breeding

[jish]

ok, so my mom and i a setting up a 30 gallon community tank and would like to breed something, we looked at clownfish, but they get aggressive during breeding. we considered breeding green mandarins,they are about as hard a clownfish. does anyone have any ideas on what could breed in a community tank without killing all the other fish? thanks in advance!

 

[mainereefer]

if you are trying to breed something you will want a system just for the fish breeding so the fry can get food without being eaten
30g clowns or a cardinals

 

[jish]

we were planning to move the fry to another tank for growth.

 

[jish]

but that makes sense. you don't want the other fish to eat the fry or eggs.

 

[Amphibious]

I'm proud of you and your mom doing this together. Working on a project with a parent builds and strengthens bonds between child and parent. I like that. So the first thing to do is to research the Internet on breeding salt water fish. Googling those words will bring up pages of links to scan through.

Planning on breeding any species of fish in a community tank is asking for failure. Oh true some will breed in a community tank BUT you are doomed to failure because it is impossible to catch the fry and transfer them to another tank. Besides, baby fish make excellent food for the rest of the “community” and they will disappear faster than you can say, “Mom, look, we have babies.” So choose one or the other, breeding a species of fish, or setting up a community tank.

My guess is that you have little experience in setting up and keeping a SW tank. What size tank do you currently maintain? How long has it been set up?

We are happy to help you and Mom but we also want you to be realistic about this adventure.

Dick

 

[jish]

it is a week old and still cycling. i have been keeping freshwater tanks for 2 years, and my mom has had a 165 gallon saltwater predator tank. she has also kept a blue ribbon eel for a long time until someone accidentally killed it. now i need to ask a question. do clownfish really need to be in pairs? I ask this because my mom went to the lfs and asked the guy about them, he said that they do way better in pairs. When my mom told me this i was a little surprised because if the pair happens to breed than wont they become aggressive to everyone else if we have a community?

 

[Paul B]

The easiest saltwater fish to breed are Bangai Cardinals. The fry are born live and are big. Seahorses are also easy but time consuming to feed.

 

[jish]

if we bred cardinals could we keep some fish like a neon goby or firefish, or would those eat the fry?

 

[jish]

also, what would you feed the fry? i just read an article and he is not very clear about what he feeds them.

 

[Paul B]

I have raised them on new born brine shrimp which I hatch every day anyway for my pipefish. Bangai cardinals are born large enough to eat new born shrimp. I raised the shrimp along with the fish because as they grow the fry need larger food.
And yes, just about any other fish in the tank will eat the babies. Maybe not the neon gobies, but the firefish probably would.

 

[jish]

ok, thank you all for your advise!

 

[Amphibious]

it is a week old and still cycling. i have been keeping freshwater tanks for 2 years, and my mom has had a 165 gallon saltwater predator tank. she has also kept a blue ribbon eel for a long time until someone accidentally killed it. now i need to ask a question. do clownfish really need to be in pairs? I ask this because my mom went to the lfs and asked the guy about them, he said that they do way better in pairs. When my mom told me this i was a little surprised because if the pair happens to breed than wont they become aggressive to everyone else if we have a community?

If it’s a week old it will be awhile before it has cycled through Ammonia, and Nitrite to zero. So, wait on adding anything as the Ammonia and Nitrite are very toxic and very likely will kill any fish you put in there.

As far as clowns are concerned. Some (percula and ocellaris) can be kept singly without trouble. Others are questionable and some definitely get aggressive whether in pairs or singles. Important info for you and your Mom... Not all LFS employees can be relied on for accurate information. Buyer be ware!!!

Paul B is correct that Banggai Cardinals are easy to breed. They are mouth brooders in that the male carries the eggs in his mouth for about 30 days without eating. When the eggs hatch, about day 7, he carries the fry until they are approximately 1/4†long, at which time they are too big to maintain in his mouth and they are looking to explore their new world. He releases them. At that point he may eat them because he is starving from not taken a bite to eat in thirty days.

He must be removed or alternatively the fry must be removed and placed into a separate tank of their own. They are relatively easy to care for IF you have thought ahead and have baby brine shrimp hatched and ready to feed them.

There is lots more to breeding fish and raising the fry than we can't go into it all here. Google has tons of information on the subject. However, continue to ask questions here and remember the three most important words in keeping SW aquariums are, research, research and research some more.

This is an exciting hobby but success comes with a price as does failure. Research!!!

Dick