Re: APR by Ocean Star

["Mike Jacobs" <mjacobs2@tampabay.rr.com>]

Folks.....I am really not angry at all.....I promise but.........the premise
was that the lady was removing the eggs and trying to get them to live.
There should be no reason other than water quality and/or tank conditions
that should prevent that from happening.  Young fry........rams or other
fish, are simply eating machines....they don't think "HMMMMMM I think I'll
starve."......they react to movement and their instincts are to hit anything
that is small and moves.  If they are swimming they are eating unless some
condition is so wrong as to prevent the eating......I repeat
please......once the eggs have hatched the only reason for young fry not to
eat properly is the size of the food or the water condition.....including
temperature...hint, hint........rams (82-83 degrees......not an absolute but
makes things easier)  I have never......that's a big word.......in some 37
years of raising young fry watched the fry simply pass up the
food...........exceptions:  the 3 saltwater fish I spawned in 1972 in the
middle of Indiana (I have dated slides of the occasions)   and    the young
killifish (Nothos. and the E. annulatus) that were simply too small for
anything except infusoria.....now I know better.  As mentioned two of the
batches of rams I raised lately had bb shrimp and nothing else......not even
plants in the tank.  That has been my experience.....end of story.......it
was the same story 8-9 years ago when in a period of about 3+ years I
produced and sold maybe..........3000 + young rams to the local stores.
OK.......now the question about letting the parents (female) raise
them..........if you want to change the from apples to oranges then fine.
We are back to the age old question......."My rams eat their eggs what do I
do?"...........if you want to speak to that question separately from the
above question then fine.  But I will tell you up front that I take eggs
from the parents......all apistos..... anytime I wish to have a huge hatch
and get the parents back into shape to spawn more quickly or it's a rare
fish that I want to produce........I am one of those "EVIL" aquarists..and
it doesn't bother me at all that others of you believe something different
from me.......the only thing that bothers me is that some of you folks
believe what you want to believe and that all other people are stupid and
should be avoided like a plague........but I will listen to you and learn
from you..........  If you folks think that pulling eggs is going to change
the course of events for all rams for an eternity then I plead
guilty.............but it won't........it pure and simply won't (my opinion
only).  I presently have 300-400 rams in my fish room from 3 weeks old to 6
weeks old who have never seen their parents..................they will raise
their young, as adults, if the conditions are to their liking and the eggs
are left with them.  To address the statement below about being better with
the parents "he thinks"..........I would love to speak with him and
investigate why in my tanks that seems not to be the case.  I am not saying
that it doesn't happen......just I would like to find out WHY it happens in
his........I believe him that it seems to happen!!!

Mike Wise........it probably would be easier to put in the Java moss but to
maximize the eating in the first 2 days a "crushing" of even the Java moss
seems to put more little critters into solution.  I wouldn't argue that but
in dealing with the Northo. rachovii (killifish) for instance........who
like food smaller than bb shrimp for 2-3 days, I seem to have vastly better
survival rates when I crush some plant material as opposed to just putting
in the plant.......although just putting in the plants seems to  work to a
good degree.  Right now I am raising a hatch of 100-175 N. rachovii that are
about 4 weeks old........help.....does anyone want 30 or forty.........;-)
;-)

You all have a great new day...............

Mike

Mike Jacobs
Center for Advanced Technologies
Lakewood H.S.
St Pete, Fl  33705
mjacobs2@tampabay.rr.com


----- Original Message -----

> I've raised lots of rams and for some reason they seem to do a lot
> better if you can keep them with the parents for 2 days after they are
> free swimming.  When they have been removed before that I can get big
> losses.
>




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