Green Mandarin (Synchiropus splendidus) Breeding Log!
- Thread starter mwp
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mwp
In Memoriam
FuEL, I believe the air bubbles are on the outside of the eggs...I think all the shots that turned out were from the surface looking down. The fourth picture kinda shows it best I think..there's a couple eggs that look like snowmen, slightly. The strange part is that at first when they're floating there's no bubble, then it forms. Someone (sorry, I can't remember who at the moment) suggested that the air bubbles are a sign of a fertile egg...maybe some sort of gas is produced when the sperm enters the egg? Granted, more likely they're just plain old air bubbles that get attached to the eggs when they are released...I'm going to have to pay even more attention next time.
Matt
Matt
mwp
In Memoriam
Well, it's 1:55 PM on 5-11-06, it looks like a lot of eggs have gone missing in the kriesel...maybe they're getting eaten by copepods? No matter, there's still plenty in there. Haven't had the hatch yet, but I did turn back the air feed to the kriesel in preparation....next few hours should give us and answer (current rearing tank temp is 79.2). Looking at my notes, and comparing spawn times, it looks like everything should go on a 1 hour delay, which means hatch should actually happen around 3:30 PM, and by 5:30 PM we should have a kriesel full of wrigglers.
MP
MP
mwp
In Memoriam
WELL, I deserve a big kick in the grion for overlooking this...I'm pretty sure I know why we didn't have a hatch...NITRITE. GD NITRITE. I'm pretty PO'd at myself for overlooking this.
So, I was thinking about our first 2 hatches vs. the third...obviously we'd made some strides. The BIG thing I did prior to spawn #3 was a FULL water change that was replaced with 50% of the water in the parents tank, strainted through 10 micron, and 50% water from our Percula tank, also strained through the 10 micron. Water quailty in our reefs tends to be really GOOD...I feel I've been a bit to arrogant and ignored common sense in this fourth batch. Quite possibly why we lost the last of our 3rd batch too...man I feel like a schmuck right about now.
Well, I guess tomorrow I get to strip the tank down, wipe it out, and restart, but maybe I'll dose with some Stability first, get that sponge filter better established. The watery quality in the larval tank was ph 8.1, Alkalinity 3.5 meq/L, Nitrite around 5.0 PPM (stupid stupid stupid!). The ammonia tests are still sitting, but it looks like ammonia isn't really a problem.
@#$%Q@#%#@Q$%@QWETAT!!!!!
Guess I'll be doing DAILY 20% water changes from now on, unless anyone has a better plan.
MP
So, I was thinking about our first 2 hatches vs. the third...obviously we'd made some strides. The BIG thing I did prior to spawn #3 was a FULL water change that was replaced with 50% of the water in the parents tank, strainted through 10 micron, and 50% water from our Percula tank, also strained through the 10 micron. Water quailty in our reefs tends to be really GOOD...I feel I've been a bit to arrogant and ignored common sense in this fourth batch. Quite possibly why we lost the last of our 3rd batch too...man I feel like a schmuck right about now.
Well, I guess tomorrow I get to strip the tank down, wipe it out, and restart, but maybe I'll dose with some Stability first, get that sponge filter better established. The watery quality in the larval tank was ph 8.1, Alkalinity 3.5 meq/L, Nitrite around 5.0 PPM (stupid stupid stupid!). The ammonia tests are still sitting, but it looks like ammonia isn't really a problem.
@#$%Q@#%#@Q$%@QWETAT!!!!!
Guess I'll be doing DAILY 20% water changes from now on, unless anyone has a better plan.
MP
mwp
In Memoriam
Szesteve, I feed a variety of frozen foods. San Fransisco Bay Omega 3 and Spirulina enriched brine, Hikari Enriched Brine and Enriched Mysis, Hikari Plankton (only the seahorses really eat that) and PE Mysis. I alternate supplements with Vibrance II (from Ocean Rider) and Selcon. I also dose the tank with Reef Plus (Vitamins).
Just a quick update on the WATER QUALITY FIASCO that I totally was neglectful on...the ammonia tests came back as 0 free ammonia and 1 ppm total ammonia (most of my tanks run around .5 to 1 ppm total ammonia, the stuff that's "bound up" and therefore non toxic)
GRRRRR....NITRITE.
MP
Just a quick update on the WATER QUALITY FIASCO that I totally was neglectful on...the ammonia tests came back as 0 free ammonia and 1 ppm total ammonia (most of my tanks run around .5 to 1 ppm total ammonia, the stuff that's "bound up" and therefore non toxic)
GRRRRR....NITRITE.
MP
jnowell
New member
Aww MAN! That sounds an aweful lot like things I do from time to time. I lost a 7day old batch of seahorses and a 3 day old batch of Clarkii's because I unplugged the power strip to change some carbon, and never plugged it back in.
Happens to all of us now and then...no groin kicks from me, lest they be returned for equally forgetful offenses
Better luck with the next ones. Might I recommend the 5-in-1 Quick Dip test strips
J/K, you still have my respect...and now I know for sure that you are indeed human.
Jason
Jason
Happens to all of us now and then...no groin kicks from me, lest they be returned for equally forgetful offenses
Better luck with the next ones. Might I recommend the 5-in-1 Quick Dip test strips
J/K, you still have my respect...and now I know for sure that you are indeed human.Jason
Jason
mwp
In Memoriam
5-13-06 - Guys, I don't get it...it's 12:20 AM and the male and female are up at the surface again...the female looks more plump than a couple days ago. I REALLY don't think they're going to spawn tonight, but since I'm up anyways waiting for baby leptacanthus to be released, I might as well keep my eye on the mandarins too...
MP
MP
mwp
In Memoriam
1:14 - I've been waiting for the leptacanthus male to reelase the larvae, but it just hasn't happened yet. "Bedtime" is approaching, so the mandarin lights are now out and the pump has just been turned off. I guess someone's trying to tell me something...and I just ripped apart the kriesel earlier today and filled the tank with fresh water, T-Iso and GBG larvae. @#$@#%$!!!!
I have a spare 1/2 gallon fish bowl that I can quickly set up as a makeshift kriesel...I think that may be the route I go this time to see what happens...not sure yet, we'll see if they spawn for sure soon enough...usually it seems to be about 20 minutes after the lights go out for this pair...1:35 AM by my best guess...HMM.
MP
I have a spare 1/2 gallon fish bowl that I can quickly set up as a makeshift kriesel...I think that may be the route I go this time to see what happens...not sure yet, we'll see if they spawn for sure soon enough...usually it seems to be about 20 minutes after the lights go out for this pair...1:35 AM by my best guess...HMM.
MP
mwp
In Memoriam
1:35 AM ON THE NOSE WE HAVE JUST HAD A SPAWN! I got to see the whole thing..wasn't watching it through a lens this time and realised that a vantage poinbt from the floor backlit everything really nicely.
What I observed from "down there" was kinda interesting...when they really get hot and heavy at the top of their "rise" where my pair is on the surface, fins violently fluttering is that it seems they are basically swimming sideways, keeping pressure on each other vs. swimming forwards. So that's how they keep from FLYING forward...they're directing the swimming energy mostly to the side.
The egg release - man I wish I was closer when it actually happened but basically they were released within 1-2 second and THEN the "explosion" occurs where both fish dash to the bottom, disturbing the surface in the process.
NOW *** DO I do with all these eggs?! At the moment I'm grateful the leptacanthus hasn't let his brood go..it gives me a minute to think. I turned the lights back out after a minute, JUST IN CASE perhaps maybe the sperm can only find the eggs in the dark or something crazy like that....
I gotta take this spawning as a sign...someone up there is trying to tell me I need to give 'em another shot..what was it, 2, maybe 3 days since the last spawn? I'll have to go back and check the records (prior in the thread)....
MP
What I observed from "down there" was kinda interesting...when they really get hot and heavy at the top of their "rise" where my pair is on the surface, fins violently fluttering is that it seems they are basically swimming sideways, keeping pressure on each other vs. swimming forwards. So that's how they keep from FLYING forward...they're directing the swimming energy mostly to the side.
The egg release - man I wish I was closer when it actually happened but basically they were released within 1-2 second and THEN the "explosion" occurs where both fish dash to the bottom, disturbing the surface in the process.
NOW *** DO I do with all these eggs?! At the moment I'm grateful the leptacanthus hasn't let his brood go..it gives me a minute to think. I turned the lights back out after a minute, JUST IN CASE perhaps maybe the sperm can only find the eggs in the dark or something crazy like that....
I gotta take this spawning as a sign...someone up there is trying to tell me I need to give 'em another shot..what was it, 2, maybe 3 days since the last spawn? I'll have to go back and check the records (prior in the thread)....
MP
mwp
In Memoriam
Yup, 2 days and they've spawned again...48 hours after the last one. ***?! Since I'm still gonna wait up a bit longer and think about what I'm gonna do, I'm going to turn the lights back on now, and either try to count the eggs in the tank or maybe try to get a count in a collection vessel (I think the tank surface might work better for these...they're pretty much clear).
MP
MP
mwp
In Memoriam
OK, I've collected maybe 99% of the eggs. When I tried counting in the tank, I got TIRED and stopped at 100 - my estimate at the moment is that this could be as many as 400 eggs out of one Mandarin...2 days ago may have just been a "precursor" to tonight's spawn...HMM.
I *think* I'm going to go with a stand-alone kriesel for the next 24 hours or so...I'm really not sure how things will go down if I place the kriesel back into the larval tank with all those rotifers and Isocrysis...that was one of the differences between #3 (when I got a hatch) and #4 (when everything died, even though I know know that most likely the failure of #4 was caused by nitrite).
Meanwhile, what's up with those leptacanthus larvae...they should've been out by now..he can't hold onto them forever!
MP
I *think* I'm going to go with a stand-alone kriesel for the next 24 hours or so...I'm really not sure how things will go down if I place the kriesel back into the larval tank with all those rotifers and Isocrysis...that was one of the differences between #3 (when I got a hatch) and #4 (when everything died, even though I know know that most likely the failure of #4 was caused by nitrite).
Meanwhile, what's up with those leptacanthus larvae...they should've been out by now..he can't hold onto them forever!
MP
mwp
In Memoriam
EUREKA, I THINK I HAVE IT, well maybe - the STIRRER! That's something I can set up in the parental tank - not sure 'cause I have to get the two liter set up in such a way that it's above the surface of the water...maybe a different stirrer is in order, but something, there has to be another way..HMMMMMM.
MP
MP
mwp
In Memoriam
Well it's 2:15 AM and I'm ultra tired and have a headache...time for bed. I tried taking some pictures to count the eggs but they don't come out with enough detail to actually be countable (I may post one tomorrow just so you can see).
And I've decided to go with the kriesel that we know works, so I set it back up in the 10 gallon larval tank WITH the GBG's. 5 or 6 GBG larvae are now in the kriesel along with a few hundred mandarin eggs...we'll see how that all works out. I have the air going just a bit stonger than it has to ensure that the eggs aren't all resting on the bottom in the morning as has been happening...I think it's a fine line between too much and too little circulation, the air makes adjustment a snap but it's still tough to find that "sweet spot"...it's not like the eggs stay in the center of the chamber or something, and I suspect with the kriesel it's really not good to have them floating on the surface OR resting on the bottom.
WISH US LUCK!
MP
And I've decided to go with the kriesel that we know works, so I set it back up in the 10 gallon larval tank WITH the GBG's. 5 or 6 GBG larvae are now in the kriesel along with a few hundred mandarin eggs...we'll see how that all works out. I have the air going just a bit stonger than it has to ensure that the eggs aren't all resting on the bottom in the morning as has been happening...I think it's a fine line between too much and too little circulation, the air makes adjustment a snap but it's still tough to find that "sweet spot"...it's not like the eggs stay in the center of the chamber or something, and I suspect with the kriesel it's really not good to have them floating on the surface OR resting on the bottom.
WISH US LUCK!
MP
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