Our latest fish

[GraviT]

We picked up an Orange Spot (or longnose) Filefish last weekend. This little guy is very colorful and fun to watch, but also difficult to feed as they have a very small mouth. They are known acropora polyp feeders, so not for those into hardcore SPS. After my tank crash, I decided I didn't want acropora anymore..this will make sure I stick to it! :lol:

I'm still trying to get a good shot of Beaker, but here's what I have so far...

 

[ss95003]

love the colors.

 

[Reefmike]

Awesome looking fish! I've always thought they were really cool. Keep us updated on him.

 

[Guest]

i was going to get one from one of our sponsors and saw how difficult they are. might do a google search on them their has been some success on raising them especially in europe

 

[snowsuger]

We (okay, I...I'm the one who begged for this little guy...chicks - we do that :wink found some great information online from a gent who actually has a breeding pair! Josh at FG was nice enough to put up with our daily calls ("Is he eating yet??") and tried many different foods for us. Finally, we saw the little guy go after some Cyclop-eeze granules - but his mouth is so small that he couldn't eat the whole granule in one take!

Feeding has been a learning process for us. On night one we tried what was suggested online....a mash of various meaty foods smooshed into an acro skeleton. I think the sailfin and the Midas Blenny enjoyed that more than Beaker! After that, we offered him cyclops and frozen cyclop-eeze, which he picked at. Every day the little guy eats more and more and really seems to look forward to that cyclops cube on his favorite powerhead. He's actually gaining a little weight and coloring up, it seems. To make sure he's fed throughout the day (supposedly they have small digestive tracts and need to eat more frequently) we have an auto-feeder that spills the cyclop-eeze granules (and other pelleted food for the other fishy kids) twice a day.
So far little Beaker is going strong and loves cyclops and frozen and granule cyclop-eeze. I'm trying to find the Cyclop-eeze "wafers" locally since he'll probably have an easier time "nomming" the crushed flakes. He's a cutie!!

So far so good.....going on two weeks now. Fingers crossed!

 

[Wes]

that is a truly amazing fish and im glad he is going strong. i saw one up at FG once and seriously thought about giving it a try but did not want to risk it. good luck and definately keep us updated!

 

[GraviT]

@snowsuger wrote:

Congratulations on your first post!

I don't deserve any credit here, Jayme is the one doing all of the research and work to make sure Beaker stays well fed. I'm a lucky guy to have somebody like her at my side.

 

[GraviT]

Well, we lost the little guy. Unfortunately, a Clown Tang that we introduced to the tank without quarantine brought along a case of Brooknella (I believe based on the symptoms). So far, the casualties have been the Clown Tang, Naso Tang, Longnose Filefish, Red Lip Blenny, and our female Ocellaris. The remaining fish are all doing well.

Mental Note: Always quarantine tangs! :sad:

 

[Jaguar]

Oh! I'm really sorry for the loss at least when your ready. You have the experience and knowledge to try again. Good luck.

 

[mpedersen]

@kuyatwo wrote:

Kuyatwo, your comment has piqued my curiosity. Do you have the reference of who is working with Oxymonacanthus longirostris in Europe? I know Iris Bonig was rearing Acriecthys tomentosus, the Matted / Bristletail / Seagrass Filefish, in Germany. Only person I know who's "raised' Harlequin Filefish is me, here in the good 'ole USA - obviously if there's someone else out there breeding this species I want to know so I can compare notes!!!

@GraviT wrote:

Really bummed to hear it because it sounded to me like you got over the hump. At least you know what killed it and why it died. I wish you nothing but luck if you try them again!

Matt

 

[Wes]

sorry to hear kevin, im glad he was doing well this long at least. definately good luck if you try again, keep us updated!

matt - i would love to see and hear more on your efforts with the fish, im sure there is a lot we can learn from ya. thanks for stopping by!

 

[mpedersen]

@Wes wrote:

Hey Wes - I keep a google search agent going looking for discussions on this fish, which is how I found this thread I could write volumes on the fish, and kinda have LOL! There's a 38 page thread on MOFIB that documents most of my efforts..obviously a long read, and you have to decipher a lot and draw your own conclusions. I took all that experience though, and came up with the 4000 word article for CORAL back in March/April of 2009 - http://www.coralmagazineus.com/product_p/cus32.htm. Basically, wrapped everything up in a nice, concise package for my fellow hobbyists. Best bet is grab that back issue first, then ask away with any questions ya have!

Really curious if there's someone else in Europe working with these now....Kuyatwo, please chime in!!!

Matt

 

[Wes]

i actually have that and remember skimming the article. im gonna have to pull it back off the shelf and check it out again. thanks! also, i sent ya a pm.