Rescued A Mono

[magickzzl]

Ok, So I have a small brackish tank I have had running for over a year now, and its dong quite well... (mollies and bees) And I work for a petshop, and am the only person they know of who keeps brackish.

So we were sent these poor monos last wed.... the "head Hanchoos" great idea to make our barb tank more "interesting" (GRRR!) and we had no place else to put them. of course, one by one, they have died... all but one, poor lonely one. my managers are furiose we got such a fish in the store, and so I was asked to take this last guy home. My other tank is full, so I have him set up in a 5 temperaroly (I know, completly un suitable) and I know he's gunna get a good 10 inches, but I need some advise. (bigger tanks are on the way, first 10 ten, that just needs some shelf space and to be pulled out of storage, then something bigger)

How fast do they grow, if I can keep him alive?
What should I feed him? He has been eating blood worms and brineshrimp at the store... but I read their omnivores.
how slowly should I raise the salt content? he's been in fresh since wed.

thanks for any help.

 

[nmonks]

OK, since you know he'll outgrow the 10 gallon... just the basics:

A mono should be around 10 to 12 cm long within 6 to 12 months. They seem about full grown in captivity (home aquaria) at around 20 cm, I've never seen any bigger than that except in public aquaria. There is a "dwarf" species, Monodactulus kottelati, that only reaches about 8 cm in the wild, and probably less in captivity. It looks a lot like the regular mono, but the anal fin is deeper than the dorsal fin is tall, and it tends to be more orangey, too.

They eat anything, but are primarily carnivores (unlike scats) so bloodworm, small shrimp, strips of white fish and squid will all be taken readily. Most accept pellets and flake, as well.

They can be adapted to fully marine in one day, but there's no rush. Assuming this is a juvenile, take it to SG 1.005 across an hour or two, and it should be fine. SG 1.010 would be better, though.

Cheers,

Neale

 

[magickzzl]

thank you!!! both for the help and for not yelling at me!

So what will be a good tank size for him?

 

[CFC]

They are schooling fish so you are eventually looking at buying another two monos and keeping them in a tank of around 120 gallons (4x2x2) minimum, they are constantly active and need all the swimming space they can get.