Baby axies swallowing air, floating

[clawdate]

I have about 2 dozen baby axolotls that I am trying to raise. They hatched about a week ago now, and are roughly 3/4". Arm-buds are starting to become just visible with a small magnifier in some. I am feeding them daphnia pulex, and they have been doing very well until recently. I noticed that a lot of them were swimming and being very active, and now about half have gotten air bubbles in their stomachs. This causes them to float and turn upside-down and get stuck at the surface. While I have watched a few expel these bubbles, I have a feeling that this will be deadly to the ones that have not.

Here is a pic of my setup:


I have since removed the air-stone, as I was afraid the small-er bubbles it gave off may have been a cause of the problem (it did not appear until after I added the stone, at least), and have replaced it with just an open valve at the end of the tubing with the airflow set very low (~1 bubble/second). I have sucked out most all of the debris in the tank and did a major water change with tank water from my adult axolotl. The new water level is an inch or two lower than the old one.

Any ideas on how to treat this, and how it happened? I have been feeding them regularly, I am not really sure what the cause is.

 

[melfly]

This does sometimes happen with babies, and usually they are ok once the air bubble goes.
It might be a good idea to lower the water a bit further and concentrate the food a bit more.
You will also be needing a bigger tank or more tanks to start splitting them up as they get bigger.

Mel

 

[clawdate]

They have had the air bubbles inside them for several days now. I have seen some of them get bubbles in their mouths, but whenever that happens they just spit the bubble out. These bubbles are deep in their gut. Could it be gas-producing bacteria?? Only about half of the axolotls are affected by it.

Moved them to a larger, shallower container with about 2" of water.

 

[Tiffanymac]

Hi Clawdate! :happy:

I also have babies, my first time with them...I do daily water changes (actually twice, once in the morning and once in the evening) and have a pitcher of tap water that has been dechlorinized with a couple drops of AquaSafe and brought to room temperature (about 60 degrees...WNY weather! bah!) on my countertop that I use. I change about 80 - 90% of the water by sucking it from the containers with a turkey baster so I can get any stuff off the bottom.

I received 30 little babies and just yesterday split them into 2 groups of 15. They are in 2 tupperware containers and each measures 7 by 12 inches...I bought more for future splits. I have their water level at about 1 1/2 inches so their food stays near them. I don't have an airstone in with them yet, but plan on using a low-flow filter once they get bigger.

I haven't had any problems with any of them with air bubbles or anything like that...I feed them baby brine shrimp that I hatch and also HBH Baby Bites.

My eggs hatched between 4/10 and 4/12.

Not sure if any of this helps, but I just thought I'd share what's working for me!

Take Care,
Tiffany

 

[SludgeMunkey]

Generally speaking, this happens when the water temperature is too warm (70 F and higher) in my experience. Not feeding often enough also seems to be a factor in my opinion.

I suggest increasing the volume of water you are keeping them in as it is easier to maintain the cool temperatures they need, keeps your water chemistry easier to control, and will help minimize the cannibalization and conspecific nibbling axolotl larvae are notorious for.

 

[shoegal]

I just finished raising about 100 baby axies, and I witnessed the air-bubble situation a fair amount. Don't freak out- I don't believe it is a fatal condition. I have seen many babies recover completely.

I fully believe that not eating frequently enough is a factor. I would recommend lowering your water level so it is easier for them to catch the daphnia.

I realize that this contradicts what SludgeMunkey is prescribing, and I would love to get some other opinions on this topic. I think he makes a great point about water chemistry and temperature, but I think frequency of eating is a bigger factor here.

 

[SludgeMunkey]

I just finished raising about 100 baby axies, and I witnessed the air-bubble situation a fair amount. Don't freak out- I don't believe it is a fatal condition. I have seen many babies recover completely.

I fully believe that not eating frequently enough is a factor. I would recommend lowering your water level so it is easier for them to catch the daphnia.

I realize that this contradicts what SludgeMunkey is prescribing, and I would love to get some other opinions on this topic. I think he makes a great point about water chemistry and temperature, but I think frequency of eating is a bigger factor here.

Lowering the water would be the worst thing to do. The less water volume you have, the faster it will foul. While it may help them catch a few daphnia, the overall result will be stress due to the increased frequency of water changes required in addition to wild variations in ammonia and various forms of nitrogen. This can cause gills to shrink very quickly. In short, when dealing with larvae, more water is always better.

It would be better to add other foods to the mix that sink to their diet. Thankfully Ambystoma mexicanum larvae are eating machines. Chopped black worms and brine shrimp are highly suggested. An easier way is to purchase some frozen foods (like Daphnia, Brine Shrimp, Bloodworms and Mysis shrimp and chop them with a razor blade. It may take them a day or two to catch on, but once they identify something as food, they devour it freely.


The addition of lots of plants, real or artificial, will help also. This gives the larvae secure places to hold onto and hide and gives them better access to swimming foods.

 

[shoegal]

SludgeMunkey makes a great point. I did daily 75% water changes, so I never lost any babies to ammonia issues.

When my axie larvae were a few weeks old, I would chop up bloodworms into very small pieces and feed them in addition to the daphnia magna. The axie larvae loved the bloodworms!

Best of luck! Keep us posted.