[intekhab]

Just curious how many people are keeping CB successfully? I got a call from a LFS that they got some CB in, and when I visited the store, fish was appearing quite shy. They tried to show me the fish eating, but it was too shy. I just didn't feel comfortable.

Later I picked up a CB after work from a LFS I've been visiting quite a lot lately and their CB didn't look shy to me. Beside it was there for almost 7-8 days and I had nothing but good experience there. When I brought him yesterday (around 7PM), I took extra care to ensure he's acclimated right (temp adjustment and then drip, drip and drip).

I really wanted those Aiptasia to have a enemy in the tank. Aiptasia driving me crazy and I don’t want to go Peppermint Shrimp route. Anyway, long story short, he/she appear to be fine but today I saw it die before my eyes It was not injured or anything, but it was on its side and breathing fast.

At first I felt very very very guilty! I felt like something I didn't do which cause the fish to die. I removed his/her body quickly and wanted to do a major test (just in case something gone severely wrong)

Nitrite - 0
Nitrate - 0
Ammonia 0
pH 82
Temp 82 (as it was yesterday)
Phosphate < 0.05
SG 1.025

My other fishes look happy and they are not acting abnormal at all. In fact, they are eating voraciously as always. Throughout the tank everything looks fine. I just don't understand if that travel from Cobb area to Lilburn stress the fish so much??

I sure hope it wasn't a cyanide catch. Then again, how could that have survived all 7-8 days at the LFS then?

Just felt like sharing the experience and want to hear if any of you are keeping CB successfully and how are you doing that. Even if CB cannot help me with Aiptasia, I just love the way they look.

Last time I felt this bad when I lost my year old Porcupine Puffer about 2-3 years ago and I had this fish for not even a day

 

[MontanaRocknReefer]

I have purchased 3 copperband butterflies in my war against aiptasia! The first one I got died within two days and was replaced by a second one which wiped out all my aiptasia so I thought. Then it up and completely disappeared in my tank and shortly afterwards the aiptasia showed up again.
I purchased my third copperband and not sure at this point if it is doing damaged to the aiptasia. I have gotten the copperband to eat mysis shrimp with no problem which is good. I did purchase 4 peppermint shrimp and on two occasions I saw them totally destroy an aiptasia for a meal.

 

[intekhab]

Thanks for the response Johny...Its amazing how those fish are hit or miss...

How long have you had your 3rd Copperband? I got PE Mysis after reading a lot of people had success with that for CB. But mine didn't show any interest but I was giving it a little more time. I tried fish eggs about 3-4 hours later, but still no interest

So, your current Copperband going after the Aiptasia at all? Btw, I decided not to go with Perppermint shrimp as they destroyed a great pod population once I had in my previous tank. They also are very rude (walk all over corals and stuff

PS hit or miss with Aiptasia but yours look like at least controlling some....

 

[sally]

fish eggs?

This reply doesn't help you on your post about the CB but I'm curious when you stated you tried to feed it fish eggs. What kind of fish eggs? Where did you get them? Thanks.

 

[JennM]

Copperbands ARE a cyanide-targeted species. Not all copperbands are caught that way, there are net-caught available. Depends who your LFS buys them from.

8 days in the LFS, plus a week in transit from the collector to exporter to importer to LFS is realistic for a juiced fish to live. Some live hours, some days, some a few weeks. Some can live for years if the concentration wasn't that great, and the fish tolerated it well.

It's hard to track where the fish came from, and if it might have been squirted -- There are a lot of lies in this industry.

If your LFS is picky - they can find themselves net-caught specimens. Not knowing the store and not knowing who they are buying from, I'm not going to leap to a conclusion regarding this particular specimen (and I don't want to know what store...not trying to cause conflict), it's entirely possible that this one just failed to thrive - that happens occasionally even with net caught (but a LOT less frequently).

Make sure the fish is eating in the LFS and feed it whatever the store was to get it to keep feeding, and know your store, and trust them. If you can't be sure about the capture methods, I suggest you avoid the species that are usually targeted. That's the only real way to assure clean fish.

Jenn

 

[Phantom Phish]

I really wanted those Aiptasia to have a enemy in the tank. Aiptasia driving me crazy and I don't want to go Peppermint Shrimp route.

I'm curious. Why don't you like the Peppermint Shrimp for Aiptasia control? Have you had them attack other things?

 

[intekhab]

This reply doesn't help you on your post about the CB but I'm curious when you stated you tried to feed it fish eggs. What kind of fish eggs? Where did you get them? Thanks.

Sally, Cappuccino Bay Aquarium off of Roswell sell this fish eggs that are orange in color. I think Bobby can tell you the exact type of fish eggs they are but they spread int he tank like pallett food and fish seems to love it.

 

[intekhab]

Thanks Jenn for the insight. If a fish was cyanide caught, would there be any evidence show? The CB still look so nice color as if it was sleeping

 

[intekhab]

I'm curious. Why don't you like the Peppermint Shrimp for Aiptasia control? Have you had them attack other things?

This is a debatable issue among many reefers, but I am talking from experience.

My old tank had a nice DSB and a great population of pods, worms and various interesting critters. But then I got one of those "Package Deals" from online and added about 5-6 Peppermint. In just a few weeks, I was lucky enough to see any pods moving around, or those worms and stuff. Besides that, they used to walk all over my LTA, Button Polyps, Mushrooms and various soft corals. I also hated the fact they snatch food away from my bubble coral and LTA. They annoyed the heck out of me throughout the time they stayed in that tank.

Only Good thing was... every now and then, my friends and family noticed an amazing display.... hundreds and thousands of baby Peppermint. My fish used to go crazy during that time. It gave me quite a thrill looking at that phenomenon.

But don't take my word for it. Many people had great success with it and even keep Peppermint in their refugium. Do some search on it though?

 

[willtel]

I don't have much experience with Copperbands but I have heard that the ones caught in Australia are hardier and have better coloring than specimens caught in the Philippines and Indonesia. You may want to try and get one of those if you attempt it again.

That being said my peppermint shrimp is a model citizen but I don't have close to enough room for a CBB.

 

[intekhab]

willtel, I heard the same thing but its way too hard to tell the difference. Probably there's none.

You just have to buy it from a LFS that you trust. I think Australian kind is called "Mueller's Copperband" and usually cost higher.

 

[willtel]

If you are willing to have one shipped this place has them, http://www.themarinecenter.com Much more $$ than the standard ones but flushing one isn't cheap either.

 

[JennM]

Aussie fish are net caught, Indo and PI *might* be and then again they *might not be* - depends on who collects them. I know only of one all-net-caught exporter in PI.

As for "telling" - no unless you send the fish off to a lab, there's no way to tell - and even then if they excreted all the cyanide it's almost impossible to tell. You could cut the fish open and see if there's any liver damage, that's a telltale sign - liver sometimes turns to mush and that's what kills the fish.

Jenn

 

[Ray1214]

What is the "J" crowd? Yalls names?

 

[JennM]

What is the "J" crowd? Yalls names?

It's a secret

Little thing we have going on the general forum

Jenn