Clowns laid eggs, now what?

[lwillis22]

My clowns laid eggs and I would like to try and keep them alive. I have read up on it a bit and it looks like it is a process. I am not doing it to make a buck I just love the hobby and would love to try and raise the fry into adulthood. Can anybody give me a good quick run down on the do's and don'ts or give me a website to read? I started a small tank last night (about 15 gallons) for the fry but I know I need to have rotifers for them once they hatch. I am not sure how long the eggs have been there so not sure how long before the hatch. How long before they hatch once the eggs are laid?
Any help that anyone could give would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Lori

 

[MarinaP]

There is a sticky in this forum with the same title as your thread.

 

[Tmoriarty]

The honest truth is that you will most likely not be able to raise the eggs that were just laid. There just isn't enough time between now and the hatch to build up a large enough rotifer supply to keep a decent number of babies alive. Also you will need various equipment (nothing to complicated).

If you want to start raising clown fish fry get a rotifer culture up and running, order some rotigrow+ as feed for the rotifers and some Otohime A, B, and possibly C. You can culture Baby Brine shrimp as well but I prefer to skip that step as they have little to no nutritional value and I found higher success rates by moving straight to Oto A.

Once you get everything together and you need more help I'd be more than happy to give you some of my own experiences.

One thing to note is how long till they hatch is depending on species, so some basic information would help people direct you in the right direction. False percs are normally around 7-9 days to hatch, true percs can sometimes be a bit longer, 8-10 days to hatch.

Over anything else I can tell when my eggs will hatched simply based on the color of the eyes inside the eggs. Eyes that are silver with a slight copperish tinge are normally going to hatch that night after lights out. Another point to look at is the remaining yolk sac... Clowns are generally born with very little remaining in their yolk sacs (you can see this visually), so if you notice silver eyes and a small yolk sac, hatch is most likely that night or the next night.

Hope that helps.

 

[D-Nak]

I recommended letting the first few batches go. I know it may be hard, but there are reasons for doing so. First and most important, it allows the pair to get used to laying and caring for the eggs. The clutches will get bigger and the likelihood of healthier babies is higher. The female will lay her eggs closer together (the first few clutches my female laid were scattered quite a bit, and she even laid in two spots once) so the likelihood of fertilization is higher. The male will get used to tending to the clutch. It's his job to keep the clutch clean, removing debris and dead eggs, and providing the proper flow. The male may also leave the clutch unguarded and predators will eat the clutch (typically your clean-up crew). They may also eat the eggs themselves.

Second, it allows you to prepare. You need to order rotifers, rotifer food, and start to think about follow-up foods. Many of us use Reed Mariculture products -- RGComplete to feed your rotifers and APBreed TDO Chroma Boost (there are other options, so do some research).

Third, you can mentally prepare yourself for what's ahead. It really is a labor of love, since cleaning buckets of rotifers, keeping the grow out tank clean, and feeding multiple times a day can be draining.

In terms of hatch time, it depends on the temperature of your tank. My tank is about 80 degrees and the eggs typically hatch in 8 days. My pair have a new clutch every two weeks. Other breeders who I speak to experience the same thing -- once they start breeding, unless there is a disruption (tank conditions change, new stressors, etc.) they won't stop -- so you'll have plenty of time to get it right.

In terms of the process, aside from the sticky, just Google "clownfish breeding" and you'll find a ton of good information, including YouTube videos. My recommendation is to read a lot and watch a lot of videos -- and do what makes it easier for you. That way, you're most likely to raise healthy clowns. Good luck!