My clowns spawned! (pics)

[LilBugger225]

Yay, my clowns finally had their first spawn. Unfortunatley the male ate all the eggs shortly after the spawn. Luckily the digital camera was handy at the time. I read in wilkerson's clownfishes book that sometimes they will eat the eggs because of a nutrition deficiency. Could this be it or could it be because it is their first spawn? I was so excited because I haven't experienced this before. Anyways, here is a link to a page with pics of the spawning..

http://www.geocities.com/lilbugger225/spawn.html

Also, as you can see the number of eggs did not amount to as much as I have seen in pictures, could this also be because it was their first spawn? Should I increase variety in their diet? I feed a number of varieties of frozen prepared foods as well as vibragro and fresh shrimp and scallops but maybe not the fresh stuff as often as I should. Any advice is appreciated!

Erica

 

[jonjones]

Can I ask what the Anenome species and the clown species are??

 

[LilBugger225]

I belive it is either Heteractis Malu or Heteractis Aurora. I bought it as a flat purple anemone about 2 years ago. It is comparable to some pictures in The Reef Aquarium V2 on page 396. The clowns are false percs or A. Ocellaris. I have had the female for 2 years and the male for about 1 1/2 years.

 

[monkeyboy]

Very cool! How did you sex them? I can't tell a male from a female.

 

[Circa]

Usually the male is smaller than the female that is how most people sex clowns.

 

[LilBugger225]

I had made a good guess before after reading about how the female tends to be larger and more dominant over the male. Also sometimes the female's colors will darken or be darker than the males over time. Now I obviously know for sure which fish is male or female after the spawning and my guess was correct. Unfortunatley I had named the first fish Mr. Crankypants and this fish ended up becoming the female. Go figure

 

[olinf]

Good job on the spawning Erica! I wouldn't worry much about the parents eating the eggs. This is pretty normal for inexperienced pairs. If it keeps going after the third or fourth spawn then it might be nutritional. My new pairs will often eat their first couple of nests. It can be due to an overzealous male. Also, sometimes on a first spawn, the male fails to fertilize the eggs, their aim is off a bit at first. If the eggs are unfertilized, the male will eat them during normal nest tending. All in all, don't worry. Your clownfish look healthy and robust, and usually spawning is an indication that they are in optimal condition.
Good luck, Olin

 

[GarSrtn]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by LilBugger225:
<strong>I had made a good guess before after reading about how the female tends to be larger and more dominant over the male. Also sometimes the female's colors will darken or be darker than the males over time. Now I obviously know for sure which fish is male or female after the spawning and my guess was correct. Unfortunatley I had named the first fish Mr. Crankypants and this fish ended up becoming the female. Go figure </strong><hr></blockquote>

Mebbe it's that I've been married 12 years (just over the hump), but this strikes me as being particularly funny.

 

[Anonymous]

They are definately part of the Heteractis family. Closer inspection would reveal which one.

 

[LilBugger225]

Thanks for the reply! I can't wait to see what happens with the next spawn. Chances are if the eggs do in fact hatch they do not have a good chance of surviving in the tank since it is not a breeding tank. Is there anything that can be done to increase chances of survival without having to remove the eggs?

Erica

 

[delphinus]

I agree with Dan. It's either H. malu or H. crispa. It's definitely not H. aurora though. H aurora has very pronounced beading along the tentacles, it's very hard to mistake.

 

[LilBugger225]

Thanks for the replies!

Olin: I would love to see the info that you have about collecting the larvae. Go ahead and send me an email about it if you can.
delphinus: In that picture it doesn't show the tentacles toward the mouth as well, they have slight beading but not as pronounced as H. Aurora. Maybe a hybrid?

Erica

 

[olinf]

Erica,
There are few things that can be done to help a larvae survive in a reef tank. Usually, if they aren't sucked into a filter, they will be consumed by other animals when they settle at night. If you have a masochistic streak, they can be siphoned off into a ten gallon tank and raised in there. Typically, it costs about $40-80 to set up a little clownfish rearing project if you are a little creative with kitchen items. I just set up a tabletop version of the rearing system I use at home, for my students at school. If you want to give larval rearing a shot (and don't mind pulling out all of your hair) I would be happy to send you info on what has worked for me.
Olin