Conservation Fisheries, Inc.
Newsletter #32
May 2006
Spring Happenings!
Spring is here....in fact, it feels a bit like summer today! This is our busiest time of year. Not only does field related work pick up, but things start hopping in the hatchery! This is partly why it's been so long since I've written a newsletter.....sorry 'bout that!
Let's talk about some of what's going
on in the hatchery this time. Perhaps the most exciting thing is our early
success with some of the larger darters of the genus Percina. The
logperches, especially, have proven to be a real challenge to rear! This year,
however, we are beginning to have some success! Our blotchside logperch, P.
burtoni, have spawned again this year. 
This
time, we have been able to retrieve some viable eggs and larvae and have brought
them to a point that we feel pretty confident that we can rear them! We had some
spawns last year, but never were able to get the larvae to the point that they
were able to feed.
We made a number of changes to our techniques. First, we changed the way the adults were being housed. They were moved from their 135 gallon glass tank to a 250 gallon plastic watering trough. This trough is just the tank we'd been looking for! Rounded ends....six ft. long and about the right depth. We installed a divider down the middle, lengthwise, with both ends open. This allowed us to create a current within the tank that circled all the way around. This, in effect, gave them a 12 ft. run. And, they were unable to see our movement outside of the tank. Large Percina can be very high strung and prone to panic when anyone passes by their tank. This set-up helped that and as a result, the fish appeared much more comfortable.
We are also having better luck with the
tangerine darters, P. aurantiaca. We had limited success with these last
year, but hope to increase production this year. 
Our efforts to passively collect larvae have only been marginally successful with these large darters. As a result, eggs and early larvae are being vacuumed from the substrate. We have had some success video taping spawning of the logperch. The male seems to select a spawning site and defends it vigorously. A female will enter the area (in our case, behind a rock, next to the side of the tank. The male would mount the female and both would vibrate...presumably releasing eggs. Neither appeared to bury into the substrate. The male remained at the site for at least a day or so after spawning and females would occasionally enter the area and spawn. Most of the eggs vacuumed from the tank came from that site. The site seemed to vary from week to week.
We were never able to catch the tangerines spawning. Eggs and larvae were found throughout the tank when vacuuming.
Larvae of both species are large, 8-10 mm. The logperch have relatively large mouths and are somewhat easier to feed than other pelagic darter larvae. The tangerine larvae require smaller food items. We have been feeding a mixture of Brachionus rotifers, powders, and early instar Ceriodaphnia. The logperch can take brine shrimp nauplii within a few days of swimming up (both have pelagic larvae).
We have automated feeding this year.
Reservoirs containing an appropriate mix of foods are placed above the rearing
tubs. Feeding is accomplished using digital timers. All food reservoirs are
dosed with a concentrated algae (Instant Algae, provided by Reed
Mariculture). This feeds the food and probably supplements the diet of the
larvae. 
We will continue to give updates on these, and will post notes on other spawnings around the hatchery. Should be a busy spring!
Remember our t-shirts! We still have some to offer. I have copied the information from the last newsletter and included it below. We appreciate all those that have donated to our cause! And, we would like to ask all of you to think of anyone that might not already be receiving this newsletter and forward a copy to them. We are trying to grow our mailing list and would love to reach anyone interested.
Thanks again for your continued support!
Sincerely, J. R. Shute
Here's the back of the shirt.
...and here's the front
The link below will take you to our "Donation" page that will then link you to a Pay Pal site where a credit card donation can be made directly to CFI. Naturally, if you prefer, you can send a check instead. Our address is located on our "Contact" page. Ours is a pretty low-tech operation, so, when you go to the "Donation" and make that $25 donation, just drop me an e-mail to let me know that you'd like to receive a shirt, what size (M, L, and xL available) and what your mailing address is. There is also a spot for "address" on the Pay Pal donation page. I will be notified by Pay-Pal whenever a donation is made. A couple bucks extra for shipping will be greatly appreciated! There is a limited supply, so get'em while you can!
We hope to have new shirts made as additional fund raisers in the future. We also have a few of our "old" shirts. These are a natural "birch" color with the CFI logo on the back in royal blue. A smaller "fish-only" logo is located on the front where a breast pocket would be. You can get one of these while supplies last for a minimum donation of $20. Or, we can send both for a minimum donation of just $40! Just let us know what you want.
We appreciate each and every donation! Your money will go toward the continued propagation and monitoring of our imperiled fishes!
Thanks very sincerely!
J. R. Shute