T. shanjing larvae

[rachel]

Hello all,
I am now taking care of 12 larvae!! 11 hatched yesterday (+ a few losses) and one hatched this morning. They have their first taste of freshly hatched brine shrimp this morning. They are very adorable and MUCH more spritely than I imagined. I am used to tadpoles who are sluggish at best when they first hatch.

Take Care All

Rachel}

 

[anthony]

That's fantastic, I wish you the best with them!

Anthony

 

[rachel]

thank you.

Now we have 14 but one died. I have been feeding them rinsed Brine shrimp that are freshly hatched so I hope that I didn't do anything wrong. We also have another 28 eggs or so.

Very excited.

 

[jennifer]

Congrats! I'm a bit surprised that several would die right off the bat like that. Among the groups of larvae I have raised (no shanjing, other species), I have an occasional death, probably mutants, but other than that it's rare for any to die in the first week or so. Are you sure they are dead, not just lying on their side? (Some do this immediately after hatching.) I would also suggest this article, if you haven't already seen it.
http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/why_larvae_die.shtml

(Message edited by jennewt on June 21, 2006)

 

[michael]

Congrats Rachel. Put one of your shanjing on the phone and let it talk to mine. Mine look ready but are being coy.

Keep us updated on your progress

P.S. if you want to have that embarrassing "junior member" status upgraded all you have to do is make a small donation to this forum. It's worth it for all of the free resources available through Caudata.org

 

[rachel]

Actually a few died but then no one had been checking the temps of the room and it was up to 80 F. (I have been working in another area of the zoo which is required and usually badly timed as this is. I have been running around and watching them as often as possible to gain an understanding of what they need but I am definately frustrated not to be able to keep an eye on the room conditions, or to ensure that shrimp are set up in the AM, or fed before noon. It is very frustrating.

I hope and pray that I didn't discard any that were alive but I put them in another container for a day and they would not respond to any stimulation. I had one last night that looked like he was gulping (this is when I checked the temp) and he was acting like he had something stuck in his body that was uncomfortable, almost like convulsions. When I saw the temp I moved him into a shallow dish with a slow bubble of air in the corner and when I checked him today he was spritely again.

I actually do have a couple of other questions. Firstly, how many brine shrimp in average are they likely to eat at this stage and do you often see them feeding as I haven't (not that I have had the time to watch)?
Secondly, will a 1/4 water change a day suffice with a sponge filter or is that too much?

I am sorry that I am rambling, it is the exhaustion speaking. I have to write an SOP for the little guys so that common sense will be written in Black and White.

Ooh, I have to stop now, sorry all.

Take Care

Rachel

P.S. Michael, I will definately be making a donation, and I also took your advice immediately and ordered from Brine Shrimp Direct.

 

[jennifer]

If they didn't respond to stimulation, then they were certainly dead. The temperature could be a problem. T. shanjing are fairly tolerant as adults, but to be on the safe side I wouldn't let the larvae get up to 80F.

They may not eat at all for the first few days. If you can get a good look at the abdomen, you may be able to see the yolk reserve, which most species still have at hatching. They usually won't eat until it's gone. If you feed at all for the first few days, just put in a TINY amount. For photo of yolk, see:
http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/series_T_ver.shtml

Then for the first week or so they eat very little. Once they start eating, you should be able to see them "hop" at the brine shrimp when it's added.

In my opinion, there is no such thing as "too much" when it comes to water changes for larvae. Also, brine shrimp die and decompose very quickly, so it's important to keep the bottom of the tank clean. For larvae, I find that the best housing is one of the two extremes: (1) a well-established cycled tank with lots of plants, or (2) the clinical method - transfer to a clean container of totally clean water every 2 days. If you take a middle course (a clean new tank with partial water changes), there is the highest risk of problems, in my opinion. In a new tank, the flora and fauna (biofilter) is not well enough established to deal with crud, and it's difficult to remove all the crud manually.