Clownfish Breeding

al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
Ok so I have had a pair of Osc Clownfish for about 4 years now. The last 6 months I have watched them spawn at least twice a month, I have tried to catch the larvae at night but no luck. Bang Guy once told me to put a piece of slate at their spawning site - so I did and this afternoon they spawned again. This is going to be great because now I can take the egss out just as they are about to hatch, and I have seen amny times when they are ready. Here is a picture of the spawn, also I have a good bucket of rotifiers going now - I also feed them to my reef tanks. So here we go:
DAY 1 - Fresh Spawn
 
al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
Yes - I almost took it out yesterday. Hopefully I can get a batch out of this one. Keep our fingers crossed.
Thanks for that great tip Bang Guy.
 
al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
DAY 3
Eggs are not as orange as when first laid. I am finding with this batch that the female is taking care of the eggs more than the male.
 
pezenfuego

pezenfuego

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Al&Burke http:///t/393244/clownfish-breeding#post_3497292
DAY 3
Eggs are not as orange as when first laid. I am finding with this batch that the female is taking care of the eggs more than the male.

Stupid Question: How involved do you become with the eggs at this point? Do you monitor the flow on them or let the parents take care of it under the assumption that if it was a poor location, they wouldn't have put them there in the first place?
 
al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
Now it is just a waiting game - the larvae will hatch in 7 to 10 days. I have seen it many times but have not been able to catch any. The eggs will turn siver with white eyes when they are ready to hatch. They hatch at night. So at that point I will take them out and put them in a fry tank with the same water from this tank. The parents take pretty good care of them.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
One thing to keep in mind is that the eggs need to be moved before lights out. If it gets dark and then there is a bright light, in my experience the eggs will not hatch that night and will wait one more day. So, pitch black for the hatching tank.
The eggs also need more waterflow that you would expect to stay healthy. With the parents hovering over them they get quite a bit of waterflow so you need to simulate that using an airstone. I had the best luck situating the eggs right at the surface of the hatching tank and letting the water from an airstone flow over top. Others have success by leaning the eggs face down over an airstone that is set very low.
 
al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
Thanks Bang Guy I will keep that in mind, trouble right now is I am going away on a business trip next week back by the end of the week, work recks everything, maybe I will leave the lights on the whole time. There will always be another hatch.
 
al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
10 days will be friday - keep our fingers crossed, I am ready - when I get home I am going to half fill a ten gallon tank - I have a sponge in my sump to put in their tank when they get bigger. My rotifiers are growing like made, I put a bunch in my reef tank and did a water change on the rotifiers - I only kept about a jug out of 5 gallons, wish I had a reefer I could give some too. There were just too many in the bucket they needed to be fed almost twice a day. Well if this batch is lost I think I am going to be home for the rest of the year. They will spawn again.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
I think you would have a better chance with them if you placed them in your hatching tank just before you left. Add some greenwater and rotifers to the tank so they will have some food if they hatch.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bang Guy http:///t/393244/clownfish-breeding#post_3497638
I think you would have a better chance with them if you placed them in your hatching tank just before you left. Add some greenwater and rotifers to the tank so they will have some food if they hatch.
I think that's a great idea...
If you do this, remember to put an air line in the water close to the eggs to keep water circulating around them... should keep fungus from growing rampant. It's best to wait until the night of before removing them, but I think you would have a better chance if you went ahead and moved them.
 
al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by SnakeBlitz33 http:///t/393244/clownfish-breeding#post_3497684
I think that's a great idea...
If you do this, remember to put an air line in the water close to the eggs to keep water circulating around them... should keep fungus from growing rampant. It's best to wait until the night of before removing them, but I think you would have a better chance if you went ahead and moved them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bang Guy http:///t/393244/clownfish-breeding#post_3497638
I think you would have a better chance with them if you placed them in your hatching tank just before you left. Add some greenwater and rotifers to the tank so they will have some food if they hatch.
Now you guys are making me think - what to do - what to do.
 
al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
OK so I transfered them into a small tank, I was able to keep the eggs submerged through the whole process. I have the piece of slate on an angle leaned against the side of the tank. At first I had an air stone but I found that the bubbles were sticking to the eggs, I took the air stone off and kind of put the tube to the side, the eggs are all moving well just as if the parents were fanning them - I have a small heater in the tank and I added some rotifiers. My neighbor will keep an eye on things when I am gone, he will add more rotifier food when I am gone. Keep our fingers crossed, the clowns were not too happy with me. Here is a picture of the set up.
 
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