breeding Tomato Clowns

[johnsreef]

My tomato clowns bred and (ate)? the eggs, or did they take them in the mouth to protect them from the tang that always eats them?

Any thoughts?

 

[Jimbo7]

Nope, they ate em.
If it is their first couple times laying eggs, they will often eat the eggs up, as they are really just practicing. When they get one down that they like, they will leave it. If you are interested in raising them, start feeding them slightly smaller meals, but like 3-4 times a day. The fatter they are the more likely they are to have a good hatch, and healthy fry.
Put a regular ceramic tile in by them at night, very carefully, and if you don't freak them out, they will lay eggs on there and it will be easier to remove when the time comes, if you are interested in raising them.

If you are lemme know, I have been doing lots of research on raising clowns, I can help point you in the right direction.

 

[pat8you]

Probably ate them. If they just started breeding it takes them a coulpe time to get the hang of things. The batch may not have been viable. They will eventually figure it out and defend them extreemly aggressivly. Against the tang and possibly you if you put your hands in there.

 

[Jimbo7]

Beattt youuuu.

 

[johnsreef]

oops not a good pair then

they are several years old and bred many times i need to remove the tang but i willhave to spear him to get him out lol never had a fry make it yet

 

[Jimbo7]

They can go on/off laying depending on how regularly you feed them, what you feed and so on. Each time they start they will need to go through the same warm up procedures. Have you tried raising the fry before? Did you leave them in the main tank or a separate?

 

[Jimbo7]

I would definitely plumb another tank to your system, if you can one for fry raising and one for a grow out. The trick is to not give them too much space too soon, or they stop acting like family and all stake out a spot to defend. A 10 gallon would be best for the fry, easy to clean and maintain. 20 would be good for grow out, depending on how many you get to hatch, and live. If you can only get one tank, do the 20 with a divider, and you can gradually give them more space depending on how many per hatch, and their size.

 

[johnsreef]

wow they just laid a bazillian eggs just now while i was typing they are on the glass will they raise ok with out patental supervision? hate to attempt scraping then off just to try, but that tang is too agressive for the clowns

 

[Jimbo7]

haha no way! So you have 8-9 days now, assuming they don't eat them all again. To figure out what you want to do. Some people actually like to let them lay a couple hatches to get in the rhythm of things before trying to put a tile down or trying to take away the fry. Leave the eggs where they are for now, you will have to have a couple late nights next weekend waiting for them to hatch and collecting the fry.

I would start looking at a larvae catcher, or a DIY option (there are lots) to suit your needs.

Get some pics!
Super jealous, good luck!

EDIT: if you are interested in raising this batch, you are going to want to find some rotifiers ASAP, and you might want to look into fry/grow out foods like Otohime. They sell a starter kit that is enough to bring them all the way to adults.
http://www.reed-store.com/shop.cfm/Otohime-Larval-Feeds/Otohime-Larval-Feeds/OTO-START/

 

[johnsreef]

thanks for all this great feed back i will get them siphoned out when they hatch the clowns are fighting hard, will try and build a mouse trap for the tang and put him in the fuge tonight , he will like the buffet in there better!!!

 

[Jimbo7]

Careful about siphoning them, when they are that young you can do some damage. There are some simple designs made out of PVC or acrylic that trap them. They are attracted to light so the designs draw them in and then they can't get out.

I would see if you can trade the tang for something else you are going to need soon. He will have plenty of space in the fuge but no room to swim and grow. You can add another tang when you are done stocking your tank and it will be less aggressive.

 

[mdaniel2882]

my mated pair of O. clowns lays eggs about every 2 or 3 weeks. they defend that area of the tank incredibly when she lays. I don't know what to do after that. one day....eggs everywhere.....next day nothing. I actually have eggs now....but they will be gone tomorrow or the next day. i have never seen 1 fry.

 

[Jimbo7]

Daniel get a piece of ceramic tile and set it around where they have been laying, bottom side up. For some reason they really like tiles, and will hopefully put their eggs on it. You can then let the parents take care of the tile for a week or so until the eggs develop some more, then move it to a separate, and safer tank for hatching, and growing.

 

[ccCapt]

I have a mated pair of Clarkii's who have been laying eggs every 2-3 weeks for about 5 yrs now. The male guards the eggs for about a week or so and they hatch at night. The eggs start out orange and turn silver as the fry mature. After seeing alot of batches, it's pretty easy to tell when they are going to hatch. When they do hatch, the fish in my tank get a good nutritious meal.

Raising clownfish fry is A TON of work. I suggest you do alot of research and see how involved it is. Then try find a place that will buy them from you. Fancy, high dollar fish and/or hybrids would be alot easier to sell than any commonly seen clown.
You can get some good basic info here.
Breed Clownfish | Saltwater Fish Breeding

 

[Jimbo7]

I have a mated pair of Clarkii's who have been laying eggs every 2-3 weeks for about 5 yrs now. The male guards the eggs for about a week or so and they hatch at night. The eggs start out orange and turn silver as the fry mature. After seeing alot of batches, it's pretty easy to tell when they are going to hatch. When they do hatch, the fish in my tank get a good nutritious meal.

Raising clownfish fry is A TON of work. I suggest you do alot of research and see how involved it is. Then try find a place that will buy them from you. Fancy, high dollar fish and/or hybrids would be alot easier to sell than any commonly seen clown.
You can get some good basic info here.
Breed Clownfish | Saltwater Fish Breeding

Have you ever tried to raise the eggs? I have never actually done it, but it seems with the correct setup and preparedness, clowns are pretty easy. They only need rots for the first week or so, an amount you can buy without really having to worry about setting up a culture. Ofter that I have seen really good feedback and results from the otohime program, which is simple pellet feed.

Obviously feeding the fry several times a day and making sure you siphon the container afterward is a fair amount of work, but nothing really extensive or time consuming.

Not trying to argue with what you are saying, just looking for some feedback if you have tried, I'm just going off everything that I have read.

 

[ccCapt]

No, I've never attempted to raise them. I know 3 people in my reef club who either have raised them or still do. It is A TON of work.

You may have seen these on Live Aquaria Divers Den. Sanjay describes a little of what's involved here.
Manhattan Reefs - The Odd Couple (A. percula "Onyx" X A. ocellaris "Darwin")

Our reef club also sponsors a bunch of saltwater tanks in a local high school. They have a breeding pair. You can check that out here.
Our Fish

Another member breeds clowns and sells them at our local frag swaps. Common percs or false percs can be hard to sell since they are available anywhere.

 

[Jimbo7]

Dude I would have killed to go to that high school. The first link is blocked at work, I'll have to check it out when I get home.

 

[pat8you]

Agreed. That is a lot of really nice looking tanks. Do they keep them as part of a biology class or is it like an after school club or something?

 

[ccCapt]

The tanks in the high school are mainly looked after by the chemistry teacher and his wife. They do have the kids involved with the tanks, but I'm not sure if it's a school club thing or how they pick the kids who are involved.