PDA

View Full Version : Help with EEl


Allmost
06/01/2010, 12:01 PM
so I have a 65 G tank, FOWLR.

right now, I have a lion fish in there, viol. lion fish.

and a bird wrasse.

was at the LFS yesterday and they had many Eels, so I want one :P but need some help in choosing which and want some info on what to look for, so any advice is appreciated. they have snowflake moray eel, as well as black and purple ribbon ones, the ribbon black looks amazingly cool, but the LFS told me not to get it ! why ? lol
sorry for sounding like a noob again, but want to knwo what I'm getting myself into :)

I also am planning to add a juv. emperor angel fish in there, but gonna wait for the tank to mature more (maybe in 6 months) to get the angel.

so back to eels, should I make sure its eating frozen ? or is that not a problem with eels ? go for smaller ones ? or big one?

on a side note : how stupid would it be if I put a 5" nurse shark in this tank ? I have plans for building a 600+ FOWLR soon, so would it be wrong to add the shark in there right now ? till it grows ? bashing me is fine :)
I have been breeding motoro Stingrays (Freshwater) in a 65 G for many years (about 10) while everyone bashed me saying u cant even house one in a 65 G !! well .... I breed them :D so I just dont get the min tank size thing, if water is good, and fish has room to swim, then it will be fine, I agree that more nutrition export and water changes will be needed though.

thanks in advance.

Inklinkerman
06/01/2010, 12:51 PM
The thing is with the nurse shark, it soon wont have room to swim, or move or breath. Id wait until you have the large tank, then think if you can accommodate a 10' shark in a 600g.

I think any but the smallest sharks should be left alone. What about a bamboo or cat shark? yukkonblizzard is probably a good one to ask about shark lagoons. Im not saying it CAN'T be done, but i just think it shouldn't. Im sure you'll hear both sides. Surely you don't want your animals to merely exist?

After all that im sorry i cant help you on the eels!:)

r2nj
06/01/2010, 03:51 PM
I think you may be asking for trouble if you add an eel with that lion. Keep in mind that eels are almost blind. They feed by smell and movement. Once they smell food, they go crazy. during feeding time, if they sense movement with the lions, one wrong move towards the lionfish, and the eel could get severely stung.

tang56
06/01/2010, 05:22 PM
+1 on r2njs comments. And also the reason the LFS told you not to get the ribbon eel is they are very difficult to get feeding and to care for. Definitely for very experienced fish keepers only. And to put a shark of any kind in that tank would be very cruel, especially a nurse shark. I dont think that could even be housed in a 600+ gallon tank. A juvi. emperor angel would be okay in that tank for a while, but would outgrow it fairly quickly.


so back to eels, should I make sure its eating frozen ? or is that not a problem with eels ? go for smaller ones ? or big one?


All eels are not the same and in fact are very different. def. make sure it is eating frozen, if eating at all. But if i were you, i would definitely not get any eel.

r2nj
06/01/2010, 06:15 PM
Another follow up to Tang's comments...ribbon eels are very different than your typical moray eels. Typical morays are some of the hardiest saltwater fish you can get, and typically aren't a problem to feed (they eat almost any meaty foods for saltwater fish), as long as you are okay feddign them with tongs. And once they do get used to your tank, they typically go crazy come feeding time. While ribbons are very, very sensitive and much more difficult to keep.

Jackhole
06/01/2010, 08:46 PM
I will agree with most of teh comments made thus far. Morays are very easy to keep. I have a snowflake and a zebra in with my lionfish. I once had a white ribbon eel but could not get him to eat. On the contrary the mrays eat like mad.

nuccadoc
06/01/2010, 09:05 PM
I don't think you have a large enough tank to keep a Snowflake. They eat like pigs, produce a lot of waste and will get quite big. Mine is at least 1 inch in diameter and a good 30 inches long and I have him in a 400.

LisaD
06/02/2010, 01:42 AM
With a 65 gallon tank, you don't have room for the fish that are already in there. I don't know anything about the rays you breed in a 65, but I know a few things about saltwater fish.

A volitans lionfish is not going to be able to fit in that tank long - in a few years, a healthy one will be 12 to 15" long, with a fin spread just as big. Bird wrasses are active, large fish that need at least a 6 foot tank as adults. Emperor angelfish need large tanks. Mine is only 8-9 inches (not even close to adult size) and it uses every bit of my 210 gallon tank.

Eels make a large amount of bioload, and as someone wrote, can go into feeding frezies.
Snowflake morays are also known to be escape artists, so any smaller tank with a snowflake needs to be well covered.

Allmost
06/02/2010, 07:52 AM
ok thank you all :)

for sure the stocking I have in there will outgrow the tank FAST, hence why I'm building another tank to go on the other side of the room :D

LisaD
06/02/2010, 04:52 PM
I seem to have to upgrade every 3-5 years. :) I thought I was done with the 210, but it is looking way too small.

TXMarineGuy
06/03/2010, 04:14 PM
i myself have a snowflake moray he's a baby still only about 11" and 1" thick....as far as the a snowflake in a 65 it should be fine but they do produce alot of bio-load...as far as a eel with a lionfish it should be fine as well a buddy of mine has a 240g and houses 1 11" red lionfish,1 10" picasso trigger,1 19" snowflake, 1 12" eel with kinda fins by his gills so i dunno what he is and a 7" porcupine puffer....i have seen a few of his fish get stung by the lion nothing really ever happens....but i have been stung by it it hurts for a few but just run some hot water over it and u'll be fine...but you also shouldnt feed ANY froven food too an eel as he can develop deficenty diease,which will cause him too not eat and slowly die....if you do buy one offer only FRESH NEVER FROZEN food and def no freshwater feeder fish,those guy will only make it happen faster....i can go into it all day but if ya got anymore questions feel free to pm me

ashtree68
06/03/2010, 04:40 PM
I've a snowflake in with my Volitan and don't have anyproblems, I also have a white ribbon eel. I got him when he was already eating frozen so that helped a lot but it can still be a hassel trying to feed him.

trigger:)
06/03/2010, 11:30 PM
Years ago I had a big Vilitan lion (Head to tail 8-9"), and a 3 foot Zebra in a 150 they got along great!! Those fish grow big fast! Get the tank b 4 u get any more fish!

tang56
06/04/2010, 04:28 PM
if you do buy one offer only FRESH NEVER FROZEN food and def no freshwater feeder fish,those guy will only make it happen

what are you suppose to feed them then?

LisaD
06/05/2010, 09:15 AM
freezing food eliminates parasites. even if I buy fresh seafood, I freeze it first.

Allmost
06/07/2010, 08:13 AM
i myself have a snowflake moray he's a baby still only about 11" and 1" thick....as far as the a snowflake in a 65 it should be fine but they do produce alot of bio-load...as far as a eel with a lionfish it should be fine as well a buddy of mine has a 240g and houses 1 11" red lionfish,1 10" picasso trigger,1 19" snowflake, 1 12" eel with kinda fins by his gills so i dunno what he is and a 7" porcupine puffer....i have seen a few of his fish get stung by the lion nothing really ever happens....but i have been stung by it it hurts for a few but just run some hot water over it and u'll be fine...but you also shouldnt feed ANY froven food too an eel as he can develop deficenty diease,which will cause him too not eat and slowly die....if you do buy one offer only FRESH NEVER FROZEN food and def no freshwater feeder fish,those guy will only make it happen faster....i can go into it all day but if ya got anymore questions feel free to pm me


I feed my lion Saltwater molly's now, buy, 10 for 10 bucks, convert them to Saltwater over night, and hten feed them heavily on marine algae, I usually wait till they have one batch of babies in SW, so I can feed the babies to my seahorses and pipe fish, adn the parents goto the lionfish tank .

yes, my GF hates me cause of that. lol

but at least its not freshwater anymore :) it develops marine fatty acids after a week or so. u can see the change in their scales and poop

lisafoster
06/28/2010, 10:16 AM
freezing food eliminates parasites. even if I buy fresh seafood, I freeze it first.

Good info I did not know that. I buy fresh all the time. When I first get it i just feed it then freeze the rest from now on I will freeze first.