I haven't been able to spend much time looking at the tanks this weekend since we were busy getting the house ready for the holidays. This morning when I was sitting at my desk, I noticed the my male Threadfin Cardinal (Apogon leptacanthus) was holding eggs! I have a trio in my 70G Goby tank along with the baby Bangaii Cardinals. Acually right now, I have three species of cardinalfish carry eggs at the same time. Pretty cool! Both pairs of Bangaii (the adults and the young pair), the Pajama Cardinalfish, and the Threadfin Cardinals, males are all holding eggs. How cool is that?

Here are a couple picures of the Threadfin Cardinals, these are sometime called Bluestreak or Longspine Cardinalfish as well.

http://www.georgia-birding.com/Reef-Gobytank-11-25-08-147-threadfin-cardinal.jpg


http://www.georgia-birding.com/Threadfib-cards-Reef-Gobytank-12-15-08-205.jpg

http://www.georgia-birding.com/Threadfin-Cards-Reef-Gobytank-12-15-08-141.jpg


http://www.georgia-birding.com/Threadfin-Cards-Reef-Gobytank-12-15-08-105.jpg


http://www.georgia-birding.com/Threadfin-Cards-Reef-Gobytank-12-15-08-070.jpg

That is very cool.....are you going to try and raise them??

GOD BOB! you are a spawnig beast! first your bengais go wild now your threadfin....your tank doesnt happen to be in your bedroom does it?

That is very cool.....are you going to try and raise them??

Not this time. I've got to get set up again after the Holidays, just too much going on this time of the year. I will try to get the Bangaii fry if either pair hold them long enough. The Threadfin hold for about eight days and then the larvae can be fed enriched rotifers. I won't be around enough to take on the challenge of keeping them fed. Still pretty cool though!
BZ

congrats!

.your tank doesnt happen to be in your bedroom does it?

LOL

What the heck are you running up there in Ball Ground...some sicko aquatic brothel or something!!!! Congrats grandpaw!

Bob you are an awesome person and you never cease to amaze me! Congrats and keep up the good work man!

congrats bob.. maybe i can join in the fun of cardinal babies i just got a pair of pajama's

Wow guys! Thanks! This is a fun hobby and you never know what you going to get to happen given the right conditions. Of course, it cound be all the Youtube videos I've been watching that are causing these fish to hook up too! The tank is right behind me and they are probably looking over my shoulder.

You dirty ole man! :) j/k on the old part...

Gratz man, threadfins are so gorgeous that blue is just electric looking. I hope you can raise some to maturity!

You dirty ole man! :) j/k on the old part...

Gratz man, threadfins are so gorgeous that blue is just electric looking. I hope you can raise some to maturity!


So I'm just dirty? Ha! :D These are really pretty fish and I love the iridescent colors. I'm hoping that they spawn fairly regularly and I have a chance to raise some next year.
BZ

The male threadfin is still holding the eggs, as is the young Bangaii male. If both pairs go the distance, 8 days for the threadfin and 21 days for the Bangaii, they could both release the hatched larvae on Monday. Pretty cool!
BZ

so bob how do you know the male from the female? are they like clowns will the big one become the female?

No, both of these species are gonochorists, the sex is determined as soon as they are hatched from the egg. It was dumb luck on my part that the two juveniles Bangaii I raised happend to be a male and female. Once they are older, there are differences between the male and female but it's not always easy/possible to tell them apart when they are young. In the case of the Threadfin, I added two smaller ones to the tank that I had the larger female in, and hoped one or both would be male. The female almost immediately paired up with one of the new fish and began courting. It mostly consisted of swimming side by side, fin flicking, and chasing off the other fish. I never saw them spawn but this past monday the male was carrying the eggs mass in his mouth. I am constantly amazed at how this fish can adapt to living in our reef tanks.
Bob

hummmmm??? do you know if firefish are like them or clowns? do you have a link so i can read about the cardinal's?

oh so many jokes in this thread.
if you raise some of these in the future i call dibs!

hummmmm??? do you know if firefish are like them or clowns? do you have a link so i can read about the cardinal's?

The best reference is Matt Wittenrich's book:

http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Illustrated-Breeders-Marine-Aquarium/dp/1890087718/ref=sr_1_3/187-3426004-8165862?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229566159&sr=1-3

But you can also check the MOFIB site and there should be information on firefish.

Thanks!
Bob

I see the tail spot blenny is liking his new home. What size tank did you move him into.

I see the tail spot blenny is liking his new home. What size tank did you move him into.

Actually, I am hoping that is his future bride! Yours is in my QT tank (don't take it personal, I QT everything.) I'll try introducing them in a couple of days in the 70G and if I am lucky they can pair up too. If not, he may find his new home in the 210 even nicer!

Mofib????

Mofib????

marine ornament fish and invert breeders
http://www.marinebreeder.org/

oh ok thanks

Well? Did the threadfins spawn? If so, count me in. I've been wanting a little shoal for my tank but have heard how hard shipping is on them. Paying top dollar for captive bred threadfins!

awesome

Well? Did the threadfins spawn? If so, count me in. I've been wanting a little shoal for my tank but have heard how hard shipping is on them. Paying top dollar for captive bred threadfins!

This trio is spawning pretty regularly now but i'm not ready to start trying to raise them yet... so the hatchlings are recycled :D

I will let you know when I start and if I have any luck getting them past meta stage

BZ

Ah, sounds good... Definitely let me know!

The trio of Threadfin Cardinals continues to spawn every couple of weeks. The male is currently holding and should release either tonight or tomorrow. I picked up a larvae trap that I am going to try and use tonight to see if I can snag any larvae to try raising. Wish me luck!
BZ

Holy crap! Tonight, I set up a larvae trap on my 70G that has the Threadfin Cardinals. I cut off the main supply pump from the sump and set up the trap with a small light near the entrance hole to the trap. I honestly did not expect to find anything and when I checked it about two hours after lights out, nothing was in the trap. I figured that the male was not quite ready to realease so I turned the sump return pump back on and figured I would try again tomorrow night so I left the trap in the tank running. I just went down again to check on the tank and looked in the trap and I was shocked when I saw a dozen or so larvae in the trap! I figured with the overflow going they would all be goners. I took the trap out and transferred the dozen larvae in to a larval tank with some green water and rots. I doubt they will live very long but still very cool. One step closer! These larvae are tiny! I'll see how long I can keep them alive.

Bob

Good luck Bob. Can't wait to see this happen.

ah thats awesome. So is the trio one male 2 females or 2 males and 1 females?

Something in the water at Bobz's house! :)

ah thats awesome. So is the trio one male 2 females or 2 males and 1 females?

Good question! I think the trio is one female, one male, and one undecided :D
The three fish live together in harmony, but I have only seen two of them spawning, the female is much larger than the other two, and seems to pick the same male each time to hold the eggs. I think the third fish is also male, but during courtship and spawning it is usually chased away. They have not been too agreesive to the third fish so I have left it in the tank. In between spawns, they all hang together. I think if it were a second female, the larger one would probably try to drive it away.

BZ

Something in the water at Bobz's house! :)

Yep, little tiny babies! :D

I checked on the larvae this morning and there were about 10 - 12 in the larvae tank. BTW, I am trying the method that John described at the January meeting with the round glass goldfish bowl, green water and rotifers. These larvae are pretty darn small and I think my rotifers may be too large for them, but let's see what happens!
Here are some pictures, albeit not that great, of the larvae 1 DPH.

Z

Nice. What are we seeing there? Eye spots, a somewhat developed GI tract.

Although small (about 3mm), these have a fully developed eye, and digestive tract. According to Matt's book, this species takes between 28 to 30 days to metamorphosis. I'll be lucky to get them past two days!
BZ

Wow! I can't believe how tiny!
Simply amazing how something like that could EVER survive in the ocean.

Wow! I can't believe how tiny!
Simply amazing how something like that could EVER survive in the ocean.
I agree! of course, they have betted odds in the ocean than in my basement:D ! It's all about the adventure, not the result!
Z

Very Cool Bob!

WOW! That is truly mind bogging! We have a hard enough time trying to keep the adults alive and here you are trying to raise fry. Very cool pics. I neeed to take you to lunch so we could talk breeding. Its very interesting!

WOW! That is truly mind bogging! We have a hard enough time trying to keep the adults alive and here you are trying to raise fry. Very cool pics. I neeed to take you to lunch so we could talk breeding. Its very interesting!

LOL! Let's do that! You can come over and check out the setup anytime you want dude. Open invite!

BTW, I put the trap in to the 210 tonight because the clownfish eggs looked like they were ready to hatch. Checked around 11 and had 25-30 larva in the trap! Sweet. I moved them to a larval tank.

BZ

Cool. I will contact you when i get done remodeling the house.

Not sure if the larva are eating or not, but I still have about 15 alive 8 DPH. They are in greenwater with rotifers. Although tiny, they seem to be attacking the rotifers and consuming them when they come in contact.

Bob, I have a bottle of "Roti Feast" by Reef Nutrition. It is unopened and expires March 28, 2009. I don't really need it. Would it be useful in raiseing the babies?
Sheryle
PS: How is the crab doing?

Sure thanks! let me know how much you want for it. The crab is pretty happy in my refugium. Saw him the other night. Cool crab!
Z