[Minh Nguyen]

I added this small Cobberbanded Butterfly into my reef last wednessday 02/11/04. He is very small. His body will fit on a 1/2 dollar coin. I guess from snout to tail is about less than 2 inches. He was eatting frozen brine shrimp at the LFS, so I got him. I have always love these fish but this is the first time I try to keep one. I know that they are hard to start to feed. This guy is healthy, not skinny, and is eatting. I also have lots of feather duster and lots of worm in my tank, so I hope he is well fed until I get him to eat frozen clams. Here are two pictures of this little guy. He was hunting for worms and feather dusters in the sand and rock here.

[SueT]

Minh, super nice fish. My copperband was also extremely small when I got it over 3 years ago now. In fact I couldn't understand how it could be so small and make it through all the shipping and stressors these fish go through.

Mine absolutely loves the PE brand of frozen mysis shrimp. This food has kept my copperband in excellent shape. Mine will also eat enriched brine but not as aggressively as the mysis.

I thought I was going to lose this fish about 6 weeks ago as it quit eating and began hiding. When it finally came out it had sores on both sides of the body but was wanting to eat. It readily began back with the mysis and is now back to it's old self. I truly believe if the fish had not been so healthy on the mysis shrimp it wouldn't have made it.

Great fish Minh...

[Minh Nguyen]

Thanks Sue. He was cowed at the corner of the tank the first afternoon, but now he just swim circle around the tangs and try to spear them with his dorsal spines if they bother him. Three of my tangs are mor than twice his lenth. He does not get intimidate easy. He is all over the tank now.
I usually try to get fish in my refugium befor release them into the main tank, but my refugium is bare righ now with not very much live yet, and no algae. I just set it up 10 days ago, and the maintank is full of tiny feather duster, so I though he will do better in the main tank. I think I am right this time.

[SueT]

My copperband will find any of the tiny feather dusters if they are in the tank. In fact recently I have taken some rock out to make for more water volumn and this fish couldn't wait for me to get out of the way so it could get at all the feather dusters.

I think you're right. 8)

[Ninong]

Minh,

That is a really beautiful fish!

I read that the smaller ones are more likely to adapt to captive care because their feeding habits are not as ingrained as the larger specimens. I believe the recommendation was to buy specimens that were no larger than 3" maximum for the best chance of success. I know I saw a gorgeous Chelmon rostratus at one of the LFS a couple of months ago but on two separate occasions they were unable to get it to eat frozen brine. It was probably about 3.5" long.

Good luck with it.

[Poseidon]

That is one of my Favorites as well...

Question I have though, is why do you want to feed it frozen Clam? Don't you think the taste/smell of it might make the fish think the Clams in your tank are a food?

[Minh Nguyen]

Originally Posted by Poseidon

That is one of my Favorites as well...

Question I have though, is why do you want to feed it frozen Clam? Don't you think the taste/smell of it might make the fish think the Clams in your tank are a food?

My search indicated taht many people fed them open shell of clams or oyster, or frozen clams. I am not sure but I think Tridacan clams are quite different from steamer clams. Mine CBB does not seem to eat much mysis. It just something I want to try.
Minh

[Poseidon]

Sounds reasonable to me. I guess I would just be afraid to "tempt" the little guy into eating ANY clam..

[Minh Nguyen]

After about 2 weeks, I have trained my CBB to eat frozen steamer clams. I drop a frozen clam into the tank every morning and remove the clam every evening. He is eating it and is full everyday.
Picture later

[Minh Nguyen]

Here is a picture of him feeding. My glass have not being clean for weeks so please ignore the coraline algae and other algae on it.

[Minh Nguyen]

Originally Posted by Poseidon

That is one of my Favorites as well...

Question I have though, is why do you want to feed it frozen Clam? Don't you think the taste/smell of it might make the fish think the Clams in your tank are a food?

This is just my opinion. Steamer and other filter feeders depends on their shell to keep from being eatten. They are likley not have any distaseful chemical in the mantles. Tridacna clams on the other hand, cannot rely on their shell a great deal since they have to be open to catch the light. They are likly have some chemical deterance in the mantles.
Minh

[boojncarla]

hey minh i just have a question... im from the philippines and have been wanting to get a cbb but the thing is we have limted food here for our saltwater babies. dont they eat pellets because i mostly have pellets alone and plus not to mention its hard to find the other foods you are saying. thanks for the reply in advance. peace.