Copperband Butterfly: Part Trois

Maybe third time is the charm. That is what I am hoping at this point. I do not want to go through another loss. Two have been very painful. The first one I lost due to red ulcers forming on its scales. I didn’t know what to do and didn’t have a proper quarantine setup. The second one was really small, a bit too juvenile. I knew that I was taking a big risk, even though it was eating readily in the store. Due to its size, it got bullied by some evil damsels, and it starved.

So, I waited for the right opportunity to obtain my last attempt at keeping a CBB. This one was almost too healthy, as it was fat, lively, and about 3” in size. This was the one I was taking home. Unlike years past, this time I had a proper QT (quarantine tank) running. It held a tequila sunrise clownfish, and a blue Chromis damsel.

For the first two weeks, the CBB was really afraid to come out and swim about. It was afraid of its own shadow. I did get it to eat blood worms, but that was it. No mysis, no flake, no krill, no scallop. Just blood worms. So, I kept it fed… a lot actually. Two good feedings a day.

I waited until its belly was protruding before I made the transfer. Of course, it was shy at first. Many fish were too quick for him, and he didn’t want to have any of it. So he hid.

I am in the first week, and so for so good. No more feather dusters.. big or small. Next on the menu is.. aiptasia. Hopefully he takes out some peanut worms as well, as they are taking over some good real estate.

I do plan on adding different copepods and live micro-shrimp into the tank so that the CBB can naturally feed on them.

Who knows, maybe three is a charm….