Breeding Journal DataSheet
This first post should be updated regularly to include new information as events take place or changes are made to your system
General Species: Bursatella leachii (Blue dot Sea Hare)
Social Structure: Simultaneous hermaphrodites
Size of Individuals: ~4 inches
Age of Individuals: Unknown
Date added to Tank: 3-16-2013
Broodstock Tank Details Size of Tank: Breeder basket in a 50gallon; moved to 30 gallon cube on 3-30-2013
Substrate Details: None; Sand in the 30 gallon
Filtration Details: Small sea clone skimmer in the 50 gallon; canister filter in the 30 gallong
Water Changes: ~10% a week, sometimes more, sometimes less
Water Temperature: 80F
Lighting: T5, 6 bulbs
Lighting Cycle: 14 hours on, 10 off
Other Tank Inhabitants: Elysia sp. in the breeder basket also
Broodstock Feeding Details Food Types: Dried nori sheets, scraps of hair algae (species unknown currently) from the 50 gallon, Chaetomorpha sp., Ulva sp.; spirulina and kelp "tabs"
Feeding Schedule: I put in a new nori sheet every 3 days so far. The rest has been slow to disappear
Spawning Details Date of First Spawn: 3-17-2013
Spawn Time of Day: Unknown
Dates of Consecutive Spawns: 3-20-2013, 3-24-2013, 4-1-2013 x2 (?)
Courtship Details: None noted
Egg Size: 160 +/- 4uM shell size
Egg Color: Yellowish white eggstrings
Egg Count: Not counted
Hatch Details Hatch Date: 3-23-2013; 3-30-2013; 4-5-2013; 4-7-2013
Hatch Time of Day: I often notice the hatch has started in the afternoon. It seems as though they will continue to hatch as long as the egg string is not empty yet. The 4-7-2013 hatch continued all night, although the hatching container was also lit all night. I am not certain if they would continue to hatch during the night if there was no light.
# Days after Spawn: 6 days, assuming it was the first egg string that hatched, although it seems like as short as 4 or 5 days depending on the temperature.
Larvae Description: Small shell, look like rotifers to the eye
Larval Tank Details Temperature: Room temp ~70
Size of Larval Tank: 1L Erlenmeyer flask, 1L plastic square-footprint containers, 500mL square containers
Substrate Details: None
Other Tank Decor: None
Filtration Details: None other than live phytoplankton
Lighting: Ambient light from southern facing window and fluorescent strip light
Lighting Cycle: 24/7
Water Changes: Larval Feeding Details Food Types: Attempt 2: tetraselmis mainly with small amounts of Isochrysis (failed due to possible addition of vinegar); Attempt 3 and 4: containers set up with one algae type of either T-Iso, nanno, tetraselmis, or C. gracilis
Feeding Schedule: added to flask when filled with veligers
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 (No Pictures or Videos in the Section Please) Miscellaneous Information: Some papers:
- First Report on Reproduction of Lessepsian Ragged Sea Hare, Bursatella leachii (De Blainville, 1817) (Mollusca:Gastropoda) in Izmir Bay (Aegean Sea, Turkey), Tanrikul and Okyol; Journal of Fisheries Sciences, 2012
- Behavior Patterns of the Aplysiid Gastropod Bursatella leachii in its Natural Habitat and in the Laboratory, Ramos et al; Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 1995
- Biology, Metamorphosis and Postlarval Development of Bursatella Leachii Plei Rang (Gastropoda: Opisthobranchia), John A. Paige, Bulletin of Marine Science, 1988
- Paige, J.A. 1986. The laboratory culture of two aplysiids, Aplysia brasiliana Rang 1828 and Bursatella leachii plei (Rang 1828) (Gastropoda: Opisthobranchia) in artificial seawater. Veliger 29(1): 64-69.
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<message edited by shannpeach on Monday, April 8, 2013 2:47 PM>