Is it possible to raise any type of babies in an ultra low flow fuge?

[matt frizz]

So my refugium is ultra low flow and it's basically a breeder net from petco. It works wonders though. My sump and the breeder net are crawling with all sorts of pods. I keep a mandarin in my display tank and feed it nothing and he's a fat boy.

 

Is it possible to raise any type of fish/invert babies in this type of set up? I know that some baby fish such as clownfish need to eat live rotifers. Is it possible that my fuge is also crawling with rotifers making it a perfect place to rear young?

 

I'm about to pull the trigger on some designer clowns of some kind and if they start to breed like my last pair did in my tank then maybe I could give it a shot and experiment. The flow is quite low and the babies could possibly be safe in the net regardless.

 

Could it be possible to keep sea horses down there instead? I'm just looking for some sump ideas and these thoughts crossed my mind.

[altolamprologus]

There are a couple species that may grow and settle in a fuge. Peppermint shrimp, for example, have been documented as a species that will grow on thier own under the right conditions. However, a breeder net is way too small and it would take a fuge of many dozens of gallons to raise anything without tons of work.

 

You could keep seahorses if your sump is upwards of 30 gallons and at least 2 feet tall. However, they would decimate the pod population down there and possible starve out your mandarin. Having any predators in the sump defeats the purpose of the sump anyway

[straydog]

Bangi cardinals are mouth brooders and if the male does his job correctly will spit out bangi fry. They need to be fed baby brine but would probably feed on pods also. If your thinking about breeding they may be a better choice than the clowns.

[altolamprologus]

Bangi cardinals are mouth brooders and if the male does his job correctly will spit out bangi fry. They need to be fed baby brine but would probably feed on pods also. If your thinking about breeding they may be a better choice than the clowns.

I believe he's talking about just dumping the babies in the sump and letting them fend for themselves. BTW bangaii cardinals are by no means easy. They're a royal pain in the @ss

[jeff@zina.com]

1) Try it. Nothing says it won't work.

2) Feed them. You can buy rotifers and just add them to your refugium.

3) Peppermint shrimp occasionally show up in my sump and/or refugium (They're separate for me) and do fine. I don't actively try to breed them.

 

Jeff