My Maroon Clownfish have been laying eggs regularly since Christmas and with Bobz's help and encouragement I've decided to try to raise some. Sunday, 2/15, Bob came over and helped me set up rotifer cultures and showed me how to hatch brine shrimp. This past Saturday, he came back over and besides helping me do a major move of systems in the basement and some rewiring, he checked on my cultures with a microscope and I got to see them with egg sacs and full bellies. That was really cool! He also brought over his larval trap and showed me how to use it.

Monday, 2/15, the clownfish laid new eggs. I'm pretty sure this is the day, but they have been laying them in an area that is not visible. I have to go by the males behavoir.

Monday, 2/23, I could see some of the eggs now that they have elongated and I could see their eyes, but I thought it was still a day away before any would hatch. I was wrong! I woke up on Tuesday and all the eggs I could see were gone, but the male was still fanning some lower down.

I put the larva trap in the tank and had it all ready. After the lights went out, I turned the lights out in the room and waited. About an hour after the lights were out I saw a couple of larva in the trap so I turned the returns off. After another hour, I had about 12 larva in the trap, but sidn't see any more in the tank so I removed the trap and turned the returns back on.

I took a gallon of water from the tank to fill a 1G fish bowl and put the larva in. I then put the fish bowl in a 5G bucket about half full with a heater that had already been running to maintain the temperature in the bowl.

Following this thread. Sounds like a lot of fun, but a good bit of work too! Thanks for sharing.

- Brad

super exciting!!! good luck to you :)

Following this thread. Sounds like a lot of fun, but a good bit of work too! Thanks for sharing.

- Brad

super exciting!!! good luck to you :)

Thanks guys!

These guys are so tiny, I can't imagine how they survive in the ocean. This morning I can see that there are at least 5 still alive. I added rotifers and algae to the tank. With so few to start I'm not overly optimistic at this point but will do eveything I can to keep them going.

Awesome- tagging along- super excited for you!

Woohoo!! That is very cool dude!
Z

Thanks, Kim and Bob for the comments!

This morning I still have at least 5 or 6 alive. Since the water is green and they are so tiny it is hard to see them. I added a bunch more rotifers and at one point I turned off the air pump and I could see a couple of them moving kind of in a jerking motion like they are catching something so hopefully they are finding and eating the rotifers. I wish I could get a picture, but there is just no way at this point.

.........Enjoying this thread

Thanks, Dakota!


.........Enjoying this thread

Today I still have live larvae and they are now at one of the many critical periods when they have depleted their yolk sac and need to hunt their own food. I've added more rotifers and algae.

Fingers crossed with each new milestone achieved.

Good luck!!

Thanks Linda!

Ok, my Maroon Clownfish have just laid a new batch of eggs. I will try to catch these as well and do another set up for them. They should hatch next Saturday or Sunday, but I'll start putting the larva trap in the tank on Friday just in case.

wow, I commend your diligence. This seems to be exahusting work!

wow, I commend your diligence. This seems to be exahusting work!

ditto! These little beggars can wear u out!
Z

ditto! These little beggars can wear u out!
Z

Heck I'm surprised the clownfish aren't worn out :D

Great updates and good luck!

Thanks guys! It was pretty cool seeing the eggs already. I was away from the tank for just an hour and the female laid the eggs while I was gone, but I did get to watch the male fertilize them.

Heck I'm surprised the clownfish aren't worn out :D

Great updates and good luck!

I still have some live ones. The tank was almost clear this morning so I think that means I have a growing sustainable population of rotifers in the tank so I did not add any new ones. However I did add several drops of algae to color the water. I'll be gone most of the day and will probably add some rotifers tonight when I get home.

I still have at least three larva. It's possible there are a couple of more but the way I have it set up it is really hard to see into the tank. The water was pretty clear again this morning so I added more algae and more rotifers.

any pics bud....and congrats

Hey Victor, good to hear from you! Unfortunately they are in a 1 gallon goldfish bowl that is in a 5 gallon bucket so picture taking is not possible. Tomorrow I plan on taking the bowl out of the bucket so I can do a very small water change and if the rotifers eat all the algae so the bowl is relatively clear I'll try to get some pictures. Of course they are still only a couple of mm long so nothing really to focus on either.

any pics bud....and congrats

Thanks for taking the time to post your progress. I am keeping my fingers crossed all your babies make it. ARC is turning into a breeders den. :)

Sheryle

Thanks, Sheryle!


Thanks for taking the time to post your progress. I am keeping my fingers crossed all your babies make it. ARC is turning into a breeders den. :)

Sheryle

I took the 1G out of the bucket today and did a very small water change. I still have four larva. I added more rotifers and started a Brine Shrimp hatch that I will start offering them tomorrow. Here are two of the best pictures I was able to get of them.

Hey, I thought you said they were small? Those things look like monsters compared to my threadfin larva! Great job on getting them this far! Cool pics!
Z

Do you have any of those threadfin larvae left? They may be just the right size to feed to my clown larvae.

Hey, I thought you said they were small? Those things look like monsters compared to my threadfin larva! Great job on getting them this far! Cool pics!
Z

It looks like they made it through a small waterchange from yesterday. I started another Brine Shrimp hatchery this morning so I should be able to harvest from one in the afternoons and the other in the mornings provided they actually hatch within 24 hours. I'm hoping to be able to feed some bring this afternoon along with more rotifers.

I still have a couple hanging in there. Neither of my Brine Shrimp Hatches have hatched yet. Hopefully one will a little later today and I can feed the remaining larvae some. I put in more rotifers and algae.

cool! a few more days till meta!

I still have a couple hanging in there. Neither of my Brine Shrimp Hatches have hatched yet. Hopefully one will a little later today and I can feed the remaining larvae some. I put in more rotifers and algae.
Artemia like it warm. If the room is cold, place a 25 watt light bulb a couple of inches away from the hatchout container. Try to warm it to about 80 - 85 degrees. Hatchout will be in 12-24 hours, depending on the variety.

Also, artemia are attracted to light. Place in a shallow dish with a light source to one side. The remaining eggs settle everywhere while the artemia cluster (densely) near the light. That helps clean the junk out of the hatch.

Hope that this helps.
John

Thanks, John! I've got the temp up to 78 degrees and that seems to be working. Bob also mentioned the light trick and that also helped a lot.

Sorry to hear about your loss. I'm hoping to capture larva Friday night or Saturday depending on when they hatch. If you want some of the larvae, I'll split them with you.

Artemia like it warm. If the room is cold, place a 25 watt light bulb a couple of inches away from the hatchout container. Try to warm it to about 80 - 85 degrees. Hatchout will be in 12-24 hours, depending on the variety.

Also, artemia are attracted to light. Place in a shallow dish with a light source to one side. The remaining eggs settle everywhere while the artemia cluster (densely) near the light. That helps clean the junk out of the hatch.

Hope that this helps.
John

I could only see one larva today, but they are difficult to see the way I have it set up so hopefully there are still at least four. My brine hatches are started to work, so yesterday afternoon and this mornng I was able to add sone NHBS to their diet.

Maroon clowns rock! I'm sure your patience will pay off.

Thanks, Kevin. Probably not this time, but hopefully the next batch.

Maroon clowns rock! I'm sure your patience will pay off.

I definitely only have one larva left so the odds aren't with me right now. I should have a new hatch tonight or tomorrow night and hopfully this time I'll get more of them.

It's 11pm, Friday night and I'm sitting in the dark watching clownfish eggs hatch. I have a small light at the bottom of the trap and I can see them when they get close to it. I keep resisiting the urge to shine the light on the eggs so I can actually watch them hatch, but I've read that doing that could make them delay the hatch until the next day.

I haven't seen any new ones for the last hour so I am giving up for the night. I only cought about 12 so I know there are more eggs there. I'll try again Saturday night.

You do not have to be easy on them. Hatching on a reef, they naturally go to the surface of the ocean and that is not a gentle sea on a reef.
I siphon the fry into a gallon fish bowl using a soda straw attached to a length of air line. The handle the ride down the air line like it was a water slide. Never have a problem with mortality there.
Just a thought.

It's 11pm, Friday night and I'm sitting in the dark watching clownfish eggs hatch.

*Date Night* takes on a whole new meaning in this hobby, doesn't it? Good luck, Bud -- watching this thread with great interest!!


:thumbs:

Thanks guys! Looks like I blew it though. After getting about a dozen, none between 11pm and midnight, I gave up and moved what I had to the larval tank. I could see there were a lot more eggs and I figured they would hatch tonight. Wrong! They hatched sometime after I went to bed and they are all gone this morning. DOH! With only 12 to start my odds probably aren't very good to get them through the life cycle. The last batch I only got 12 as well and after 11 days only have 1 surviving and they hadn't even gotten to metamorphosis.

I'm taking the tank they are in down and moving the clowns to the 65G so that will probably stop their egg laying for a while.

Bummer dude! Hopefully a larger percentage of this batch will make it. Good luck!
Z

Thanks! Me too!


Bummer dude! Hopefully a larger percentage of this batch will make it. Good luck!
Z

First hatch-I still have just the one larva from the first hatch. Still feeding it rotifers and NHBS. Just three more days until it should go through metamorphosis which is another criticle period for them.

Second hatch-I set up a 10G for this hatch since I was sure I was going to have 25-50 but it wasn't meant to be. At least I'll be able to deal with water quality easier even though I only put 5 gallons in it. This will probably be my last hatch for a while. I've been wanting to shut down my 24G Aquapod and only kept it running since these guys were laying eggs. They and their GBTA are now in the 65G in my office and I've read that if they are moved they may quit laying for a while.

Too late. They say move with the nest. They are so focused on defending the nest that they do not notice the move.

May I know where you get your live rotifers locally ? My maroon clown just about to lay eggs. The Daddy is cleaning the rock all day long. Thanks.

I got mine from another member. I can pass some onto you if you are ready to maintain them.

That will be great. I will let you how it is goes. ThanKs.

John, I'm not sure what you meant here, but if you're talking about the rock they lay eggs on it is too late. It went into a different tank. They are doing well in their new tank, but the anenome isn't very happy yet. All day yesterday, they would not leave it and it was all shriveled up. They looked kind of pathetic trying to stay totally in it. Today they are exploring the rest of the tank and giving it a little bit of a rest.

Too late. They say move with the nest. They are so focused on defending the nest that they do not notice the move.

Today is day 13 for the lone larva which should be going through metamorphosis today, tomorrow or the next. I'm still feeding it rotifers with green water and NHBS. This morning I ground up some Formula One and Formula Two pellets and fed those as well. Unfortunately, I can't tell if it is finding any of it.

Day 3 for the new ones. I added a lot more rotifers to the tank last night and today. I can only see about 6 at any one time so I don't know how many I have. Today is the first critical period for them when their yolk sacs are depleted and they need to hunt and find their own food.

The lone larva may or may not have gone through metamorphosis yet. It's so tiny it is hard to tell. I'm continuing to feed rotifers, NHBS, and ground up pellets. I added algae this morning, but this may be the last time I do so. I also did a very small water change. Here is a picture of it this morning.

It looks like most of the new larva made it through the transition from their yolk sac to eating rotifers. I can see at least 8 of them still going.

Woohoo!!! Cool pic!
Z

You must have a great camera to get a picture of something so small. That is an amazing photo.
Sheryle

Thanks, Bob & Sheryle! Of course you don't see the other hundred I had to delete.

This is awesome! I want so badly to attempt raising my clowns' constantly laid eggs, but I don't have the time or patience that it looks like it takes. It does sound like fun though. Thanks for sharing your experience with the rest of us!

- Brad

Thanks, Brad, it has been fun. I've probably made more work out of it than what someone that knows what they are doing would have to do. I've been doing twice a day maintenance on the rotifer cultures and now the brine shrimp hatcheries. I've also started grinding up pellets for food as well.

This is awesome! I want so badly to attempt raising my clowns' constantly laid eggs, but I don't have the time or patience that it looks like it takes. It does sound like fun though. Thanks for sharing your experience with the rest of us!

- Brad

The lone larva may or may not have gone through metamorphosis yet. It's so tiny it is hard to tell. I'm continuing to feed rotifers, NHBS, and ground up pellets. I added algae this morning, but this may be the last time I do so. I also did a very small water change. Here is a picture of it this morning.

Such a marvel that these guys make it in the wild with everything they're up against.

Good work, Bud... thanks for the updates!!

I can't wait till mine start laying eggs and I can raise some myself.

Thanks, Linda!


Such a marvel that these guys make it in the wild with everything they're up against.

Good work, Bud... thanks for the updates!!

It is a lot of work, but worth it in the end if you can get them through the juvenile phase.


I can't wait till mine start laying eggs and I can raise some myself.

Hans has successfully made it through metamorphosis. I can't believe the difference in just two days. I moved it to a 2.5G tank with it's own heater but still with the airstone. I need to get a small filter. Here is what it looks like today, the small dots are rotifers.

The new batch are still doing alright. I'll start feeding them NHBS tomorrow.

that is freakin sweet! cool pic!

Come on Bud! New fathers show more pictures than that!

Keep'em coming... thats awesome!

Hans has successfully made it through metamorphosis. I can't believe the difference in just two days. I moved it to a 2.5G tank with it's own heater but still with the airstone. I need to get a small filter. Here is what it looks like today, the small dots are rotifers.

How terrific!

You might have to end up changing the name to *Hanna* though.

;-)

Thanks, Bob! I am in awe of the change this thing went through in just two days.


that is freakin sweet! cool pic!

Thanks, Chris. Hopefully, it will continue to survive so I can take more.


Come on Bud! New fathers show more pictures than that!

Keep'em coming... thats awesome!

Thanks, Linda! My wife named it so it'll always be Hans no matter what sex it ends up.

How terrific!

You might have to end up changing the name to *Hanna* though.

;-)

Awesome, Bud!!

Thanks, Kim!

Awesome, Bud!!

Hans survived the transition from the 1G to the 2.5G tank. I've been varying it's diet with NHBS and pulverized pellets.

I've started adding NHBS to the new batch. I think I may have lost a few but I can't really tell. This morning I could only confirm 6 that there are 6.

so cool

Thanks!


so cool

very very fun stuff man... my maroons laid eggs also in my nano... but i didnt have the time or any thing to do what your doing... dang... nice work... but i did give sal some of the eggs but don tknow what he did with em...

great stuff tho!

That's so cool, hopefully I will beable to raise some occelaris clowns somday!

Thanks, chefsung and Diana for following along.

The single clown, Hans, is still doing well and has completed its second stripe. I think it has grown a bit over the last couple of days, but it is difficult to tell. I've continued feeding pulverized pellets and NHBS but have stopped adding rotifers.

It looks like I've lost a few from the new batch and can only see six of them which I feel good about since starting with about the same number in both batches I only had the one get this far in the first batch. There are enough rotifers in this tank to sustain their own population and I've been trying to syphon some out each day. I'm worried that they could crash if the population gets too big. I've also been feeding them NHBS twice a day and have had a few of the brine grow out to be as big as the larvae.

I still have 6 larvae and they should be going through metamorphosis in the next couple of days.

Here's a picture of Hans. It looks like the third stripe is coming in, but neither the male or female parents have a complete third stipe so this may be all it gets.

"Hans" Solo is looking good! Looks like a real fish now! Very cute, can't wait to see him on the tour of hans (er, I mean tanks) this weekend.

Z

+1 Bob...we are excited to come see Hans and your set-up :) :)

Thanks Bobz and Notireef, hopefully we'll have a good turn out. And hopefully, Hans will still be here.

Hans is still doing well. It is now eating pulverized pellets and enriched NHBS. Its fins are starting to get some color and the whole body is starting to turn towards burgandy, but looks brown at the moment.

At least one of the new larvae has gone through metamorphosis but I'm not sure of the other five. I've been filtering the rotifers out of the 10G since I'm no longer feeding them algae. I've also been feeding them pulverized pellets and NHBS but I can't really tell if they are eating them other than they are still alive so they are eating something. I took the cover off of one side of the tank and once I'm sure they have gotten through metamorphosis I'll take off the rest.

Apparently the clowns are OK with being moved to the new tank. I noticed Monday that they have eggs again. I'm not sure which day they laid them, Sunday or Monday.

This post is worthless with out new pictures!!!! :D

Very cool that the adult pair has already resumed laying eggs after the move to the new tank. You are going to be up to your arm pits in maroon clowns soon!

BZ

Very, very cool!

I'll try to get pictures once I'm sure they have all made it through metamorphosis, I've taken the covers off, and I've cleaned the glass. Yep, I've already got another 10G for the new batch and I'm starting to beef up the rotifers again. Unfortunately, I don't know when exactly the new eggs were laid so I'm not sure when the hatch will occur. Plus I don't have a very good track record on getting that part right.

This post is worthless with out new pictures!!!! :D

Very cool that the adult pair has already resumed laying eggs after the move to the new tank. You are going to be up to your arm pits in maroon clowns soon!

BZ

Thanks, Mike!


Very, very cool!

pictures of them??

No pictures for a while, I'm in mourning. I was doing a small water change in Hans' tank and as I was finishing he went spastic, swimming from one end to the other and bottom to top almost leaping out of the tank faster than I could watch him. He did that for about 5 seconds and then dropped to the bottom, dead. I've been doing the same thing every other day for a while so I don't know what set him off, but I must have scared him to death or something. R.I.P. Hans!

Awe man! That bites. I know how bad I felt when I lost a tankful of cardinals a few months back for no apparent reason. It's tough. Hang in there, hopefully the other six will do better and you have a bunch of new eggs to try as well.

Sorry to hear that. You put a lot of time and effort into the little guy!

- Brad

Thanks, Brad. I've still got six from the second hatch with at least four of them making it through metamorphosis and hopefully the other two are close. I'm also going to try to capture a new hatch this Monday.

All six have made it through metamorphosis and are now fish with at least two stripes. It's funny they are already acting territorial with four of the six fighting over one corner at the bottom. I've added a small HOB filter and taken out one of the airstones.

I've got the larva trap in the 65G just in case the new eggs hatch tonight but I really think it will be tomorrow night.

All six have made it through metamorphosis and are now fish with at least two stripes. It's funny they are already acting territorial with four of the six fighting over one corner at the bottom. I've added a small HOB filter and taken out one of the airstones.

I've got the larva trap in the 65G just in case the new eggs hatch tonight but I really think it will be tomorrow night.

I added a couple of pieces of PVC fittings to mine to help cut down on the agression and give them some hiding places.

Thanks, I'll give that a try. You would think with only six of them in a 10G they could spread out. At least four could have their own corners instead of four fighting for just one corner.

I added a couple of pieces of PVC fittings to mine to help cut down on the agression and give them some hiding places.

Last night I had better luck with the third hatch of Maroon Clowns. At about 8:30PM I checked and already had quite a few larva in the trap and by 9:30PM they were pretty much done. I think having them in a room that gets completely dark and stays that way really helped. I moved the larva to a 10G tank and it looks like I have between 50-100.

Very nice! Good luck raising this batch. My OC did not hatch last night (well a couple did) so hopefully tonight I'll have some more as well.

Thanks, Bob. Hopefully, you'll get them tonight.

The latest hatch are a week old today. After giving some of the larva away I still had about 50 and now I'm down to 20+. I've started adding NHBS to their diet today. Here is a picture of the larva trap on hatch night.

Yesterday, I moved the six baby clownfish to a 2.5G tank so I could manage their feedings better. They seem to be doing well so far.

Sweet pic!
Z

Thanks!

Sweet pic!
Z

Very cool thread. Good work Bud!

Awesome pic of the 6 juvi's too.

Thanks, Raj!

Very cool thread. Good work Bud!

Awesome pic of the 6 juvi's too.

Awesome!

- Brad

Wow- I missed a lot! Sorry about your little Hans, but it looks like the other 6 are doing awesome! Maybe he got lonely :(

Keep up the good work!! One of these days, I'm hoping to have a Bud's Maroon in one of my tanks :)

Thanks Kim. The six are doing great and it's fun watching them when I feed the NHBS. The new hatch, I'm down to about 12 and they are 11 days old today.

Wow- I missed a lot! Sorry about your little Hans, but it looks like the other 6 are doing awesome! Maybe he got lonely :(

Keep up the good work!! One of these days, I'm hoping to have a Bud's Maroon in one of my tanks :)

Awesome!

- Brad

Thanks Brad!

Clownfish AHD-36: The six clowns are doing good and are starting to get more color in their fins and tails. It's interesting to see the individual band patterns.

Larva AHD-12: I still have about 12 larva from Hatch #3 and can see a lot of variation in their sizes. I'm not sure what accounts for that other than just maturing at different rates since there isn't any real competition to find food. I've started to add NHBS and will start putting in pulverized flakes and pellets soon. I've stopped adding rotifers since there are enough in the tank to sustain their own population.

I've starting getting some ammonia in both tanks, readings of .5 in the 2.5G and 1.0 in the 10G. It's a bit of a catch 22 since ammonia is harmful but water changes can be as well. I opted to do the changes, so Thursday I did a 3 gallon on the 10G and 1 gallon on the 2.5G. Today the readings were .25 in the 2.5G and .5 in the 10G so I'm doing another water change now. I add the water back in through a slow drip so hopefully everyone will be ok.

The six clowns are still doing great. I'm still feeding them NHBS and fortified brine shrimp. I should have them off the live food by now but have been afraid to do that. I've been adding pulverized pellet and flake food and have tried cyclopeeze but I can't tell whether or not they are actually eating it.

The larva are now 19 days old and it's amazing the difference in sizes. Most of them have gone through metamorphosis but two of them are still very tiny and have not done so yet. I've stopped adding green water to their tank as well as rotifers and have been feeding them the NHBS and fortified brine as well. I've also been adding the pulverized flakes to their diet as well but in the larger tank it is even more difficult to see if they are eating any of it.

Bud, crazy question but regarding size of the babies...
what would be their approximate size during the different phases?

That's not a crazy question at all but I can only give you guesstimates. The larva at hatching were probably about 3-4mm, the babies I have now at almost one month look to be about 6-8mm and the babies that are almost two monts old are about 12-14mm.


Bud, crazy question but regarding size of the babies...
what would be their approximate size during the different phases?

I think it's time for some updated pictures :)

I think it's time for some updated pictures :)

I AGREE! :D

- Brad

Ok, Brad and Kim here is an update with pictures!

Batch 2: I still have six from the second batch and have been feeding them mostly pulverized flake food as well as a couple of foods specifically made for newly hatched fish. These guys have gotten a lot more color in their fins and tails and look like clownfish except they are so small.

Batch 3: I added an HOB filter to the 10G these guys are in and lost one of the eleven because of it. Unfortunately, one of them got behind the netting I have on the filter intake and got trapped there so I am down to ten. I've also been weaning these guys off of NHBS and am feeding them the same as the older ones. I'm going to let them have enriched two day old brine every couple of days as a treat.

They have to be the cutest little things I've ever seen!
Thanks for the pictures!

Sweet! They are looking good.
BZ

Those are so cool! Is that 1/2" or 3/4" pvc in there with them? (I'm just trying to reference the size.)

Thanks,
Brad

Thanks, Kim and Bob!

It's a good thing I hadn't planned on collecting this last hatch since it went off in just six days rather than the usual seven. I'm bummed that I didn't get to at least watch it.

That's awesome!! They are so cute! Keep posting, and more pics!!

That's awesome!! They are so cute! Keep posting, and more pics!!

Thanks!

Yesterday I moved the six from the 2.5G into the 10G with the other 10 that are about 3 weeks younger. The largest of the younger ones are bigger than the smaller of the older ones so they should get along OK. I also added a piece of live rock with lots of holes, but they seem to be partial to their pvc caves.

How agressive are maroons? I heard they were really agressive??

BTW- So cute!!

Thanks! The female maroon clown gets very large and is very aggressive around her anemone/nesting area. Caution is needed just to try to add a male in with a female since the female's first reaction is to kill it.

Geez. Talk about violent! What type of anemone do they host? I was thinking about getting a carpet nem for my 20g (to increase chances of my ocellaris spawning), but I have a jawfish, but I think it will be safe, since my jawfish stays is one corner, where he lives, and I could keep the carpet nem on the other side...... what are your thoughts?

Maroons host in BTAs in the wild and in my tank. Ocellaris will host in a BTA in captivity but not in the wild. I don't think a Carpet Anemone will make it in a 20G and it is even small for a BTA.

Ok. Creation Reef had a pretty small GBTA, but I want and RBTA. I do want some type of nem the clowns will host, that are not agressive. Any suggestions?

I think a BTA is your only choice and even that is iffy in a 20G. If you start a thread asking that question, you'll get more feedback from others with more experience.

Ok. What about a sebae? I used to have one, but my salinity got high and it died. This was when I was a begginer, so I had no idea how to monitor salinity, and it died. Never got another anemone..... But I do want one.

Very cool pics of the Babes! They look like they are doing great.
Z

Very cool pics of the Babes! They look like they are doing great.
Z

Thanks! The maroons must grow much slower than the ocellaris; the oldest ones are almost three months old and I'm still feeding them very tiny particle food.

Here are a couple of pictures of the Maron Clowns I have been raising. I have nine left from the March hatches which is pretty good since I started with so few.

There are 75-100 from the May hatch which is really good since they were collected on 5/14/09 and put in a 5 gallon bucket with an airstone and heater where they stayed until Bobz picked them up on 5/16/09. He took them home and put them in a 10G tank where they stayed until 6/14/09 when we put them in a 5 gallon bucket for me to take them back to my house. I put them in a 10G tank to start with but moved half of them to a 25G tank on 6/27/09 and the rest to the 25G tank on 6/29/09 where they have been ever since.

Wow bud thats pretty impressive. You have a ton of those little guys left.

Awesome!! One of these days, I will be set up to start breeding, I can't wait!! It just seems like such an experience!!

Wow Bud!!
Thats awesome man.

Looks like fun!

Very cool dude! Glad the little guys are still doing good. I am still amazed that we were able to bring so many along based on what we put them through!

BZ

I just got a bonded pair of maroons that have never laid eggs. I've only had them a few days and they are fanning the sand with their tails and are cleaning the rock walls in a little cave. Is this pre-spawning behaviour and if so how long after this behavior begins do they usually start laying eggs? Just wondered since you've got maroons.

I think that is something the females just do no matter what but that could be a good sign. If you have an anemone for them to host in it will probably raise the odds of them laying since once the anemone is established it establishes their territory as well.

I just got a bonded pair of maroons that have never laid eggs. I've only had them a few days and they are fanning the sand with their tails and are cleaning the rock walls in a little cave. Is this pre-spawning behaviour and if so how long after this behavior begins do they usually start laying eggs? Just wondered since you've got maroons.