Finding a Healthy Copperband?

[falconut]

I'm trying to decide between a Singapore angel (LFS has had it for 61 days) and a Copperband. I'm kind of leaning towards the Copperband. I had one about 5 years ago. It lived for 6 months, which is not that great, but I believe he would have lasted much longer if it wasn't for the case of marine velvet my whole tank got. He was my favorite fish and even ate out of my hand.

My question is: How can you tell if they are healthy? My LFS has 5 right now. I had them feed them all of them live black worms and onlt 1 ate. They just came in on 6/29. If they eat, does this mean they are healthy?

One of them had a huge piece of his tail missing and another had the tips of his snout damaged, like he swam into the glass hard. To me, those two are out. The other 3 look really nice, coloring, clear eyes and fins. These 3 all looked at the food, but only the 1 ate it. He ate a decent amount too.

Two things that made me nervious with the one that was eatting. He was breathing a little rapidly. But I didn't notice him until the guy at the LFS told me there is one in this tank that's eatting. So, I didn't get to see him before he was eatting. The other is a weird thing. He seams to have a faint pinkish - redish line just below his top fin at the edge of his body. It's about 1/4" long. It is only visible from a certain angle. Yes, I really examine the fish before I buy them.

I have also read that alot of them die initially. Does anybody know what that time frame is? And does this apply to the ones that don't eat?

It was right before the store was closing, so I figure I'll go back today after work. I just need help deciding if any of them are good healthy specimens.

Thanks.

 

[K' Family Reef]

cant give you a clear answer to your question(s)

(imo)

might recom getting a small to medium sized CB...
the larger ones imo are going to have greater nutritional needs and (again imo) have been more 'used' to eating whatever its diet was in the wild (older fish, more established in its natural habitat/diet etc)...

so iow 'might' have better chances of keeping one alive
(long term) if its more of a 'juvenile' specimen... and starts early on eating a commonly prepared (aquarium) diet... also once the aipt run out in your aquarium (assuming perhaps one reason for getting cbb) then might feed them 2x/day to 'better' the chances for survival...

hope that helps

regards

 

[falconut]

I don't have any aiptasia, I just really like the fish. All of the ones at the LFS are about 3", maybe a little bigger. I don't think I'd be comfortable getting one any smaller than that. But I think they would classify as small/medium.

As far as feeding, I'm going to construct a worm feeder, so only it can eat from it. Somebody made one on the Copperband thread on the Reef Fishes Forum. I figure I can feed it daily and drop in the worm feeder to give it additional meals throughout the day. Apparently, I'm lucky that my LFS sells live black worms, which seam to be a big hit with them.

Now, I just need to start with a nice healthy one.

 

[K' Family Reef]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15286941#post15286941 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by falconut
I don't have any aiptasia, I just really like the fish. All of the ones at the LFS are about 3", maybe a little bigger. I don't think I'd be comfortable getting one any smaller than that. But I think they would classify as small/medium.

As far as feeding, I'm going to construct a worm feeder, so only it can eat from it. Somebody made one on the Copperband thread on the Reef Fishes Forum. I figure I can feed it daily and drop in the worm feeder to give it additional meals throughout the day. Apparently, I'm lucky that my LFS sells live black worms, which seam to be a big hit with them.

Now, I just need to start with a nice healthy one.

:thumbsup:

they are very neat fish to keep!
yet unfortunately dont seem to have a very good track record in captivity.


regards

 

[kstallbe]

Hey falconut - Ive had by CBB for over a year now and he's happy and healthy.

My suggestion on selection is that the fish must look clean, shiny and no pink or anything. Just perfectly smooth and fishy! You know what I mean.

With respect to behavior, I notice that some of the CBBs have a twitch. I do not know what it is caused by (arsenic in capture?), but make sure the fish you select has no twitchy/seizure like movements.

The fish should also be shy at first, but be comfortable in approaching the glass after you're there for a moment or two. It should eat before you buy it. If it is not eating black worms, then you are gonna have a hard time getting it to eat much else.

Mine will eat a broken clam/mussel, will occassionally eat mysis. I feed black worms every day though. For a full year. It's the only thing he seems glad to eat. So, I oblige.

I get them local and keep them in my fridge. I keep them in one of these - http://www.aquaticfoods.com/accessories.html. I get enough worms to last me 3-4 weeks with no appreciable die off, just keep the water cold and keep rinsing every day.

To feed, I rinse them, then suck them up in a pipette thingy that comes with the test kits. The worms then move all around the tank and the CBB (and the other fish) have a field day!

Whew. Hope this helps.

 

[falconut]

I went back today and observed all of the Copperbands to see if they were breathing the same as the one that ate yesterday. All of them had a more rapid breathing pattern, then the angels and other fish I have. I even checked out a Pyramid BF and a Klein's BF and they were breathing the same rate. So, it appears normal.

I observed him again and I couldn't find any pinkish marks today, so it might have just been the lighting or something. He was actively searching the bottom for food, unlike the others. I had them feed him some live brine shrimp today since he ate the live blackworms yesterday. In they went and as soon as he saw them, he was right over and eatting. No spitting out. I let him finish, then I picked him up. Hopefully he'll do good.

 

[KyleO]

I agree with the California Black Worms. My CBB is big, beautiful and always hungry for the worms!

I have had him for about 6 mos now and every time I pass by the room he gives me a couple of snout twitches. It is really obvious what he wants and I can't help but oblige. We have this ritual where I put some blackworms on a plastic fork and he sticks his beak out of the water and gives them a couple of squirts. They fall off the fork into the water and bam! he is frantic to get every last one.

The most important thing is to find a healthy CBB to start with. If they were traumatized too badly in capture, they probably will not recover. If they do, worms, worms.........worms!

 

[Stevenx2]

The twitch could also be fluke.

 

[kstallbe]

Good luck!