How gental are your snowflakes Eels? [Archive] - Reef Central Online Community

j4mypets

01/28/2011, 08:21 PM

Maybe too late to ask, since i just got one. But did i just fall for the " she's really gental and bother any fish" from the LFS . Usually i research the fish i am going to be well in advance but i brought back my Niger Trigger ( after 2 yrs) to trade, and saw her. I had NEVER wanted an eel. I watched her for over an hour and fell in love. Another couple was in there and they also told me theirs was very docile. THEN i came home with researched her and read they are known to eat small fish, I have clowns and chromis, and dwarf angels, will she hurt them? She is in quarantine along with sinapore angels who she was in the tank with at the LFS.

As always, any help in much appreciated.

LISAD- If you happen to see this thread you were a major help to me 3 yrs ago when i first started and you told me eventually my tastes may change and they have. I really appreciated all your help.

j4mypets

01/28/2011, 08:33 PM

Oh, I also read that if you get bit by them you have to seek medical attention. Is it really that bad?

cakemanPA

01/28/2011, 08:37 PM

Don't put yourself in the position to get bit. Use feeding sticks or tongs and keep an eye out for your eels. If bitten it is best to get yourself checked. And they are major escape artists.

j4mypets

01/28/2011, 08:44 PM

Thanks Cakeman for reminding me thats another thing i read about them will they go over the overflows, do you put crate over the whole top and weight it down?

j4mypets

01/28/2011, 08:55 PM

Crap I just read watercity101's thread and am now really worried, should i bring this fish back to the store?

Tryin2layadime

01/28/2011, 08:56 PM

why would u have to be checked out from a eel bite. i was wondering about that. i have a snowflake eel and love it but was wondering about a bite from one.

07 Sti

01/28/2011, 11:07 PM

I've had two snowflakes over the years. Very mellow. Sometimes I'd have a load on, and hand feed the them. :p Never got bit. Nor did the eels ever bother my fish. I got rid of them because they kept tearing up the gravel, which would cause the tank decorations to fall over, and scratch the acrylic. I had a small lobster in the tank for about six months... one day I came home from work... and no more lobster. Just bits of shells. I wish I would have been home to see that.

j4mypets

01/28/2011, 11:39 PM

I really hope that's the case , I am afraid to go to bed and leave the snowflake with the angels

NewJerseyreef

01/29/2011, 01:15 AM

You should not have a problem I have a 1 inch damsel and a 1.5 inch damsel with my 12 inch snowflake and he does nothing to them. They will not eat small fish! In the wild they naturally live on crabs shrimp and other small inverts. Now if you were in a small space and could only eat others like you I bet you would. This is why people say they eat fish. If they are properly fed you should have no problem with fish and even hermits... I've watched my hermit walk right on by and he just observes them. The only time ive ever seen him attempt to attack fish was when they had food and he was hungry but this was only the ones that had food. Great to watch and enjoy have fun

j4mypets

01/29/2011, 06:36 AM

Oh I feel so much better! I am glad to hear some good stories after all the horror stories ,not to ,ention I am quickly becoming attached to her she is alot of fun to watch! This morning she is doing good as well as the angels. I want so badly to add her to the dt. We have to go get some escape proofing material!

ninjazx777

01/29/2011, 07:25 AM

I have a 12" and a 6" snowflake and a 24" banded snake eel together along with a scorpion fish, picaso trigger, stars and strip puffer, a six line wrasse, large hermit and four mollies I converted to salt and they all get along the eels are the most docile of all the fish the mollies and the six line are small and could easily be eaten but as long as I feed regularly nothing bothers them.

j4mypets

01/29/2011, 07:39 AM

I am so glad. Because after all my reading last night we were going to take a trip back to the store. I have been using the same lfs and they had never steered me wrong.

rssjsb

01/29/2011, 09:45 AM

I hate to be a wet blanket, but "peace in the kingdom" may not last forever. I've read reports that snowflakes become more aggressive when they hit sexual maturity (which I think happens somewhere around the 24" mark), at which time they may go after fish. I've never experienced it myself - mine's only around 15" now - but I'm a bit worried about it.

Also, I know I've told you this before, but I just love that Newf!

SantaCruzReefer

01/29/2011, 12:03 PM

I had a snowflake that killed everything I put with him. Everything. He never ate them but just smashed them, and then he would not eat a thing for 9 months then I gave him back to the fish store. They all eventually get to a point at about 20 to 24 inches where they get extremely aggressive and will try to kill other tankmates.

NewJerseyreef

01/29/2011, 05:00 PM

I think this is just a bad rep. People never explain how they care for them. A hungry animal will do anything for food. They don't eat fish in the wild unless they are dead or weakened. This could be the case for many instances in the home

namxas

01/29/2011, 05:44 PM

IME, once a SFE gets some size on it (e.g., becomes mature), there's a good chance that it will get nasty, kill tankmates, and be prone to biting (I was bitten twice, once the eel actually came out of the water to bite me while I was changing out a lamp in the canopy. I had this eel for 15 years, but I ended up having to keep it in solitary confinement after I became fed up with it. At the time, I couldn't GIVE it away (it was a big, pretty specimen too). I ended up losing it when a GFI outlet failed and needed replacement.

One thing folks need to bear in mind is that sure, in the wild, these eels tend to be more mellow, but when confined with other fish in close proximity, they aren't going to pass up a sleeping fish as a meal.

j4mypets

01/29/2011, 06:01 PM

Well, I was hoping someone would say that because we decided take the chance and just add him. I would stress for the next couple weeks and go back and forth on whether to keep him so we beefed up the rock work and in they went. All is well so far, the sailfin is tailslapping her to make sure she stays in the caves..she hasnt shown any interest in eating, and I hope she does so she doesn't get to hungry and eat my fish! My computer crashed so I have to do this from my cell, or I would show the pics I have already gotten. I will when I get my computer back up.

j4mypets

01/29/2011, 06:12 PM

oh crap I'm worried again oh man, I am so happy with the aquascape, for the first time in 3 yrs it would suck to have to tear it apart to get her out!

j4mypets

01/29/2011, 06:14 PM

Now phone dying!

Tryin2layadime

01/29/2011, 10:51 PM

my 13" SFE was in a tank with a 3 inch dwarf angel and a 5 inch volitan lion. the only time i had issues was with the lion the eel would snip at the fins. but would never go after him. ive also fed him live goldfish and guppies. the biggest goldfish he got was a little over 1/2 inch long and he snapped it in half pretty impressive imo.

j4mypets

01/30/2011, 08:32 AM

First- My computer crashed during all my excitement with this tank What a nightmare been on the phone with hp this morning for 2 hours Viruses suck!

Ok now All is well this morning everyone looks great and pretty happy I have not seen her try to harm anyone at all, sure hope it stays that way, cuz i am really enjoying watching her I will get a FTS to show you, she has lots of space and crevices to roam around as does everyone else, just in case she tried to get them. I guess we will just go with the flow and if at some point we see her starting to get aggressive she would have to come out. Noone seems scared of her at all!

Question though she still hasn't eaten anything- Any suggestions?

rssjsb

01/30/2011, 11:06 AM

It's normal for a newly introduced eel to go on a hunger strike. Just keep trying to offer it food, and always use a stick. It's courting disaster to have the eel snatching food out of the water column. They hunt by smell and don't see vey well. So when you put meaty foods in the water, it smells food all around and may just grab whatever swims in front of its face. You may notice it coming out of its cave and swimming around when it's hungry.

j4mypets

01/30/2011, 11:13 AM

Good tips thanks Robin and thanks for saying you love my newfie, she is a great dog. Does pretty much whats in her pic most of the time, but she is my gental giant!

I am going to open a seperate thread to show pics of the tank.

Tryin2layadime

01/30/2011, 02:56 PM

my sne didnt eat for almost a week and a half. now when he is hungry he comes out and goes for the lid. i fed him a goldfish last night and he was in heaven lol it was a great chase.

NewJerseyreef

01/30/2011, 03:31 PM

my sne didnt eat for almost a week and a half. now when he is hungry he comes out and goes for the lid. i fed him a goldfish last night and he was in heaven lol it was a great chase.

You really shouldnt be feeding freshwater fish to saltwater fish as it is a meal it can lead to liver problems

Tryin2layadime

01/30/2011, 03:45 PM

You really shouldnt be feeding freshwater fish to saltwater fish as it is a meal it can lead to liver problems

yes i know man. i only do it maybe every 2 weeks. its just something for fun. normally ill feed him some krill

Snapper66

01/30/2011, 05:01 PM

rssjsb

01/30/2011, 07:09 PM

yes i know man. i only do it maybe every 2 weeks. its just something for fun. normally ill feed him some krill Ok, but krill isn't really good for them either. Feeding too much krill can cause lockjaw. An eel's diet should be varied and include other meaty foods like shrimp, squid, scallops, etc.

rssjsb

01/30/2011, 07:11 PM

I Have Snowflake eels They are the Least Agressive of the Eels I have Seen.There Bite is a Sharp pinch one Drew a little Blood But no Worrys They Do not have Teeth like say a Green Moray eel.Mine came to the Top when He was Hungry and Nipped My Finger.:lol: How old are your eels? Their teeth change with their behaviors when they hit maturity. This was the subject of the discussion farther up thread. No one's disputing that snowflakes can be very mellow and passive when they're young.

j4mypets

01/30/2011, 07:17 PM

I have offered her scallops, clam, and shrimp. From what you guys are saying she'll eat when she gets hungry. My Sailfin, and Mac are making sure she doesn't go anywhere they don't want her to be they just tail slap her if she comes to far out of a cave.. Do I have to worry about them stressing her out???

I also think our original estimate of her size was wrong, I think she is about 18" Also, is there a difference in aggression between males and females. I was told she is a she and was a mated pair, and the male got sold by accident.

rssjsb

01/30/2011, 07:31 PM

Well, shrimp is pretty hard for them to resist. Mine likes squid a lot, too.

I think she just needs to calm down and get used to her surroundings. As long as she's not skinny, she'll be fine. I would keep an eye on her though - if you see her swimming around it probably means she's hungry, and that's when little fish like your clowns are most at risk of disappearing in the night.

Did you seal off the top and overflow? The number one cause loss for these fish is escape - they can get out of any opening big enough for their tiny little skulls. I think the risk is greatest during the first weeks in a new tank.

j4mypets

01/30/2011, 07:42 PM

Oh thats what makes me nervous, I love those clowns and all of them, and they are out and about soooo much more since i got the trigger out.

We ran to home depot yesterday and got the crate, he fit it as close as possible, it was tough too make it a tight fit around the overflows. Hmmmm. How does everyone do that?

Watercity101

01/30/2011, 09:54 PM

You really shouldnt be feeding freshwater fish to saltwater fish as it is a meal it can lead to liver problems

Wait thats makes me think of a question- i already knew what you've said but... so is it ok to feed salt water fishes too the eel? example really small damsels

anbosu

01/31/2011, 09:10 AM

NewJerseyreef

01/31/2011, 09:34 AM

Wait thats makes me think of a question- i already knew what you've said but... so is it ok to feed salt water fishes too the eel? example really small damsels

Oh yea from what I understand yes but I don't think that aloof people do it because damsels are first off very fast and secondly this can get expensive

dacaptain78

01/31/2011, 04:25 PM

My snowflake is is almost fully grown, in the 18 to 24 inch range. He is not aggressive towards the other fish in my tank, he actually hangs out with a zebra eel I have as well. I do not have small fish though, but if I did I would worry about their safety.

I feed my eels clams, shrimp, and silver sides. I tried scallops and squid but they were not interested. At times my eels went on brief hunger strikes for a week to ten days. But most of the time they are out to eat once they smell the food hit the water. The SFE has no problem swallowing a large, whole silverside, hence the reason I would worry for smaller fish in my tank.

FWIW, I threw a bunch of killies, that I caught down at my boat dock, into the tank about two years ago. They all disappeared in a few weeks. Now I dont know if my lion fish or eels got them, or if they just dies on their own, but I never found a carcass.

namxas

01/31/2011, 04:54 PM

Greg, what sized tank did you keep it in then? I think a 60 cube or something like that would be a pretty cool display for a solitary snowflake if it could handle the bioload.

I tossed it into an old 60 gal I had laying around.

I Have Snowflake eels They are the Least Agressive of the Eels I have Seen.There Bite is a Sharp pinch one Drew a little Blood But no Worrys They Do not have Teeth like say a Green Moray eel.Mine came to the Top when He was Hungry and Nipped My Finger.

I've got a nice row of scars on the 4th finger of my right hand from the first time that SFE I had bit me. It grabbed me from its lair, and held on so all I could do was wait until it let go. While it had me, it did the moray "knotting" behavior and sliced gashes into my finger.

The second time it had to poke its head out of the water a good 6" to grab me while I was replacing a lamp. That time I was so p*ssed-off that I was reaching into the tank to toss it onto the floor and put my foot on its head, but my now ex intervened on its behalf. Of course, anyone who has handled an eel knows there's no way you can "bare hand" one because they're so slippery...

07 Sti

01/31/2011, 05:16 PM

I did watch as my SFE tied herself in a knot (Literally) to gobble down a piece of shrimp I had put in the tank. That was one of the coolest things I have ever seen. When they get hungry, they attack that food. I'll have to go back to my log (yes, I keep a log) and see what she measured out at.

deangelr

01/31/2011, 05:27 PM

You really shouldnt be feeding freshwater fish to saltwater fish as it is a meal it can lead to liver problems

Just curious then.. why doesnt this seem to be a problem with feed freshwater shrimp? which almost everyone in the hobby does..

Also ive been bitten pretty substantially by a 12 inch snowflake eel.. barely drew blood and I certainly didnt seek medical attention.

j4mypets

01/31/2011, 07:05 PM

Ok I am back to being nervous, how the heck am I going to get it out now? And do I have too worry about all my fish or just the small ones? I am also now very worried about my puffer, and I never was before. I am bummed I was pretty pumped about this crew I :(

j4mypets

01/31/2011, 07:08 PM

Btw I think she ate a little tonight, but it looked like she couldn't see it at all.

cakemanPA

01/31/2011, 08:51 PM

Btw I think she ate a little tonight, but it looked like she couldn't see it at all.
Eels in general do not have great vision. But they smell food as soon as it hits the water.

namxas

02/01/2011, 02:05 AM

Agreed...since it's dark when they hunt, eels have pretty terrible eyesight because there's no real need for it, but possess a great sense of smell. You can actually see them put their snouts to the substrate and sniff like a hound for the trail of their prey.

Other than getting nasty, the eel did show me some cool behaviors.

j4mypets

02/01/2011, 05:14 AM

I guess so because i had her food right at her mouth and she was almost rubbing it with her head like she couldn't see it . I still only saw her eat the one piece.

I need a vote here, Should i get her out now if i can and bring her back?

NewJerseyreef

02/01/2011, 12:40 PM

No just keep her i think your over reacting a lot. It is normalfor them to go after fish during feeding because of their terrible eye sight. This is how I feed.

Take a poker tongs or something to put a piece of food on and slide a good size on for you SFE. Then feed your tank and allow the smell to catch the attention of the eel. Once you notice him becoming interested take your food on the poker and place it in front of him. He will take the food and leave everyone alone to eat their food with no problems

cakemanPA

02/01/2011, 01:17 PM

no just keep her i think your over reacting a lot. It is normalfor them to go after fish during feeding because of their terrible eye sight. This is how i feed.

Take a poker tongs or something to put a piece of food on and slide a good size on for you sfe. Then feed your tank and allow the smell to catch the attention of the eel. Once you notice him becoming interested take your food on the poker and place it in front of him. He will take the food and leave everyone alone to eat their food with no problems
^^^^+1^^^^

j4mypets

02/01/2011, 03:05 PM

Thank you both! Thats what i wanted to hear, that i am overreacting. I absolutely love this site but sometimes it can be difficult to decifur between everyones opionions. As far as I can see in the 5 days we have had her there has been no problems, and noone is afraid of her. They were definately afraid of the trigger. She is cool and i like her and we will just have to see how it goes

I have been using the tongs, and doing exactly that, i feed everyone else, and she does seem interested, she kind of waves her head around the food, but so far has only taken the one bite. I have tried clam, shrimp, and scallops. Hopefully tonight i can get her too eat something. Do they have a favorite?

AeonPhoenix

02/01/2011, 03:20 PM

j4mypets

02/01/2011, 04:32 PM

Just a thought, maybe the eel is too intimidated while the light is on?

Perhaps try feeding at night after the light is off. Just leave a lamp on in the room so you can see a little in the tank. It might work.

I got her to eat a little scallop, but thats it. When she finally starts eating, how much should i be feeding her?

AeonPhoenix- That is a great idea, I am going to try that. thanx

AeonPhoenix

02/01/2011, 11:56 PM

Wish I had an answer to that. I had a sfe for a few weeks and that thing would eat as much as I gave it lol. This was before I had a protein skimmer, so my water got extremely dirty which is why I got rid of it.
He was about 10" long and I fed him 3-4 dime sized shrimp every 2-3 days. He seemed happy, but I didn't have him long enough to see if that was the right amount or not.

NewJerseyreef

02/02/2011, 08:36 AM

The younger they are the more they need to be fed they are just like snakes. Once they reach maturity they can go with eating once a week. I really wouldn't start worry about him not eating right now. Once you hit 2 weeks now were talking being nervous. My SFE has personally never gone on strike but he's only a baby and I think has an endless stomach due to me feeding him everyday. I say there's nothing wrong with having a fat healthy fish. Just wait you will know when he is hungry. They are very common to go on hungry strikes... I think I heard an adult going 3.5 weeks before. Keep your head up man nothing to stress about. They are a great animal and extremely unique to the world of saltwater aquaria

j4mypets

02/02/2011, 09:31 AM

Thanks NewJerseyreef- good info, I am not that worried about her anymore, she has taken a couple of bites, and seems interested. If she wasnt interested at all, I would worry more. I am also going to go out and get more food to offer her (squid and silversides) I have clam, scallops and shrimp.

I think I am past my panic stage:spin2: :)

For those of you who have helped me out, thanks so much! And just in case you haven't seen my other thread I had posted lots of pics, I thinks it on the next page now.

hotrodolds

02/02/2011, 02:11 PM

Mine is apparently a monster even at 10" as i found out yesterday

j4mypets

02/02/2011, 03:24 PM

Mine is apparently a monster even at 10" as i found out yesterday

Do you mean it ate one or your fish or you read my thread and are convinced that they are monsters from everyone responses?????

BTW went and got silversides and squid, getting ready to try it!

j4mypets

02/02/2011, 03:41 PM

Oops i didn't see your thread. Saw it now!!!!

hotrodolds

02/02/2011, 03:46 PM

Do you mean it ate one or your fish or you read my thread and are convinced that they are monsters from everyone responses?????

BTW went and got silversides and squid, getting ready to try it!

Apparently was hungry and made a straight dash to the watchman goby's den last night. Sucked but I was happy I saw it happen, left no doubt about where the watchman went. The goby's head was bigger than the eel's. :sad2:

Just feed heavy, I'm going to start feeding every day until he slows down now. He ate two pieces of krill and half a silverside today even after the goby last night.