clown spawn

[crpeck]

That sounds okay.

But if you're going to try and capture this batch this week, you should probably buy more rotifers than just the starter pack. You'll want one pack to put in one of your 5 gallon buckets to culture and one to put in the rearing tank.

In your rotifer culture, just add enough food to keep the water green. You can culture in your rearing tank too a bit ... just don't keep the water quite as green and watch your ammonia. If you add a little rotifer food to the rearing tank, you can at least keep some of the rotifers alive and reproducing there that don't get eaten.

In Wilkerson's book, she tells you how to draw a circle on a hydrometer to measure your rotifer density in the water. You'll want to keep an eye on the density in both tanks. In the rearing tank, it needs to be high enough that the larvae literally run into them without looking. In the culture tank, you need to cull if it is getting too dense, but what you're taking out to replenish the rearing tank should be more than enough with a new culture.

Actually ..... you will probably be a bit tight on rotifers if you go for it this week if you get a lot of larvae out.

Oh ... one other warning. On one batch, I accidentally had the airstone running a little too hard and lost a bunch of larvae over the first night. The airflow should be just enough for the bubbles to break the surface of the water, but not hard enough to create a strong enough flow in the tank to blow the larvae around. You can crank up the air as they gain strength.

Good Luck! Keep us posted.

 

[Fizhstiks]

thanks

i just bought the basic rotifer starter kit from Reeds. I also took some pics of the eggs and the rearing tank...

 

[Fizhstiks]

the eggs are developing eyes

 

[gemini aquarius(t)]

pm sent

 

[phender]

Looks good. I normally use a smaller very course airstone. You really don't want very much current in the fry tank. The babies need to be able to swim against the current.

 

[Fizhstiks]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8631097#post8631097 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by phender
Looks good. I normally use a smaller very course airstone. You really don't want very much current in the fry tank. The babies need to be able to swim against the current.

will the one i bought work if i turn the flow down really low? Its still course, its just long. I thought that it would be better if i got a long airstone that covers the entire heating element in the heater...

 

[crpeck]

You'll be fine with it as long as you have a valve in your tubing that will allow you to adjust the air down. A very gentle breaking of the surface is all you want to have.

The day of the hatch, you'll want to fill the fry tank with water from the main tank and give yourself time to adjust your heater to get your temperatures spot on between the tanks.

At lights out time, cut your pumps and close doors or whatever you need to to block off as much ambient light as possible. They'll hatch a little more quickly that way.

Good luck!

 

[Fizhstiks]

how long can rotifers last in the mail? They were shipped out monday and wont come until tomorrow

Freakin shipping company shipped my package all the way to san fransisco and now it wont come until tomorrow. It was going to come today. :mad2:

 

[Fizhstiks]

:mad2: :mad2: :mad2:
all the eggs are gone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:mad2: :mad2: :mad2:

what the heck happened??!?!?!?!?? i saw the damsel in the cave with the male. The male was just letting the damsel stay in there. Whats wrong the male?!?!?!?!?!?!!?!?!?! He didnt even make an attempt to save his eggs!!!! I didnt see the damsel eat the eggs but im guessing thats what happened since i saw the damsel in there!!! :mad2:

 

[crpeck]

I was concerned that this might happen based on the pictures you posted, but I didn't want to be negative so I didn't say anything.

The parents had already begun to cull in the picture posted. This is natural selection for the larvae that aren't viable and the incidence of this is higher in the first nests. The first nest is not the best to try and raise out. It isn't uncommon for the first few nests to disappear before they hatch. I wouldn't blame the damsel quite yet, but I suppose it is a possibility.

Once they start to lay, they will lay again and you will have another chance. With time to get your rotifer culture going, you will be even better prepared. If you start feeding the parents some intensive food, you can help increase the viability of the nests.

A really healthy nest should be thick with eggs without sparse spots or single eggs here and there. The parents need to work up to it, so with patience you'll get your chance.

I still think you'll have the most fun with it if you catch a batch right before or as you're off for holiday break. That way you will be able to really watch and monitor things.

Don't stress yet. This just happens.

Cathy

 

[crpeck]

p.s. I found this picture of a nest. This is a new nest while it is still bright orange. The nest will lose some density as the parents cull, but the little larvae should look packed pretty tight right up to hatch date ... not spread far apart if things are ideal.

 

[Fizhstiks]

thanks for the info

Is there any reason why they didnt cull the first batch of eggs but culled the entire 2nd batch? And do they usually wait so long to cull the whole batch of eggs? The eggs already had eyes. I did notice that the male pulled off a few eggs yesterday and i found the floating around the tank. There were more eggs than the picture showed but i couldnt take pics of them because they were behind a rock.

Im feeding the clowns NLS marine pellets and sometimes some mysis shrimp. Is this a good diet?

 

[Kmiec123]

I read mysis should be only like 40% of the diet and on one of the feeding of pellets feed till they stop eating. I read the hight shrimp diet increases the calcification of the eggs making it harder for the fry to break out, makes sence....best of luck...Carl

 

[Fizhstiks]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8640113#post8640113 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Kmiec123
I read mysis should be only like 40% of the diet and on one of the feeding of pellets feed till they stop eating. I read the hight shrimp diet increases the calcification of the eggs making it harder for the fry to break out, makes sence....best of luck...Carl

thanks

i only feed it maybe once every week or two.

 

[crpeck]

I'm really sorry about the nest. I don't know why they cull them all out sometimes ..... And you may be right about other fish or creatures eating them. Clowns are usually pretty aggressive about defending the nest, though. I've seen my Mama clown tail whip a big Banded Coral Shrimp back down in his cave if he even came close to her eggs. I've not had damsels, though so I don't know.

I'm not familiar with the pellets ... they're probably fine. If you look throught he breeding forum, I'm sure there is a lot of discussion about optimal diet for breeding clowns. I alternate between a variety that includes: Ocean Nutrition flakes (Prime Reef, Formula One and Formula 2), mysis, Cyclopeeze, and a frozen food called Emerald Entree. That last item I don't use often because it seems to gunk up the tank but there is something in there that the clowns go nuts for so I use it every once in a while as a treat. But my combo is not based on science or expertise ... it's just what I do and I've stuck with it because everyone looks healthy and its working.

Let us know if you get another nest and decide to try again. I hope your rotifers are okay.

Cathy

 

[Kmiec123]

FWIW, I have a yellow tail damsel in my 120gal with spawning Percula's and haven't seem to be a problem-Blue tang seems more in the area, probably jealous of all the food Mama get's...Carl

 

[phender]

One of the best foods for feeding breeding clowns is Formula 1 frozen food by Ocean Nutrition. It was originally developed by a clownfish hatchery for feeding their clowns. Mysis are a good change of pace once a week as is frozen cyclop-eeze (if you can find it in your area).
These aren't ocellaris eggs, but yours should still about this color.

 

[Kmiec123]

Here's some Percula eggs for a visual....Carl

\3 Days Old

 

[Fizhstiks]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8644801#post8644801 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by phender
One of the best foods for feeding breeding clowns is Formula 1 frozen food by Ocean Nutrition. It was originally developed by a clownfish hatchery for feeding their clowns. Mysis are a good change of pace once a week as is frozen cyclop-eeze (if you can find it in your area).
These aren't ocellaris eggs, but yours should still about this color.

The eggs werent bright orange like the pic you posted. they were more like the color of the eggs in the pic crpeck posted.

I just got my rotifers today. How should i acclimatize them to the culturing bucket? Reed says to adjust the pH of the culturing tank and that the pH will return to normal in a few hours but i dont see how that it possible?? Should i do a drip acclimation or just add a cup of the culturing tank water every 15 mins or something?

 

[Fizhstiks]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8652972#post8652972 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Fizhstiks
The eggs werent bright orange like the pic you posted. they were more like the color of the eggs in the pic crpeck posted.

I just got my rotifers today. How should i acclimatize them to the culturing bucket? Reed says to adjust the pH of the culturing tank and that the pH will return to normal in a few hours but i dont see how that it possible?? Should i do a drip acclimation or just add a cup of the culturing tank water every 15 mins or something?

any ideas?