Bumble Bee Grouper

[bluedevils32701]

here are some pics of my bumble grouper

http://i439.photobucket.com/albums/qq113/ianbehnk/photo.jpg
http://i439.photobucket.com/albums/qq113/ianbehnk/photo2.jpg

[predator 1]

Nice fish, he looks in top condition. I am a big fan of Groupers, and keep numerous speciese myself. But I have never kept one of those, what is there temperament like?

[bluedevils32701]

he seems very mild mannered. he hasn't been fed live fish or really meaty proteins. He has been fed an herbivore diet of pellets and nori. He is around 4-5" in length and currently lives with a clownfish.

[DamnPepShrimp]

Very cool looking grouper. What are you going to do when he hits 6+ feet?

[JHemdal]

I don't want to pound this into the ground, but this is definately one species to avoid. I had one outgrow a 900 gallon tank in eight years. Most public aquariums won't want them because they keep eating and growing, taking out many tankmates in the process.

Are you serious though? - "He has been fed an herbivore diet of pellets and nori. He is around 4-5" in length and currently lives with a clownfish."

My guess is that if you keep him on the veggie diet, he'll take out your clownfish sooner rather than later....

Here is an excerpt from my Advanced Marine aquarium Techniques book:

Bumble Bee (Giant) Grouper Epinephelus (Promicrops) lanceolatus Serranidae
A cautionary warning is needed for this species. Juveniles of this species are a very attractive black and yellow color. As they mature, the coloration changes to mottled brown – as they reach their adult size of over 8 feet long! Years ago, these fish were rare enough that aquarists rarely came across them, and when they did, the price was very high. This kept these fish out of the hands of people unprepared to care for them properly. Recently, tank-raised bumble bee groupers have become available at a lower price – potentially creating a flood of giant groupers needing larger homes in future years.


Jay

[bluedevils32701]

at 9 feet and 1300lbs he could feed a small african country

[bluedevils32701]

i plan to continue to feed him non meaty proteins, and once he grows past 7-8 inches i will put him in with the dragon morays. currently he is too small and will be a snack for the morays. i realize how large the groupers become but in order for it to grow at that rate it would require copious amounts of meaty food.

[danorth]

Is this the one you collected? Someone on here caught one and kept it.....can't remember who though.

[DamnPepShrimp]

Give it time and it will eat your expensive dragons.

[JHemdal]

What is that new cartoon on T.V., where this yuppie family has a dog they only feed tofu and other vegan dishes. The dog sneaks out and eats rabbits, blood and guts everywhere, but the owners are blisfully unaware and think it is perfectly happy with the diet they are giving it.

You shouldn't keep fish with incorrect diets in the hopes of being able to modify their behavior or growth rate....


Jay

[LukFox]

Although you may have seen it, <a href="http://pets.webshots.com/photo/1358243232065791324wuzcdu">bumble bee grouper vs tesselata moray</a>. I wouldn't feed dragons to it. I also agree you shouldn't mistreat it because you don't want it to get huge. There are plenty of very attractive groupers that only get 1-2 feet.

[billsreef]

Malnutrition is never a good goal for fish keeping, it never works out long term. The predatory nature is also hard wired, so it will eat other fish sooner or later (most likely sooner) no matter what you feed it.

[bluedevils32701]

no i didnt collect it myself. ya i saw the picture of it eating the moray. unless the grouper is 2 feet long i doubt he will be able to touch 7 hungry dragon morays

[DamnPepShrimp]

2 feet long is still a baby for that grouper. He'll get there sooner than you think, if he makes it on improper foods. I don't think espo though the grouper would eat a tess eel that is a lot bigger than a dragon.