Keeping Broodstock/Offspring Straight

[Ed Ricketts]

Recently I have run into a problem that is probably simple to solve for the more successful folks around here.

Simply, what is the exact way that people track which male and which female have paired and resulted in "which" offspring? In my specific situation, I am using a female banggai alternating between two males to develop offspring, but I need a nomenclature, or coding technique to keep the males straight, keep the offspring from whichever male straight, and the ability to add new broodstock that might add to the mix, in the future.

Some people use "dates" to denote each "clutch" I suppose, but I gotta believe there are even more robust ways to track these.

Thanks

Mike

 

["Umm fish?"]

I recall someone explaining it. Maybe Hoff's book? Each individual broodstock gets a code ("AA" for female, say, and "12" for male). Larvae from this pair are AA12. Larval and growout tanks all have labeled clipboards with info on larval counts and survival rates and such that follows the fish through to selling, and the info then goes into databases to track broodstock production and larval survival per pair.

 

[Ed Ricketts]

Nice...

Nice...

Andy,
First thanks for knowing Hoff's book so well that you can direct an apparently blind NOOB right to it. And yep, your right, its right in and around page 77-78. Thanks for the tip!


Also, thanks for the quick turn around.

Am I making something outta nothin, or are people keeping track of spawns and broodstock like this?

Mainly curious, as I'm inclined to do it, so I don't keep repeating my mistakes.

 

["Umm fish?"]

Good luck with them!

 

[rcypert]

Hey Ed can you explain how you alternate the female between two males? I have a pair that breed and would love to bump up production. Thanks for any insight.
Ross

 

[Ed Ricketts]

rcypert

After delivery, I separate my female from the male and let him fatten up. Meanwhile, I put her in with another male. She seems more than eager, especially in the summer months, and the second male is well fed, receptive, and capable of holding successfully.

In short, females are ready to go much sooner than, in my opinion, one male could possibly be ready to reproduce again. So I let her churn out the eggs as often as she likes, but only in the presence of a male who's had half a chance to eat between clutches. One word of caution, Marini did note a possible shorter life span in females compared to males, which he possibly attributed to the physiologic toll that egg bearing takes on the females' bodies. There's great stuff in abstract form on databases (e.g. search Pterapogon on Google Scholar) that is beginning to describe social hierarchies, and how both females and males choose each other. These interactions in the wild make me think that there are natural "œbreaks" that both males and females are afforded that are "œoverridden" by the captive conditions in which most pairs are held.

If I butchered that Frank, feel free to chime in.

HTH

 

[oceanarus]

Mike,
You are not making something out of nothing. It is important to keep up with the number of spawns , nest size, etc. of pairs. I think most people on RC may only have a couple spawning pairs and are not always very serious. But fwiw I keep a day planer just for my fish. I have to anyway just to keep up with when I have to pull nest or when to expect males to release babies. I think there are better ways of doing it. But this way has worked well for me. With the no. of pairs I have here it is easy to forget things. And with harder projects I save my notes on the computer. Hope this helps.

Amy

 

[Ed Ricketts]

Amy

Thanks for the tips. A day planner would be a perfect thing to keep things straight, like batches of live food for example. "When" someone is going to deliver, as another example. I'm about to get confused, and I have, so far, only two breeding pairs. Confusion is looming.

Thanks again,