My tries at raising maroon clownfish - Page 4

mako56 · #76 01/01/2006, 10:35 PM

Thanks for the info Kathy. After I get some stuff together here I will have to do it the right way.

jnowell · #77 01/02/2006, 02:43 AM

Quote:

After I get some stuff together here I will have to do it the right way.

Gee Mike, that sounds just like my rearing attempts.

Good luck with this hatch, and keep those pictures coming, they are incredible (I was a photo major in college, and your photos impress me). I'd kill for a digital SLR, my Nikon point and shoot isn't getting the job done.

With such beautiful parents, I bet the post-larval baby pics will be awesome. Only a matter of time...and work....and then more work....and...

Cheers, I be looking forward to the updates.

Jason

mako56 · #78 01/02/2006, 11:14 PM

Well thanks allot jnowell the camera must do it all by it self cause I don't know what I am doing.

The Canon 20-D with the 100 macro lens is pretty cool though just can't wait until I learn more about it. I have one cool pic I took of the ma and pa with there eggs not sure if I posted that one or not but that one was taken with the 17-85 lens that came with the camera. I got all this instant algea now so I will use it for a while and see what happens. But like I said might as well do it right just need to find some more room.

mako56 · #79 01/03/2006, 12:16 AM

One more question for today do any of you light the fry tank? Oh another batch of eggs laid today. I am going to take a pic every day till they hatch to see the process better.

jnowell · #80 01/03/2006, 09:12 AM

I usually just use ambient room light (no top on the tank) for the first two or three days, then I put one 15w light in the hood and see how they react (watch the temp too after adding the light). Most of the time, they stay towards the top, which is good. If they all go to the bottom, or shy away from the light, then I raise it up until it suits them. I use a 16-8 light cycle.

kamilek · #81 01/04/2006, 04:11 AM

Mike,

Pleasure reading your posts, fingers crossed.
Waiting for my eggs to hatch, but not ready for it. So far, I ordered Clownfishes by Joyce D Wilkerson.

One question: You tested dry food, why not frozen rotifers?

mako56 · #82 01/04/2006, 04:13 PM

Thats my learning process I guess kamilek

Oh welcome to reef central I would put up the fancy sign but I didn't figure that one out either yet. Good luck to you. I should break down and buy thay book too problably could of saved allot of money if I would of.

kamilek · #83 01/05/2006, 01:58 AM

Mike,
What is the water temp in your main tank? What is the average time for eggs to hatch? Your send batch took 21 days (12/01-12/21) to hatched, is this correct? Next, took only 9 (12/24-1/01). I thought itâ€™s 8 days on average, am I missing something. Asking, because I want to pull the nest out the night of hatch.
Good luck.
Thanks

mako56 · #84 01/05/2006, 03:05 AM

No kamilek I think I was at work when the second batch hatched so I didn't count them because I didn't catch any thats why it was 21 days. Its not written in stone or anything I have been watching for a month or so now and they lay the eggs and 8 days after they usually hatch then three days after they hatch they lay more eggs and 8 days after they hatch. But the last time a little over half hatched on day seven (if I found the eggs on the day they were layed) and the other half the next night. Now they have more eggs they layed on January 2nd and should hatch on the 10th. I don't know like I said its doesn't seem to be a for sure thing. My last batch didn't make it either there were about 5 left this morning and they are all gone now. I think if I don't get the rots going in time I won't even bother catching them this time unless I can figure out what else I am doing wrong. My temp runs like 79 during the day with the lights on and 76 at night, the heater keeps it warm at night I think but the lights keep it warm during the day. In the summer it gets to 80-82 during the day and like 77-78 at night.

jnowell · #85 01/05/2006, 05:14 PM

Mine usually hatch 11-12 days after being laid, and mine are in plain sight, so I don't miss the spawn day. My tank runs about 77 degrees, but I am slowly raising it up to accomodate the spawners.

Mike, I'm hoping the temp in your larvae tank doesn't swing by 3 degrees a day too. I have one of those cheap Coralife digital thermometers ($5.99) on my larvae tank and it swings maybe .5 degrees (.2 degrees either way from normal, which is 79.0 degrees). These aren't the most accurate therms out there, but they will tell you how consistant you are. I use a cheapo 50W heater right above the airstone.

The rotifers really are the key Mike, I don't really think you have any other problems outside of nutrition. I bet if you had a bunch of rotifers in the tank the morning of day one, you'd see a vast improvement in survival rates.

Do you have any green water, Instant Algae, or anything to feed Rotifers? If you can keep them fed, I'd send you enough to start a co-culture in your rearing tank. As long as you CONSTANTLY kept the water cloudy with Instant Algae, DT's, or some other form of microalgae or rotifer food, they would probably reproduce faster than the fry can eat them.

I usually get my density up early, then add fresh grown nanno chloropsis about 3-4 times a day, the fry get fat, and the rotifer population sustains itself (I'm not talking 200 fry here, between 15 and 50). Then 8 or 9 days later, I switch them to newly hatched brine shrimp (easy and cheap) and I have 11 of them through metamorphasis (out of 50) and another 16 getting ready to start.

You could also start a Rotifer culture with some of them in another tank / bucket/ anything that holds water.

Jason

mako56 · #86 01/06/2006, 05:44 AM

I will have to keep an eye on the temp but it does have a heater so i am thinking it stays prety close to the same temp. I have instant algae I was thinking I could use that and start a green water culture but now I found out no. I froze most of it in ice cube trays so I should be able to keep for a long time. It will work for now untill I get a green water thing going or if that would crash someday. WOW thanks for the offer I did order the pvc collector and seeing I was getting that I ordered the 3-500 l stain rotifer cysts from Florida Aqua Farms. Hope I did't screw that up too. I think I hit them all now Aqua Farms, Reed and Paul. I hope that will work. I am going to keep tring untill I get it so keep the ideas flowing.

mako56 · #87 01/08/2006, 07:13 PM

I am asking another dumb question. I had these jars of rots going and I think when I harvested I wasn't thinking and took them all. Oh well thatâ€™s done I ordered some more but I kept the jars going now the water is turning green and when I look through it with my 20X microscope I see all these tiny green colored things swimming around could that be the green water algae?

DebsSisterFlo · #88 01/09/2006, 01:48 PM

I saw the eggs!!! Mike was so gracious to invite my husband and me over to see his tank. It is so gorgeous, and he has this microscope that sticks to the glass and I can't tell you how cool it was to be able to actually see the eyes of the babies inside of their egg sacs.
Oh, and I REALLY wanted to walk off with his camera! lol!!! Very nice, I'll have one someday.

Thanks again Mike!!! Keep in touch about the live rock!

mako56 · #89 01/09/2006, 10:33 PM

Thanks Jess, was neat to have someone to show the tank too. Haven't heard a delivery date on the rock yet but will let pm ya when I find out. The eggs should hatch tonight or tomorrow night not even sure if I will collect them this time seeing I don't have any food for them yet unless I could feed them those little things I have growing.

DebsSisterFlo · #90 01/10/2006, 12:57 AM

I don't suppose they'd last long in the tank, even with a momma as feisty as theirs is! Oh did I mention how gorgeous the copperbanded butterfly was? I think that was my favorite fish!

mako56 · #91 01/12/2006, 02:07 AM

Well lets see if this works.

Atticus · #92 01/12/2006, 02:36 AM

VERY NICELY DONE!!!

spk · #93 01/12/2006, 06:19 AM

Mike,

Superb. These are reallu neat and informative.

Steve

jaybro · #94 01/12/2006, 07:46 AM

Agreed, 'very' nice picture set! Did you use a flash? Those eyes look silver from the begining!

And yes... I know absolutely nothing about photography. =)

Kathy55g · #95 01/12/2006, 08:04 AM

Wow, those are the best I've ever seen!

mako56 · #96 01/12/2006, 07:55 PM

They are pretty cool but I know nothing about photography either. As you ca see they don't match at all gota try and do better. AND NOW I HAVE ROTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

jnowell · #97 01/12/2006, 09:50 PM

You da' man Mike! Who cares if you have previous photo experience, you have skills and equipment, that is truly amazing.

Glad to hear your rots are kicking too, you are ready now. Can't wait to see more baby pics

Jason

mako56 · #98 01/12/2006, 10:45 PM

Thanks everybody I am going to see what it would look like with only a couple eggs in each pic. I tred using the flash but found it works better to light the eggs. And she laid more eggs today don't know if I will have enough rots in 8 days though.

Kathy55g · #99 01/13/2006, 01:11 AM

Don't know if you'll have enough rots?

Before you start, try to calculate how many you will need and what volume . Double that, and add 25 % for mistakes. Take that volume and divide it by 4 and that is the volume you need to start with. Make it nice and concentrated if you want.( I find that 150 rots per ml is a good place to be because it is easy to harvest 10 % of the larval tank for the right number to feed the larvae. But that is not yet.) air and feed.

Take out half of the volume of water and rots each day for the next 3 days. Replace the water volume with fresh saltwater each time. Your rotifers will at least double each day and you will be decreasing the population of older non-reproducing rotifers.

Then, for the next 3 days, double the volume by just adding fresh saltwater. Keep feeding as the water clears.

At the end of the 6 days you will have lots of rots, a good population of young ones, and they will keep multiplying for you. You can adjust the concentrations and volumes then as is convenient for you.

This worked for me last time.

Cheers,
Kathy

mako56 · #**100** 01/13/2006, 01:00 PM

Thanks allot Kathy. I don't understand this part

Quote:

Then, for the next 3 days, double the volume by just adding fresh saltwater. Keep feeding as the water clears.

Are the jugs not full to begin with or do you dump some out?