Clown fish egg laying

**john** · 04-18-2006, 12:08 PM

Hello forum. I have two percula clown fish who have paired off and have been laying eggs for years. Recently, they have been laying eggs almost every 3 weeks for months. As soon as they hatch, another brood is layed down on thier "Egg post". The batch they are sitting on right now is about the 8th plus consecutive batch in a row. My question to anyone is this marathon egg laying harmful to the Female and or male?. If so, how do I stop it?. If it's not harmful, well, my Mandarin wont complain. The female is getting up there in years. She's about 3 inches long and probly around 12 to 15 years old. Her habitat is a 90 gallon reeftank with mixed fish and coral. Thanks in advance. John

**JustDavidP** · 04-18-2006, 12:41 PM

Rob... Oh Rob.... I see a post for you here!

John, Welcome to the Talking Reef. Glad to have you here!

I'd not worry. Your pair are doing what comes naturally. The rate of egg production in damsels in captivity doesn't stray far from those found in the wild (from what I've read). Stress, as related to breeding, is typically an issue with fish that have other types of "Brooding Strategies". Most notable are the Banggai Cardinals, or other mouth brooders.

In closed systems, banggai tend to breed more often than their cousins in the wild (again, based upon my reading). This is probably due to the close proximity of the pair in captivity versus that when they have an entire lagoon to traverse in the wild. They may go some time without crossing a female who is ripe and compatible.

In cases where mouth brooding comes into play, the "carrier" may go for weeks without eating while holding on to the clutch in their mouth. Folks who breed captive banggai, most often try to split the pair for some time after the male is finished with his responsibilities, allowing the "carrier" (male in this case) to eat, fatten up, rest, and be ready for carrying again in the future.

The male will take eggs on queue. It's that simple. Whether they want to or not, whether in good health or weak, he will assume the berries and carry them. In some cases, the fish may end up starving itself. I have seen some males expell the eggs, but more often than not, they do not.

Your clowns are going to try, and try again...because that is what they are supposed to do. They mature, eat, sleep, breed and die. If your system can handle the nutrient load of the dead fry and the other tank mates are snacking upon them, I'd not worry. It's obvious that the pair is healthy, or the eggs wouldn't last long at all (you say they hatch eh?) If stressed or malnourished, the pair (mostly momma) will eat the eggs themselves. They do this because they instinctively know that the eggs are not viable and by ingesting them, they a) regain some nutrition to possibly help with the production of another healthy clutch and b) eradicate any signs of their breeding as to avoid becoming a regular "Snack Shack" for the other fish in the area.

Let them do the "damsel thang" and while you are at it, take some shots/video, something to share. I'm sure we could all learn from you. You seem to have a very successful pair and/or system.

If you ever consider raising the fry, you and Rob could have some marathon email/threads/phone conversations. He's in the middle of the same project.

Again, Welcome.

Dave

***Rob*** · 04-18-2006, 01:22 PM

yep... dave is right, there shouldn't be any issue with them and there "marathon spawning"...lol

my Perculas lay every two weeks...

now if you DO want to try and stop it, mess with there "laying post" whatever shes laying the eggs on, move it, cover it, something. that will usually cause them to stop spawning, at least for a while..

**gwen_o_lyn** · 04-18-2006, 01:24 PM

Welcome to TR John

**john** · 04-19-2006, 01:03 PM

Hi Guy's.
Thanks for the great info Guys and the warm welcome. It's a question that you probly can't find in any book. It looks like I came to the right place. I will continue to let Orca(female) and Satan(male) do thier clownly things. It was also interesting to learn about the Bengaii's. Thanks dave. I have one that's been in my 90 gallon mixed reef and fish tank since the major post-power outage years ago. I believe it's a wild fish, so maybe he's(yes, it's a he) about 7 or 8 years old?. My Clowns were the only fish to survive that ordeal. I was crushed that most of my fish perished. But if one was to make it, Orca was the one, and she did. Along with Satan. I was out of town when it happened and the tank was down for only 24 hours. I have since bought a very expensive generator. My belief is if you can't take care of a life form to it's natural end, then you shouldn't have it. The only coral I lost was a Elegance, Sadly. Which was also the Clown's chosen host and my favorite coral at the time. I couldn't find another one, but I actually didn't have too. The clowns now host a group of Frog Spawn that they like and guard very much. Satan's name sake will attest to that. It's how that little bugger got his name. Man he is vicious. I have to remove him when I'm aquascaping or such just so he won't attack me. Back to the Cardinal and something I want to share about him. Wether this is right or wrong I don't know, but I have been doing it for years. Every week or so, I rinse off and throw a small earthworm in the tank. The earthworm is never in the tank for more then a second before the Bengaii takes it. He absolutly loves them. I know they are not salt water life forms but it doesn't negatively affect him in any way. He looks forward to them. I believe his nutritional and predatory insticts are satisfied by this. Through trial and error I found that a whole worm that's small enough for him to eat is the key. Useing a "piece" of a worm is not good IMO and may introduce something unwanted in aquarium. I keep small worms in a worm bedding container in the fridge. I collect worms from a area that's has no risk of lawn, road, or garden chemicals after a good rain. Anyhow, something to think about. He also gets his regular feeding ofcourse. Inclose, The file size of my clown fish pics are to large to send via this interface. I will get some smaller ones. Thanks again, John

**JustDavidP** · 04-19-2006, 01:25 PM

No worries...I've fed earthworms, bits of liver, and other odd things to my fish. One thing to keep in mind is that they really don't contain the same types of proteins that are found in true marine food. As a treat...no harm, no foul. As a staple food, I'd be concerned.