Spawning Clowns

[Dripley]

This will be the 3rd time my clown fish have spawned since moving them to my 220 gallon show tank. I think the male is eating them before or right after they hatch. I'm afraid the female wont survive another fight with the smaller male. She has a gash under her dorsal fin and the males dorsal fin is split. The eggs were deposited on a rock that is one of the lowest in the formation or I would have pulled them out by now. Is it just something that happens until they mature? I purchased them from the local pet store. They were living in a nano tank. I moved them to a 110 gallon tall and didn't spawn then. But after moving then to the new 220 they have spawned every 3 weeks. I'm going to place a piece of clay tile next to the bubble tip where they are spawning now so I can remove it on day 6 and try to raise the babies. Are there any suggestions out there any response would be greatly appreciated. :hmm3:

 

[cdipasquale]

They generally eat their eggs if there is something wrong with them or they aren't fertilized correctly. Make sure the parents are very well fed with a variety of foods. Poor diet will cause them to abort the clutch, but sometimes it just takes them a few tries to get the laying/fertilizing process figured out correctly. Placing the tile over the spawning site should make them lay on the tile (rough side out). Pull the tile when the larvae turn silver, usually day 7 or 8 in a 80degree tank.

As for the fighting, are you sure that the male is the fish causing the damage to the female? i don't think i've ever heard of a male beating up the female....she is usually the more dominate one. Could it be another fish in the tank fighting with her?