Onyx Percula

[Chad Vossen]

if you would like to view larger photos, go to my blog and click on the photos. then click on them again to "zoom in" to full size. i did good with getting some pretty decent photos.

http://chadvossen.blogspot.com/2010/04/onyx-clownfish.html

well, i got some onyx clownfish eggs from Bill Capman today, with the help of nate. i'm very excited to have the opportunity to work with such great clownfish. i'll have more complete updates on my blog site, with photos posted on TCMAS for sure.

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g291/armagedon48/onyx%20clownfish/100_1778.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g291/armagedon48/onyx%20clownfish/100_1799.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g291/armagedon48/onyx%20clownfish/100_1809.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g291/armagedon48/onyx%20clownfish/100_1814.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g291/armagedon48/onyx%20clownfish/100_1810.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g291/armagedon48/onyx%20clownfish/100_1812.jpg

[drkris]

Sweet!

[Lurch]

I want on the waiting list for these!

[this1fish]

Awesome! Let us know how they go! Btw what is the origin of these guys?

[nate_mcnasty]

they were from C-Quest around 12 years ago i believe

[Chad Vossen]

Awesome! Let us know how they go! Btw what is the origin of these guys?


EDIT: thanks nate,

they were from C-Quest around 12 years ago i believe

[this1fish]

Holy crap 12yrs old? Very nice! Keep us updated! I wouldn't mind another line of C-quest!

[benihana]

Very Nice!


Can you tell us a little more about this set up? I have heard that the RBTA's make the Onyx loose their black, have you had any issues with that with these guys??

[nate_mcnasty]

Very Nice!


Can you tell us a little more about this set up? I have heard that the RBTA's make the Onyx loose their black, have you had any issues with that with these guys??

i guess around 12 years. i'm not sure how long they have been with the nem but i think it has been most of there lives. i don't know the exact gallons i'm assuming 100-150 total water volume. the tank has 400w MH over it has a small downdraft skimmer hooked up to it. i don't know what else to say about the system hahah

[stuckey_t]

I would also like to be on the "list" for 2 pairs of juveniles when they hit sufficient size to sell;) The parents look beautiful! :beerchug:congrats on being able to grow them up!!!

[Chad Vossen]

well, we'll have to wait a bit longer. the eggs had fungus this morning.

possible reasons may include:

- aeration on the eggs not enough. my ocellaris eggs were aerated much better when i moved them to the rearing tank. with the tile, i used a bubble wand, but the pump was operating rather weakly and only fine bubbles were coming out. i may need more vigorous airation to get them to hatch.

- my monkeying around with the tile and the microscope could have added to the already stressful transportation of the eggs.

- for the next batch of eggs, i think i'll treat the water in the bag with maracin to reduce the chance of fungus.

[kbb0118]

Looking great! Microscope is my next purchase. What do you use?

[Chad Vossen]

Looking great! Microscope is my next purchase. What do you use?

just an amscope and my point and shoot camera. i hold the camera up to the eyepiece and it works great.

[curlyq]

Very Nice!


Can you tell us a little more about this set up? I have heard that the RBTA's make the Onyx loose their black, have you had any issues with that with these guys??

I've spoken with several breeders of onyx percs and there seems to be some theories as to why some Onyx loose their black and some keep it. First, we have to understand why an onyx appears black. There seems to be two different "ways" that a perc becomes onyx - environmental and genetics. The genetics seem to be the easiest to understand and are akin to human skin coloration. Some people (and some fish) just seem to be genetically predisposed to being darker. Even in winter, there's some people that are very dark, right? Same with Onyx. Given the correct genetics some onyx will maintain their dark coloration regardless of their environment. What about environment? Some Onyx can be considered "tannable". Given proper nutrition and high intensity lighting some percs will "tan" and become onyx. (some people will burn, others will tan) The onyx coloration seems to be a combination of genetic and environmental factors.

An onyx clownfish that are captive breed have been line breed to produce a higher percentage of onyx colored babies. Even still, why will some loose black in a BTA and others won't? This seems to lie under the environmental factors category. For some reason, BTA's and LTA's seem to have a "bleaching" effect on the black coloration of those Onyx that have colored up more so from the environmental "tannable" type. A similar reaction can be seen with onyx parents who are kept in a "breeding" setup with only NO ambient light. "tannable" onyx will loose onyx coloration and look more like a true-perc whereas an onyx that has the darker coloration more attributed to genetics will maintain black coloration better in sub-optimal conditions.

This can also account for wild caught onyx coming in that are gorgeous, but then loose significant amount of black within a few months. The fish's "tan" has faded because the lights in our tanks (even 400W MH) are much less intense than sun-light out on the reef.

What does this mean for the onyx in this thread? Since they are being hosted by a BTA for 12 years without loosing black coloration, they seem to have a very strong genetic trait for the onyx coloration. This doesn't mean that all babies will be onyx, or all will have this "lasting" ability to stay dark in a BTA/LTA, but the probability will be much better. Very good looking fish for sure!

[curlyq]

I just read your blog and saw that the eggs died over night. Did you aerate the eggs at all? You didn't mention it in your blog that I saw.

[SuperSteveMan]

How did you take the pictures?

[nate_mcnasty]

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2654/4050194441_8db107b266_b.jpg
here is a picture of the female under the nem

i'm going to be taking some better picture of the parents

[Chad Vossen]

I just read your blog and saw that the eggs died over night. Did you aerate the eggs at all? You didn't mention it in your blog that I saw.

the air pump that i used must have a rip in the diaphragm. it wasnt operating very well when i first set it up, then i noticed i had a valve on the hose, so i turned it up which seemed to make it work how i wanted it to work.

next morning, after seeing the eggs dead, i noticed my bubble wand was NOT doing much at all. still had bubbles, really fine mist like bubbles though. i'll be poking holes in the bubble wand to ensure larger bubbles, AND using a different air pump next time.

while under the microscope, the babies were very much alive, as i would see eyes moving and internal movement as well.

[Chad Vossen]

How did you take the pictures?

i've got a microscope which i just aim my camera on the eyepiece and take pictures.

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g291/armagedon48/100_1821.jpg

[coralreefer]

I am really loving the pictures that you are getting with that microscope! :beerchug:

[Chad Vossen]

would like to note that these are solomon island percula, with onyx coloration.

finally got some eggs to hatch! one of my ocellaris pairs fostered these eggs for two days while taking care of their own eggs. last night the percula eggs hatched in the larval tank and this morning I got them going with rotifers and greenwater!

[pLee.dCoP]

That's sweet!!!

[reeflover]

Congratulations Chad!:beerchug:

[bkoppes]

Congrats!!

[Chad Vossen]

the larvae are doing great, and have fat little bellies already.

[mpedersen]

would like to note that these are solomon island percula, with onyx coloration.

So they are not C-Quest fish as initially stated?

[capman]

They are Solomon Island black perculas purchased from Inland Aquatics approximately 13 or 14 years ago (they were something like 15 months old at the time, making the pair 14 or 15 years old now - and they still spawn regularly). Inland Aquatics said the fish came from C-Quest. This was back before anyone talked about onyx clowns. I don't know how much selective breeding was involved in producing this pair. My impression at the time was that they were not the product of selective breeding, but it is possible I did not have complete information.

They lived with a long-tentacle anemone (Macrodactyla) for a year or so at first, then they used Xenia elongata as a surrogate host for at least a year or two. For close to ten years (I sort of forget now) they have lived with the rose bubble tip anemone.

It takes these fish quite a long time to color up. They start out being sort of a muddy brown color - definitely not striking fish at all at first (at the time Morgan Lidster at Inland Aquatics described them as being the ugliest clowns when young, but most attractive when fully mature). Then at about a year and a half (if I am remembering correctly) they start to develop the black coloration. I don't remember how long it took to fully develop, but I think they might have been about two years old before they were "finished".

[capman]

I'm excited that Chad is having success with these young. I have been meaning to try raising some up for, like, ten years, but other things have always seemed to get in the way of finding time to get set up to do this.

I'm excited to be getting some young back from Chad once they have grown up a bit, and I'm glad that he will be able to benefit from this too.