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Hi Im new and Need help.

Started by Guest_AceHoodz_* , Jul 15 2010 10:19 PM

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19 replies to this topic

#1 Guest_AceHoodz_*

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Posted 15 July 2010 - 10:19 PM

This is my new sunfish.

I think it is a Pumpkin Seed.

I would like to know what kind of temperatures I should keep my sunfish at.

I would like to know what kind of food it eats.

And I would like to know just general tips in caring for it because it is my first fish and im only 17.

I would like to give it a happy, healthy, and stress free life.

It lives by itself in a 21 gallon tank and I am currently feeding it cichlid pellets.

Thanks guys

Posted Image

Edited by AceHoodz, 15 July 2010 - 10:21 PM.

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#2 Guest_panfisherteen_*

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Posted 15 July 2010 - 10:46 PM

that is a longear sunfish

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#3 Guest_AceHoodz_*

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Posted 15 July 2010 - 10:52 PM

that is a longear sunfish

Thanks,

Can you help me with the questions I have

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#4 Guest_Uland_*

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Posted 15 July 2010 - 11:27 PM

Welcome Ace,
I agree with panfisherteen - A longear sunfish male.
I'm curious where you got him since it doesn't look like he came from the Chicago area. And please make sure not to release him!

As far as your questions....Well, it's a NA native so it does quite well from temperatures from the 40's to the 80's but 50's to 70's would be ideal at home (No heater).
It seems to eat pellets so I'd stick with that and supplement with frozen or dried tropical foods of your choice. Most sunfish are not picky so just try and vary the diet as much as possible.
Assuming you have the basics for cleaning the tanks and regular water changes, you have a pretty hardy fish and should not be concerned with special care requirements.
A 20 is a bit on the small side but should be able to house that single fish for life. As far a stress free life - I would keep him alone.

Essentially, you can treat that sunfish as you would a cichlid.

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#5 Guest_AceHoodz_*

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Posted 15 July 2010 - 11:39 PM

Thanks for replying Uland,

I was really worried that I wasn't taking care of it correctly.

I received this fish as a gift from a farmer/teacher at my highschool because it was eating the other fish. I would also like to know why it stays hidden most of the time? And is It ok to feed it really small goldfish? And will it grow big?

Edited by AceHoodz, 15 July 2010 - 11:42 PM.

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#6 Guest_natureman187_*

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Posted 15 July 2010 - 11:49 PM

I am curious of it's origins as well. Central Longear can have a tenancy to be finicky eaters at first unlike their upstate cousins, so live foods for starters. Goldfish may be a bit large for their small mouths, even the little ones but it couldn't hurt to try.
In the wild they index with rocks and logs, in and out of cover. If there isn't ample hiding places within their new home they'll be very jittery and bolt for cover until comfortable with their surroundings.

Edited by natureman187, 15 July 2010 - 11:51 PM.

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#7 Guest_Uland_*

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Posted 15 July 2010 - 11:51 PM

It's likely new to the tank and will take a little while to settle in and be comfortable.
It should recognize you soon and respond to you as a food source (beg for food).
It will eat very small goldfish and minnows BUT personally I'd recommend sticking with prepared foods. Live fish as foods bring in disease.
It will not grow big like a Largemouth Bass but depending on where it was collected, it would grow in the wild from 5 - 7".

Have you kept any fish in aquariums before? I ask since you might have to seek advice on cycling while you have fish in the tank if your tank has not been cycled. Advice this forum isn't really set up to help you with.

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#8 Guest_smilingfrog_*

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Posted 16 July 2010 - 12:03 AM

Room temperature should be fine. Cichlid pellets are a pretty good food so long as it is willing to eat them. You can also give him earthworms, crickets, mealworms, and a variety of frozen or freeze dried foods available at the pet store, but these aren't necessary, as said if he's eating them the cichlid pellets are a good choice. You will want a good filter if you don't already have one. I would also recomend a siphon for cleaning the gravel and doing water changes.
Welcome and good luck with your fish.

Edited by smilingfrog, 16 July 2010 - 12:39 AM.

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#9 Guest_CATfishTONY_*

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Posted 16 July 2010 - 05:14 AM

here is a link to a web site with good info on getting your fish tank up and running.

http://jonahsaquariu...te/contents.htm

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#10 Guest_donkeyman876_*

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Posted 16 July 2010 - 06:46 AM

As long as you keep it at room temperature, feed it pellets (if that's what it likes) and keep up with your weekly water changes and gravel siphoning your fish should be just fine. They are fairly hearty little fish and will soon grow to recognize you as his owner and that owner=food. It'll start to become more of a 'pet' than an ornament. You have fun with that fish and take good care of it. Good luck!

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#11 Guest_schambers_*

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Posted 16 July 2010 - 10:07 PM

I have a longear sunfish, too. They are nice aquarium fish. Mine loves earthworms, meal worms and crushed snails. I would feed those instead of the goldfish. Mine thinks meal worms are candy.

I would give the fish some cover so it will feel secure. It will be calmer that way. Get some live or plastic plants and maybe other tank decorations, whatever you like, enough that it can hide if it wants. I like rocks, wood, and live plants, but the fish doesn't care as long as whatever you use is aquarium safe.

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#12 Guest_gzeiger_*

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Posted 18 July 2010 - 04:07 PM

If you have a few minutes, throw in whatever bugs you can scoop out of the backyard (try to be aware of parents spraying chemicals if they do that). The fish will love you for it. This is really for your entertainment and isn't necessary for the fish's health, but I really enjoy seeing them take grasshoppers, crickets, earwigs, beetles, cranefly larvae and whatever else off the surface. The only thing I can catch that they don't really seem to like is slugs (which they will still usually eat).

Do take a minute to read the link posted above if you haven't kept fish before. The first couple weeks with a new tank are the worst time for the fish.

I agree that the cichlid pellets are a fine long term diet.

Edited by gzeiger, 18 July 2010 - 04:09 PM.

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#13 Guest_bjbass_*

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Posted 18 July 2010 - 04:42 PM

I have a bluegill and a pumpkinseed. I can get my bluegill to take a Massivore pellet, but he spits it out. I have tried shrimp pellets and cichlid bio gold sinking pellets. Those didn't work. I tried cichlid sticks, but they don't go after them. I am at a loss for pellets. Do they seem to go for the floating or sinking type more? I tried the floating type and the pumpkinseed did go after them, but just hit it and didn't eat it. They end up just getting stuck in my overflows and not eaten. How about Carnivore pellets?

Do you recommend live or dried crickets?

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#14 Guest_schambers_*

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Posted 18 July 2010 - 07:36 PM

The only thing I can catch that they don't really seem to like is slugs (which they will still usually eat).

Mine likes the slugs. I don't get them that often, usually I feed snails from the aquariums. They all go for squished snails like they are candy.

Bjbass, did you get your sunfish as adults? Juveniles are easier to get on prepared foods, I think. They are more adaptable than adults. Regardless, you'll want to start feeding things that look food to the fish, then move over to the prepared stuff. Get some worms from the bait shop or something at first. When the fish recognizes you as the food person, then try some of the other stuff.

Edited by schambers, 18 July 2010 - 07:44 PM.

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#15 Guest_gzeiger_*

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Posted 18 July 2010 - 08:55 PM

I have not had great success training a new fish to pellets. What has worked for me is competition with other fish. One alone will taste a pellet and spit it out, but one that sees another go for a pellet will usually eat it.

I suspect it may also help to feed something that behaves like a familiar food, for example feeding floating pellets in conjunction with mealworms or other live insects, or sinking pellets with earthworms, cracked snails or frozen foods.

People have often repeated advice to add some flavor to the pellets when first offered, such as garlic juice or beef blood, and soaking to soften them. Not sure if it's effective, but it makes sense.

My experience was that once they accepted a pellet as food they didn't distinguish between floating and sinking except that if you let weeks go by without feeding any kind of floating food they may not look for food on the surface unless you provide some other visual cue.

Luckily the original poster already has his fish trained to pellets, probably done before he got it.

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#16 Michael Wolfe

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North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage

Posted 19 July 2010 - 08:51 AM

I've said before, but with respect to darters, not I will say again for sunfish... I think that sometimes it has to do with the texture or density of the pellets... they are too hard and solid... Now, you may say that a snail is hard... but they are not... at least not to the sunfish, that can smash 'em... then they are soft inside... same thing with say, a grasshopper... exoskeleton hard on the outside... soft and tasty on the inside... but pellets are all one consistency... hard.

I suspect that soaking pellest has more to do with softening them than when you soak 'em in. Some fish do swallow their food whole... but some sunfish have pharyngeal teeth made essentially to crush their food in the back of their mouth/throat before swallowing... this is why some country folks call different species of sunfish "shellcrackers"... cause the do...

Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin

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#17 Guest_bjbass_*

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Posted 19 July 2010 - 11:18 AM

Bjbass, did you get your sunfish as adults? Juveniles are easier to get on prepared foods, I think. They are more adaptable than adults. Regardless, you'll want to start feeding things that look food to the fish, then move over to the prepared stuff. Get some worms from the bait shop or something at first. When the fish recognizes you as the food person, then try some of the other stuff.

I did get them as adults. I like the idea of mixing the live with the pellets.

I was able to get them snacking on some shrimp pellets that were laying on the bottom last night that were kind of around where I had cut up some night crawlers. I think they are starting to get the point.

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#18 Guest_logan_*

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Posted 19 July 2010 - 01:19 PM

I have an 80 gallon sunfish tank w/ a pumkimseed,bluegill,crappie, and a green sunfish. These types of native fish are very easy to care for. Keep the water temp around 70-80 degrees farienheit. They will eat earthworms from your backyard. on occasions I always feed mine feeder fish. I would atleast keep him in a 55 gallon aquarium, have driftwood, plants (artificial or live) and in my aquariium I have rock slates from home depot to make them comfortable. Good luck!

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#19 Guest_schambers_*

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Posted 19 July 2010 - 06:38 PM

What has worked for me is competition with other fish.

That's how I do it now that I have fish eating commercial food. The new ones see the others gobbling flakes or pellets down and they join right in.

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#20 Guest_ShadowBass_*

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Posted 11 August 2010 - 07:11 AM

I have not had great success training a new fish to pellets. What has worked for me is competition with other fish. One alone will taste a pellet and spit it out, but one that sees another go for a pellet will usually eat it.

I haven't had trouble training longear to pellets. They seem to eat anything.

But competition has helped with others. My largemouth bass was trained that way. Would not eat pellets at first, but after watching the other fish for awhile he finally joined in.

Juvenile shadow bass were the same way. At first they had no interest in prepared foods, but after watching green sunfish and others they finally started taking them.

I wonder if making the pellets move around a lot would trigger feeding. With our sculpin we'd blow them across the bottom with a powerhead so they appeared to be evading him, and finally he started taking them. In fact after he started eating pellets he had very little interest in live foods, due to having to put in more effort to catch them.