Picasso and True Perc laying eggs- rookie help for hatchery setup

[D-Nak]

Thanks for the reply,

I covered the entire tank in the removable black vinyl aquarium background but when looking at the tank from the inside the panels are still giving that mirrored look that is attracting the clownfish. I wonder if flat, black paint would help out with the reflective aspect??

I think that and nutrition is the big reasons I have failed on the first batch!

Thanks
JIM

Yes, I think flat paint helps a lot. But black construction paper works well too, and isn't permanent like paint.

In terms of nutrition, I feed my rotifers RGComplete. Prior to feeding the babies I check to make sure that the rotifers are full -- I place them in a glass and use a jewelry loupe to check their stomachs, making sure that they are green and full of algae.

 

[jlnielsen13]

A little off topic but your tank is really nice I love the coloration what type of lighting are you using I'm very curious

Hello and thanks,

It is under t5 lighting! Dumped the LEDS about 3 years ago and couldn't be happier.

see previous threads,

JIM

 

[jlnielsen13]

This morning I checked on the tank and have 7-8 that seemed to actively hunt the rotifers and eat the dry food.

I've learned through the help of other reefers on the page (big thanks) that tinting the water does seem to keep some of them off the glass. I still have 4-5 that I cannot get off the glass for some reason.

I will be switching to the next step of dry food tonight.

I also am expecting to see a new batch of eggs today as the female looked ready to explode.

No breeding behaviors from my new pair- teardrop Wyoming whites.

The Fry are noticeably bigger and seem to have a slight orange tint to them, but that could be my imagination.

Thanks,

JIM

 

[D-Nak]

What are you feeding the parents? If fed a nutritionally balanced diet, they'll have bigger spans. I recently switched to LRS food and my big female literally laid on top of an old nest. It's the first time I've ever seen this happen with my pair. LRS now makes a breeder blend which I plan to try soon.

 

[jlnielsen13]

What are you feeding the parents? If fed a nutritionally balanced diet, they'll have bigger spans. I recently switched to LRS food and my big female literally laid on top of an old nest. It's the first time I've ever seen this happen with my pair. LRS now makes a breeder blend which I plan to try soon.

The parents get Spectrum thera A 3 times a day by auto feeder and then get frozen mixtures at night. The fry are on the TDO chroma boost from reed mariculture. They are eating a combo of "A" and "B1" at the moment. I purchased the breeder bundle.

Thanks,

JIM

 

[shifty51008]

Your clowns eggs should be hatching again soon right?

 

[jlnielsen13]

Your clowns eggs should be hatching again soon right?

Huge thanks on the fry catcher- excited to use it!!

My clowns haven't been very regular but day 9 will be on Friday and 10 on Saturday!

Any suggestions for replacement light and where do you shine the light? At the bottom where the air bubbles come out correct??

Thanks,

Jim

 

[shifty51008]

No problem, hope you have good luck with it. The light i used was just a white led that i connected to my arduino and just used painters tape to tape it to the outside of the glass, ghetto but it worked lol. Any light should work though, if its to bright you can always dim it with paper. And yes you want to put the light at the bottom where the bubbles come out.

I beleive you can contact chad and he can get you a new light also for later on, he always said he would send me a replacement but never did.

 

[D-Nak]

Yes -- Chad makes both battery powered lights and also a hardwired version, but I agree that pretty much any LED will work. It doesn't need to be that bright, especially if the room is completely dark.

 

[jlnielsen13]

5:30

5:30

So, things aren't going well this time around.... Yesterday was day 10 so I set up the Vossen fly trap and caught 2. I was pretty disappointed. TOday I was happy cause half the eggs were still alive. I set up again tonight with this schedule:
5pm lights off

530 pumps off

630 trap and led light on.

I haven't caught any yet tonight. Some eggs still look attached but some have definitely hatched.

I do have a couple questions:

How long can I leave my tank without power?? Air specifically??
How vigorous should the bubbles on the trap be?
Is there something wrong with my schedule??

Thanks for all the help guys! I feel like my clowns hatch more on day 10-11-12. Is that Odd?

Appreciate all the help,

JIM

 

[shifty51008]

Go on youtube and look up "how to catch larvae.mts" that will give you a good idea on how to setup the bubbles.

My tank goes fine for 3-4 hours with no power but i have a small bioload.

Do your lights always go off at 5pm? If not try to keep your light schedual the same and set the fry catcher to that time. Ive not had much luck turning the lights off early to have them hatch earlier, not sure about others.

 

[jlnielsen13]

Thanks for the advice,

No, my lights usually go off closer to 10 so that probably caused an issue. Sadly, the eggs all hatched last night and I only caught 3 total. I guess I will try to raise those 3?

I get nervous about the tank being off for longer than 3 hours.

I am going to try to glue in some clay pot fragments. The clowns have laid their eggs in three different locations around their anemones so far so it will be harder to get them to lay them on a clay pot piece.

I'll give that a try as this isn't going to well so far. I really hoped I would get 100ish fry this time!!

Thanks,
Jim

Go on youtube and look up "how to catch larvae.mts" that will give you a good idea on how to setup the bubbles.

My tank goes fine for 3-4 hours with no power but i have a small bioload.

Do your lights always go off at 5pm? If not try to keep your light schedual the same and set the fry catcher to that time. Ive not had much luck turning the lights off early to have them hatch earlier, not sure about others.

 

[D-Nak]

Thanks for the advice,

No, my lights usually go off closer to 10 so that probably caused an issue. Sadly, the eggs all hatched last night and I only caught 3 total. I guess I will try to raise those 3?

I get nervous about the tank being off for longer than 3 hours.

I am going to try to glue in some clay pot fragments. The clowns have laid their eggs in three different locations around their anemones so far so it will be harder to get them to lay them on a clay pot piece.

I'll give that a try as this isn't going to well so far. I really hoped I would get 100ish fry this time!!

Thanks,
Jim

I personally think it's a waste of time to raise only 3, but it's up to you.

I use the saucers used for clay pots and place them where the female usually deposits her eggs. You'd be surprised at how much your clowns would prefer to lay on a smooth surface than a rock. I't try that before using broken prices of clay pots. I've used broken tiles before and my female was strong enough to slip them over.

 

[jlnielsen13]

On the 10th day I lost a few clownfish fry and decided to take a look at one under a microscope. Here is what I saw:

Super impressed with the teeth!!

 

[shifty51008]

I drill a hole in a old bathroom tile and use fish string to hold it in place where the clowns lay.

I think turning off the lights early confuses the eggs which is why i never have good luck that way however i have left the lights on to delay the hatch before.

That pic is cool, love microscope pics.

 

[jlnielsen13]

In prep for my 3rd batch, which I would guess would be laid in the next 2-3 days, I glued in 5-6 pieces of clay pot in the usually egg laying areas.

I hope I didn't disturb their area to much and that they will lay on the clay pot pieces but that might take time.

My tank looks like a garbage bin at a garden center right now!

JIM

 

[ReefWreak]

Good luck, hopefully it takes!

My female clown got pop-eye about 2 weeks ago, but only in one eye, and hasn't laid eggs since. Fickle things. So the pop-eye is almost entirely healed, and hopefully she'll go back to laying eggs soon. I'm curious to how the partial clay pot pieces work out, that would be a really easy strategy for me instead of having to try catching them at night.

 

[jlnielsen13]

Update,

Well unfortunately they laid eggs on the largest rock in the tank and avoided all 5 clay pot pieces in usual laying areas.... arghh.

I am thinking of attaching a large mesh net on hatch night/nights and seeing if that helps?? I failed with the fish trap last time but maybe I should give that a go again.

First batch of clowns (2 left) are doing well.

Jim

 

[shifty51008]

I would be scared to use a mesh net, the fry are fragile and will get stuck in the net really easy and most likely die.

 

[meg]