Everything is spawning

[Paul B]

Well not exactly everything but 3 pairs that I know of. Last night just before the lights went off I noticed the mandarins swimming up the back wall of the tank, the male had a twinkle in his eye and They started to spawn.
This female I bought as a very skinny young fish. The reason I bought her was to save her from the store where she would have starved. I built her a feeder that dispensed new born brine shrimp for about 2 hours a day. My tank is old and doesn't need extra food but I like to putz around and the thing worked so well and the fish like it so much that I left the thing in there.
She gradually fattened up and the old male found her yesterday.
I don't know if they spawned before and I won't be looking for the eggs in this 6' long tank.
I also have a pair of some type of stripped, red cardinals that spend all their time in a bottle, (There is a song with that name) I know they are spawning because they are also obese.
My fireclowns also spawn and the male is a 19 year old Geezer who still got it.
But they have been spawning for years.
I didn't look at the tank this morning because the lights are not on yet but I think I also added to many fish and probably exceeded the carrying capacity of the tank. This week alone I added 3 chalk bass, a glass cardinal and a large clam. I don't know how many fish are in there but I would imagine about 30 or so. I also really need to change some water but I don't think that will happen until after the new year. It has already been a couple of months, but I will get to it.

 

[funkejj]

Paul congrats on the spawning. And it always amazes me how your tank goes so well with your unorthodox methods.

 

[Paul B]

Whats unorthodox?
in 1971 my ways were the only ways, then someone invented the internet and changed all the ways. All of you guys ways are new and different. :wavehand:

 

[Fish Biscuit]

congrats Paul, that is one fat little mandarin!!

 

[brad_G]

How did you tell the difference in male and female mandarins?

 

[Paul B]

How did you tell the difference in male and female mandarins?

She has the eyelashes.

Besides that the male has a much larger, pointer dorsal fin.

 

[ReachTheSky]

My fireclowns also spawn and the male is a 19 year old Geezer who still got it.

Aha! :lmao: That's really cool. I wonder what the lifespan of these guys are. I've heard of ones that live up to their 30s.

 

[Paul B]

Well I probably won't be here to find out.

 

[nysbadmk8]

She has the eyelashes.

Besides that the male has a much larger, pointer dorsal fin.

Now thats funny!

 

[jadendo]

Paul ... Please do tell us, who are new at this hobby, about your unorthodox method.

 

[Paul B]

Jadendo, there is a many year long thread on here about my methods
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1711320

But when I started this hobby, my methods were the only methods, then someone invented the internet and created a bunch of new methods so all of you guys here actually have the un orthodox methods. :lol2:

It is not easy to incorporate what I do to a modern running, new technology tank. I use bacteria along with copepods and amphipods from the sea. Along with that I feed live foods such as blackworms and new born brine shrimp. These things will keep the fish in breeding condition and mostly disease free.

I run a reverse UG filter and am most likely the only one who does. UG filters went out of favor because we all used them in freshwater, then when we started with salt, we still used them the same way. They will not work that way and everyone's tank crashed. I didn't throw out the UG filter, I modified it to work in salt water and it has proved to be the easiest, longest running system with no crashes. One benefit is the vast amount of life that thrives in the moving water of the gravel.

That is basically my un orthodox method. It seems to work as my fish don't get sick and my tank doesn't crash. I also don't need test kits and rarely have to change water. But it would take some years to get to that point. :wavehand:

 

[ReefKeeper64]

Hey Paul, Do you have a picture of your auto brine feeder and hospital tank combo setup? It seems like a great idea.

 

[Paul B]

I don't have a hospital tank but this is the hatchery

This is the feeder

And a video

 

[nbsdsailor]

That feeder is awesome. I'm making one today! Do the BBS swim through the netting to the waiting fish? Or are the fish sucking them through the net?

 

[Paul B]

The thing is designed so the shrimp have a hard time getting through the net, so while they are struggling to get through, the fish suck them through. Of course a lot of them get through on their own but it slows them down

 

[symon_say]

I'm always amaze of your tank every time i see it, an the thing i found most impressive about it, is the time and effort I know you have put into this in all this time.

Could you elaborate more about how the BBS dispenser works, how do you feed the BS, what to do to hatch then and how do you set the feeding intervals.

 

[Paul B]

If you look at the hatchery it is black on the right side and clear on the left. I put shrimp eggs in the right side and airate for a day. Then I slide open the door that blocks that hole between the two sides and put a black cover on the right side. I put the thing in the light and in about 15 minutes, all the shrimp swim through the hole to the left side. The eggshells stay on the right. I slide the door closed and open the valve to let the shrimp out. I pour them into a shrimp seive and add a little water and shoot them into the feeder. Then I hatch another batch. I start a batch the day before so I get a hatching every day.
I don't feed the shrimp because they are only nutritious for a few hours after they hatch. After that there is nothing left of their yoke sack and they are not that good.
In that picture of the hatchery, you can see the shrimp in there.
I have been hatching shrimp like that for about fifty years.

 

[ReefKeeper64]

Great info Paul! It looks like you pour the entire contents of the clear chamber (baby brine and water) into that what looks to be a small green funnel at the top of that tube. The water and brine flow down the tube, into the dish where the mesh catches the brine but lets the excess water escape. Is that how you get them in there?

 

[Paul B]

Yes, but I don't pour all of that water in or most of the shrimp will be forced through the mesh and out into the tank. I first strain out the shrimp through a rotifer strainer from Florada Aqua Farms. Then I add a few tablespoons of water to the shrimp in the strainer and then put them in the feeder

 

[ReefKeeper64]

Yes, but I don't pour all of that water in or most of the shrimp will be forced through the mesh and out into the tank. I first strain out the shrimp through a rotifer strainer from Florada Aqua Farms. Then I add a few tablespoons of water to the shrimp in the strainer and then put them in the feeder

Brine net ordered. Thanks for the idea!