Breeding Journal, Species: [Cerithium atratum]

General
Species:  Cerithium atratum
Social Structure:  Two in the tank but not "paired" off
Size of Individuals:   1"
Age of Individuals:  Unknown
Date added to Tank:  July 1 2013

Broodstock Tank Details
Size of Tank:  20g H (24x12x16)
Substrate Details:  None
Filtration Details:  ASM G4 skimmer, biopellet reactor, just recently lightly loaded with pellets
Water Changes:  5% twice weekly
Water Temperature: 75 
Lighting:  Ecoxotic Panorama LED
Lighting Cycle:  16 on, 8 off
Other Tank Inhabitants:  3 stripe damsel, Neon dottyback, Striped blenny, Green brittle star

Broodstock Feeding Details
Food Types:  Algae on glass, fish poop, uneaten food
Feeding Schedule:  24x7 scavenging

Spawning Details
Date of First Spawn:  Aug 4, 2103
Spawn Time of Day:  Unknown- night or morning
Dates of Consecutive Spawns: 
Courtship Details:  Nothing in particular noted
Egg Size:  Very tiny, almost indistinguishable from the others- a fraction of a millimeter
Egg Color:  white
Egg Count: probably over 1000

Hatch Details
Hatch Date:  8/8/2013
Hatch Time of Day:  8pm
# Days after Spawn:  4
Larvae Description:  Very tiny, like rotifers in size. Attracted to the surface/light.


Larval Tank Details
Temperature:  Ambient, 70-72
Size of Larval Tank:  Specimen container, 3"x5"x5"
Substrate Details:  none
Other Tank Decor: 
Filtration Details:  None. Airstone with gentle bubbling.
Lighting:  Indirect from nearby shop light
Lighting Cycle:  16on, 8 off
Water Changes:  none

Larval Feeding Details
Food Types:  Didn't know what they ate. Tried some small pieces of dehydrated sheet algae (nori) but they didn't seem attracted to it before they perished.
Feeding Schedule: 

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: 



You will be required to provide photographic evidence in this thread of each event submitted for the MBI Program.
If your thread does not contain these photos the MBI Committee will not be able to approve your reports.

"If everything is going good, you've obviously overlooked something."- Martin Moe, Jr

Found a really cool looking egg mass in my tank. The only pair of anything in there were some cerith snails. Did some online research, the eggs appear to be from the ceriths.
 

Attached Image(s)

"If everything is going good, you've obviously overlooked something."- Martin Moe, Jr

SWEET!!!!

I removed a portion of one of the egg strings on day1 and transferred it to a small specimen container with an airline going into it and a slow bubble.
 

 
 

Attached Image(s)

"If everything is going good, you've obviously overlooked something."- Martin Moe, Jr

Earlier today I snapped a couple of photos. I noticed that the eggs were darker. With a 6x magnifying glass I could see they were developing well and not getting fungused or anything.
 

 
 

Attached Image(s)

"If everything is going good, you've obviously overlooked something."- Martin Moe, Jr

Tonight around 8pm I noticed that the egg chain had started breaking apart. The water was full of tiny specks that I can only assume are larvae. I put in some small pieces of green sheet dehydrated algae because I don't really know what to feed them or if they even need anything, and the container is totally bare of anything like algae.
 

Attached Image(s)

"If everything is going good, you've obviously overlooked something."- Martin Moe, Jr

Some video. Not great, but then again, it never is... (it's the best I can capture)
 

"If everything is going good, you've obviously overlooked something."- Martin Moe, Jr

Hey Joel, when you say the water was full of tiny specs you mean these larvae are pelagic? 

That was my conclusion, yes, that they are a pelagic/planktonic larvae. The water is filled with them at a rather high density. They look almost like rotifers in size, maybe slightly larger. I didn't notice anything in the water prior to the hatch.
 
I wish I had a microscope.
 
This morning the egg string is completely disintegrated and just barely distinguishable.

"If everything is going good, you've obviously overlooked something."- Martin Moe, Jr