Project Orange

Still progessing well. We have reached the (1) week mark. Only way to check on the zoea pretty much is by using the light test. I can occassionally see a few in the current as they flow past the front of the glass. But once I turn off the main light and use a flashlight, they all come a runnin. ;)

Temp in the tank is down to 66. We have had the heat off in the house for a while after a nice warm spell. It has dropped into the mid 40s at night again but we haven't turned it back on. So far, it doesn't look like it has had a major impact on the zoea. If anything, I would probably anticipate a longer period to morph due to the colder temps but I'm not going to try and adjust it.

I can see some phyto clumps forming on the bottom of the tank even with the cross currents established. I will use a dropper and dispurse them. Also, a very small amount of Golden Pearls will be added today. I could just leave it with phyto as their food source but definately want to ensure that they have a ton of nutritious foods available. Have to be carefull as to not affect water quality which is why only a small pinch will be used.
 
I thought they liked warmer temps? Like 80? I'm probably wrong...
 
You would be correct. I didn't want to start chasing things and I figured this would be a good opportunity to scratch an item of my list. I don't really know for sure at this time, but I think it did have a major impact. While I did see the zoea drifting in the current, not many responded to the light test. I don't have a good feeling about this. The zoea are still straight which is the good thing so I'm hoping the colder temps may have just "frozen" them for a spell.

I readjusted the light while I tried to throw together a mock up frame. Needless to say, the build didn't go as expected so I have the light sitting directly on top of the tank. The temp slowly crept back up to 72 by the time I retired for the eve.

I'm getting ready to go check on things now and see where we stand. The other two females will be isolated today or tomorrow.
 
Day 9 and I'm officially calling this round of testing. No signs of zoea life today. I'll break down the tanks, get them cleaned up and move the other two females in for round 2. This round will be busy as I have (2) Amano's and (1) Propinqua expecting around the same time frame.

I'll get a salinity reading of the tank when I break it down to see where the mark was. I suspect however, the failure was a two part deal; late acclimation to salt water and low temps.

I'll try and focus on the setup a little more so I can stabilize the temps where I want them.
 
Well the Propinqua and one of the Amano dropped their eggs earlier than expected and lost both those batches.

I do have another Amano due to drop any day now and she has been moved into isolation. I checked on her this morning and all is well. The poo machine really cranked up last night so I will have to do a small water change in her tank. This time, once the hatching occurs, any that are unhatched will be removed same day and the journey downstream will begin shortly after. I'll have to tweak the phyto mix to achieve the right salinity prior to feeding.

With this female, I'm going to be aiming for a mid brackish number around 1.020. I know I didn't get a good test in at the full sea level due to time and temp, but will revisit that on another round. Taking the human error out of that equation, I believe I would have gotten better results.

I have recently acquired a refractometer to better aid me in my salinity levels.

The first Amano female already has eggs again and has been this way for about a week now. As much as I don't want to, I'm considering the moving the females earlier. Especially the Propinqua's as they are seeming to carry a shorter period of time than when this project first started. Just don't like the idea of them in that small tank for too long.

In other news:

- found (2) Red Nose saddled yesterday. Not sure how many are left from the original bunch but hopefully there is at least one male in there. ;)
- Caridina serratirostris finally showed up on an exporter list. I'm in the works of getting my first batch in.
 
The Amano's are still holding their eggs. This is interesting as it's a longer period than the first female. Will be doing water changes in their tanks today. Also, found another berried Propinqua yesterday. This time, I will be moving her into isolation early, as soon as today but no later than this weekend. I don't like the idea of her being in the small tank for that period of time, but don't want to the lose the larvae either.
 
It sounded to me like your last female dropped her eggs early. I don't think you should have had unhatched eggs on the bottom of the tank but I'm not an expert. When I tried hatching some the female had them all in her swimmerettes one day and all the fry were hatched the next... or so it seemed.

Q
 
I agree with that. When the Propinqua eggs hatch, they all have. This is my go at the Amano's so we'll see what transpires from here. The longer carry time definately supports that.
 
Water change for the expecting mom today. Interesting find. While drawing out the water, I found a couple zoea in the water. With that discovery, I would have to think that a full hatching is very soon to take place.

I'll be moving another female into isolation in the next couple of days.

And on another good note, I just learned that the C. serratirostris will be shipping on Wednesday.
 
Morning check and mama still holding the eggs. I find this rather interesting since I did find a couple of hatched zoea just the other day. Very interesting. She's holding for a very long time.
 
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