Datnoids
- Thread starter alex1319
- Start date
The April FOTM Contest Poll is open!
🏆 Click to vote! 🏆
always4lora
Fish Herder
Which species of datnoid you getting? As im sure you'll know a 75g wont be big enough for life but these are quite slow growing fish.
nmonks
A stroke of the brush does not guarantee art from
Which tigerfish? Bear in mind that one of two common species, Datnioides polota (= D. quadrifasciatus) is a brackish water fish and is hardier and easier to keep in slightly brackish water. The Indonesian tigerfish Datnioides microlepis is a freshwater species, while the New Guinea tigerfish, Datnioides campbelli, is a brackish water species.
A single Datnioides polota might be maintained in a 75 gallon system, but it's hardly ideal. Datnioides microlepis and Datnioides campbelli are much bigger and will need a much larger tank. "Getting rid" of a fish of this type isn't as easy as you might imagine, so it makes more sense to either plan to get a fish you can keep, or else choose another species that will fit into the tank you have.
You will need to think about feeding these fish. They don't need live feeder fish, and for reasons that have been explained repeatedly on this forum and elsewhere, you shouldn't be using store-bought feeder fish anyway. Earthworms and river shrimps are useful foods for settling in new animals, but once acclimated to the aquarium, they'll eat all sorts of wet-frozen and fresh foods. But do review thiaminase, and understand which foods contain it so that you can minimise their usage. It seems likely than many mysterious deaths of predatory fish come down to overuse of thiaminase-rich foods (prawns, shrimps, mussels, etc.). Unfortunately, tigerfish don't usually take pellet foods, though some do. Certainly try it out, because pellets provide the best balance of vitamins and minerals, but don't bank on the use of pellets.
Cheers, Neale
A single Datnioides polota might be maintained in a 75 gallon system, but it's hardly ideal. Datnioides microlepis and Datnioides campbelli are much bigger and will need a much larger tank. "Getting rid" of a fish of this type isn't as easy as you might imagine, so it makes more sense to either plan to get a fish you can keep, or else choose another species that will fit into the tank you have.
You will need to think about feeding these fish. They don't need live feeder fish, and for reasons that have been explained repeatedly on this forum and elsewhere, you shouldn't be using store-bought feeder fish anyway. Earthworms and river shrimps are useful foods for settling in new animals, but once acclimated to the aquarium, they'll eat all sorts of wet-frozen and fresh foods. But do review thiaminase, and understand which foods contain it so that you can minimise their usage. It seems likely than many mysterious deaths of predatory fish come down to overuse of thiaminase-rich foods (prawns, shrimps, mussels, etc.). Unfortunately, tigerfish don't usually take pellet foods, though some do. Certainly try it out, because pellets provide the best balance of vitamins and minerals, but don't bank on the use of pellets.
Cheers, Neale
§tudz
A True Oddball
As always some good points made by Neale.
The three dats I have (D. microlepis) are the first ones Ive owned that will take dry foods.
They love Hakari massivore delite pellets, and have eaten be known to take the algae wafers added in for the plecs.
But they do normally feed on prawns, lance fish, cockles, mussles and strips of white fish. They eat better then I do
Great fish, but do require a large tank.
you probably wont even be able to sell them for what you bought them at and rehoming is normally very hard unless you are giving them away.
They are specialist fish and not something many hobbyists can provide for.
The three dats I have (D. microlepis) are the first ones Ive owned that will take dry foods.
They love Hakari massivore delite pellets, and have eaten be known to take the algae wafers added in for the plecs.
But they do normally feed on prawns, lance fish, cockles, mussles and strips of white fish. They eat better then I do
Great fish, but do require a large tank.
you probably wont even be able to sell them for what you bought them at and rehoming is normally very hard unless you are giving them away.
They are specialist fish and not something many hobbyists can provide for.
johnboy!
Fish Fanatic
Datnoids are not a species you should get if you can't care for them properly, they're a specialist species and really shouldn't be touched by an inexperienced keeper, one of the hardest freshwater species to keep and unless you can give it all it needs and more, don't go near them!
always4lora
Fish Herder
I had a campbelli and tried weaning it onto pellets but had no luck after nearly a month and it was getting rather thin so fed it up on earthwroms and sold it on, i got back most of what i paid (got £80 for it and i paid £100)As always some good points made by Neale.
The three dats I have (D. microlepis) are the first ones Ive owned that will take dry foods.
They love Hakari massivore delite pellets, and have eaten be known to take the algae wafers added in for the plecs.
But they do normally feed on prawns, lance fish, cockles, mussles and strips of white fish. They eat better then I do
Great fish, but do require a large tank.
you probably wont even be able to sell them for what you bought them at and rehoming is normally very hard unless you are giving them away.
They are specialist fish and not something many hobbyists can provide for.
I'll get another Dat once i have more time to put into it.
HaliHostility
Fish Fanatic
oh thats not gonna be easy at allll
my whiteyellow tiger datnoid, donnie is the funniest and best fish ive ever had.
they are FULL of personality! first of all they turn theyre stripes on and off, when i brought him home i had no idea of this, he looks all blotchy and discolored in the store and #17##### soon as he got in the 150 gal tank at my boyfriends his stripes went pitch black, his mohawk went up and he was swimmin around and through alllll the stuff and when they attack goldfish they come up above them almost comepletely vertical and they charge downwards tryin to be sneaky, and if they miss the fish theyll continue theyre charge and do a front flip and then swim away and hide till they find a new victim its THE funniest thing to watch. im so in love with that fish. you should definatly invest in a larger tank and get one...youll never go back
creeker
Fish Addict
A large Datnoid would be exceedingly hard to rehome. I wouldn't get one thinking it was a temporary arrangement.
Most reactions
-
301 -
223 -
169 -
152 -
136 -
131 -
131 -
127 -
118 -
106 -
89 -
82 -
76 -
67 -
64
