So, we had a HORRID winter storm yesterday and last night. The temps dropped from 48F to -7F within a matter of hours. The winds are blowing at about 45mph with gusts up to 60+. The wind chills are well below -25F.

Sounds like spring, right?

That is what my foolish goldfish think.



Why why why why why???? I thought I was doing pretty good - getting ready to be prepared for spawns. Yeah, right. They always seem to suprise me. Go figure.

I do not know if I am going to catch any fertile eggs. But my Crystal Ranchu spawned this morning. I think they are still at it. Not a huge collection of eggs - but enough to bother with. They are LITTLE fish - and they already did the deed before I got them.

Cross your fingers. I hope I am going to find out if you get Crystal Ranchu from a cross of two (four) Crystal Ranchu.

***she gives a tenative smile and goes to figure out where the heck the new eggs can go***

I am SURE you will find a space for crystal ranchu eggs/fry daryl

EXCITING

wow. It's an interesting spawning Crystal x Crystal. Hopefully you get a lot of good one. Good luck

Thats so Exciting... I cant wait for my fishes to have babies but there small still lol...

Oh, yeah, right - somebody ignored the "No Spawning" signs that you hopefully have plastered all over the tanks...

I am wondering how the percentage of the fry will be in regards of true crystals. It is a rather new variation in the breed, so it is excited to figure out and learn how many of the fry will carry the trait. Girl, you need to work on that new farm house ASAP - there aren't many nooks left in your house to stick any fry...

The house is designed. We are just waiting to see who gets into office and how the taxes are going to shake out - to find out if we have to pay through the nose, or if we can somehow manage to keep some of what we earn.

I want my fish house - and am willing to work my heart out for it. But I will not work just to have it all taken anyway. I will retire completely first! If they are going to be giving money away why should I work? I would rather get than give. With the suggested tax base, they have taken away all incentive to work.

The plans are all done - the architect has sited the placement on the land. Come warmer weather, we will get a percolation test and a well tap for water - and find out how that will be. Then we will wait until November.....



So - I have still more Crystal Ranchu eggs today. The red/black female dropped today. I caught about 3/4 of them on spawning mats and will move them to the other tank tommorrow - when I am sure (I hope) that she is done. I am bursting at the seams with eggs!!!!! I hope they ALLLL hatch! What fun.

Where are you gonna house them all, Daryl? Have you gotten more tanks?

They are hatching!!!! They are hatching!!!!

It looks like I got a good fertile group - considering they were laid over 3 days time, the first day's group is fairly large in number. I see several hundred little wiggly threads hanging on the glass so far!!!!!

Whoop!!!!

it's a good news.... interesting to see how they develop. Wish you end up with a lot of show quality one.

Congrats, Daryl!!! I hope you get some beautiful ones!!!

More fry?! Can't wait to see pics of these!

We had that same storm but I didn't get any spawning. The kids did get the day off from school cuz all the roads were frozen . . .

For some reason, I seem to have an inordinate number of "belly sliders" in this group. I would guesstimate that nearly 1/3 of all the fry are belly sliders.

I do not know why this happened. I have been through every parameter of the spawning and hatching and culture of the fry since hatching. I cannot find anything specific that would jump out and say "YOU BLEW IT HERE!".....

71degrees F.
4 days.
0/0/0 water parameters.
Water at 6 inches
Eggs not "stacked" but distrubuted well on spawning grass to insure good oxygen exchange.

??????????????????????

The only thing I did was feed the first ones out before the last ones were up and swimming. The eggs were laid up to 3 days apart - so there is a fair age difference at this time amongst the fry. Could the ones that were still immobile and not free swimming have somehow damaged themselves by "eating" too soon? Would they have eaten even if the food were available?

Any ideas?

(I would guess I have about 200 that are free swimming and about 100 belly sliders. I will give them more time to become buoyant before culling, but I do not hold much hope at this time. )

Aww, lets hope your little guys pull through, Daryl.

]:

I bet you're excited about all these eggs, though. I know I would be. :]

Congrats on them!

Well, here is a shot of the newest fry - from the Crystal Ranchu. I am hoping that there are some crystals in there - but it will be a long time until that is determined. These guys are between 5 and 7 days old - 4-5 days since eating..... Here they are eating freshly hatched baby brine shrimp.

They are so cute. I wish the best for you. (a lot of crystal!!! )

wow all of them looking so cute .....i wander what will they b when they grow up...

nahid....

See any change in the belly sliders yet?

Actually, yes. I think what happened was a combination of a stupid move on my part and my under-estimation of hatching time. (With our cold weather - the tank went to 69-70F - not the 71F that I ideally like)

I have 4 crystal RAnchu. 2 male, 2 female. The first day, the red female dropped eggs. The second day, the red female and the red/black female dropped eggs. The third day, the black/red female dropped eggs. And then I left the mats in for one more day (and I think there were more eggs, then) before pulling them and putting them in the fry tank.

The eggs hatched on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday, late afternoon, I pulled the mat, shaking off any clinging fry - because I wanted to remove unhatched eggs before they went to fungus. I think what I was seeing were just eggs that had not hatched, yet. I jumped the gun.

I think thatwhat I was seeing was a large number of freshly hatched fry - before they were free swimming. I was comparing them to the others that were hatched a day or two earlier - already free swimming and eating voraciously. By dumping them off their perches on the spawning grass, I limitied their oxygen uptake, as well placed them lower in the tank with less resting places to use on that all important dash to the surface to fill their little swim bladders.

I put a plant back in - one that reached to the surface (still only 6 inches deep) and watched. About 1/2 of the belly sliders did, eventually, make it to the surface and become swimmers. The other half, unfortunately, I am going to have to chalk up to my learning curve - I goofed I think. My fault.

I will not pull the plants and mats too soon in the future. I hope.

I have hundreds of fry, though. More than enough. I hope I will be able to find some nice Japanese bodies in the group - and if I am lucky - a Crystal or two!)

The spawning mats that you use, are they foating or sinking. And if they sink how do you get them to do that? I have found a place that sells mats of short grass looking plastic plants, supposedly for fry to hide in, but they float.

Good luck with your fry this year. I hope you get some crystals out of them.

I have had great success with these:

http://www.nnnn.com/product/index.jsp?...ly&keepsr=1

I cut the mats in half - and I can fit anywhere from one to four in a 30 gallon tank or 20 gallon tank or a 40 breeder - whatever I am using to raise the fry in.

Since I have bare bottomed tanks, the mats do not have anything to weigh them down. So to keep them from floating I simply put a stone on them. I have a nice set of pretty stones I used to use in the tanks for decor. THey have mostly all been pulled, but still do this job very nicely. A 2-3 inch stone will hold a mat down nicely. When I am ready to pull them, the stone is lifted (and used in the hatching tank - for there are usually eggs on the stone, too), the mat gently rinsed and then placed into the hatching tank.

I also have used these:

http://www.nnnn.com/product/index.jsp?...ly&keepsr=1

For more upright plants. Some fish like to have the plants brush by them as they spawn. They seem to do a better job of it if they feel they are "nesting" in the taller plants. I weigh them down with stones glued on the bottom or whatever I have at hand to stick on them. They, too, can be gently rinsed and set in a hatching tank. Any fry that are having trouble making it from the bottom to the surface for that "gulp of air" can use an upright plant such as these as an interim resting place on it's way to the surface. They have nice soft, rounded leaves that do not harm a zealous spawner.

May I get a cull?

Shipping can be very expensive for a "cull"..... Where are you located?

Virginia...