Cali Kid Corals

Bangai’s bred in my tank!

Are you decapitating the brine eggs? That's probably the easiest way to boost nutrients. Also can simplify feeding in that you can put eggs directly in the tank, and they'll hatch and become fish food, without polluting the tank with shells.

Putting the eggs in directly assumes you get a good hatch rate and everything doesn't get sucked into the filter though. Decapsulate, hatch as normal in a separate container, and feed the ones that hatch being the more standard approach though.
 
richiev said:
Are you decapsulating the brine eggs? That's probably the easiest way to boost nutrients. Also can simplify feeding in that you can put eggs directly in the tank, and they'll hatch and become fish food, without polluting the tank with shells.

Putting the eggs in directly assumes you get a good hatch rate and everything doesn't get sucked into the filter though. Decapsulate, hatch as normal in a separate container, and feed the ones that hatch being the more standard approach though.
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damn autocorrect :p
 
MichaelB said:
Lol i will admit i was picturing a highlander there can be only one type deal lol, when i saw ur comment

I was thinking to myself thats something i never heard of. Old school secret or something
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:p My ex landlords mom had a Highlander and we'd always say that when she drove by :p
 
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Currently, I am hatching the shrimp in containers and harvesting them daily to feed the main tank. I have staggered them to have a new batch daily. We are 5 days in an no mortalities yet. The fry have all found each other and have started schooling together in the corner of the tank today. The shrimp and the fry are so small I can't really tell if they are eating. Guess we'll see what happens.

I put the male back in the main display. So far he is hiding in the corner and I have not seen him come out to eat. Hopefully he can recover. I read online they don't eat for the 20-30 days it takes to brood the eggs, and some of them will get a new batch almost immediately. One person reported the males can spend 6 to 7 months brooding which means not eating. I just hope he recovers, and maybe we can do this again.

Gerry
 
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Quick pic update on day 5: I'm hoping the fish are color blind like me. Did not have any black zip ties so I used what I had on hand to make my fake urchin.
 

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I have not been able to get a good look to see the two little bumps. That is an awesome pic. We were able to sex our three because the mail developed a very square angular jaw. People described it like a bull dog. Until I saw it I didn't realize how accurate that was.
The fry are so tiny it would take months to figure out there sex.
I could potentially sell you the lone female, but I actually haven't seen here recently. All three fish have been in the tank for over a year, but she was the odd woman out. Every time I think she is gone she pops up again. So, if you are interested I will let you know if I can find her and trap her. Online it looks like eventually the mated pair will kill off the odd man or woman out.
G
 
gmdcdvm said:
I have not been able to get a good look to see the two little bumps. That is an awesome pic. We were able to sex our three because the mail developed a very square angular jaw. People described it like a bull dog. Until I saw it I didn't realize how accurate that was.
The fry are so tiny it would take months to figure out there sex.
I could potentially sell you the lone female, but I actually haven't seen here recently. All three fish have been in the tank for over a year, but she was the odd woman out. Every time I think she is gone she pops up again. So, if you are interested I will let you know if I can find her and trap her. Online it looks like eventually the mate pair will kill off the odd man or woman out.
G
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Yeah I would definitely take the extra female.

I think that would about hit the limit of how many fish I want in my current tank, which just means I need another lol.

Good luck on raising the fry to adulthood!
 
gmdcdvm said:
I made a fake urchin. They prefer hiding under the bag of ceramic filter beads. I have the tank set up with just a sponge filter and air pump. I am worried they will get suck into any other filter. As of this morning I still do not see any dead bodies. I finally returned the male to the display tank I don't think he has any fry left to expel.

Questions for everyone: Best way to enhance brine shrimp hatchlings? I read online from various people who have bred them that they recommend enhancing baby brine shrimp with selcon. Do I just soak them in it? Add it to their water and hope they ingest it? Add it to the phyto I feed the baby brine? No one describes specifically how they enhance them.

Gerry
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Brief googling suggests you soak nauplii in selcon for an hour before feeding - and that they don't eat it, but they "bio-encapsulate" it, which tbh I don't totally get - and then feed to fry.

The vague idea I saw being that sudden fright syndrome is caused by deficiency in fatty acids, which are then used for base surviving rather than developing the nervous system. And from there, any sudden stimulus can "short circuit" the fry. This is mostly guessing and shots-in-the-dark from a breeder who seems to have experience.

It sounds plausible and it'd be cool to see more data, but regardless of the reason, people anecdotally claim selcon greatly reduces deaths to SFS.

Edit: source for the bio-encapsulation: https://www.fao.org/4/W3732E/w3732e0p.htm#b1-4.4.1
 
Day 7 update:
So far so I good. The fry look like they have doubled in size over the last week. I found this brine shrimp hatchery on Amazon that is simple to use and has worked well. It has a series of baffles built in to help separate the egg shells from the shrimp. It works like all others by relying on the shrimp being attracted to light. I harvest the hatchlings several times a day as they accumulate in the collection cup. I bought two and staggered when I add the eggs to have a consistent supply on hand. The fish are big enough now that you can actually see them dart around eating the shrimp. Fingers crossed still no mortalities. Going to do a water change tomorrow.

The hatchery has a series of baffles that the shrimp have to get past by swimming under them. You add the eggs to the outside. Place the collection cup in the center, and then place the lid on top. This creates a black out except over the area with the collection cup. The cup has a fine screen mesh. Once you see enough shrimp swimming around you can pull it out and rinse it in the tank to let them go. Pretty easy to set up, clean, and re-use. If you are interested in feeding freshly hatched brine shrimp I would recommend this product. Keep in mind it is strictly a hatchery and not meant for long term use to grow out the shrimp.

The only bad news so far is I cannot find the male. I think maybe I should have not put him back in the display so soon. What I found online was mixed info. Some said if they stay too long they will start eating the baby fish. Others said you should wait till they are eating again. The only fish I have that chase the bangai's are the other bangais. No one else messes with them. I can find the large female and the small female. The male has not come out since I put him back in the display. I am hoping he is just recovering and will come out soon, but it has been 3 days. I did read some of them will succumb from stress since they have not been eating for over 20-30 days. It is not looking good, but we'll see.


Gerry
 

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You can also decapsulate the shrimp or buy decapsulated ones from certain vendors, which don't have shells to begin with.
 
gmdcdvm said:
Day 7 update:
So far so I good. The fry look like they have doubled in size over the last week. I found this brine shrimp hatchery on Amazon that is simple to use and has worked well. It has a series of baffles built in to help separate the egg shells from the shrimp. It works like all others by relying on the shrimp being attracted to light. I harvest the hatchlings several times a day as they accumulate in the collection cup. I bought two and staggered when I add the eggs to have a consistent supply on hand. The fish are big enough now that you can actually see them dart around eating the shrimp. Fingers crossed still no mortalities. Going to do a water change tomorrow.

The hatchery has a series of baffles that the shrimp have to get past by swimming under them. You add the eggs to the outside. Place the collection cup in the center, and then place the lid on top. This creates a black out except over the area with the collection cup. The cup has a fine screen mesh. Once you see enough shrimp swimming around you can pull it out and rinse it in the tank to let them go. Pretty easy to set up, clean, and re-use. If you are interested in feeding freshly hatched brine shrimp I would recommend this product. Keep in mind it is strictly a hatchery and not meant for long term use to grow out the shrimp.

The only bad news so far is I cannot find the male. I think maybe I should have not put him back in the display so soon. What I found online was mixed info. Some said if they stay too long they will start eating the baby fish. Others said you should wait till they are eating again. The only fish I have that chase the bangai's are the other bangais. No one else messes with them. I can find the large female and the small female. The male has not come out since I put him back in the display. I am hoping he is just recovering and will come out soon, but it has been 3 days. I did read some of them will succumb from stress since they have not been eating for over 20-30 days. It is not looking good, but we'll see.


Gerry
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I have 2 of those exact model of BBS hatchery you can borrow if you decide you need more
 
Thanks John, I will let you know. So far the two are working out. My son started at Northgate this year so I go close to your place a lot these days. I will reach out if I need it.
Gerry
 
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Pic of the little one gallon cube I have set up as a back up source of shrimp. It’s crazy to see how they are attracted to light. Almost all of them in one corner.
 

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I had some of these born in my display tank a few years ago. I fished them out and put them in a quarantine tank. They were initially tiny, barely visible. They grew well on just frozen baby brine shrimp, canned copepods and the little particles of various frozen foods leftover when defrosting them. Sadly due to a vacation I had to move them back into the display tank too early (about a quarter inch long) and they were quickly devoured back in the main tank.
 
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