...oh how I'd LOVE to try them though. Granted, with their small size, they'd be more than manageable to pair up from a group, the only problem there is that the rule of 6 means you'd be spending $600-$900 for broodstock - never a problem with fish you KNOW how to breed and rear, but definitely not an investment to be made with no prior experience (thus why I've tried regular Firefish vs. Helfrichi's).

Matt

mwp · #37 08/03/2006, 12:14 AM

OK, the latest round of updates. 1st, I check last night, no eggs, tonight, another batch of eggs is in the cave! I may actually have some GBG larvae to "give away" next week IF I catch the hatch and IF I still have loads of viable larvae in the larval tank - anyone in Chicago interested?

The larvae - I added 8 basters of "phytomix" and 3 gallons of freshly mixed saltwater this evening (around 10:30 PM). I found 2 dead larvae...that's a dramatically better situation than I recall for most of my prior attempts at raising GBGs.

I shot more microscope pictures...didn't bother with vid but did a bunch of shots at 60X and 200X. I still cannot tell what they are feeding on but it definitely appears there's stuff in the gut...that's what really matters at this point, unless I'm totally off. Anyone who's familiar with what things look like under magnification, I welcome your interpretation of the photographs. BTW, 2 of these pictures have a SS-Strain rotifer in the shot which helps give you a general idea of scale (I can always throw the rulers onto the pictures later...it takes time I just don't have!). Doesn't really look like much change between yesterday (12 hours post hatch) and today (36 hours post hatch).

Enjoy!

Matt

Kathy55g · #38 08/03/2006, 05:36 AM

Not sure, but it looks like they are eating the rots. Do their little bellies expand much? It looks like you have rotifer shapes in the gut.

Luis A M · #39 08/03/2006, 09:58 AM

Awesome pics!.The rear gut is occupied,most probably by rots.The swim bladder is very conspicuous.The larva is typical for Gobiosoma-Elacatinus:very long,transparent,with three colored areas,the eyes,the swim bladder,and a white spot before the tail fin.

ediaz · #40 08/03/2006, 10:17 AM

Gobies don't chug on rots like clownfish larvae, they are eating

Add phyto in the morning, about a liter of good dark for ten gal. of water. No need to add during the rest of the day, and this gives you a chance to see the larvae in the evening when the water is clear.

Use a moderate to strong light over the tank, this will keep them eating at the surface instead of hovering at the bottom of the tank. Do not switch the lights off suddenly at nigth, use a nite lite or something over the tank at nights.

Ed

mwp · #41 08/03/2006, 10:32 AM

Ed, Luis, Kathy, thanks for chiming in and letting me know that I'm not nuts, they are eating - success!!!

Ed, as you may have read I've been adding phyto kinda at morning and evening....not a whole liter but enough to keep it green/brown and visibility in check.

I also have an 18" flourescent over the tank...the ambient lights probably do the job of helping make a smooth transition, but at night they are basically in the dark - I'll try to figure something out to keep them dimly lit for 6-8 hours at night.

Thanks again guys!

Matt

mwp · #42 08/03/2006, 12:41 PM

Well, the larval tank was completely clear as of noon, so I just added in 9 more basters (27 fluid oz) of the phytoplankton mix. Looks like the larvae are STILL going strong. This afternoon IF I have time I'm going to take out a few gallons, strain a few more and return them and selcon enrich the rotifers and then return those to the tank (make sense?). Renee will be in charge for a couple days while I'm on a fly fishing guide, so I want to make sure they're good to go in my absence.

Matt

mwp · #43 08/03/2006, 10:47 PM

Currently underway this evening, I've drained off 2 gallons of water and tossed it (saved the rotifers and fed them to the gorgonians in the seahorse tank

). I'm draining out another 2 gallons and will save the rotifers for enrichment, followed by the addition of 2 gallons freshly mixed water (yes, a water change of about 25% of the remaining volume after the water toss).

I'm going to take some more microscope shots tonight to see what further development, if any, has occured. After tomorrow morning, things are in Renee's hands until Sunday night

Matt

mwp · #44 08/03/2006, 11:03 PM

Well, while completely the addition of the 2 freshly mixed gallons, I accidentally tipped over my saved rotifers into the sink...oh well, won't have two gallon's worth to enrich now! Instead, I added roughly 2/3 liter of T-Iso fresh from the culture...that should help out. I'm also adding 1/3 a liter of Nannochloropsus to help balance out the HUFA's.

FWIW,

Matt

mwp · #45 08/03/2006, 11:35 PM

Well, the guts didn't look as full this evening despite the fact that there are TONS of rotifers in the tank...however the water was clear. Is it possible (probable) that at this point the babies are still feeding on algae, not the actual rotifers?

Here's 2 quick shots and a LONG vid (37 mb) that really shows the development and internal features well at roughly 60 hours post hatch.

http://www.cichlidrecipe.com/nanoreef/GBG_60_3.avi

No more updates until at the earliest Sunday evening! Renee is getting instructions to add 8 basters of mandarin mix every morning (basically T-Iso and Tetraselmis, but I added some Nano for good measure), and if the tank is crystal clear, add some in the afternoon (probably another 4-8).

FWIW,

Matt

Kathy55g · #46 08/03/2006, 11:50 PM

I may be wrong, but T-Iso and tetraselmus have nearly identical fatty acid profiles. I would add nannochloris or nannochloropsis as well to give what the others lack. I know you have all those cultures! Mine are doing fine since I got them from you. Thanks again, Matt.
K

mwp · #47 08/04/2006, 12:07 AM

Quote:

(basically T-Iso and Tetraselmis, but I added some Nano for good measure)

Yup, right you are. The mix is probably 1/4 Nannochloropsis. Now, here's the interesting thing...all the goby articles online point to using T-Iso exclusively in the tank...wierd in my opinion (however, they do also suggest selco / selcon enrichment, but they don't really state HOW since, if following the directions explicitly, you're only supposed to add rotifers at the beginning!)

Glad to hear all the cultures are going well Kathy! SS doing well?

Matt

Kathy55g · #48 08/04/2006, 07:11 AM

Yes! I passed them on to my friend who has a spawning pair of gobies,( yellow clown?).

They grew very well for me, however, they do not hibernate in the fridge well at all, as my L strain does.

Kathy55g · #49 08/04/2006, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by mwp
Yup, right you are. The mix is probably 1/4 Nannochloropsis. Now, here's the interesting thing...all the goby articles online point to using T-Iso exclusively in the tank...wierd in my opinion (however, they do also suggest selco / selcon enrichment, but they don't really state HOW since, if following the directions explicitly, you're only supposed to add rotifers at the beginning!)

Glad to hear all the cultures are going well Kathy! SS doing well?

Matt

Do they use tet because it is the best one, or because that is what they had on hand?

mwp · #50 08/07/2006, 12:46 AM

Kathy, regarding the use of "T-Iso" exclusively, I don't know WHY

I certainly see no harm, but many benefits to offering the whole gamut.

Renee did an outstanding job while I was gone - there are still 40 larvae. She fed 8 basters Friday, 8 Saturday, 8 Sunday, all in the morning, + 4 basters Saturday evening. The water was clear, so I fed 4 basters this evening upon returning.

That's it on the updates for now, more later.

Matt