I will be embarking on a new project. Clownfish breeding! I have had spawnings in the past but never attempted to raise the fry. I have 2 different pairs. A pair of tomato clowns and a platinum / snowflake pair. The tomato pair spawn in a tank with other fish and guard the eggs until they hatch, then the fry die since they do not have food or safety. The other pair is in a 15g alone. Just a sand bed and a flower pot. My question is does anyone have experience keeping a supply of rotifers going for feeding fry? Is there any supplier recommended or not recommended? Tips? I found a “rotifer kit” on ebay. Will this smell really bad? I’m not looking to start a business or anything but just want to have fun with the challenge and possibly share fish with others. All help and information is appreciated. I have read a couple internet articles, and it does not seem all that different from when I was breeding some freshwater stuff, other than requiring rotifers. If all goes well I will keep a thread with updates. abcd
I know Captain Ken and Jason from Clownfish Sushi has reared clowns and Barbara Lang has some articles over at reefgeeks, I’m sure any of them can give you the lowdown on rearing clowns.
If you ever figure it out you can give me tips. I have a bonded but not mating yet pair of snowflakes
Just read the instructions on the reef geeks thread. Thanks for the info!! Barbra simplified it so much compared to others. I don’t think it will be a problem to grow rotifers. Finding a place to keep them out of the way may be the biggest challenge for me. I guess it doesn’t matter where you get the starter culture as long as they are L-type rotifers. I knew I saved those old salt buckets for a reason! One thing I cant find is if you can keep a loose lid on the bucket. Will it impede gas exchange too much?
After reading the whole thread… Apparently I joined DRC just a little too late. There was a presentation and a few guys started growing them. Anyone still have some cookin?
hi Scott. raising rotifers is not hard at all. you just need a starter live culture to seed a bucket with or some dry resting phase rotifer cysts to start it with. the most expensive item is a pint of frozen algae syrup to feed the rotifers. I originally got a starter sample from Barbara. I ordered my algae past from Brine shrimp direct.
dry starter rotifer cysts.
http://www.brineshrimpdirect.com/c193/Rotifer-Cysts-Saltwater-or-Freshwater-c194.html
I think Barb used to buy supplies from this company.
or you can get a small live culture of rotifers here, and algaes too.
http://florida-aqua-farms.com/
the glycerine free variety is the best. a pint, 500ml, will feed a rotifer bucket for about a year. i think Barbs mixx was 1/3 concentrate and 2/3 RO. just mix 6 oz at a time and keep in a dropper bottle. freeze the rest of the concentrate for later.
you just need a 5 gallon bucket, and an air stone on a piece of rigid air tubing, so as it sits on the bottom of the bocket, and thats it. no light, no heat if at room temp. add 3 gallons of 1.020 sg salt water, starter culture and add 10-20 drops of algae mix to tint the water green, and let it grow a few days.
then just syphon some of the culture water off through a fine strainer, i used a fine weave polyester cloth, and rince into the tank to feed. add, more fresh SW . feed, and continue. should keep running all year.
Keep in mind the denisty of the culture will dictate how often you have to feed. A thinner culture to start may only need to be fed once a day or so, once you get going and the culture increases in density you may have to feed twice a day - I used to feed in the morning, and by the time I got home from work the water was clear again which meant it was time to feed again.
Barb also taught me that there is no harm in scooping water from from the rotifer bucket and pouring in t the tank for a food source - 1 cup out, 1 cup back in.
Also make sure you pick up a bottle of Amonia remover (Amquil I believe it ws called) as rotifers only live for about 24 hours and when they die they create ammonia, you can’t really do a large water change so it helps to have a means to neutilize the ammonia in the bucket.
Just want to check to see if anyone knows some where or some one local who can get me started with rotifers. The snowflake clown has found an acceptable mate and are busy cleaning the breeding site. If not I guess internet is my only option.
The only person I can think right off my head that I know that is breeding is Jason from Clown Fish Sushi. But I haven’t seen him on here in a while since the last batch of fish he was trying to sell. Other than that the website the Ken mention above.
Only other source for live roti’s might be Barb. if she is still keeping a culture going. even if you find a starter culture, you need the pint of frozen algea paste to feed them for a year, and that costs about $35 for the paste, and $35 to ship over night with dry ice, to keep it cold. cant seem to get around that. far as i know.