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Spotted Bullhead Juvies


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#1 Guest_Rex740_*

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Posted 27 September 2010 - 09:48 PM

Hey, I caught 6 4-inch spotted bullheads and was going to originally sell them. They are currently in a cooler and I just fell in love with them the past few days. My largest aquarium is 48 gallons and has chrysotus, confluentus, and skirt tetras in it (Also snails). I always figured I would not be able to keep them since they grow so large but someone told me they are slow growers. Is it possible for me to keep them in a 48 gallon? Also, I am not sure if I'll keep all 6, most likely 3 or 4. And if so, will they eat the tankmates? And I would like to confirm, are they spotted bullheads?

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#2 Guest_Dustin_*

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Posted 28 September 2010 - 09:18 AM

Where did you catch them? Spotteds have a very limited range. These appear to be browns, but I can't be certain from the photos. If you do indeed have spotteds, they stay smaller than most of the other bullheads so you may be okay for some time in a 48. I am fairly certain that they will eat their tankmates if they will fit in theor mouths no matter which species they turn out to be. They're sneaky too, waiting until the other fish are "asleep" before gobbling them up.

#3 Guest_UncleWillie_*

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Posted 28 September 2010 - 11:54 AM

Like Dustin, it is hard to tell if those are actually spotteds. There has been a bit of confusion between juvenile spotteds vs. browns HERE. We really need a look at the dorsal fins. Like Dustin said, they should be fine in a tank that size for a pretty good while since yours are very small.

#4 Michael Wolfe

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Posted 28 September 2010 - 01:47 PM

They look like the perfect tank mates for tetras :twisted: they would also do well with young cichlids :twisted: or damnbusia :twisted: or... well I suppose I have made my point about tank mates... they are bullheads, they will eat <period>
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin

#5 Guest_Rex740_*

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Posted 28 September 2010 - 02:18 PM

These were caught in South Florida. I am just confused on the fact that they are marbled in color.

#6 Guest_Dustin_*

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Posted 28 September 2010 - 02:22 PM

If they were caught in south Florida, they are definitely browns. Spotteds are found in a few river drainages that flow into the Gulf. I think the farthest south they are found is in the Suwanee River and its tributaries which are found in the NW area of the state.

#7 Guest_Rex740_*

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Posted 28 September 2010 - 04:08 PM

Even though they are marbled/spotted black?

#8 Guest_UncleWillie_*

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Posted 28 September 2010 - 06:36 PM

Yes. Here is a page from University of Florida (Spotted Bullhead). Here is the range map from this page:
Posted Image
It is a shame that one of the most beautiful catfishes has such a limited range and is a rare species to come by.

#9 Guest_Rex740_*

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Posted 28 September 2010 - 07:12 PM

Will the brown bullheads I have retain their marbled patterning as they get older?

#10 Guest_hmt321_*

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Posted 28 September 2010 - 07:41 PM

I have what i thought was a spotted bullhead, it is most likely a brown or a black, it did retain its molted pattern. It is still a great looking fish, but you can positively tell the difference between spotted pattern and the pattern mine has.

here is pict

Posted Image

the fish is about 4" longer now

#11 Michael Wolfe

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Posted 28 September 2010 - 07:44 PM

Will the brown bullheads I have retain their marbled patterning as they get older?


Potentially... I remember seeing the one at the Missouri Convention at the nature center in the Mingo Swamp... it was certainly full sized and was certainly marbled in the same way... google for brown bullhead, you can see that about a third or so of the pictures are of marbled individuals.
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