My Ocellaris breeding thread
- Thread starter ernieq
- Start date
ernieq
New member
Gone too far? I couldn't help myself. Had to save them last night. Here's batch 8 floating inside Batch 7's larval tank!
Here they are @12 days! The thermometer is calibrated off by 2.5 degrees, so the temperature is really around 81.
Growout 47 and 57 Days old. Things looking good. Some still have remnants of the white stuff, but not nearly as many. They seem more energetic.
Good look at Batch 8 newborns.
Here they are @12 days! The thermometer is calibrated off by 2.5 degrees, so the temperature is really around 81.
Growout 47 and 57 Days old. Things looking good. Some still have remnants of the white stuff, but not nearly as many. They seem more energetic.
Good look at Batch 8 newborns.
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DarthNater
New member
you are a glutten for punishment man lol but i love reading about your exsperiences. keep up the good work!
JPMagyar
New member
Ernie,
I'm trying to digest every word you've said so far but I've only gotten through page 3. You see I'd like to try the same only my "angle" is to try and recreate "natural" conditions as best as possible and move away from the septic standards of large scale breeding. That is purely a statement of what I enjoy and in no way a put down, because really really really I am thrilled with your dedication and sharing!
I guess my main point here is just to say "Thank-you" and to ask for your thoughts on the concept of creating a "natural" environment. I have a pair of clowns that breed very regularly and I can get the spawn to come to a light no problem, but I've never tried to raise them. Do you think a tank could be created with low flow and anemones that could be used to raise a minority of fry? It must happen in nature so how can we get that same effect at home?
Anyways, thanks again for creating such an awesome Thread!
Joe
I'm trying to digest every word you've said so far but I've only gotten through page 3. You see I'd like to try the same only my "angle" is to try and recreate "natural" conditions as best as possible and move away from the septic standards of large scale breeding. That is purely a statement of what I enjoy and in no way a put down, because really really really I am thrilled with your dedication and sharing!
I guess my main point here is just to say "Thank-you" and to ask for your thoughts on the concept of creating a "natural" environment. I have a pair of clowns that breed very regularly and I can get the spawn to come to a light no problem, but I've never tried to raise them. Do you think a tank could be created with low flow and anemones that could be used to raise a minority of fry? It must happen in nature so how can we get that same effect at home?
Anyways, thanks again for creating such an awesome Thread!
Joe
ernieq
New member
Actually in nature what will happen is that once the clowns hatch, they will swim up to the surface following the moonlight and become part of the zooplankton mass (clownfish larvae have a pelagic stage). While there is a good chance they will become food, it is also a place where it is easy to find food. They will drift in this state for 10 to 14 days depending on temperature and nutritional factors then they will settle down to the reefs after undergoing metamorphosis (that is why some people call meta settlement). So in your aquarium, there is no way to provide a naturally ocurring pelagic zone. So as breeders we get the clowns through this pelagic stage by isolating them in a small aquarium with thousands of zooplankton that the fry can feed and grow on, of course, they have no predators, so the survival rate is many thousands percentage points higher than in nature. Once they go through meta, you could put them in a natural environment with anemones, of course if there are other fish, the little clowns could still be meals if they are mouthsized. After Meta, most clowns are still less than 1/4 inch, so almost anything would eat them. I don't know what percentage of clowns that hatch in the wild make it to adulthood, but it can't be high, think about the many opportunities for them to be predated upon. A pair of clowns need only have 2 survivors out of tens of thousands of eggs in order for their species to continue.
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ernieq
New member
Here's my growout now 48 & 58 DPH.
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Look at the development in 24 hours. This image is about 18 hours post hatch.
This one is about 42 hours post hatch.
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Look at the development in 24 hours. This image is about 18 hours post hatch.
This one is about 42 hours post hatch.
woodnaquanut
Active member
ernieq, I've really enjoyed your posts. Great pics of VERY hard to photograph little ones!
Sorry to hear about your male. On the bright side, now that you have proven your skills, perhaps this is an opportunity. I was talking to a breeder this weekend that raises the young of another person's designer clowns. He houses the breeding pair but does not own them. He and the owner split the proceeds from sales. Just a thought that a deal like that might work for you.
Keep up the good work and keep on posting those great pictures!!
Sorry to hear about your male. On the bright side, now that you have proven your skills, perhaps this is an opportunity. I was talking to a breeder this weekend that raises the young of another person's designer clowns. He houses the breeding pair but does not own them. He and the owner split the proceeds from sales. Just a thought that a deal like that might work for you.
Keep up the good work and keep on posting those great pictures!!
ernieq
New member
I'm actually building quite the photo library. I've saved every snapshot I've taken. I try to take several photos each day. Some videos of different behavior and the like. As of yesterday, I've collected 1,187 photos and videos beginning August 10th of this year which is when the pair laid my first succesfull Batch #3. It serves me as a way to compare the development from batch to batch. It's a shame my male decided to go for a flyover, my female had just gotten into rhythm and was laying large batches.
ernieq
New member
How many 49 & 59 Day old clownfish can you fit inside a 3/4 inch PVC Elbow? The world may never now. This is just as lights went out, they just bunch up in their pipes.
These are the 3 day olds from Batch 8. They are already eating baby brine. I'm also putting in some Cyclops Eeze, they just look at it for now. There's more black pigment in their body from yesterday, they are also somewhat "taller."
These are 12 days apart. One of the medium sized guys from Batch 7 @ 15 DPH looking into the "nursery" inside their tank. The 15 day olds are eating everything now. I am feeding cyclops eeze into the tank as their first meal, just droping a pinch in their water. The re-hydrated method tends to clump up, so I abandoned that fast. Notice the oversized tail fin at this stage.
These are the 3 day olds from Batch 8. They are already eating baby brine. I'm also putting in some Cyclops Eeze, they just look at it for now. There's more black pigment in their body from yesterday, they are also somewhat "taller."
These are 12 days apart. One of the medium sized guys from Batch 7 @ 15 DPH looking into the "nursery" inside their tank. The 15 day olds are eating everything now. I am feeding cyclops eeze into the tank as their first meal, just droping a pinch in their water. The re-hydrated method tends to clump up, so I abandoned that fast. Notice the oversized tail fin at this stage.
AliciaP
New member
:thumbsup: love the photos with the nursery in the nursery!
Quick question (about my clowns), they are wagging their tails on the wall and sometimes look like they are biting it. Chasing away the other clowns now, and chromis too. Are they beginning to prepare? Too soon to get my hopes up? lol I have been flooding the tank with NHBBS for a few days
Quick question (about my clowns), they are wagging their tails on the wall and sometimes look like they are biting it. Chasing away the other clowns now, and chromis too. Are they beginning to prepare? Too soon to get my hopes up? lol I have been flooding the tank with NHBBS for a few days
edandsandy
Active member
You are taking some fantastic pictures lately! Good luck with all your babies....
Please keep the pictures coming
Please keep the pictures coming
ernieq
New member
Lost 4 out of Batch 7 today, 2 of them just didn't look right after coming out of Meta, the other two don't know why. Removed them during this morning's cleaning routine. Also lost 3 out of Batch 8, not out of the ordinary within the first 5 days. Also a note, the guys in growout seem to have quite the appetite lately. They are like pirahnas during feeding. Not a single pellet ever hits the bottom of the tank, they are so fast and quick at feeding, it is amusing to see. I think my less frequent feeding routine helps keep their appetite on "edge." Though I am now feeding like 5 times a day, I feed whatever fits in the little cap off the OTO bags, though I'm now thinking I might have to feed like 1 1/2 caps? They eat it in less than a minute. How much would you feed 180 nearly 2 month old clowns?
edandsandy
Active member
Feed them as much as they will eat in 2 minutes .
Maybe a little more, because mine will eat the food from the bottom of the tank too!
. Maybe a little more, because mine will eat the food from the bottom of the tank too!
ernieq
New member
Here's Batch 8 @ 5 DPH. Some of them are about to enter Meta already.
Grow out. Look at all the brown algae! Tank has nitrates, cylce done. Now to clean up and re-introduce the chaeto.
A video of a group of the 17 Day olds that has gathered around their all new PVC playground. Full clown behavior on display. Interesting that I have not noticed the bickering yet.
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Grow out. Look at all the brown algae! Tank has nitrates, cylce done. Now to clean up and re-introduce the chaeto.
A video of a group of the 17 Day olds that has gathered around their all new PVC playground. Full clown behavior on display. Interesting that I have not noticed the bickering yet.
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ernieq
New member
Well, it was getting near impossible to maintain water quality with the young ones in the little floating nursery, so they were released together with the previous batch and water volume increased to 8 gallons. Since they are now old enough to eat the same thing the other guys are eating, it should be fine as I will just populate it with live baby brine for the next few days until they are out of meta, at which time they will all be transitioned to OTO B1.
