So, I have two pairs of spawning dottybacks, P. fridmani and P. aldabraensis. The neon dotty male eats his egg ball within 10 minutes of spawning, so I never would even have the chance of grabbing it unless I literally catch them in the act (and I have, saw the eggs, went to get my camera for a pic to use as "proof" and by the time I got back he had already eaten them).
Normally, and ideally, incubation would be left up to the male and I would definitely prefer that. However, the system currently has copper in it, so leaving the eggs is not an option if I want any change at larvae.
This article (previously linked to by JimWelsh)
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2008/10/breeder#section-8 states that if eggs are removed shortly after spawn (even if the spawn is in a copper treated system), they develop normally.
So what has everyone tried for incubation? What has worked and what hasn't? This isn't a short egg tumble just before hatch, but actually artificial incubation the entire length of egg development. Has anyone on here had success with that? What was done to sterilize the eggs? How often? I know there is a thread about incubating P. kauderni eggs and some of it may apply here, but I am also hoping for some advice specifically with Pseudochromis eggs...
My first attempt involved a 1L flask wrapped in gray plastic bags (to block some of the light) clamped in a broodstock tank. The way it was clamped had the flask bottom sort of at an angle. The egg ball was rinsed with aged ASW immediately after being pulled to remove any copper. I sterilized the eggs on Day 1 (the day after they were pulled) for 15 minutes using 5mL of hydrogen peroxide in 1L of aged ASW with gentle tumbling (recommended in Witt's book). The end of Day 2 showed that only 1/3 of the egg ball was developing. By the beginning of Day 3 the egg mass had begun to significantly break apart.
My next attempt I will invert a soda bottle and actually black it out with the exception of a small viewing window to see if less light will help. I think the main issue is likely water flow and water quality which I can also tweak.