Snakefish And Mudskippers?

[TubbieToeter]

Hi guys,

I just fell in love with mudskippers at the local pet store.
The guy there told me that they could even be held in freshwater, but I'm not sure I believe him; but he says, they are a private freshwater breed. They should not become larger either, but he could not tell me the latin name, he says they are from Vietnam.

Anyway, could they be kept together with Snakefish ? I have seen it in a different store before but the tank was rather largish. They both like brakish water so they sound like good mates.

I am thinking about a customized tank the size of a 1 meter sqare and maybe half a meter tall. So I could have plenty water for the snakefish and build islands from wood or so for the mudskippers.

What do you think?

Will one attack the other? My snakefish are 20cm long; if the mudskippers don't get larger than 12cm ... will they be fine with each other?

Thanks for your advice,

Steff

 

[nmonks]

The guy there told me that they could even be held in freshwater, but I'm not sure I believe him; but he says, they are a private freshwater breed. They should not become larger either, but he could not tell me the latin name, he says they are from Vietnam.

Rubbish. The guy is either ignorant or lying. Mudskippers cannot live in freshwater. It's been tested in labs before, let alone home aquaria, and they last a few weeks at best. Also, 'skippers don't breed in aquaria. They have a fairly complex life cycle that involves mud burrows and then the planktonic larvae drifting about the ocean for a while. There's about as much chance of a "private breed" of freshwater mudskippers as there is a tame, dwarf species of Great White Shark ideally suited to garden ponds!

Anyway, could they be kept together with Snakefish ? I have seen it in a different store before but the tank was rather largish. They both like brakish water so they sound like good mates.

No. Erpetoichthys calabaricus tolerates low-end brackish, say SG 1.005, but that's about it. It's really a freshwater fish, and does best kept thus. Mudskippers need SG 1.010, or thereabouts, depending on the species.

Cheers, Neale.

 

[mlawson]

Really you can only keep one or the other. The easier of the 2 in my opinion would be the Mudskipper, I have 2 and they are the easiest fish to keep that I have only requiring a small paludarium. Don't even think about getting them until you have Id them 100% correctly. Some Mudskippers are prone to die in just days in aquariums, saying that I wouldn't buy anything from your dealer by the sounds of it. Look for a better store where they give better advice, that is the most important factor about a fish store IMO.

 

[TubbieToeter]

The mudskippers in the store are nearly full grown (if you believe their end-size), and the dealer claims they have been raised in fresh water ...
I guess hes rather ignorant but lying.

I already have snakefish, but I keep them along with Corys in a freshwater tank.
I know they tolerate brakish water, so this is where my idea comes from.
My idea was to evacuate the Corys to my other tank, and to convert the tank with the snakefish to a brakish water tank slowly, meanwhile set up a new tank for the mudskippers, move the snakies there and then go and buy the mudskippers. And of course remove the empty tank.

Do all (smaller) mudskippers need full brakish water, or are there smaller species that can tolerate light brakish water so I can keep the snakefish with them?


Thanks for your help so far!

Steff

 

[nmonks]

I guess hes rather ignorant but lying.

Maybe.

My idea was to evacuate the Corys to my other tank, and to convert the tank with the snakefish to a brakish water tank slowly, meanwhile set up a new tank for the mudskippers, move the snakies there and then go and buy the mudskippers. And of course remove the empty tank.

To be honest, leave the ropefish with the Corydoras (a good combo) and set up a specific tank for the mudskippers. Mudskippers don't really mix well with fish -- if the fish in the water are too big, the 'skippers stay out the water, which isn't good for them in the long term. Mudskippers don't need especially good water quality, but they do need lots of humid air, so creating a tank around the need for a large land area is important, and you'll have enough problems ensuring ventilation is adequate to prevent fungus. Why complicate things by adding another fish? Mudskippers are plenty fun enough. Basically, treat them as you would frogs, setting up a vivarium rather than making them share an aquarium.

Do all (smaller) mudskippers need full brakish water, or are there smaller species that can tolerate light brakish water so I can keep the snakefish with them?

All mudskippers need brackish water. There's no "full brackish" since by definition it's a range. But all mudskippers need around SG 1.010. Identifying them to species is level is very difficult and most/all books and web sites get the names wrong. My book and the Aqualog book are the only rock-solid mudskipper books out there. You can also refer to Richard Melczko's web site, here:

http/homepage.mac.com/nmonks/mudskippers/goby.htm

Cheers, Neale

 

[TubbieToeter]

Hi,

Well I guess no mudskippers for me then.
I got 2 tanks already and my man will kill me if I set up a 3rd ...
Plus, I want to keep the ropefish.

Thanks,

Steff