Mercatoris Pair Journal

DinoIgnacio;133420 said:
I still haven't seen any embryo in the eggs but it's really only been 3 days or so. When is a good time to expect the ebryos if they are fertile?

If you read through our journal on Varys that D linked you to, I'm pretty sure we documented the first time we were able to observe embryos in her eggs.
 
I would recommend a net (they are really cheap). I don't think the plastic kind allow enough water exchange but more importantly the holes won't keep the babies in the container. They will look like and be the size of a hungry tick.
 
Sad development...
I came into work today to see the Skimmer had been working overtime.
I was in the process of cleaning it out and topping off the water when I noticed a flesh pulp in Hugsy's den.

I then noticed a little emerald crab eating the pulp... This is when I got the sinking realization that Hugsy had died over the weekend and had decomposed. At this point I checked into Boots's hole and she waves an arm and shows me an egg... As if volunteering information that she is ok.

I have basted Hugsy's remains out of her hole and done a water change. I hope this does not stress Boots and the eggs too much.

I'll do a water check over lunch.


Sad.
 
Sorry about Hugsey, late winter/early spring seems to be the most common time of year for brooding and termination.

Please report back on your water tests. One of the things I have found interesting is that I have never seen a quality change in my water when one of my small octos has "disappeared" for good. That being said, when this has happened, the tanks were much larger and much more established. AM did report a serious problem with a larger octo in his reef system but few others have thought to report on water quality impact or have been able to remove the remains immediately.
 
Thanks guys.... It was so sad basting the remains out of the den.... It's hard to imagine that the gooey lumps used to be an intelligent animal.

I checked my water and I am
0 on nitrItes
0 on ammonia
8.0-8.2 on pH
and a high 20 on NitrAtes...
I'll see about using some Nitrate lowering solution.
 
Extra water changes and stirring the sand for the nitrates - nothing else - avoid the chemical solutions. Not only do they not work but some will set up an environment for cynobacteria that will take forever to nullify. They will go down slowly with extra water changes and good vacuuming and stirring of your bottom substrate but they are not so high as to cause a problem.
 
Mr. Boots died today....
She had been fine for the last few weeks... eating free roaming crabs through the brooding.
But today I found her dead outside her hole. I couldn't find the eggs too... Did she destroy them?

Sad
 
Darn, you would likely have enjoyed raising the young.

It is thought that females might destroy or eat eggs that are not viable. I have only seen this suggestion once though and don't have a back reference. I suspect it is more likely that your clean-up crew did their job. One of the reasons the female stays with the eggs constantly is to keep preditors (which includes just about anything in the marine environment) away.
 

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