The Clownfish Breeding Project

[rabidcrab]

First let me introduce myself:
Im 17, i currently have multiple saltwater tanks; a 90 reef, 46 bow reef, 29 anemone, and a 3g zoa only. I work at Nahacky's aquarium, some of you may know me from comin into the shop. Been doin the fish thing for like 10-11 years.

Why im interested in breeding clowns:
Im currently a junior at WestShore Jr/Sr high. Next year, to graduate from high school, I have to complete a senior project. I basicly pick what ever thing i wanna do and I have to make a big deal about it... hehe. Since i love aquariums and clownfish are my favorite fish i decided id breed them! I believe this project would be beneficial to the community aswell as myself. If i can research and share my knowledge and experience of mariculture with others, I believe i would be doing my part in the fight to prevent the slow recession of reefs around the world. Some day it will reduce the impact of our hobby on nature. I plan on doing marine sciences later in life as a career so this is a good hands on opportunity for experience and a growing portfolio i will keep.

My Idea:
It consists of having a 40 breeder, were i will keep a breeding pair of clowns, and multiple anemones. 2x250w HQI's would be ideal, but that is pricey. I Ill be using a 20g sump underneith. As for the rearing tank, I think id use like a rio 400 or so to push water out of the sump into a lil 15 gallon tank, and than have gravity feed it back into the sump. It would basicly be a refugium with just the babies in it. This would allow for a large body of water, good circulation, food, and overall stability.



What do you think? Suggestions? Comments?
If anyone has equipment that would fit my setup, livestock, anemones, or direct experience with breeding clownfish please let me know!

This will be an exciting project when its finished, and with support I would be glad to keep everyone updated!

Talk to you soon, Bryan

PM me, or
email me @ rabidcrab@gmail.com

Thanks!

 

[Slakker]

I certainly don't have breeding experience (yet), but I have done a bit of research. First of all, this is a great project and I wish you best of luck.

If I remember my reading correctly, it's best not to have the rearing/growout tanks plumbed into the same system as the broodstock tanks, as the ammonia levels created in those tanks can be enough to disrupt spawning or even jeopardize the health of your broodstock. It seems like a really great idea on paper, and one that I had considered for a while, but I think you're underestimating the waste production of the babies.

I believe JHardman had a thread about a good rearing/growout setup a while back...you might try to find that and give it a read.

Do you have a spawning pair already? If not, where do you plan on getting them from. and what species are you looking at?

 

[rabidcrab]

I can get a spawning pair easily, i order fish for my shop all the time, i see them alot. I can get a pair from ORA easily. I can proyl even get my hands on some picaso clowns if i wanted. The idea of having it all plumbed together was to add more gallons to the system to reduce risk. If i keep upt to date with regular cleanings and maintenence of the tank i dont think i should have too much trouble. what you think?

 

[GSMguy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9743427#post9743427 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rabidcrab
I can get a spawning pair easily, i order fish for my shop all the time, i see them alot. I can get a pair from ORA easily. I can proyl even get my hands on some picaso clowns if i wanted. The idea of having it all plumbed together was to add more gallons to the system to reduce risk. If i keep upt to date with regular cleanings and maintenence of the tank i dont think i should have too much trouble. what you think?

ora has never sold a spawning pair of picasso they sell juvienile pairs

 

[phender]

Believe it or not, it is probably easier to raise the babies in a stand alone 10 gal tank. The first 3 weeks or so it is easier to go without a filter at all and rely on small water changes and live phytoplankton to reduce the polutants. After the fry go through metamorphosis all you need is a good sponge filter the rest of the way, along with weekly partial water changes.

Very few "pairs" of clowns are actually breeding pairs. Most of them weren't even paired until they met in the holding tanks of the shippers. Sometimes ORA will sell retired breeding pairs, but who knows why they were retired.

You don't need an anemone for your clowns. It just complicates things, leads to disruptions of the breeding site and the equipment to maintain them is too expensive.

My suggestion would be to divide your 40 gal tank in half and get two pairs of ocellaris clowns. You might have luck at a local reef club finding people, who have pairs of spawning ocellaris in their tanks, who would be willing to sell them.

I am recommending ocellaris clowns for several reasons. They are the easiest to get to spawn. They don't need a lot of room. The babies mature quickly. There is a market for the babies once they are big enough. Stay away from percula clowns. Your project will be over before the babies are mature enough to sell.

The most important thing you need is reading material. "Clownfish" by Joyce Wilkerson is a standard. I learned to breed clowns from Martin Moe's book "The Marine Aquarium Handbook - Beginner to Breeder". Florida Aqua Farms has published a couple more technical books on raising plankton and breeding clowns. Check their website.

Good luck. I hope it goes well.

 

[Atticus]

There are also tons of great threads on this topic at the top of this forum and in the breeders forum. You will even find links to breeder set-ups in the breeder's forum.

 

[Atticus]

BTW...

Cheap and easy wins the race... I bred my clowns with single bulb florecents on a timer, a heater set to 82-84 degrees, 10-20 gallon barebottom tanks, HOB filter, and a clay pot. All fry were raised in barebottom 5-10 gallon tanks with an airstone and a heater. After meta a sponge filter was added. Quick easy and cheap.

 

[rabidcrab]

I have a friend who works at ORA, he said he could get me a pair...

I really enjoy anemones, so I would like to breed the clowns with anemones present... It would advertise the symbiotic relationship nicely to people who really dont know anything about saltwater animals and reefs. Is it really that much of an inconvience to have them present?

If i divided the 40 breeder in half would it be enough space to have 2 pairs?

If you have the babies in a 10 gallon tank underneith with just a sponge filter, would I have trouble with detritus and amonia spikes in the water?

What is your experience with feeding them as they grow?

I presently use something called PhycoPure to feed my corals, its green water... phytoplankton. Would that work to feed them? and than when they get bigger use rotifers?

 

[GSMguy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9747572#post9747572 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rabidcrab
I have a friend who works at ORA, he said he could get me a pair...

i am getting a pair soon, they are juveniles and they will take years before they are old enough to spawn.

 

[illcssd]

Do you have joyce wilkerson's book "clownfishes". Most all these questions have been answered in there and a lot more.
Two ocellaris pairs will be fine in half of the 40.
As you will learn when you read the book, baby clowns don't feed on phyto, they feed on rotifers, phyto is used to keep the rot's alive and to help keep the water cleaner.

 

[Slakker]

Just in case you're confused, rabidcrab, because I was for a minute there, you put one pair of ocellaris in each side of the 40 after you've divided it. Also, you're going to want to have a physical divider, a sheet of glass or acrylic should do, and i think it would probly be best if it was opaque.

 

[illcssd]

You dont want the divider to be see through, it needs to be something the fish can't see eachother through. Sorry for the confusion.

 

[Slakker]

Also, as far as the detritus/ammonia, one of the best investments you'll make for a growout/fry tank is an Ammonia badge. You'll have to stay on top of water changes and do your best to siphon out fish waste to keep things down, but an established foam filter (have it in your broodstock tank for a good month or so and it should be ready) will help a bit.

The little guys create quite a bit of ammonia, but (especially Ocellaris) can also tolerate it to some degree. You will for sure want to do a WC when you see the ammonia badge starting to turn colors though.

Really, Joyce Wilkerson's book will answer most, if not all, of your questions. I know, it sucks to wait for it to ship, but it is really helpful.

 

[TripleP]

there is another book i haven't gotten yet but it's called "Conditioning, Spawning and Rearing of Fish With Emphasis on Marine Clownfish" by Frank H. Hoff

 

[tpdpercula]

My breeding tanks include 40 gallon breeders divided in half with eggcrate and that needle point plastic. Its amazing how those buggers can squeeze, and swim in between the eggcrate. The system is devoted to all my clown pairs (breeders). If you wish to have any success with breeding them I would suggest setting them up W/OUT an Anemone in there. My success and rate increased when I took their hosts out.

Best of Luck