You guys are probably tired of seeing these by now, but I can't help myself. I just think these guys are cool. I took a couple of pictures of the newest crew and some video of the feeding on NHBS.

video link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njcypkL_kJE



And a couple of pics!

I will never get tired of seeing this!! How exciting.

Thanks for keeping us posted, Pappa!!

I love the urchin! haha, less bioload that way I guess, and safer for your hands too.

Very cool!

How big are they, inch wise?

Love the urchin idea :) too cool!!

Thanks! The little buggers seem to like their fake urchin! Size wise they are about 1/4" - 1/2", you can tell they are small since those are regular toothpicks making up the urchin!

Bob

hey ya know that if we get tired of them, we won't click the thread! who cares anyway what we think! But they are cool!

Bob

They look great. Congratulations on the success. Will you sell any of these?

Burton

Very cool Bob!

I thought those were bamboo scewers..I can't believe they're toothpicks!:eek:

That is awesome. Do you have a feeding video?

Smoothie, the video is linked up top in Bobz's first post. It's really cool.

Quick update... the first batch are doing fine so far! Yeasterday, the adult male delivered another batch of 15 or more. I'm hoping these do as well!
bob

Yay!! Congrats Bob...thats great news!! :)

The pic and the youtube video is awesome! Those little buggers are cute! I hope the second batch is successful as well.

The pic and the youtube video is awesome! Those little buggers are cute! I hope the second batch is successful as well.

Thanks! So far they are doing well. Hope things continue to go well.
BZ

These guys are freaking adorable.

These guys are freaking adorable.

I think so! I'll post up some more pics. They are twice the size now in just one week. Cool.
Z

Hi Bob,
No need to tell you how adorable the little guys are, you know that already. What do you use for the base of the urchin? If it's epoxy, how do you prevent the skimmer from foaming like crazy? Are there any other options? Maybe I'll get to breed some Banggais some day.
Thanks,
Dana

Hi Bob,
No need to tell you how adorable the little guys are, you know that already. What do you use for the base of the urchin? If it's epoxy, how do you prevent the skimmer from foaming like crazy? Are there any other options? Maybe I'll get to breed some Banggais some day.
Thanks,
Dana

Thanks! It is the epoxy we use for mounting corals. The tanks I use to keep the babies are standalone tanks with just a HOB filter. I use the ammonia alerts and change water frequently just like you would on a QT. So no problems so far.

Bob

I'm thinking you should change your screen name to Bangaii_Bob.

Keep up the great work and thanks for the update!

I took some new pictures of the BC babies tonight. These are now one week old and seem to be doing very well. The first picture is from a week ago and you can see how much they have changed/developed in just one week.
Here is a picture from tonight, you can see how much more developed they have become in just one week.

http://www.georgia-birding.com/BC-Reef-12-29-08-015.jpg

http://www.georgia-birding.com/BC-Reef-12-29-08-009.jpg

and a shot of one up close:

http://www.georgia-birding.com/BC-Reef-12-29-08-021.jpg


Compare this again to the two day old babies from the batch #2 that were born on 12/27.

http://www.georgia-birding.com/BC-Reef-12-29-08-027.jpg

and a few of it's tank mates: Tank one has 10 babies and tank two has 7;

http://www.georgia-birding.com/BC-Reef-12-29-08-030.jpg


http://www.georgia-birding.com/BC-Reef-12-29-08-022.jpg

The first picture is from a week ago and you can see how much they have changed/developed in just one week.

oops! I forgot to attach the original pic, but if you look at the beginning of this thread you can see them a week ago!
BZ

cool BOB I hope I am still in line!! you are a great DADDY!!

cool BOB I hope I am still in line!! you are a great DADDY!!

no doubt. I'm sure his list is quite long. Good luck again, and I hope these little guys make it.

Bob,
I would like a male and female, whenever they are old enough to be sold and can be told apart. Please let me know. I'll tell my husband to keep his rock music down... lol
Thanks,
Dana

ha! I'll keep you posted!
Bob

The fake Long Spine Urchin is hilarious. Great idea!!

Bob, at what point in the lifespan do the cardinals start pairing off? Is there a danger of them killing each other off to compete for mates?

I seem to remember reading that to get a pair of mated cardinals, you should buy several and you'll eventually end up with two. Doesn't that mean some others have to die?

:'-(

I'm thinking you should change your screen name to Bangaii_Bob.

+1. You should seriously think about that Bob. I love it!

+1. You should seriously think about that Bob. I love it!


+2

The video is great

Thanks guys! I'm still learning as I go through this too!

Linda - not sure but I know at 4 months "survivor" was already breeding so I am guessing that sometime between 8 and 12 weeks maybe. I like the fact that I have two different brood stock pairs with some different parents so I can keep the gene pool mixed up a bit. I'll be combining the three tanks with the current batch in a couple of weeks in to a larger grow out tank (29G) and it will be interesting to see how these three groups interact. Survivors babies are a week older than the adult pair spawn, and they are noticeably larger. I am hoping the younger ones put on a growth spurt soon.

Bob

I seem to remember reading that to get a pair of mated cardinals, you should buy several and you'll eventually end up with two. Doesn't that mean some others have to die?

:'-(

You are right but I think it depends on the size of the tank. In a small tank, under 70G, I would not leave an unmated single in the tank because I think the likliehood is that the other pair will harass it and keep it from eating until it starves. There are always exceptions to every rule of course and some people here may have multiples together with out too much problems. When I formed my first pair, the third one in the tank was removed once I knew that the two had paired up. It's pretty obvious when that happens based on behavior. I'll let you know how these 24 behave in the grow out tank. I think they will school together and only split off in to pairs when they are ready to mate. Time will tell though!
Bob

Holy crap those are the cutest babies I have EVER SEEN. AW. The video is completely adorable.

Holy crap those are the cutest babies I have EVER SEEN. AW. The video is completely adorable.

Ha! Thanks! They are getting much bigger..I'll try and get some more vid and pics later today....
Z

more pics!

more pics!

ok! I took this video this morning of the 14 day old Bangaii Cardinals feeding on enriched NHBS. They are very active now and starting to mix in some finely chopped frozen mysis and cyclopeze in to their diet.

here is the link;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fxr77nQceo

pictures to come later!

BZ

ok, cool! granddaughter loved it, too!

fish porn!!

Bob, that's really awesome! Thanks for sharing this experience with all of us! I really love the look of this fish!

Thats is so cool Bob!! They are looking great :)

Thanks gang! It's fun. I'll be moving the 21 day old juveniles in to the tank with the 15 day old later today.