[EllisColes]

ive basically just started but my dad knows alot about it so i think im in the good with it, but i really wanna breed clownfish and i had a question about the set up, is a 24 gallon eclipse nano aquarium big enough to breed them in?

[MKM]

This should be a stand alone tank. (No predators). To be sucessfull, the eggs should be alone before they hatch. Any other fish, crabs or even an anenome might eat them.
This has been from my short experience.
I am on day three of the larvae hatching. I started with 42 larvae and now have 18 left.

[EllisColes]

thanx man and describe your set up if you will?

[MKM]

11 of the 42 larvae remain. They currently live in a 30 gallon tank isolated from any predators (including the parent and the anenome) I only have one live rock with some macro algae floating in the tank. You must have very little current. Daily water changes of 10%.
The larvae will only eat rotifers (a live micro organism) that are fortified (fed) phytoplankton. The rotifers must eat every four hours. I purchased the rotifers and the phyoplankton online from a company called reef nutrition. Go to one of the many links when you search clownfish breeding. Below is a very short article on one. Breeding Clownfish - A Short Description, by William Berg

More later.

[MKM]

I am down to 10 larvae now. Day 8 from hatching. In two days they will metamorphisis into a fish. After that day, the losses should be over.
About the tank:
A 30 gallon with a small corner filter (loaded with filter floss only) that is run by an air pump. The fish don't seem to stress as much with little to no current. My losses decreased as my waterflow decreased. They have a hard time eating in high water flow. They must first witness the food moving before they eat it. I am doing daily water changes of 10% due to the water quality degrading from the food and slow water flow.
About the food:
I have ordered live food (rotifers) from a company called reefnutrition.com . There are other sites that you can search for (rotifers). This is the only thing that they will eat when they are this young. You must first feed the rotifers some phytoplankton (about 10 minuted before you feed the larvae). In turn the larvae eat the nutrified rotifers to get the nutrition. The rotifers do not have any nutrional value. Eventually, I will switch them to brine shrimp that is fortified with phytoplankton.
I am raising (culturing) these rotifers to keep up with the feeding demands.
It's alot of work because you have to feed them at least 4 times a day.
More later.
Here is a pretty good article for you.
References - Breeding Clownfish

[MKM]

I am down to 8 clownfish. I can call them that now. They have changed dramatically(metamorphisi s pretty much overnight on day 11). They are now orange and have a single white stripe near the head. Still to small to eat enriched brine shrimp. They have gotten much bigger in comparison to day 8 (about the thickness of number 2 pencil lead and 1/4" long). I am now running a Backpak bio-filter 24-7. They can keep up with the current and feed in the stream quite well.

[MKM]

Day 14 of the hatch finds the fish with a second stripe. All 8 still survive.

[blind1993]

nice but how did u get the clowns to reproduce

[MKM]

Day 16 of hatch. All 8 still survive and doing well. The second stripe is visible on all.

Effort to date:

Cultured food price $100. ( I ordered next day air. Should have been more prepared).
5 gallon water changes at a time. 10 (PH kept rising due to the phytoplex nutrient supplement for the rotifer cultures).
Hours of online and book study- 30 (My wife thinks I lost my mind around day 6).
Actually breeding captive saltwater fish- priceless.









i

[MKM]

They just breed every two months. The female has mated up with the biggest of three males since 2003. I didn't do anything special except provide a rose anenome. No candles or music.

[CyberJester]

Originally Posted by MKM

They just breed every two months. The female has mated up with the biggest of three males since 2003. I didn't do anything special except provide a rose anenome. No candles or music.

Yeah, but I am sure they would have appreciated it if you did, maybe a bottle of veno and little soft Frank Sinatra in the background!

[TreeHugger74]

That is awesome MKM...good luck with it!!!!

[e_baer]

that really is pretty cool. Do you sell them? you can start a business!

[blind1993]

can we see some pics

[JNeslen]

Hi EllisColes,
Unless you have a very large clownfish pair, 24 gallons should be fine.
I partitioned off smaller portions of a tank and had a pair of Percula clowns
lay eggs in a flowerpot.
A gentleman near Chicago (whose name escapes me now, sorry) has used
10 gallon tanks and says they are fine for a single pair.
The way I did it was to isolate the pair and put two flowerpots in with them, which
I swaped for clean ones every few weeks. The two will get comfortable, and feel safe in
the pots. I have had Ocellaris, Percula and Maroons spawn this way, and have heard of
other types, such as Tomatoes and Clarkiis spawn with this setup too.
Best,
Jeff

[blind1993]

plz we want pics we want pics we want pics!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!! lol

[e_baer]

amen to that blind!

[blind1993]

lol that is funny.

[blind1993]

well when i was in dallas they were selling tank raised true percs at their baby size for just 8 bucks to bad the drive was 12 hours and i wasnet able to bring them.

[MKM]

I have taken lots of pictures but I am having a problem posting them. Is there an easy way to get them to fit within the file size parameters? Ryan?

[Dustin1300]

I just hope my pair will mate soon...If I find out they are I'll most likely setup there seperate little room with some privacy.......

[blind1993]

if u are going to set up a dif tank for them after they pair up. i would start right now and do it slowly.

[Dustin1300]

I just figure if I ever see eggs or fry in my tank then I can take the next step and take all the hazards around away because I'm sure if it happens once, its going to happen many more times!

[Ganrin]

Clownfishes, by Joyce Wilkerson is one of the most complete clownfish breeding texts available. It also has a great deal of information on general clownfish care and anenomes.
Clownfishes by Joyce Wilkerson

I havent dealt with that particular vendor but a quick google search for the book brought them up.

[Dustin1300]

Thanks for the recommendation, I'll have to pick the book up because I've already read 3 books and about 5 magazines in the past 5 weeks and am ready to read more...