Breeding Journal, Species: Stenopus tenuirostris

General
Species:  Stenopus tenuirostris
Social Structure:  Pair
Size of Individuals:  1"
Age of Individuals:  Unknown
Date added to Tank:  7/27/12

Broodstock Tank Details
Size of Tank:  25g
Substrate Details:  Crushed Coral
Filtration Details:  x3 HOB
Water Changes:  Once a week
Water Temperature:  78.5ºF
Lighting:  4 bulb T5
Lighting Cycle: 10 hrs          
Other Tank Inhabitants:  1x Eviota bifasciata, x2 Synchiropus picturatus, x1 Amblyeleotris aurora, x2 Gnathophyllum americanum  x1 Alpheus immaculatus

Broodstock Feeding Details
Food Types:  Frozen mysis, cyclops, ova
Feeding Schedule:  Once a day

Spawning Details
Date of First Spawn:  7/30/12
Spawn Time of Day:  Unknown
Dates of Consecutive Spawns:  3/18/13, 4/1/13, 4/22/13, 5/14/13, 6/6/13  
Courtship Details:  Not seen
Egg Size:  1 mm (?)
Egg Color:  Blue
Egg Count:  Hundreds

Hatch Details
Hatch Date:  4/20/13 (20 day incubation period)     
Hatch Time of Day:  About an hour after lights out. Lights out at 11:00pm
# Days after Spawn:  8 (possibly more not sure the exact date of spawn but I think 8 days later, will know for sure on the next round)
Larvae Description:  The size of mysids, flick to swim, very powerful and fast, attracted to light, some color present but mostly clear, very large- about the size of adult mysids, large three pronged rostrum, shaped like a prawn


Larval Tank Details
Temperature:  78.5ºF
Size of Larval Tank:  6"x6"x6"
Substrate Details:  None
Other Tank Decor:  None (Kreisel)
Filtration Details:  None
Lighting:  4 bulb T5
Lighting Cycle:  10 hrs
Water Changes:  Every other day.   

Larval Feeding Details
Food Types: Live Baby Brine Shrimp Only               
Feeding Schedule:  Constant, more added everyday

Metamorphosis/Settlement
Date of Settlement Start: 
Days after Hatch: 
Date of Settlement End: 
Description of Fry: 

Grow-Out Tank Details
Temperature: 
Size of Grow-Out Tank: 
Substrate Details: 
Other Tank Decor: 
Filtration Details: 
Lighting: 
Lighting Cycle: 
Water Changes: 
Size at Transfer: 
Age at Transfer: 

Grow-Out Feeding Details
Food Types: 
Feeding Schedule: 

Additional Information
Journal article on raising Golden Coral Banded Shrimp by Harbor Branch/Florida Institute of Technology: http://digitool.fcla.edu/...9tZWRpYS8zMTc0MDQ3.PDF
Miscellaneous Information: 
Seem to spawn immediately after molting.

Mom and Dad:

 
Mom with her eggs:

 
Mom when I told her I needed a better pic of her eggs.  She pinched me.  A few times...

The female still has her eggs and I have a kreisel ready to go.  Oh and I'm grabbing rotifers tomorrow.

The eggs have changed a bit and I'm guessing they hatch tomorrow or the next day. Kreisel, rotifers and bbs at the ready.

We have larvae. Hatched on 3/26/13.

 

 

This is awesome!  Be sure to go update your journal's opening post with the hatch info!  Congrats!

 
Thanks! Updated.  Been busy lately and forgot.  Gonna get some new pics. They have red stripes now.

Day 6.  The larva now have red coloration on them although it looks orange/yellow under the microscope.  I think they are bigger but have no way to tell.  I have not seen any molts in the tank yet.  They are no longer attracted to light too.  Also the parents spawned again today.  This time I will have the exact number of days between spawn and hatch for sure.
 

 

 
View of the Rostrum:

 

12 days.  I know this pic is horrible but they would not hold still today and I got frustrated.  I'll try for some more soon.

How long have you kept the parents in the breeder basket?  Was that a temporary home or their permanent one? 
 
Your journal datasheet says you keep macroalgae and liverock rubble in the with larval shrimps...has that caused any damage to them or impede flow in any way?

I have had the parents in the breeder box for about a month now I think.  It is now their permanent home as they used to live in my planted tank.  I ended up putting the larval shrimp in a kreisel so I will go fix that.  Sorry for the confusion.

Day 16:

 

How many do you have still? Any days with significant die-off? Are you feeding just bbs or other things in addition?

This is just wonderful!  Great job!!!!

They're getting so big! And coloring up very nicely too! Great job, Bongo

 
I have about 75-100 left.  There was no big die off, just a few here and there as days go by.  I am only feeding bbs at this time since it seems to be working quite well.


 
Thank you!
 

 
Thanks!

Have you properly timed your spawn to hatch now (I saw the 4-1 spawn..has it hatched?)

Nope I'm still waiting on this batch which the spawn occurred on 4/1/2013.  I now know the eggs go through a significant color change right before hatching so I will be ready to collect the larvae when the time comes.

Day 19! Did some lighting correction in photoshop this time so you can see the true colors.  Look at the full belly!  I increased the food density lately and today I could for sure see food in the gut.

 
 

Day 23!

 

Hatched last night!

New spawn.  Lost all of the larvae from the last hatch because I did't have any bbs ready for them.  I'll be ready for the next round.  I also have less larvae from the older hatch because I accidentally dropped and spilled the kreisel when I was transferring the larvae to a new, clean kreisel.  It was slimy and had algae all over it and I had a bad grip on it.  I'll always be more careful from now on though.  Guess this stuff just happens sometimes :/.

Day 33!

 

 

 

May 7, 2013 pics.  Day 37 and we have ANTENNAE! Well one antenna cause the other must have come off during the molt.  This guy appears to be the furthest along at about 0.9 cm long!   I can't even take the measurement pic under my microscope cause they are getting too big!
 

 

 

 

They're looking so good! Getting close to settling

Day 46.  I don't have any new pics because I am down to about 3 and don't want to risk hurting any of them.  These few may be behind because they are smaller and don't have antennae yet (or they may have just broke off).  I lost a few because the salinity snuck up on me one day when I left the lid open.

So close..you can do it!
 

 
If you know approximately when the hatch is coming you can prehatch and store in the fridge for a potentially several days...I don't hatch BBS every day in my basement, no sir.

 
I should try that although I DO have two hatcheries which alternate days so I USUALLY have fresh bbs every day no matter what.  Sometimes I forget to start a culture once in a while though.

Day 50.  Still don't want to risk hurting the remaining three by trying to remove them to take pics.  I might try to get pics with my DSLR but with them spinning around in the kreisel it makes it a bit difficult.  One is bigger, one is smaller, and one is in-between in terms of size.  The biggest one seemed to have molted yesterday and looked like he was eating his molt.  I have been doing daily water changes and of course feedings and the bbs density is always much more sparse by every night.  I know some of the bbs are dying because I suck out the build up of "dirt" in the kreisel every day but they have to be eating them too.

Only one left. :/

Good luck. We're rooting for you!

--Andy, the bucket man.
"Not to know the mandolin is to argue oneself unknown...." --Clara Lanza, 1886

53 Days.  Lost the last one yesterday (he disappeared) and wanted to wait till today to call it.  Guess I'll be trying again next time.  And next time I'm going to do water changes with new saltwater rather than from the display tank and also I will be topping off twice a day instead of once a day.  Kinda bummed cause I feel like I was close.  I mean I kept the things alive in the larval stage for a long time in my books.

Dang it. Sorry to hear. Keep at it, though. It's good that you have a new direction in mind for the next run.

--Andy, the bucket man.
"Not to know the mandolin is to argue oneself unknown...." --Clara Lanza, 1886

53 days - that's great. Good luck next time. Can you photo kreisel.
Tanks
 

Thanks! I will find a pic of it all clean cause it is really dirty right now.



Thank you!

Hey Man, 53 days is awesome.  You MUST keep with this, because trust me, persistence WILL pay off, and when it does...think "CORAL Magazine"
 

 
Umm that would be insane .  
 
Unfortunately I fell ill yesterday and was unable to prepare for the hatch which I wasn't even expecting until today so I will have to prepare for the next one.  It's happening though. I know I can do it if I got them that far already.

New hatch! 6/26/2013 11:30 PM. I was ready this time. They are in a kreisel with bbs newly hatched and I have three hatcheries alternating days so I will ALWAYS have fresh bbs everyday with leftovers from another hatchery if one somehow fails. Also I will be doing 2+ water changes per day with fresh SW instead of tank water. It's happening this time! If I got to 53 days last time with all my stupid mishaps, I know I can do it this time. Plus I have altolamprologus' help this time.