The Amazing Life Of Jeffery! (A Short Story About My

Medaka Fish)

Jeffery was born on April 7, 2011. It was like a miracle to see him for the first time. I was so proud to have little Jeffery there in

his Petri dish. He was still in his egg. I couldn’t even tell he was a fish at this point. You couldn’t see his eyes or his

heart. It was like he was dead. But, Jeffery was very much alive. I’m proud to be the

parent of Jeffery. I am now going to tell you about his life.

The first day Jeffery was alive was exciting. Jeffery was in stage 2 (0.2 hrs) of his development. Just laying there

motionless, we noticed the chorion. It was hard to see my little buddy. Jeffery would soon be moving.

The second day was even more exciting. Jeffery’s heart started beating! My little buddy was getting older and

growing up too fast. I was so happy to see his heart start beating. Today I noticed the yolk sac, the oil

globule, a blood vessel, and little Jeffery’s heart. Jeffery went from being in stage 2 to 23 (46 hrs) in just 1 day.

The weekend came up and I was worried about little Jeffery. I was worried that he wasn’t going to make it without me there. Monday when I got to see him again, he was fine. He grew even more. I thought he was growing up too fast. This was the 5th day since Jeffery had been born. Jeffery developed to stage 30 (102 hrs) and his heart reached about 140 beats per minute. Little Jeffery’s eyes were starting to open. As you can see, the optic

cup is now visible.

Tuesday came around and little Jeffery was doing well. He’s getting bigger and bigger. He is definitely making his father proud. Jeffery only developed 1

more stage (121 hrs) from Monday to Tuesday, but his eyes were completely visible. We also noticed a

pectoral fin on his side. Jeffery was starting to see the big world. He’s so small he might get lost.!

It’s Wednesday and Jeffery progressed from stage 31 to stage 33 (144 hrs). He’s doing very well and growing at a nice rate. I saw the little green urinary bladder, a somite,

filament, and the caudal fin. His blood vessels turned even more red.

8 days after being born has come too fast. Jeffery started moving around a little more today. He has really come a long way from when he was a baby. Jeffery’s blood vessels have really turned red now.

His brain has now become visible and is functioning. His eyes have gotten bigger and cytoplasm is easily visible. Jeffery has reached stage 34 (168 hrs). He’s

doing great and is almost ready to hatch.

The most incredible thing happened today. It has been 9 days since Jeffery was born. Today, he’s hatched! It’s so exciting.

Jeffery was swimming all around the place. I thought for sure I was going to lose him. It was very hard to catch him to put

him under the microscope. It was even harder to get a picture of the little guy. Jeffery reached stage 36 (264 hrs) which is the hatching stage. His is a fish now. His final fin is now visible and you can see his mouth and jaw. Jeffery will

soon be leaving me.

I wasn’t there the day Jeffery went on his own, but I’m sure he’s doing well. Jeffery is now swimming in his little

tank with all of his new friends. It has been a great journey taking care of him.

I had to make sure he survived by changing his water every day, keeping

enough water for him under the microscope, and giving him the proper love and care. I will miss him greatly,

but he will have a great life!

Well that’s it. You just read the life of Jeffery. He was truly an amazing little

guy and my buddy. I enjoyed being with him for that short amount of

time. It is just amazing how fast someone grows up. Thanks for

reading!

By:Matt Burke