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- Nov 20, 2002
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How exciting!!!
It looks like they are all oriented to the hatching position and I can't see any of the yolk sacs. The full moon won't be until the 15th but that has not seemed to have much (if any) impact.
What a lovely photo!
I wish these would ship, I would love to raise another pair but I tried retrieving some from Charleston (by car) a few years ago and sent several hatchlings home (also by car) with a few local people and none of them made it even a day.
Hatch!
I had a lot of trouble getting a shot of all the babies plastered on the front of the aquarium, but it was stunning.
I didn't realize they would do this, but the little guys come *shooting* out across the aquarium after hatching, leaving a diversionary little localized cloud of ink along the way (countermeasures).
For a while the whole front glass of the aquarium was covered with babies. By now (the sun is up), they have mostly buried themselves in the rockwork. I can still find some in the corners if I look for a second.
I tried to put them into the little holding tanks within the main tank, but they can easily get through the cracks meant for water flow. I put several into the "buffet", which I filled up yesterday with 1000 mysid shrimp! So at least those guys should have plenty of opportunity to find food.
For now, here are some "shots" of the little guys during transfer to the various smaller tanks.
(In a shot glass, in case you didn't catch that...)
I had a lot of trouble getting a shot of all the babies plastered on the front of the aquarium, but it was stunning.
I didn't realize they would do this, but the little guys come *shooting* out across the aquarium after hatching, leaving a diversionary little localized cloud of ink along the way (countermeasures).
For a while the whole front glass of the aquarium was covered with babies. By now (the sun is up), they have mostly buried themselves in the rockwork. I can still find some in the corners if I look for a second.
I tried to put them into the little holding tanks within the main tank, but they can easily get through the cracks meant for water flow. I put several into the "buffet", which I filled up yesterday with 1000 mysid shrimp! So at least those guys should have plenty of opportunity to find food.
For now, here are some "shots" of the little guys during transfer to the various smaller tanks.
(In a shot glass, in case you didn't catch that...)
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Awesome!
So beautiful! Congrats!
It turns out I actually did get a couple of shots of the mass hatch -- it was just buried in the blackness because I did a poor job with the flash reflection. Note -- you're looking at just a few inches of the glass, and the whole front of the tank was covered!
Really gorgeous shots! Now the real work begins… Just out of curiosity, how many are you moving out of the parent tank and into other tanks? I have never had a chance to hatch large egged babies, but the small egged ones (no one has raised small egged to adulthood) lasted longer in the parent tank than the ones I moved. I will be very interested to see the differences (if any) in different tanks.
How did you set up your "buffet?" Are there many copepods/amphipods in the tank? With small egged babies, they were hunting 'pods equal to their size by day 6, and eating them. Not sure it was the right nutrition for them, but really amazing to see hunting behavior so early on.
Congratulations and best of luck to you!
How did you set up your "buffet?" Are there many copepods/amphipods in the tank? With small egged babies, they were hunting 'pods equal to their size by day 6, and eating them. Not sure it was the right nutrition for them, but really amazing to see hunting behavior so early on.
Congratulations and best of luck to you!
The buffet has lots of copepods, amphipods, and mysids in there. It's seething with all of the above.
I moved about 6 or 7 from the main tank into the buffet, and I'll probably move more. I moved about 5 into the sump. I tried to move a few into the little breeder boxes, but they can squeeze through the cracks whenever they want. (Interestingly, the cracks are too narrow for the mysids to get out!) So that leaves easily over 100 in the main tank.
I'm also interested to see who survives, and where, but there will be no way in hell I get any kind of reliable statistics. Mainly because I don't know where they are in the rockwork (even in the buffet), and I won't be able to see them to count them. It will be, at best, a matter of identifying any individual survivors in each location -- but I really don't expect to make any kind of reliable comparison.
I moved about 6 or 7 from the main tank into the buffet, and I'll probably move more. I moved about 5 into the sump. I tried to move a few into the little breeder boxes, but they can squeeze through the cracks whenever they want. (Interestingly, the cracks are too narrow for the mysids to get out!) So that leaves easily over 100 in the main tank.
I'm also interested to see who survives, and where, but there will be no way in hell I get any kind of reliable statistics. Mainly because I don't know where they are in the rockwork (even in the buffet), and I won't be able to see them to count them. It will be, at best, a matter of identifying any individual survivors in each location -- but I really don't expect to make any kind of reliable comparison.
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The hard thing is that you start out with so many, and most will die off. We know that the huge die off is natural out in the wild, but it's so hard not to think we have total control in the home aquarium. I don't think we are in control at home at all! You are right that there is just no way to be able to count them all. If you are able to raise just one or two to adulthood, that is success!
Keeping all my fingers (and even toes) crossed for you!!!
Keeping all my fingers (and even toes) crossed for you!!!
LOVE, love, love the photos! They will come to the glass for the first couple of nights only so I am glad you moved them immediately. Then you will have a lot of eye exercise trying to find them crawling on the rock work. I suggest trying to feed (even though there is food in the tank) twice a day at the same time each day (particularly at night). My survivors learned feeding time and could be hand fed early.
The babies seem to be doing well, as far as I can tell (which isn't very far). They come out onto the glass late at night and appear to be foraging for food. I really can't tell whether they are being successful, but they seem active enough.
Yesterday afternoon I took five of them out of the main tank and put them into a ramekin with some mysids and they successfully hunted! It was pretty great. I then put them back into the main tank. I'm sure the ones in the buffet are having a feast, but I've only seen one since I put them in -- the others are successfully hiding (hopefully).
I'll feed a few more today "by hand" (i.e. in the ramekin). It feels a little arbitrary, but at least I can sleep at night knowing at least a few are definitely eating.
Yesterday afternoon I took five of them out of the main tank and put them into a ramekin with some mysids and they successfully hunted! It was pretty great. I then put them back into the main tank. I'm sure the ones in the buffet are having a feast, but I've only seen one since I put them in -- the others are successfully hiding (hopefully).
I'll feed a few more today "by hand" (i.e. in the ramekin). It feels a little arbitrary, but at least I can sleep at night knowing at least a few are definitely eating.
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