Galaxy/fireworks rasbora

went to my lfs today to buy some new fish and saw these colourful little rasboras. they are to go with my scissortailed rasboras. they were only £1.49 each, so we got 5. got home to do my research on these only to discover they are now nearly extinct in the wild due to over fishing and should only be sold to breed from. I just thought rasboras.....they sound quite average, look very pretty. if only I knew how rare they were before! so..........has ANYONE on here got any of these and if so have you managed to breed them. anything I need to know about them. the lfs said feed daphinia, but from what i've read some people has used crushed flake, some have used frozen foods, some have used brine shrimp. any other suggestions? by the way it seems we have 2 boys and 3 girls.

tan

 

I've never heard that. They were just recently introduced to the hobby and stay SMALL. Never read that they are extinct, I don't think they are either. I think breeding them are a bit more tricky than some fish. I believe they are egg layers so you need broad leaf plants, don't know anymore.

 

that's good to hear ATM! I just bought them thinking they were "just another rasbora". the lfs and what i've read on the web says they stay about 2 inches. they are just babies at the mo..about 1.5 cm/under an inch. I was thinking as these are all very small fish that leads me to believe these may be captive bred. surely if wild caught they'd be an assortment of sizes? the lfs tank had them all at under an inch...and there were alot!
tan

 

Yes they are very pretty and I had heard the same thing about them being almost extinct. Maybe they will reed for you
Carol

 

went to my lfs today to buy some new fish and saw these colourful little rasboras. they are to go with my scissortailed rasboras. they were only £1.49 each, so we got 5. got home to do my research on these only to discover they are now nearly extinct in the wild due to over fishing and should only be sold to breed from. I just thought rasboras.....they sound quite average, look very pretty. if only I knew how rare they were before! so..........has ANYONE on here got any of these and if so have you managed to breed them. anything I need to know about them. the lfs said feed daphinia, but from what i've read some people has used crushed flake, some have used frozen foods, some have used brine shrimp. any other suggestions? by the way it seems we have 2 boys and 3 girls.

tan

Those are beautiful fish, I've never seen them before but I guess that makes sense given their current state. I'd really love to get my hands on a couple of males & females. Can my friend in Wigan pick them up? lol.. if he weren't abroad now for a few months. I've not bred rasboras, but the protein & all of live/frozen foods seem to be good for conditioning most fish to mate.

I found this about breeding at :
Water chemistry varies according to the location of wild-caught fish, but in general, for breeding, soft and slightly acidic water is preferred. Fine-leafed plants over which they can scatter their highly adhesive eggs will also be helpful. Suitable fine live foods will also be an invaluable conditioner for breeding fish. Hatching time is very short. Fry will appear after 24 to 30 hours, and grow rapidly when given the correct foods.

But I also found this page on Rasbora dorsiocellata: .. The 'reproduction' section on this page suggests this is the more typical rasbora mating/breeding behaviour so might be the way to go with the Galaxy.

I hope this is of some help to you and would love to see pics of them and any breeding efforts that you undertake.

 

i'll hope they'll breed ;D, but I can't even get babies from a guppy, so it seems I need more knowledge, experience and luck first!!! as they are still babies I have time yet!
I got them from leeds, west yorkshire. i'm sure it'll be a popular shop when people realise what's in there! it'd be worth the drive from wigan!!
at the mo they're getting daphnia every night. they get flakes every morning and night as do all my fish, but they don't seem to entertain them at all, so the other fish eat them. hopefully they'll take them some day! they didnt entertain the shrimp pellets either. I can guaruntee to have flakes in stock at home at all times!! live food is less reliable! got some brine shrimp eggs coming any day, so will be trying them on those. saves driving out to buy live food every few days (could get expensive ), so hopefully I'll get them to hatch and hopefully they'll eat them!
I will try and get some pics up on here tomorrow. they are tiny and i'm at taking pictures of fish, but I'll always try!! they look like leopard danios with red fins at the moment! they should get more colourful as they mature. the boys have more fluorescent red fins that catch the light. the girls are much paler. they shimmer a bit like my dwarf neon rainbows I got at the same time. they are very skittish still and dart about in a panicky way. my new rainbows are like that too. hopefully they'll all settle down over the next few days.

will keep you posted on their progress. hope I don't bore you all, but i'm very excited but scared :-\!!!! hope they do well!
tan

 

What I do instead of live foods is get the frozen cubes, keep them in the freezer until I need one, then I drop a cube into a cup of cool water to thaw the food out and feed it to them. I can't get live food around here in my little town.

Perhaps they'd take to color pellets? Good luck with them and pictures of them.

 

What I do instead of live foods is get the frozen cubes, keep them in the freezer until I need one, then I drop a cube into a cup of cool water to thaw the food out and feed it to them.  I can't get live food around here in my little town.

Perhaps they'd take to color pellets?  Good luck with them and pictures of them.

i've seen frozen foods in the lfs, but to be honest had no idea what to do with it or what types are suitable etc! I know they'll eat daphnia, so I always get that. frozen would be handy though. any recommendations on what type to get? the live food is about a 20-30min drive away, so its not too far, but far enough to look at alternatives to avoid going!!
thanks
tan

 

i've seen frozen foods in the lfs, but to be honest had no idea what to do with it or what types are suitable etc! I know they'll eat daphnia, so I always get that. frozen would be handy though. any recommendations on what type to get? the live food is about a 20-30min drive away, so its not too far, but far enough to look at alternatives to avoid going!!
thanks
tan

- I love this site but you'll probably not want to order the frozen food from here (shipping would be HUGE because it would have to be overnight), but it gives an idea of what's out there and look for locally.

The frozen brine shrimp, particularly the baby brine shrimp, would be nice and save you having to setup a hatchery & all.. although fresh live ones are a treat for the fish. I wish the stores here would carry that for our Platy fry.
The tubifex worms or bloodworms might be good, but bloodworms would probably be easier for those rare beauties to eat.
You could also look for a 'formula' type frozen food like the Ocean Nutrition Formula Two.

You could get one or more to give them a variety, but they'll provide you with a convienient way to feed "live" food and are great for conditioning fish to mate.

What I did with our bloodworms cube is dissolve them in a container (just for the fish food) that had a sealable lid and kept it in the fridge for about a week or so, feeding a little from it each day. It's surprising how much food is in one of those little cubes.

oh.. They don't usually post this info online, but you'll know your fish are about to mate if the male starts going up to the female and asking "are you a goer? <nudge, nudge, wink, wink>"

Seriously, I wish you well on breeding them and should you decide to ship them abroad when you have a nice batch of adolescents, we'd love to talk with you about that. I really want some of those now that I've seen them. Not that we have room for more tanks, but that hasn't stopped me yet.

 

All you need to know:

Common name: Galaxy rasbora, Fireworks rasbora, Rasbora toei, Celestial pearl danio


Scientific name: Microrasbora sp. "Galaxy". Currently being described and due to be placed in a new genus shortly.

Origin: Myanmar. The supplier wanted to keep the exact collection locality under wraps for commercial reasons. It was eventually discovered to be a micro-habitat wetland area east of Inle Lake.

Habitat: According to the exporter, his species lives among dense vegetation in a cool, high-altitude wetland region in a marsh area fed by a spring. It lives in sympatry with Danio sondhiI and the undescribed Rosy loach, Yunnanilus sp.

Diet: Early reports suggested that the fish might only consume tiny live foods, so most people have been feeding theirs with live Daphnia, brineshrimp or microworms. However, most have reported that these will also accept small dried foods such including Tetra MinI Granules and crumbled flakes, as well as live Tubifex.

Size: A miniature species that is believed to be fully grown at around 1.5cm in length. However, there are some reports of the fish reaching up to 3cm.

Water: Lives in moderately alkaline water with a temperature of around 24C or less. Collectors have claimed that the water in the collection locality is at pH 7.3 with a hardness of 7 GH (235 microsiemens). They seem very adaptable. Some of the Singapore fishkeepers who were first to obtain the species reported success in keeping them in small blackwater tanks with a pH ranging from 4.5-5.7. In the UK, they've happily acclimatised to our harder, more alkaline water without problems.

Aquarium: Due to its tiny size, this beautiful little cyprinid would be best in a small aquarium, away from larger fish that might look upon it as a tasty snack. You could keep an impressive little shoal of these in a tiny desktop aquarium such as the AquaCube we gave away with last month's Practical Fishkeeping subscription. No details on the habitat are available, however, aquarium observations seem to suggest that the fish likes well-aerated or flowing water. Most fishkeepers are keeping theirs in small planted aquariums, in which the species is the only inhabitant.

Notes: New fish don't come much newer than this: the species was only discovered a few weeks ago (August 2006) and was first introduced by Kamphol Udomritthiruj of Thailand-based exporter AquariCORP. The first specimens arrived in the UK during September. Practical Fishkeeping was the world's first magazine to break news of the species.
Conservation status: Sadly, we reported in February 2007 that a supplier had visited the type locality and discovered that other collectors had gone to the area and fished it so heavily that catches were down to just a few dozen specimens per day. The conservation status of the species now looks bleak and we would advise all fishkeepers to avoid this fish unless they have the skills to breed the species in captivity.

Identification: Undoubtedly a new species but only tentatively considered a Microrasbora due to its resemblance with Microrasbora erythromicron. Unlikely to be confused with anything else, given its striking appearance. It is due to be placed in a new genus, along with M. erythromicron, later in February 2007.
Sexing: Quite simple to sex when the fish are in good condition. Males are brighter coloured and have bright red fins with squiggles of blue-black in the dorsal and anal, and the upper lobes of the caudal fin. The chests of males are also more orangey and they tend to be slimmer. Females are slightly less colourful, with less red and fewer dark squiggles and uncoloured pelvic fins. They have rounder bodies and a slightly paler overall colour. Both sexes have the same chunky appearance seen in Danio chopraI and the hump-backed of Microrasbora erythromicron.

Breeding: Pete Liptrot and Paul Dixon of the Bolton Museum Aquarium were the world's first fishkeepers to spawn this species, and they managed to do just a couple of weeks after the fish first became available in the UK. Very little is known about reproduction. Paul says that he observed a brightly-coloured male attempting to drive females into a spawning mop and Pete found seven small eggs in a clump of Java moss a week later and spotted some fry which had already hatched. Said Pete: "The eggs have been laid over Java Moss and appear to be only very slightly adhesive, they drop out of the moss very easily. We've removed the moss to another aquarium to see what else hatches. As we were moving the moss one of the smaller males was very busy hunting around for eggs or fry."

Behaviour: Males can be rather quarrelsome with each other and often flare, spar and fight resulting in minor splits to the fins. Most people keeping these in groups of six plus have observed shoaling in their fish, and several have reported minor territoriality in males.
Availability: This species was first imported into Singapore in mid-September and arrived in the UK a week later. Both Wildwoods and BAS currently have hundreds in stock and the fish has also appeared on import lists used by other suppliers around the country, so the fish should be more widely available soon. One supplier was referring to the fish as the Fireworks rasbora and cited the name Rasbora toei, which is fictitious. As I predicted in early September 2006, a few weeks after this fish was discovered, I think this species has massive commercial potential for the small aquarium market. It has undoubtedly been the most talked about fish species of 2006, and the century so far.

Price: Prices vary, but currently around £6 each. We highly advise fishkeepers to avoid this species, unless they are capable of breeding it.

 

thanks guys!! looks like I need some frozen food and java moss then! got my baby brine shrimp eggs coming soon so they'll tide me over til I sort out some frozen food. they did take some flakes this morn, so that's good! just need to look on internet for java moss. any recommendations in the uk? still trying to get you some photos. they come quite close to the front of the tank but move so fast and hide in a plant! promise you I will get you some pics though! I wonder how old they'll be when they can breed....how exciting!
off to go and fix that spare tank now in case they do show any signs of breeding!! ;D
tan

photo's as promised!

they are fuzzy cos my camera takes close-ups-not helped by the fish moving so fast! but you can the spots are like a leapord danio and the red fins are so much brighter in the males. will try and get better pics, be easier I hope when they're bigger! but these should keep you going for now!!

oh.. They don't usually post this info online, but you'll know your fish are about to mate if the male starts going up to the female and asking "are you a goer? <nudge, nudge, wink, wink>"

Seriously, I wish you well on breeding them and should you decide to ship them abroad when you have a nice batch of adolescents, we'd love to talk with you about that. I really want some of those now that I've seen them. Not that we have room for more tanks, but that hasn't stopped me yet.

forgot to say how much you made me laugh! my fish haven't started talking yet, but you'l be the first to know when they do!!! lol! - tan

All you need to know:

Common name: Galaxy rasbora, Fireworks rasbora, Rasbora toei, Celestial pearl danio
Scientific name: Microrasbora sp. "Galaxy". Currently being described and due to be placed in a new genus shortly.

Price: Prices vary, but currently around £6 each. We highly advise fishkeepers to avoid this species, unless they are capable of breeding it.

this is the article I found when I first did my research on them. this was when I started to get scared and realised what i'd got myself into!!!!

thanks bbfeckawitts!
tan

 

oh.. They don't usually post this info online, but you'll know your fish are about to mate if the male starts going up to the female and asking "are you a goer? <nudge, nudge, wink, wink>"

Seriously, I wish you well on breeding them and should you decide to ship them abroad when you have a nice batch of adolescents, we'd love to talk with you about that. I really want some of those now that I've seen them. Not that we have room for more tanks, but that hasn't stopped me yet.

forgot to say how much you made me laugh! my fish haven't started talking yet, but you'l be the first to know when they do!!! lol! - tan

LOL.. I guess it'd have to be in fish talk, but they'd probably know the line since they are British fish now. I wish I knew of some good suppliers in the UK for the frozen food & java moss, but I just know of those few sites in the US.. if your LFS doesn't have what you need, maybe google.com could help you find online fish stores in the UK. I know it helped me find a number of online stores selling British foodstuffs.

 

no worries! thanks for your help. ebay usually has what I want so I'll look there first! there's loads of fish suppliers on there. good job really since we don't have many "actual" lfs's around here :!!
tan

 

no worries! thanks for your help. ebay usually has what I want so I'll look there first! there's loads of fish suppliers on there. good job really since we don't have many "actual" lfs's around here :!!
tan

No prob, glad if I was of help. Probably not a lot of fish shops around there due to the number of fish AND chips shops? :'( jk.. where we are has the same shortage and we only have 1 large chain pet store with a rather sorry fish department staffed by folks who seem to be Daleks to the fish.
Please keep us apprised of your efforts with those rare beauties and I hope it won't be too long until you have a fry tank full of little ones.

 

No prob, glad if I was of help.  Probably not a lot of fish shops around there due to the number of fish AND chips shops?  :'(  jk.. where we are has the same shortage and we only have 1 large chain pet store with a rather sorry fish department staffed by folks who seem to be Daleks to the fish.
Please keep us apprised of your efforts with those rare beauties and I hope it won't be too long until you have a fry tank full of little ones.

there certainly are more fish and chip shops than living fish shops!!! if only it was the other way round! we have 2 of the chain store ones nr us and they both have staff that know nothing about fish and the fish are always ill looking. they also don't have much choice at all. we had a look just before we bought the galaxies and the tails were all stuck together on the mollies. poor things. then the independent shop I got the galaxies from has staff that know a bit about fish and stock a massive range, but have no guaruntees and customer service. the chain stores have the guaruntees. the chain stores fish are also twice the price! so there's no perfect shop around here either!
well the galaxies are still alive and well, so that's good. they took some flakes again this morning. the first week is always the most nerve wracking I find when introducing new fish!! if they're ok after a week they tend to remain fine I find.
tan

 

there certainly are more fish and chip shops than living fish shops!!! if only it was the other way round! we have 2 of the chain store ones nr us and they both have staff that know nothing about fish and the fish are always ill looking. they also don't have much choice at all. we had a look just before we bought the galaxies and the tails were all stuck together on the mollies. poor things. then the independent shop I got the galaxies from has staff that know a bit about fish and stock a massive range, but have no guaruntees and customer service. the chain stores have the guaruntees. the chain stores fish are also twice the price! so there's no perfect shop around here either!
well the galaxies are still alive and well, so that's good. they took some flakes again this morning. the first week is always the most nerve wracking I find when introducing new fish!! if they're ok after a week they tend to remain fine I find.
tan

I see that the chain stores across the pond are the same as the ones here.

 

Good luck breeding the Galaxies. I can't imagine that since they were just discovered only about 7 months ago that the stock now being sold in lfs are anything but wild caught. I might have bought some myself, if I hadn't first heard about them being practically wiped out and almost extinct now in their native habitat. They come from a "microhabitat", meaning the area where they're naturally found is extremely small. In the short time since their discovery their population is just about gone now, and their little habitat has been destroyed by greedy people wanting to catch these fish for guess who - you and me! I won't ever buy any till I'm assured that that they still exist in nature and are protected species. Not long ago most of the reputable pet stores refused to sell the Galaxies anymore, due to the sad state of the species in nature. Here's a good article, with some before & after pictures of how their habitat has been destroyed. Really sad situation.



Hopefully what's now being sold is captive breed, but I really doubt it based on only about 7 months to gear up producing the quantity of fish that are showing up in shops.

Just my personal opinions - I hate to see yet another species wiped off the face of the earth because of greed. I'd rather know that these pretty fish still existed and thrived in their natural habitat, rather than have a few in my tank.  :'(

 

I believe those Galaxies are captive-bred. Not all are I'm sure, given the constant fishing going on there. But in areas in reasonable proximity to Bolton and the amount of Galaxies in captivity last September make it reasonable to think that the thousands of resulting Galaxies from a concerted breeding effort would stock many UK shops with captive bred fish. A lot have been sold and hopefully many owners will put a reasonable & well-done effort into breeding the fish they already have. I hope the news of the status of their wild habitat will become more commonly known, but I'm guessing that many owners won't research their new fish or realize what the status is of their fish's wild brethren.

The article that we've read & bbfeckawitts posted makes me wonder if their future might lie in the hands of captive breeding given the status of their microhabitat as of february. I would hope that the local gov't will do something to protect what is left of that small area and restore what they've allowed to be overfished & ruined - but I'm not sure if they will. Should the Asian authorities not stop the end of the species in the wild, I would hope that captive breeding will allow the development of a new wild population one day in a country that will protect the wild Galaxies.

I have seen them for sale online from US stores now in limited supply and with an origin of Asia. I do wonder if those are captive-bred or not. :-\

I saw some Rasboras at a pet store here in Denver today & thought of your Galaxies. I hope the little guys are doing well, eating & growing.

 

I believe those Galaxies are captive-bred.  Not all are I'm sure, given the constant fishing going on there. But in areas in reasonable proximity to Bolton and the amount of Galaxies in captivity last September make it reasonable to think that the thousands of resulting Galaxies from a concerted breeding effort would stock many UK shops with captive bred fish.  A lot have been sold and hopefully many owners will put a reasonable & well-done effort into breeding the fish they already have.  I hope the news of the status of their wild habitat will become more commonly known, but I'm guessing that many owners won't research their new fish or realize what the status is of their fish's wild brethren.

The article that we've read & bbfeckawitts posted makes me wonder if their future might lie in the hands of captive breeding given the status of their microhabitat as of february.  I would hope that the local gov't will do something to protect what is left of that small area and restore what they've allowed to be overfished & ruined - but I'm not sure if they will.  Should the Asian authorities not stop the end of the species in the wild, I would hope that captive breeding will allow the development of a new wild population one day in a country that will protect the wild Galaxies.

I have seen them for sale online from US stores now in limited supply and with an origin of Asia.  I do wonder if those are captive-bred or not.  :-\

I know they're being captive bred now, at least to some extent, and hopefully that and the reduced cost of the fish will cut the need for wild caught fish, and hopefully their tiny little piece of unique habit will improve and will let them restore their populations. I also heard that they may have found a second pool of them, and that they were trying to get the govt. to protect them, but I haven't seen either confirmed yet. I hope I didn't sound like I was blaming anyone for buying them. As I said, if I didn't know the Galaxy story I would get some myself. Whether the current stock is being bred commercially or not doesn't negate the fact that our neverending desire for something pretty, fashionable, tasty, etc. has once again put another species of animal in jeopardy of no longer existing on this planet in other than a tank or a zoo. To me that's really a shame. 

By the way, If I've read the Galaxy information correctly, they were just discoved in August last year, so I would have to believe that all of those around in September were wild caught. I suppose if the Asian fish farms could have quickly gone gung ho on pond raising the Galaxies that might account for the numbers we're seeing now. I hope that's the case.

 

Yea, I know and I'm sorry - I hope I didn't sound defensive. I believe your points are valid and very good. Every species of animal deserves a place to live wild in the environment.

Yea, the 800 sent to Bolton had to have been some of the 1st ones caught. Too bad that wasn't the end of them being collected. It should have been - it was enough to start an eventual pet market for them and leave the rest alone & environment intact, but not as fast as greedy people want. I don't see any need for collecting more, with those Asian fish farms you mention breeding as many as they can. A little patience and people can have them for pets and still have a native wild population and it's environment. Why ruin an environment for nothing?

Living here in Florida, I see the sad results of greed too on wildlife & the environment.

My hope is that any more areas that the Galaxies live in the wild will stay undiscovered until the pet store demand is well within the captive population but I would love for the ones in pet shops already to be bought by people who will breed them and reduce the demand for wild ones & make it unprofitable to continue collecting them.

 

When I was young Florida used to have quite a few fish farms for raising tropicals, but from what I've read the farms in Florida have really suffered and diminished in number due to the Asian competition being cheaper (no big surprise!). I wonder if anyone down there is breeding the Galaxies - that would sure be nice!

Florida has so many introduced animal species too. Seems like anything that escapes a tank or cage becomes a permanent resident down there!

Anyway, off topic now. I hope tan.b's Galaxies are doing OK.

 

I agree totally with both of you. the wild habitat should be either left alone or preferably restored back to how it was which is going to take a long time looking at the vegetation that's damaged. they should have been protected as soon as they were discovered. a small percentage removed for captive breeding as a back up if you like to the wild population, then if they are easy to breed then release some to the pet trade. the pet trade should be last in the queue. I feel bad that I got involved in this by buying them as I didnt know until I got home what had happened, but at least I feel I may have saved them from some other fish keeper who may not have looked after them. i'm no expert, but hopefully with the basics I do know I may manage to breed them, or at least preserve these ones and breed later. if I can breed them and sell them then hopefully importing from the wild will no longer be necessary. lets hope the government get involved before its too late and save what's left in the wild and hope that the experts in bolton aq museum can produce plenty to satisfy the greed of the pet trade.
I really hope mine are captive bred ones. as I said they were all the same size in the lfs tank, which is my only clue. i'd guess they'd be a mixture of ages if wild caught, but I guess we'll never know for sure.
I read too that they were discovered in aug and named in sept. by about jan I think it was they were in dangerously low numbers in the wild.
update on my babies.....had a scare this morn....could only find 4 of the 5. thought 1 must have mysteriously died (as was fine last night). left it a couple of hours or so, still couldnt find it. went in tank moving castle and fake plant, still no sign (starting to assume dead body eaten). then between the glass and a stone I saw it. thought it was dead. it was wedged under the stone pressed against the glass. about to retrieve the body then my sister shouted its still breathing be careful, so moved the stone carefully away from it and expected it to lay helpless.....it swam off as if nothing had happened! how relieved were we?! so who knows how long he was trapped for. he was fine last night went I went to bed about 11pm. this morn at 8am-ish  he was nowhere to be seen. didnt release him til about 10ish. no idea how he got himself stuck there. he seems fine swimming about as if nothing has happened, so they must be quite tough which is reassuring. there's a slight whiteness on top of him I can see. any ideas if I need to do anything? leave it to heal? add melafix? stress coat? I don't know if the whiteness has always been there, or even if its the fish that got stuck to be honest? didnt notice it before though. they are so tiny its hard to see anything on them! they took flakes again this morning and this evening. got some brine shrimp eggs in water this morning, so they'll ready in a couple of days for them. wonder when they'll be old enough to breed. shame I can't find anything specific to breeding galaxies on net. i'd've hoped bolton would've published something on how they accomplished it.
anyway, thanks guys for all your help and encouragement.
tan

 

When I was young Florida used to have quite a few fish farms for raising tropicals, but from what I've read the farms in Florida have really suffered and diminished in number due to the Asian competition being cheaper (no big surprise!). I wonder if anyone down there is breeding the Galaxies - that would sure be nice!

Florida has so many introduced animal species too. Seems like anything that escapes a tank or cage becomes a permanent resident down there!

Anyway, off topic now. I hope tan.b's Galaxies are doing OK.

before when i've spoken to my lfs he's talked about getting his fish from singapore, because when I asked if he ever stocks shrimp (when I was after some) he said he gets his fish from singapore and as it was the chinese new yr he'd be getting no deliveries. I guess he may get all his stock from there? I did wonder why he gets them from the other side of the world and wondered why he didnt just get them from within uk as thought that would cheaper as less shipping costs and I was surprised they survive the long flight. they must sell them really cheap from singapore for it to be worthwhile him getting them from there.
tan

 

HI tan.b! My goodness - don't at all feel bad you got the Galaxies! I'm sure it has to be cheaper to buy direct from Singapore and avoid a middleman in the UK. That way only Singapore is making a profit - not both Singapore and a UK outfit - keeps the price down.

On the one that got wedged - maybe just Stress Coat at this point & keep an eye on it. It may just be the slime scraped off the fish trying to escape. If it should develop into fungus then treat that. Fungus normally only grows on the tissue from an injury, so if it does develop into fungus it may not affect the other fish.

There may not be a lot of info. on breeding them because they're so new (or because those breeding them want to keep it a secret as long as possible to make as much money as they can!).

 

When I was young Florida used to have quite a few fish farms for raising tropicals, but from what I've read the farms in Florida have really suffered and diminished in number due to the Asian competition being cheaper (no big surprise!). I wonder if anyone down there is breeding the Galaxies - that would sure be nice!
Florida has so many introduced animal species too. Seems like anything that escapes a tank or cage becomes a permanent resident down there!
Anyway, off topic now. I hope tan.b's Galaxies are doing OK.

Yea, there are still some - the local petco gets theirs from one in FL. I hope they are working on galaxies that can help Floridians have some that aren't causing damage to the wild ones & their environment. True, FL has some issues with out-of-place species going nuts.

<screech> ok.. back on topic.

 

Yea, tan.b - you shouldn't feel bad at all. I can tell talking to you that you're someone who cares for fish & values them. You had no idea what was going on in the wild or even that they were rare and you did save those from someone who might have never bothered to research them. I wouldn't have realized anything unusual about them either (aside from their great coloring ) if not for this thread and if the LFS bought wild ones, may the owner slip on his mushy peas. You have our respect for researching them and making the responsible effort to breed them.

Do you have some sort of large magnifying glass that you could use to look at them closer? We do that to keep an eye on our tiny Platy fry. I bet the little one that got stuck is fine, it doesn't sound like he showed ANY signs of stress. Like Terry said, a product like Stress Coat (or NovAqua+) might be in order, but observation and keeping the water good is the best course of action. Should it change any, let us know and a product like Fungus Clear might be needed, but see if you can get a magnified view of the area in question and see if it shows any changes - for now, I'd just guess nothing is wrong and he'll be good to go.

You'll do good breeding them, you're willing to learn & you research & care about the Galaxies. I think following a basic egglayers breeding plan will yield good results and maybe you'll be able to put a good breeding plan on here for other Galaxies owners from what you'll learn, including me one day . Plenty of help on here from lots of members who've bred many kinds of fish. I wish you the best of luck with it and will be glad to help any that I can.

 

Heres some info on breeding them I looked up. All I could find.

Pete Liptrot and Paul Dixon of the Bolton Museum Aquarium became the world's first fishkeepers to breed the tiny fish, after they successfully spawned the fish in late September 2006.

A number of other fishkeepers have subsequently bred the species successfully.

Liptrot told Roberts that C. margaritatus does not appear to be a true broadcast scatterer, not a depositor, like Trigonostigma or Sawbwa.
In our aquaria, they spawn either with natural plants, such as Java moss, or artificial media, such as woollen spawning mops. Ripe females have a spot of dark pigmentation at the vent, and when selecting fish for controlled spawning we have used this characteristic with some success for indicating readiness to breed."

Liptrot says that although a number of males may chase females for long distances, spawning occurs when individual males take up a display posture alongside the female at the spawning site. The female is pushed into the spawning site and eggs and sperm are released.

The species is believed to produce around 30 eggs per spawning. The eggs take three to four days to hatch at 24.4C and are free-swimming after a further four. The fish then take cultured micro-organisms and grow quickly, taking on adult colouration at 12 weeks.

Heres someone who actually bred them



EDIT: Found more info
"I have found success breeding these Heavenly wonders in St Louis tap water treated with Thiosulfate for Chlorine removal only.

Breeding in 5 to 7 Killiefish type spawning mops in a 10 gallon tank using sponge filtration. 98% water changes each week. I started with 3 males and 2 females in December. I have been removing fry from the tank since the middle of January. Live Micro foods were my most challenging problem but once over come the fry are thriving and showing their colors now at the end of February."

 

That was good news bbfeckawitts! At least it doesn't appear to be too difficult to breed them. That should take a lot of pressure off of the native ones that are left. I guess feeding the babies is harder that getting them to spawn. I suppose baby brine shrimp (bbs) would be needed, crushed egg yolks or something similar.

 

Yea, it is good news. I wonder how the hikarI fry food would work for them or the liquifry?

 

my word, this board has been busy since I last came on last night!

I have bad news :'(. came downstairs this morning to only find 4 galaxies. searched under every stone and every ornament and around every plant. twice. not even a body. nothing. so I can only assume it died overnight and got eaten by one of the others. it was a male, so at least it shouldnt affect the breeding I hope. still frustrating though. I always feel frustrated when a fish dies wondering where I went wrong. good news though is my 45 gal in the garage is re-sealed, so going to test it in a few days with water and check its watertight. then I think I'll re-arrange tanks and put the galaxies on their own in the 15 gal with lots of java moss (like on that link from bbfeckawitts) and put the fish that are in the 15gal at the moment in the 45 gal. or should I put the galaxies on their own in the 45 gal leaving the 15 gal as it is? its easier to fill a 15gal with java moss than a 45 gal, but surely the space a 45 gal would offer should make it easier for fry to get out of the way. or.....put the 15 gal fish in the 45 gal, leave the galaxies where they are and then just remove any fry and put them in the 15 gal to mature? what do you think I should do?
still waiting for my bbs to hatch for my galaxies. it still looks like brown muddy water!! never done the bbs hatching before! hope it works and I don't have a duff supplier or i'm doing it wrong! looked foolproof! its got an airstone in it swishing it about.
I really hope they breed. i'm very excited! 30 eggs per spawning sounds good! I have 2 girls so that's 60. wonder how often they spawn?
keep you posted....
tan

 

Not sure what to say. If it was me I think I'd keep the Galaxies in the 15. Those little guy & girls may never find each other in the 45!

Sorry on the missing Galaxy - do you think it was the one that got wedged the other day? About 2 months ago I lost a neon & never did find a trace of it anywhere in the tank. It couldn't have jumped out, and was at least a year old & too big to get through the filter strainer, and too big to eaten overnight by the other small fish in there. All I can think is that fish aliens beamed him up overnight LOL. Seriously, it's inevitable that we all lose a fish here & there, even for unknown reasons, and if we're doing the best we can in keeping them happy & healthy then it's just a part of fishkeeping that we have to live with.

 

Could it have flipped out? I love this thread! It's so informative. I think we've all learned a few things
Carol

 

there's a ledge inside the tank around the edge and looked around there for it. it has def been beamed up!!! never had a fish vanish before. they always turn up eventually (usually dead). he was tiny, so could have been eaten with out a trace. the other fish in there are quite big (they shouldnt eat a live fish though and haven't shown any interest in the galaxies while they swim about). I think it was the one who got stuck as can't find the whiteness on any of those that are swimming, unless the whiteness has healed and it was a dif one? doubt it though. all day have been thinking he's got himself stuck again and he's waiting for me to untrap him but as I can't find him, I can't help him. my sister has had a good rummage in there too, with no luck.
hadnt thought of the 45 gal as too big for them to find each other , but that's a good point. in a more confined space they may be more inclined to meet their partner and "get on with it"! so that's decided then, the galaxies will go in the 15 when its sorted! looking on ebay for some java moss. can't decide how much to get though. don't want to get loads and it take over in a week, but don't want to get too little and it be little use for another 10years! trying to guage how fast it grows. any ideas on how much to start with for a 15 gal?
i've learnt loads this week! not spent this much time researching since I first got my tanks and was learning how to cycle/learn dif fish species etc!

tan

 

Not sure what to say. If it was me I think I'd keep the Galaxies in the 15. Those little guy & girls may never find each other in the 45!

Sorry on the missing Galaxy - do you think it was the one that got wedged the other day? About 2 months ago I lost a neon & never did find a trace of it anywhere in the tank. It couldn't have jumped out, and was at least a year old & too big to get through the filter strainer, and too big to eaten overnight by the other small fish in there. All I can think is that fish aliens beamed him up overnight LOL. Seriously, it's inevitable that we all lose a fish here & there, even for unknown reasons, and if we're doing the best we can in keeping them happy & healthy then it's just a part of fishkeeping that we have to live with.

That's true.. we somehow had fry disappear on us over the course of Daisy's pregnancy.. not sure how or where, but I guess it was those fish aliens visiting us too. If you suspect he'd fit into the filter intake vents, you might want to check the entire inside of the filter housing with the cartridge taken out.

I'd agree with setting the 15 up for ideal breeding for the Galaxies. I think i'd set up a reasonable amount of java moss so you can be sure it doesn't take over, but also give them other hiding options, like fry grass or plants like wisteria.

 

Could it have flipped out? I love this thread! It's so informative. I think we've all learned a few things
Carol

Good idea. I should have considered that it may have jumped out. Sometime fish can somehow find the smallest holes in the tank cover to jump through. tan.b - Have you checked the floor around & behind the tank? It may be dried up & even smaller by now. Or, maybe it did get through the filter strainer & into the pipe. Check the top too - they often float on the top when dead & can be hard to see up there. Since they're so small it may have even totally decomposed now.

 

If you find that the little one jumped out, you could cover the holes in the back with netting or even paper if that's ok for Rasboras. I like netting myself - it just seems easier for the fish to bounce off of I guess. If he got sucked into the filter, you could cover the intake with netting tightly held in place with a clean rubber band (check for any gaps a little one could swim into.)

..and if the Aliens got him, then cover the tank with foil to foil their attempts to get the rest. Oh, that was awful! :

 

I'll tell you why I suggested it may have flipped out I bought two bags of turquoise danios(danio kerri) at a club auction last spring, that was about 20-25 in all. I temporarily put them all in the 55G which has glass tops and completely covere. the next morning I got up and there were 6 crispy danios on the floor. I COULD NOT figure out how they got out. the rest were contentedly swimming back and forth. The second morning I got up to more crispys on the floor. By now I'm really up set.
The next night after lights out I watched them and the became swimming, flipping maniacs back and forth under the filter flow and through the bubble wall and out they came. I scooped them back in and covered the area over of the flow with plastic. It worked! So they can get out the smallest opening.
My husband said they were Salmon trying to swim upstream not danios
Carol

 

..and if the Aliens got him, then cover the tank with foil to foil their attempts to get the rest.    Oh, that was awful!  :

LOL I love your since of humor! Always the best medicine!

Fish in the Frozen North 8)

 

..and if the Aliens got him, then cover the tank with foil to foil their attempts to get the rest. Oh, that was awful! :

LOL I love your since of humor! Always the best medicine!
Fish in the Frozen North 8)

LOL.. thanks, I think I might have watched too much british comedy to come up with some of these.. : Really, I think it's just that I'm a stinker who's always hungry & that lets me relate to the Bettas - and our Platys as well.

tan.b - how are things going with your galaxies?

 

a-haaaaaaaa! found it! I must have disabled the notifications somehow by accident AND I couldnt remember where i'd posted this post. i'm so blonde sometimes :! sorry guys for not replying!! will go and check my profile settings after i'm done here!

i'm going to use the 28 gal they're in for breeding them and i've got some java moss. not alot, but hopefully it'll grow fast! fingers crossed. the pH in the 15 gal is 6.4 and in the 28 they're in its 7.2. I don't know why they're different, but its quite handy cos tetras like 6.4 and galaxies like 7.4, so i'm not far off as they are. also i'm reluctant to move them in case the stress halts any breeding or kills them. they seem happy where they are. so that'll be the breeding tank. assuming they will breed I'll have to find someone to trade with and swap fry with them so as to help prevent too much in-breeding. can't be right having the fry breeding to the parents etc, so to mix up the gene pool a bit hopefully my lfs will get some more in when i'm at that stage for me to swap. ideally i'd like to use the 15gal for the fry, but i'm stuck with what to do with mr.loach. I did read an article though where a breeder hadn't noticed the eggs and the 1st he knew about it was when the fry were just swimming about and the parents didnt bother them. I guess cos the parents are so small and thus have small mouths they would struggle to eat fry, unlike the livebearers which are bigger and therefore can eat fry! just a theory? if I can find a home for mr.loach I'll use that 15 gal for fry. I guess i'd have to keep fish in there to keep it cycling then move them out same day as I move fry in? anyway, i'm way off that stage yet. need to get them spawning 1st!
I took apart the filter and searched everywhere the floor, everywhere. the aliens def got this one! my first mystery fish disappearance.
well the galaxies are doing well. they're eating crushed flake and baby brine shrimp. they'll get some more daphnia and I'll look for frozen food as soon as my son's over the chicken pox and we're not house bound anymore (wish the uk would allow the vaccine . hopefully all the posh foods will get them "in the mood". a nice meal for them might do the trick!?! they have their java moss which they seem very interested in until my bristlnose got in it and started cleaning the pot its attached too. i'm surprised he managed to get out again and not get tangled! they just don't know when to stop cleaning :!! anyway, they've stayed away now its cleaned to their satisfaction and the galaxies are hovering around it again. some of the girls (I wish they'd sit still a minute so I can get a good look) have got the dark vent which is a sign they're ready to spawn so i've read. just hope they wait til i've got the other fish out. the 45g has used gravel and water and fish food in. used filter and heater going in soon (hopefully by the end of the week) and then its just lighting to sort....next week probably. should be cycled almost instantly with the gravel and filter and decor ready for the fish. fingers crossed.
tan