The golden domino damselfish (Dascyllus auripinnis ) is known for its distinct coloration among damselfishes and is popular among collectors in the aquarium trade. Development of culture techniques for the golden domino damselfish will help producers profit from market demand as well as provide insight into the rearing protocols for other damselfish species. The golden domino damselfish was successfully raised at the Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory (TAL) in June of 2023. A broodstock pair has been established at TAL and spawns every 7-10 days on ceramic tiles. Eggs hatch after approximately 72 hours of incubation at 27°C. A larval rearing trial was conducted to culture D. auripinnis through metamorphosis to the juvenile stage. A spawn of approximately 10,000 embryos were hatched into a 144 L glass aquarium. Live Nannochloropsis oculata was used as greenwater and larvae were fed enriched rotifers (Brachionus plicatilis ) twice daily beginning at 3 days post-hatch (DPH). A total of seventeen fish were settled as juveniles with a resulting survival rate of approximately 0.0017%. Larvae metamorphosis occurred at 42 DPH and was identified by complete pigmentation alongside a change in behavior and association with provided substrate.
Commercialization of ornamental aquaculture species continues to be limited by mass larval mortality in early larval stages. Such mortality can be associated with poor feeding success and insufficient larval nutrition. The addition of appetite stimulants, or feed attractants, is theorized to increase consumption of feeds by promoting the hormones in fish associated with appetite. An improvement in feeding success should in turn lead to better survival and growth of larvae. This approach has been relatively unexplored in marine species and can be used alongside live feeds, such as copepods. To assess the ability of feed attractants to increase ingestion of live feeds, D. auripinnis larvae were used in a series of feeding trials. Appropriate dosages of three feed attractants, tryptophan, betaine, and alanine, were determined in first-feeding trials. These initial dosage experiments compared the survival of 3 DPH larvae against a control without feed attractant, after five hours of exposure to the following dosages of each feed attractant: 10-4 M, 10-6 M, and 10-8 M. A dosage of 10-4 M tryptophan resulted in equivalent survival compared to the control. A dosage of 10-8 M betaine resulted in significantly higher survival than the control treatment. A dosage of 10-6 M of alanine was equivalent in survival to the control. These dosages will be used in a final 7-day comparison trial of each feed attractant against a control without feed attractant to determine long-term effects on survival and growth.