Breeding Banggai Cardinals

[nascar02]

I'm looking at putting together a system to breed Banggai Cardinals. Just wondering if anyone has any tips before I get started.

 

[jrwoltman]

Small underwater speaker and some Barry White.

 

[ourcoralreef]

Lol
Just look into how to raise them after they hatch
Thats the hardest part

 

[matsrosenberg]

Get a diadem sea urchin. Thats where the small ones hide once spat out of daddys mouth.

 

[GeoffSLC]

I also wouldn't put too much live rock in there. You will want to pull the parents out once the babies are out, and they're much tougher to catch than they appear. If the adults are left with the free swimming kids, they may get eaten.

 

[chewy tabacca]

At the LFS they had a pair breed they had one make it without any help,the little guy just hides in a long tentical plate, the rest got ate. Mine have been preggo about 10 times but never made it to term (if that's the best way to say it) they breed every month on the 20th, this month was the 18th. Once dad spits them out they will find anything that moves to protect them. Mine hang around my torch, so when they get spit out I am guessing they are going to flee for that, if dad stops eating them. It takes about 20-24 days to brood. If you want any other info feel free to reply and I will do the best I can as I am ready to keep them alive if they come out.

 

[Fishy_mcfish]

What would you feed the babies?

 

[chewy tabacca]

Baby brine can work, live pods are your best bet. Depends on how many survive and how much attention you want to give them. They should be separated into small groups, they will work on a survival of the fittest. If you want the small weaker ones to survive as well they will need to be able to eat without being bullied by the larger babies. I have seen them survive just eating stuff floating in the water column.

 

[Fishy_mcfish]

Do you think frozen rotifers would work?

 

[reef lover]

No they'll need freshly hatched baby brine shrimp soaked in selcon or some other enritchment and they're going to need a lot!! Once bigger u can can wean to frozen/ larger foods.

 

[chewy tabacca]

No they'll need freshly hatched baby brine shrimp soaked in selcon or some other enritchment and they're going to need a lot!! Once bigger u can can wean to frozen/ larger foods.

By a lot, means minimum 3 feedings a day

 

[python73]

What I really like about bangaii is that the babies are big! Comparatively that is. They are natural born hunters also. Which lets you go a different route than some other more complicated fish. Don't take this as disagreeing with the advice above. But I never had it in me to do that much work to raise proper food. And I couldn't hatch a brine shrimp to save my life. But I CAN design a good 'fuge and have it so full of bugs that you'd hesitate to put your hand in it. And that setup, assuming your babies can get to it without being filtered or chewed up by a pump, is every bit as good as targeted feeding.

That said, if I had any desire to actually consider myself a breeder or if I needed/wanted scale I'd be doing it the right way. Including separating the parents from the display, raising food, etc. Though tbh if you're going to put that effort in why not just design some breeding digs that are refugiums. Put the parent in there until he spits the babies and then he goes back to the display or his own setup. Then you'd have all the babies in a food rich environment with no danger. 20g or so with a sponge filter + airstone type deal, bit of bottom rubble and a bunch of macro. Feed it just enough to grow pods while maintaining water quality. That'd be ideal and very easy to maintain. Babies eating all the bugs? Harvest some of your main system macro and swap it into the breeder tank. New food!

 

[cpschult]

A friend had these survive in his sump and display. Must have been enough micro fauna for them to survive. Seems like a safe spot is most important.

 

[chewy tabacca]

What I really like about bangaii is that the babies are big! Comparatively that is. They are natural born hunters also. Which lets you go a different route than some other more complicated fish. Don't take this as disagreeing with the advice above. But I never had it in me to do that much work to raise proper food. And I couldn't hatch a brine shrimp to save my life. But I CAN design a good 'fuge and have it so full of bugs that you'd hesitate to put your hand in it. And that setup, assuming your babies can get to it without being filtered or chewed up by a pump, is every bit as good as targeted feeding.

That said, if I had any desire to actually consider myself a breeder or if I needed/wanted scale I'd be doing it the right way. Including separating the parents from the display, raising food, etc. Though tbh if you're going to put that effort in why not just design some breeding digs that are refugiums. Put the parent in there until he spits the babies and then he goes back to the display or his own setup. Then you'd have all the babies in a food rich environment with no danger. 20g or so with a sponge filter + airstone type deal, bit of bottom rubble and a bunch of macro. Feed it just enough to grow pods while maintaining water quality. That'd be ideal and very easy to maintain. Babies eating all the bugs? Harvest some of your main system macro and swap it into the breeder tank. New food!

That's what I was saying in a round about way as well, the lfs babies that survived found their way to a long tentical plate and just survived by eating out of the water column, they didn't feed it or anything. With that being said the other 6 or so died. If you let them out in the DT if there is other fish with big enough mouths.... They may become dinner.