Banggai Cardinalfish just laid eggs

[SENOREIDA]

Hello,

So our fish that came with the tank, and came with the name Clyde, is not a Clyde. Today he decided, to reveal he is not a he, and instead a she. She laid about 30 eggs in the tank. There is no other Cardinalfish in the tank. We have 2 Clownfish, and a Green Chromis in the tank. No crabs, but we have 2 Urchins, a Starfish, a Conch, and 6 Snails. Is there a chance the eggs will survive, or do they need to be fertilized by a male? I am very surprised by this, and obviously not too sure how fish anatomy works.

 

[reef lover]

What type of cardinal?? Most are mouth brooders....

 

[SENOREIDA]

What type of cardinal?? Most are mouth brooders....

Banggai Cardinalfish

Has to be atlas 5 years old, we have had her for 5 months now, and to my knowledge there has never been a man in her life

 

[reef lover]

Not from her then....they mouth brood...could be the clowns...

 

[reef lover]

Hmmm i wonder if theyll still lay without a male present...like chameleons... #reefsquad

 

[Crabs McJones]

Good question, can you get a picture of the eggs? I'm thinking they might actually belong to the clowns

 

[Lasse]

I have not seen a spawn of Banggai cardinalfish but many fresh water species (especially those there the male - as for banggai cardinal has the egg/fry in the mouth) first place the eggs on a substrate and after fertilization they will be picked up. @Stigigemla if you is lurking as usual - help us out - you have a lot of experiences with this

Sincerely Lasse

 

[SENOREIDA]

Good question, can you get a picture of the eggs? I'm thinking they might actually belong to the clowns

There were some eggs till hanging off of the Banggai, so I find it highly doubtful it was the Clowns. They were our first guess, until we saw the eggs still in the Banggai.

 

[reef lover]

Well that answers that. She laid without fertilization. Interesting...wonder if shell do it periodically???

 

[Maritimer]

I'd not be surprised if she did. Creatures put any excess nutrient (beyond what they need to survive) into creating the next generation - and in our tanks, they tend to be pretty well nourished.

~Bruce

 

[pdisner]

I have not seen a spawn of Banggai cardinalfish but many fresh water species (especially those there the male - as for banggai cardinal has the egg/fry in the mouth) first place the eggs on a substrate and after fertilization they will be picked up. @Stigigemla if you is lurking as usual - help us out - you have a lot of experiences with this

Sincerely Lasse

They actually don’t have time to get to the substrate. The fertilization and cheering the eggs happen in a split second. Not enough is known to know exactly how it works. There are a couple good articles, studies actually, from university of Hawaii. I have a 32page pdf if interest send me a pm.
The female may have been with a male in the previous tank or could have just been an anomalous, it happens. But you DEFINATELY need the male to get the rest of the job done. Too bad u don’t have a mate for her. They’re an easier fish to breed and a lot of fun. Give it a try.

 

[pdisner]

So what happened with the eggs?