new to breeding

[drew4452862]

I've only had a reef tank for a few years. Looking for advice on species to breed. Lfs says clown fish are the way to go. I was interested in l ambonesia? Spelling might be off, but the skunk cleaner shrimp. Also mandarin gobies and there cousins were interesting but maybe to hard. Any breeds that would be easier? Based on ability to sell them, not for huge profit but to be able to lovingly get rid of for some money. Are flame angels easy to pair? Anyway let me know! Any advice in getting back into the hobby? So far I have a 55g and a 20. Ready to buy ro/di, heater, pumps, ect

Some dart fish
Damsels
Mandarin gobies
Lysmata / ambonesia
Flame angel

 

[ernieq]

There's an ongoing thread about Flame angels. Out of the ones listed, probably the hardest. Flame angel larvae are really not well developed at all and require very special care. A few places have been able to captively breed and raise other centropyge angels, but these are commercial outfits with all kinds of access to resources. I think that most people would say the Bangaii Cardinals are probably the easiest since their fry don't have the difficult larval stage. Clownfish are easier than damsels because their larvae are larger and thus can easily feed on the L-type saltwater rotifers. With Mandarins and Damsels you would need really small zooplankton like copepod nauplii or the freshwater S-rotifers, which poses a problem because they don't last long in saltwater.

If you want "for profit" then you will probably want to get a pair of designer clowns, like platinums, snow flakes, picasos, or the like.

 

[drew4452862]

thanks for the tips. I think a lot of people are in the category of not 'for profit' but also not looking to be stuck with dozens of fish!! Anything to add to the list for species? Would love to have some sort of plan for hippo tangs (Paracanthurus hepatus) but I have not found much at all.

 

[ernieq]

All pelagic fish will be near impossible to breed on a home aquaria due to the requirements of raising the fish. All Tangs are pelagic spawners, they release their eggs and sperm into the water. The larvae are poorly developed. Reef Culture Technologies have successfully spawned may species of pigmy angels. You may want to have a read at their site.

http://www.rcthawaii.com/

 

[fla2341]

Try:

Paracanthurus hepatus: http://www.mbisite.org/Forums/tm.aspx?&m=63962&mpage=1

and mine on Flame Angels:
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2162845

Also: http://risingtideconservation.blogspot.com/

Also work the searches for other information on fishes and inverts which are best kept for breeding. They all have their special needs, levels of difficulty and techniques.