Hey anyone (Tal especially)
Please check this out:
Re: Feeding rotifers and clown fry
by admin on Mon Mar 23, 2009 8:49 pm
I would not try to feed them bioplankton. Really the best food is rotifer diet. It doesn't effect the ph of the water as much as some of the plankton you buy in the store. Rotifer diet is available from Reed-Mariculture. As far as caring for the fry check out the main site http://www.breedclownfish.com I would try to get the salinity close in the fry tank and the rotifer tank. When you first get the rotifers make sure to put them into water that has the same salinity as what is in the shipping bag. Then gradually over several hours raise the salinity to your fry tank level. You don't want to shock the rotifers and kill them. Room temperature is the most stable for rotifers, but if you want to produce high numbers of rotifers raising the temperature can help. You run the risk of crashing the system though when the temperature is high and so many are being produced. Be sure you have a backup batch. Check the main site for the rest of your questions.
So do you acclimate the rotifers prior to putting them INTO the fry tank also? Or do you just put them in? Would they crash/die off?
Sorry for the delay. Up until recently I have been using the Rotifer Diet from Reed mentioned above, and had pretty good luck with it. I am now using their new product "RotiGrow". I like it a lot so far.
When harvesting and feeding rotifers you don't want to expose them to a change in specific gravity of more than 0.005. Any more than that and they will die from osmotic shock. In other words, my rotifer cultures are kept ~1.015 and the larval tanks are ~1.020.
When harvesting rotifers be sure that you get the sieve wet, or partially submerged, during the process. If you don't the rotifers will stick to the sieve and get "air-logged" and float/die.
Re: how to avoid rotifers crash
by admin on Wed Feb 18, 2009 12:42 pm
Richard-I would remove the sediment at the bottom of the bucket. Siphon it out if you can. I always use fresh saltwater, and not the saltwater from my main tank. PH shouldn't be a problem. Most salt mixes have buffers in them so that when you make saltwater the ph should be close to ideal. Test your freshly made saltwater. I have a feeling the ph will be pretty close to what it should be. I use Instant Ocean and usually the ph is already where it needs to be. One thing you can experiment with is using a heater in your rotifer cultures. Warmer water will make the rotifers reproduce more quickly but you will have to be careful because as they are reproduce more quickly they also are eating more food=more waste=more detritus=possible crash. Monitor it closely and change your water as often as possible.
Is there a way to add a drop in filter, a sponge filter, or something of the like that will catch the waste..but not the rots? Is that advisable? How 'warm' is warm in order to get them to grow/ multiply faster?
I don't heat my rotifer cultures and I get more than I can ever use. They actually do better at room temp, within reason.
You might try a sponge filter like I use in my larval tanks but I don't think it would do the job and be worth while. It's just as easy to siphon out the detritus from the IA when it builds up.
Thanks- lol should have read here first...didn't think of 'wetting the sieve' - but it still was ok. I poured tank water back over the sieve upside down to make sure nothing was left on the screen.
I am now in the process of talking with several reefers from my forums re this....and wow...I gotta say that the hardest part of all of this so far is the actual "logging" of every little detail. I find that to be the most time consuming so far- (haha that's because nothing has hatched yet,lol)
I don't want to miss anything, so I am making mental notes of what I am doing, then writing it down. I just have not been able to get on here and update the journal properly.
I will be having another go at this (and many more I hope!) so I hope to have a better journal in the future. I think what I will do is keep an actual old fashioned hand journal, then update the websites.
Today is Day #6...and I am trying very hard to find an aphrodesiac recipe online to give to these rotifers! I just don't see a dense population- and I want to be sure to have PLENTY when the eggs hatch. The eggs have taken on a silver reflection- with the eyes reflecting the light whenever they are moved by the clowns/water. I also notice a line going up each one of them. I am trying to get a photo of today...my batteries died and don't you know that's the ONE thing I forgot to get while out today.
I have my phyto going. The rotifers are going. I have a 5 gallon tank set up with some rotifers and tinted the water a light lime green so as to get the tank ready for the babies... giving the rotifers plenty of time to multiply (thanks for the suggestion) And each time I go to check on my baby clowns I firmly tell them: "Tonight is NOT the night...do not come out tonight!" lol.
I just have a sinking feeling that they will be born 'prematurely' so to speak.. the days are counted to a T, because the eggs were there on Friday, not the day before.. so .... I am not sure now of the hatch night. I will be up tonight, tomorrow, and each night til they hatch.
(an hour after the lights go off, correct?) So I will turn off the lights... and keep checking.
(Tal.... should I turn OFF the biocube altogether...or just the lights?)
Rotifers: If you see what looks like dust floating on the water surface, they have become "air-logged" and will be of no use. You'll know what I mean as soon as you see it.
Lighting Rotifer Cultures: Don't bother. I keep my 5G buckets loosely covered; they don't need light like phyot.
Checking on Eggs: If you're checking them with a flashlight you can stunt them and cause them not to hatch.
Bio-Cube Issues: If you are worried about flow issues during the hatch time, I'd suggest turning off the pump but adding an airstone to keep the water oxygenated while waiting for the hatch.
Friendly Hint: Use paragraphs... makes a post easier to read.
Friendly Hint: Use paragraphs... makes a post easier to read.
Sorry. Absolutely correct. Was in a rush to post last night, and wanted to get everything in - it does look all jumbled together. Thanks for pointing that out.
But I will be up again tonight....tomorrow.....whenever they decide to pop into this world! lol
I am going through my supplies, checking what I will pick up on Sunday (reef club meeting), our club meetings (and 3 of the LFS) are about an hour away... so I try to plan a shopping spree at the LFS the same time as the club meetings. (there are NO saltwater stores near us)
I would like to know about oyster feast- I use it for both my tanks.... but what about the fry?
Question: Has anyone used Oyster Feast? Might I be able to add this to the fry tank, along with the rotifers/phyto? Does it seem like a bad idea to those who have raised clownfish? I don't really want to experiment on my initial hatch.....but I would think the oyster eggs and ovarian tissue would be beneficial to the babies..high in protein/omega-3..or am I on the wrong track?