Latz laid eggs without a male!!!

[Maximus]

Yep, I have two female Latz in the tank and the larger one just laid eggs on the bottom of my tank. Too bad I don't have a male and they will never hatch. In case your wondering, I received the pair from Karen B. in Hawaii and she said that both females were laying eggs in her tank. I suppose it's time to get a male!

 

[Maximus]

Here are a couple crappy pics:

<a href="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/sanglee24/media/IMG_7591.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/sanglee24/IMG_7591.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo IMG_7591.jpg"/></a>

 

[Maximus]

The weird thing is that the other female clown is hovering over them and mouthing them and turning sideways over the eggs. If I didn't know any better, I would think that she's really a male but that is impossible as female clowns cannot change back to a male.

 

[E.intheC]

Very cool. Latz are awesome. Do you have pics of the clowns themselves?

 

[FTDelta]

It's possible one of your clowns had already turned into a female and the other one is still a male. I wouldn't run out and get a male clown when you already have 2 clowns breeding and have eggs.

 

[Maximus]

Karen Brittain (a widely respected marine fish breeder from Hawaii) is the breeder of these clowns and I received them directly from her. These were raised by her and both clowns have laid eggs in her tank. They are approximately 3.5 years old. If I understand correctly, a female clown cannot turn back into a male. I'm hoping that I have the only one that can, lol!

 

[Maximus]

Here's another crappy pic of the breeding female:

 

[Reefvette]

Clownfish

Clownfish

I very much respect Karen and im sure she will chime in but if the other clown is hovering and cleaning its possible its a male.

Two females dont usually tend to others nest. Usually they would squabble.

Are the eggs fertilized?

 

[Maximus]

No idea if they are fertilized but I highly doubt it. That's why it's so weird to see the other female tending to the nest. I'm very perplexed about the whole thing.

 

[deangelr]

So you have both females together? that seems like a death trap.. Perhaps one changed back to male, or is in process.. I suspect that this is possible

 

[Maximus]

You're absolutely right about two females, however, in this case, they are fine together. Both females have lived together for the past 3.5 years and have gotten along well. I did some research and clowns cannot change back to males once they are females.

 

[Reefvette]

Im starting to think that its a male.

There is a small chance they that a female would help another female.

Also them being together for 3.5 years is about the time both latz would need to grow to a sexually mature age.

Clarki Complex clowns and Latz grow very large and sometimes the difference in size between male and female can be a half inch to almost nothing.

My chrysogaster female is 5.5 inches and the male is 2.5.

My GBR clowns the male and female become undistinguisheable when they laid eggs both were around 4.5 -5.5 inches.

 

[Maximus]

I would agree with you if it wasn't for two known facts; the fact that both have spawned in Karen's tank in Hawaii and female clowns cannot revert back to a male.

 

[Reefvette]

How big are both fish?

The problem is, the situation you have is not usual and unless you have seen photos of both fish laying eggs its plausible that one is a male.

I wish Karen would pop on here and shed some insight into this because i have never seen or heard of a situation like this.

 

[Maximus]

Both fish are really close in size. I know that Latz are very similar in size when it comes to male/female pairings.

 

[Reefvette]

Pair

Pair

Im think you have a female and a male, but anything is possible in a little glass box.

I hope Karen can chime in.

 

[Maximus]

Just went home for lunch and the eggs are dwindling down. I counted 70-80 eggs last night and now there are around 30 left. Not sure if they're being eaten by the clowns or my pair of swissguard basslets. Another possibility are my trochus snails as I run a bare bottom tank and they cruise on the bottom eating algae.

 

[nemoboy1]

Latz pair can have similar in size between male/female. That being said kare. Has been breeding these latz for quite some time now if she said they were both breeding females when she sent them to you I'm sure they are both females. Clownfish female can lay eggs on their own without a male present. My platinum female laid eggs constantly without a male so it can be down... When I was raising cichlids I notice they will lay eggs without a male present... I believe this can happen cause the female will always produce eggs so she will lay them even though there are not a male present. Sometimes you notice them and a lot time they lay them out of site. If I were you n you plan on breeding latz grab a smaller juvenile and hopefully they will pair up. Eggs are eaten by other fish and possibly the latz who laid it too since it's not fertilize

 

[Maximus]

At this moment, I don't have plans on raising the eggs. If I decide to raise the eggs, I will find a juvenile male and hope for the best. I am just puzzled with the other female as it behaves like a male. I fully understand that a female clown does not need a male to lay eggs.

 

[Maximus]

Here's a pic of her ovipositor. This pic was taken 3 weeks ago.



A pic of both females: