Ocellated Frogfish

llamadolly · 03/15/2018, 06:29 PM

Hello all, been stalking for awhile but first post! This'll be a little long as I provide context but feel free to skip to the end.

I've been researching frogfish for years because they are one of my favorite fish. Finally decided to set up a 13.5g with the intention of using it as a grow-out tank for a frog while also letting live rock and the sand bed establish so that when I move the frog out to a larger tank, it would be established enough for a nano-reef. I've had tanks for years, mostly freshwater but do have previous experience with FOWLR tanks and aggressive fish. I've got plenty of space and funds aren't too much of an issue, but figured over the next six months or so as the frog settled in I could look for a larger tank at a decent price on CL, etc.

So far, so good, seemed like a solid plan.

Set up the tank, bought my live rock, let it sit for a good long time while I waited for the cycle, asked my LFS to order me a frog. They said they can't always request specific species, I figured it wouldn't matter too much as it would still probably end up as one of the usuals and that in general the care of frogs doesn't seem to vary much across species. It came in quickly, not long after I ordered, but the store is still over an hour so I hadn't been in to check on it.

Well, I went to pick it up and lo and behold it is a Fowlerichthys ocellatus/Antennarius ocellatus - the Ocellated Frogfish, or the largest species. I'm 99% sure of the identification because of the particular spot pattern. I can't find much about the care of these fish except that a) they get considerably larger than other frogs and b) they are from deeper water.

Right now it's about 4". Spent three weeks at the LFS and is happily eating anything I put near its mouth. Also the most active frog I've ever seen and spends quite a bit of time wandering around.

TL;DR: the frogfish I got will get bigger than I expected! I feel bad for not knowing more about this particular species before bringing it home but am 100% committed to providing it everything it needs.
The questions:
1. Has anyone kept one before?
2. Tank size? Ocellateds are supposed to get up to 15". My original plan was a 40 breeder or a 55 - now I'm worried that the 55 at 12 3/4" isn't going to be wide enough. But the 40 at 16" should be... but that's a big fish in a small tank. I know generally frogs can be in smallish tanks relative to their size because they're pretty inactive. I'll get a 75 if I have to, I just hate to go as big as that for a single fish if I can avoid it.
3. Temperature? Any thoughts, since they're from deeper water than other frogs?
4. Diet? My original plan was silver sides and other frozen, assuming the fish would eat frozen, supplemented by live ghost shrimp and the occasional molly or guppy. Is that still ok?

Sweeper13 · 03/16/2018, 05:21 AM

Try this topic, its very long and may help u.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=613227

03/15/2018, 06:29 PM	#1
llamadolly Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2018 Posts: 4	Ocellated Frogfish Hello all, been stalking for awhile but first post! This'll be a little long as I provide context but feel free to skip to the end. I've been researching frogfish for years because they are one of my favorite fish. Finally decided to set up a 13.5g with the intention of using it as a grow-out tank for a frog while also letting live rock and the sand bed establish so that when I move the frog out to a larger tank, it would be established enough for a nano-reef. I've had tanks for years, mostly freshwater but do have previous experience with FOWLR tanks and aggressive fish. I've got plenty of space and funds aren't too much of an issue, but figured over the next six months or so as the frog settled in I could look for a larger tank at a decent price on CL, etc. So far, so good, seemed like a solid plan. Set up the tank, bought my live rock, let it sit for a good long time while I waited for the cycle, asked my LFS to order me a frog. They said they can't always request specific species, I figured it wouldn't matter too much as it would still probably end up as one of the usuals and that in general the care of frogs doesn't seem to vary much across species. It came in quickly, not long after I ordered, but the store is still over an hour so I hadn't been in to check on it. Well, I went to pick it up and lo and behold it is a Fowlerichthys ocellatus/Antennarius ocellatus - the Ocellated Frogfish, or the largest species. I'm 99% sure of the identification because of the particular spot pattern. I can't find much about the care of these fish except that a) they get considerably larger than other frogs and b) they are from deeper water. Right now it's about 4". Spent three weeks at the LFS and is happily eating anything I put near its mouth. Also the most active frog I've ever seen and spends quite a bit of time wandering around. TL;DR: the frogfish I got will get bigger than I expected! I feel bad for not knowing more about this particular species before bringing it home but am 100% committed to providing it everything it needs. The questions: 1. Has anyone kept one before? 2. Tank size? Ocellateds are supposed to get up to 15". My original plan was a 40 breeder or a 55 - now I'm worried that the 55 at 12 3/4" isn't going to be wide enough. But the 40 at 16" should be... but that's a big fish in a small tank. I know generally frogs can be in smallish tanks relative to their size because they're pretty inactive. I'll get a 75 if I have to, I just hate to go as big as that for a single fish if I can avoid it. 3. Temperature? Any thoughts, since they're from deeper water than other frogs? 4. Diet? My original plan was silver sides and other frozen, assuming the fish would eat frozen, supplemented by live ghost shrimp and the occasional molly or guppy. Is that still ok?

03/16/2018, 05:21 AM	#2
Sweeper13 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Northlake Posts: 189	Try this topic, its very long and may help u. http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=613227