Odd Looking Brackish "fish"

[penguinpimp1990]

im planning on a 120 gallon-ish tank and im planning the stock to be really odd looking and big. Fish im planning on keeping are ruby scats, dragon gobies, six barred siamese tigerfish, 4 eyes. That stock list is in no way permanant but rather a loose list of what id like to keep and WILL change. my question is can anyone name some odd looking brackish inhabitants? Things like crustaceans, toadfish , eels and weird stuff like that. (lol i know eels can only tolerate slightly brackish conditions i was using them as an example) Pictures or links will help too, thanks guys

 

[Dave Legacy]

im planning on a 120 gallon-ish tank and im planning the stock to be really odd looking and big. Fish im planning on keeping are ruby scats, dragon gobies, six barred siamese tigerfish, 4 eyes. That stock list is in no way permanant but rather a loose list of what id like to keep and WILL change. my question is can anyone name some odd looking brackish inhabitants? Things like crustaceans, toadfish , eels and weird stuff like that. (lol i know eels can only tolerate slightly brackish conditions i was using them as an example) Pictures or links will help too, thanks guys

I like brackish fish because they tend to be very unique and interesting. However if you want something really bizarre and out of the ordinary you'll probably need to go full marine. I'm thinking about doing this in the future. Basically base your theme as a full marine brackish style enviornment like an estuary. So rather than live rock stock it with live mangroves and driftwood.

120G is a good size but you wont be able to stock all the fish listed. Also keep in mind that a lot of brackish fish require different levels of salinity making them pretty hard to keep together. Might be best if you can stick to 1 or 2 species and call it a day.

 

[penguinpimp1990]

120G is a good size but you wont be able to stock all the fish listed. Also keep in mind that a lot of brackish fish require different levels of salinity making them pretty hard to keep together. Might be best if you can stick to 1 or 2 species and call it a day

the only "problem" that i would see in thius tank are the sg levels, scats like high ones, and the other fish listed like lower to medium ranged ones, but people have said they have kept scats in an sg of about 1.009 for life and they were fine with a little extra care and a 120 galloner would be fine with 2 scats, one 4 barred tiger (not the siamese tigerfish, this fish only grows to 12 inches max in a home aquarium, but almost never exceeds 10 inches) one dragon goby and one 4 eyes, its more than enough room

 

[nmonks]

Hello,

Just a few random thoughts...

Four-eyed fish are exceedingly difficult to keep. Just because they're livebearers doesn't mean they're hardy. I know lots of public aquaria that have failed with them. Read the "Brackish-Water Fishes" Aqualog (by Frank Schaefer) book if you can. In brief, they need a lot of width but prefer to feed in a very shallow patch. They are schooling fish, and since each gets to 30+ cm, that's a lot of loading for the tank and the filter. In the wild, they swim between fresh and salt water, and being stuck in purely salt water indefinitely does not seem to be good for them. An SG of 1.010 is probably the best bet, fluctuating a little with each water change.

Siamese tiger fish are marginally brackish water fish at best. You need to identify the species carefully before exposing it to an SG above 1.003. According to the Aqualog book, the common species like Datnoides microlepis are really freshwater fish. For mid to high SG values (i.e, 1.005 to 1.015) you need species like Datnoides campbelli and Datnoides quadrifasciatus. Unless you are extraordinarily lucky, don't expect your retailer to identify these fish properly; use the Aqualog book or Fishbase instead.

As far as the hobby goes, there's no such thing as "an eel". The name is applied to a whole slew of different fish. Spiny eels (Macrognathus and Mastacembalus spp.) are regularly imported from Asia, and none is truly brackish water. Tolerant of a little salt, yes, but not able to go above 1.003 safely or permanently. On the other hand, moray eels should be kept in mid to high SG systems, at least 1.005, and ideally 1.010 or more. Arguably, some species fare best in marine conditions when mature.

Dragon gobies -- Gobioides and Odontamblyopus spp. -- are now imported from a variety of places, and they are certainly not all Gobioides broussonnetii, despite the ubiquitous use of that name. They are large, but completely peaceful, and need a very specific aquarium. Sand, not gravel, is essential and bear in mind they feed primarily on algae and small invertbrates. They scrape the algae off rocks (yes, like a plec) and they sift worms and suchlike from the sand. Only in extremis will they eat large prey like shrimp and guppies. If they do, it's because they're being starved.

Frankly, my suggestion would be to work with your mangrove idea, working in scats, monos, archers, Colombian sharks, morays, Dormitator sleeper gobies, green chromides, black-chin tilapia (yes, a true brackish water fish), targetfish, and other easy-going brackish water fish. You'll probably find most of these fish for sale relatively inexpensively, and all are more or less easy to keep.

Cheers,

Neale

 

[penguinpimp1990]

how would i put mangroves in it if it is a complete water filled aquarium? if i bought a huge tank and filled it half way but i dont have that type of money. Are there any ways to somehow manage this plant into my aquarium? by the way im thinking of just a few ruby scats with some archers. and to get this topic back on track, can someone reccomend an weird, odd looking brackish inhabitant that can tolerate a higher sg level

 

[nmonks]

Hello,

You can't easily put mangroves into an aquarium with a hood, because they mostly grow out of the water. As I understand it, what people do is float them until they sprout roots, and then plant them in sand, with the leaves above the water. This works fine in tank without hood and with strong lighting placed 30 cm or so above the tank. Since these are baby trees, their usefulness in an aquarium is somewhat limited.

A better (and cheaper) alternative is simply to use wood to mimic the roots of mangroves. Bogwood is one obvious choice, but bamboo canes, cut to size, do a nice job as well. However, they tend to rot within a couple of years, so you will have to replace them perioidically.

As for weird-looking, high salinity fish, there are lots. Consider 'freshwater' soles, morays, 'butterfly gobies' (=Neovespicula depressifrons), mudskippers, and the sleeper goby Butis butis. Check out the Brackish Aquarium FAQ for more.

http/homepage.mac.com/nmonks/aquaria/brackfaqpart1.html

Cheers,

Neale

 

[Dave Legacy]

I know they don't look odd, but Archers are very interesting. I have a shoal of 4 juvenille toxotes jaculatrix and they're great. They swim in a shoal and shoot down insects that I feed them on a regular basis. They also jump. They will require you only fill the tank maybe 3/4 to the top, even lower if possible. I only have them in about 10-12" of water. In a tank about 120G in size you could probably have at least 5-8 full grown archers.

Mudskippers are very very interesting but require beaches and shallow water to skip around on so they're better off in a species only tank unless you can provide enough beach area to allow at least 1sq ft. per mudskipper.