Why have we not been able to breed Tangs?

blackwolfXKAV

Homo sapiens
Apr 20, 2006
828
0
0
New England Abroad.
I have tried searching for an answer to this and nothing has turned up. i am willing to find out any (no matter how scientific) information on attempts/theories, etc. Thank you.
Wolf
 
Well, the problem with tangs and many other marine fish is that they have a planctonic phase. Their fry are so small at hatching that water takes on qualities of a solid object and unless food is very abundant and their water isn't perfect they just don't live. The seas are very stable and they can't take rapid temp fluctuation,ph drops etc. Their fry is so small that they can become stuck in the surface tension of your tank water. As far as I know they usually won't even breed in captivity in the wild they also tend to breed in large schools of fish ,"100's of individuals" when the moon phase and tides are correct.

There are other marine fish like mandrin gobies that breed regularly in tanks. To my knowledge none of the fry have ever made it much more than a week or two. A lot of the issues comes down to the fact that no one really knows what the fry need in order to survive and they are so fragile that an impact with the glass from your power head can kill them. It's even worse for most types of larval inverts.
hth
max
 
Max said:
Well, the problem with tangs and many other marine fish is that they have a planctonic phase. Their fry are so small at hatching that water takes on qualities of a solid object and unless food is very abundant and their water isn't perfect they just don't live. The seas are very stable and they can't take rapid temp fluctuation,ph drops etc. Their fry is so small that they can become stuck in the surface tension of your tank water. As far as I know they usually won't even breed in captivity in the wild they also tend to breed in large schools of fish ,"100's of individuals" when the moon phase and tides are correct.

There are other marine fish like mandrin gobies that breed regularly in tanks. To my knowledge none of the fry have ever made it much more than a week or two. A lot of the issues comes down to the fact that no one really knows what the fry need in order to survive and they are so fragile that an impact with the glass from your power head can kill them. It's even worse for most types of larval inverts.
hth
max
maybe as aquarium technology advances they'll find a way... I HATE taking animals from the wild!
 
Well we have with some species already and there have been some pretty dismal failures with others. Fwiw, other than anems and some of the more uncommon corals it's not so much of an issue in s.w. Most of the fish etc are taken as young animals and their survival rates in the wild tend to be pretty small.

Some of the fish like tangs etc. that breed in massive groups may be raised in tanks. I know that people have been trying to raise mandrins for a long,long time with no success. They breed once every couple of weeks as well not just a few times or once a year. There may be possiblities as the hobby advances to rear fish like those but, I think it will be a long, long time before anyone will do it with tangs,trigers, etc.

This is going to be an interesting thread lets keep it going
Max
 
Actually tangs are on the short list for some major hatcheries for likely success in the next few years. One hatchery was recently able to keep the larvae alive for 40 days. The fact that survival rates are so small in the wild is actually a reason NOT to capture them in the wild - they need all the fry in their natural state as possible. But this is common - for example, even with up to a 1,000 eggs per spawn for oscars, the typical survival rate per oscar spawn in the wild is ONE per spawn! Sheer numbers left alone as much as possible is their best survival plan, but not realistic in the current state of constant environmental degradation. To the extent that more wild caught fish can be channeled to scientific breeding research, even at the temporary expense of the hobby, it will ensure successful breeding programs that will aid the hobby in the long run.
 
YoFishboy said:
Actually tangs are on the short list for some major hatcheries for likely success in the next few years. One hatchery was recently able to keep the larvae alive for 40 days. The fact that survival rates are so small in the wild is actually a reason NOT to capture them in the wild - they need all the fry in their natural state as possible. But this is common - for example, even with up to a 1,000 eggs per spawn for oscars, the typical survival rate per oscar spawn in the wild is ONE per spawn! Sheer numbers left alone as much as possible is their best survival plan, but not realistic in the current state of constant environmental degradation. To the extent that more wild caught fish can be channeled to scientific breeding research, even at the temporary expense of the hobby, it will ensure successful breeding programs that will aid the hobby in the long run.
i'm glad to hear they're having sucess. I would never, ever buy a wild caught fish, I don't care how beautiful it is. with all of the dangers facing fish fry, it's best that they say where they belong-the wild. someday almost all marine aquarium fish and inverts will be captive bred and raised, and for that day I dream of.
 
I can't see tangs breeding in home aquariums anytime soon, but, as yo said, some hatcheries are probably going to be able to soon. In the home aquarium it'd be hard because you'd need a large group, and unless you have a huge tank you can't keep more than one of similar species due to aggression.
 
breeding tangs

Sure we have not had success with the captive rearing of Tangs but to anyone reading this,just because no one else has done it, does not mean you can't. Hell it simply means more credit to you. Theres I gentleman in Japan that breeding Big Eye Tuna. If he can do that then Tangs are a walk in the park. Anyone interested in this should contact him.
 
A really large part of our problems are the methods we use to circulate our water. Almost anything going thru our powerheads and pump impellers are promptly killed. They are far to violent for animals, but they are easy, and obvious, so we use them. People will have more success if they use better circulation systems.

"Better", as in large very slow propellers running rather like a ceiling fan or Archimedes's screws.
 
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