So I'm looking to get into breeding clowns in the next few years. What is the basic set up that I'd need to Raise The fry? About(relatively) how much would you say it is for a whole set up(excluding rotifiers and other foods for the various stages). What would be my best bet for a mated pair. black Ocellaris? Snowflake? picasso? I'm looking to figure out which type of clownfish the market is in and how much Money I'll need to save up. Thx:thumbsup:
Honestly I think if you're going to breed clowns, you should plan on doing a lot of research. I think you are better served to read some of the threads in this forum which have real life experiences documented in them because the diversity of methods, equipment, experiences etc... makes answering your question in any meaningful way, very difficult.
IDK if you know this or not, but when you click on the breeding forum, the default setting is to only show the posts from the previous 24 hours, so you may not be seeing what I'm talking about. If this is the case, then after clicking on the forium scroll down to where you can select how far back you would like to view posts from, go back at least a month, and you will see that there are several really great threads which will answer all your questions and get you pointed in the right direction.
As far as what species to breed (which is one of the few questions that I don't remember having seen specifically addresed) I think you should pick up several different pairs, as there is no certainty any given pair will mate. Since it will take on average 2-3 years for juvenile fish to mature enough to spawn, putting all your eggs in one basket doesn't make sense to me. Sometimes you might come across "mated pairs" at your LFS or online, but a quality true mated pair is going to set you back a nice chunk of change. Whatever you choose get the highest quality fish you possibly can. Look at body shape, over/under bite, coloration, swimming and feeding behavior.
Anything out of the ordinary is likely to be desirable. Right now snowflake and black ice are both very popular, but in two years, they may become so plentiful that the price bottoms out. If you really want to make money, then research breeding Latezoneus(sp?) clownfish, but I would consider getting a couple pairs of good old fashioned Ocellaris first as they are considered to be one of the easiest. The first hand experience will be invaluable.
