red spot cardinals

[Kigs]

Could you guys share as much information as possible on these guys? Not too many info. on them around the web and with few limited threads here on RC, so far I was only able to determine few things about them ; 1) poor shippers 2) need 7x+ day feeding 3) nobody can keep them alive for a prolonged period of time.

are these true? could you share how you guys care for them while you have them in your facility? what are their availability based on? where are they collected? how often do you guys feed them? flow / ambiance preference? any info would be appreciated, thank you in advance.

 

[dfs/la2]

Kigs,

Thank you for your post. We are looking into your questions on the Red Spot Cardinals and will post as soon as possible.

Gwen S.
LiveAquaria
Drs. Foster and Smith

 

[DFS]

Red Spot Glass Cardinalfish

Red Spot Glass Cardinalfish

Kigs,
I am sorry for the delay in responding to your question. The Red Spot Glass Cardinalfish Apogon parvulus is found in Eastern Indonesia, harvested throughout Indonesian waters and north throughout the Philippines. The fish are normally exported from Bali and Cebu. A very similar fish Apogon cf parvulus (Kuiter and Debelius- World Atlas of Marine Fishes) is found in the Eastern Indian Ocean and is infrequently available from Sumatra.

Like a good number of Cardinalfish available, there can be excessive and even substantial post harvest mortality when dealing with this species, and depending on the supplier or exporter, some may consider these fish very poor shippers.

Like a good number of other species offered in the marine aquarium trade, the handling, holding, husbandry practices, and packaging, along with the quantity of fish per box on export has a significant influence on how well the batch of fish will fare once imported and sold in the US.

Selecting good specimens that have been handled properly is very important, as well as properly acclimating and conditioning the fish are very important criteria which will determine the success or failure rate with this species. If done properly these fish are very hardy, like most species of the genus Apogon.

Once in our possession and these fish are acclimated properly it is critical to condition the fish by feeding very small quantities of enriched foods often (it is not uncommon for us to feed these fish up to 10 times per day). Maintaining these fish in a species specific group in subdued lighting is also ideal; and we have found that the fish will adapt and adjust to captive conditions quickly. Flow rate for most new arrivals, including these fish, should be slow to moderate, or just strong enough for proper turnover to maintain adequate water conditions. We normally house these Cardinalfish in species specific holding tanks, occasionally mixing very small species of gobies, dartfish, or other very passive and less active species.

Once these fish are fully conditioned properly, they will adapt to aquariums with a more moderate water flow, and when cared for properly, will normally live for many years in the home aquarium as long as they are not stressed by overly active or territorial tankmates.

I hope this answers your questions and thank you for your patience.

Happy Fishkeeping!

 

[Kigs]

Thank you for the detailed reply. - it was well worth the wait!

I couldn't find any pictures of the Apogon cf parvulus around the web - do you have any pictures available so I can tell the difference between the two?

Has there been any attempt to aquaculture these with success?

Would you say they prefer to be in large groups or will they kill each other off eventually once a pair is formed within a group?

Any idea that could explain such voracious appetite for a small creature? I have never heard of such fast metabolism in other Apogon species.

When you say almost 10 times a day, would flake food suffice or would you recommend frozen mysis or other meaty food?

I'm really glad to hear that it is possible for them to flourish for many years - after doing my research around the web, I really thought their life span in captivity was less than few months. Thank you again for all your help,

Vince

 

[DFS]

Vince,

I couldn't find any pictures of the Apogon cf parvulus around the web - do you have any pictures available so I can tell the difference between the two?

Unfortunately we do not have any images of the Eastern Indian Ocean variant that resembles Apogon parvulus. The only image I have seen is the one that resides in the book titled “World Atlas of Marine Fishes- Kuiter and Debelius” page 341.

Has there been any attempt to aquaculture these with success?

Unlike the majority of Cardinalfish species that grow much larger than Apogon parvulus which only attain a maximum size of 40mm. This species is far more social, and do much better in a group, as this is how they are found in the wild.

Would you say they prefer to be in large groups or will they kill each other off eventually once a pair is formed within a group?

The size of the aquarium, behavior and size of conspecific species maintained with the fish, as well as the physical number of fish in the group will all influence the outcome. Maintaining just a few (3-5 fish) in a very small space, I am sure there will be aggression towards the smaller, weaker fish, and you will experience attrition. However maintaining a larger group (10 or more) in a larger display with passive and non-threatening conspecifics is ideal.

Any idea that could explain such voracious appetite for a small creature? I have never heard of such fast metabolism in other Apogon species. When you say almost 10 times a day, would flake food suffice or would you recommend frozen mysis or other meaty food?

Feeding marine fish in this manner has more to do with properly conditioning new arrivals than it has to do with a specific species metabolism. Initial offerings of vitamin enriched frozen foods such as mysis and brine work well for us, but after a few weeks, flake or tiny pellet foods will suffice.

I'm really glad to hear that it is possible for them to flourish for many years - after doing my research around the web, I really thought their life span in captivity was less than few months. Thank you again for all your help.

You are most welcome and thank you again for your patience.

Happy Fishkeeping!