Jump to content


clupeids in captivity


  • Please log in to reply
12 replies to this topic

#1 Guest_Elassoman_*

Guest_Elassoman_*
  • Guests

Posted 18 September 2013 - 06:26 PM

Has anyone had success keeping or breeding any clupeids or engraulids in a tank? I think I know the answer, but I am hoping some of yall have discovered some magic tricks.

#2 Guest_EricaLyons_*

Guest_EricaLyons_*
  • Guests

Posted 18 September 2013 - 08:19 PM

Engraulids are anchovies, right? The aquarium in Osaka, Japan has a big anchovy tank. There's a round current and they swim around in a circle continuously.

It's possible that these are pictures of that tank, but it's been a few years so I can't remember 100%. This might be the wrong fish.
http://img.photobuck...kiimiru/100.jpg
http://img.photobuck...kiimiru/099.jpg

If you're ever in Osaka, the kaiyukan is pretty awesome. They have whale sharks and beluga. http://www.kaiyukan.com/newkaiyukan/

#3 Guest_Elassoman_*

Guest_Elassoman_*
  • Guests

Posted 18 September 2013 - 09:18 PM

Yup, engraulids are anchovies, and clupeids are shad. Thinking specifically about the threadfin, which stays small.

#4 Guest_Irate Mormon_*

Guest_Irate Mormon_*
  • Guests

Posted 18 September 2013 - 10:28 PM

They bang their snouts into the glass and die. An annular tank sounds like just the ticket!

#5 Guest_gzeiger_*

Guest_gzeiger_*
  • Guests

Posted 18 September 2013 - 10:37 PM

The one time I caught shad they basically died at the sight of the net.

#6 Guest_FirstChAoS_*

Guest_FirstChAoS_*
  • Guests

Posted 18 September 2013 - 11:44 PM

I think their is a tank of herring at the Boston aquarium if I remember right. So keeping Shad (assuming a shad and herring are the same) should be possible. I am not sure if their is a trick to this or not. (I remember with silversides someone at the Ohio convention says to keep them alive you need to make sure they NEVER leave the water, Not sure if shad require a similar trick or not. I also heard some shad species do not eat in fresh water, not sure if it is true).

#7 Guest_Skipjack_*

Guest_Skipjack_*
  • Guests

Posted 19 September 2013 - 07:16 AM

Every catfisherman who uses them for bait will tell you to keep them in a round tank. I think they could be tough to feed.

#8 Guest_UncleWillie_*

Guest_UncleWillie_*
  • Guests

Posted 19 September 2013 - 11:01 AM

Like Matt said, rounded tanks are the key. Everything needs to be round. I helped catch and transport gizzard shad for a mussel host study. We had to transport them in a round tank, and then they spent the rest of their days in one of those round Intex soft-bodied pool underneath a pole barn. They had plenty of aeration, were not crowded and had very clean water. They lived there for months until they were moved to the mussel host lab, and quickly died in the cramped inuculation tanks. As far as I know, they were fed spirulina flakes, but I don't know if they ate it, or just held onto survival for a couple of months.

#9 Guest_Elassoman_*

Guest_Elassoman_*
  • Guests

Posted 19 September 2013 - 03:15 PM

Thanks folks. This is more information than I thought I would get. My only experience here is much the same as your reports. As a kid (maybe age 10) I caught a mess of 1" gizzard shad in Charles Mill Reservoir. I threw them in one of those 2 gallon acrylic hex tanks, where most died the first day. Some held on for a few days, but never touched the Tetramin (regardless how many tablespoons I dumped on their heads). I would be interested to know how the pros keep them alive, in addition to giving them a circular tank. My guess is that predatory species would be easier than the planktivores...

#10 Guest_EricaLyons_*

Guest_EricaLyons_*
  • Guests

Posted 19 September 2013 - 03:25 PM

I would be interested to know how the pros keep them alive

Try contacting the Kaiyukan about their anchovy aquarium. The e-mail address is listed as info2@kaiyukan.com on this website: http://www.kaiyukan..../info/index.htm
That is my favorite aquarium in the world ^_^
The exhibits are foreign-language friendly so you don't necessarily need to be able to understand Japanese. Language link: http://www.kaiyukan....uage/index.html

#11 Guest_Kanus_*

Guest_Kanus_*
  • Guests

Posted 19 September 2013 - 06:25 PM

I would imagine they would probably eat frozen cyclops or something similar as well. Interesting about feeding them flakes, but they probably grab any particle they can see.

#12 Guest_Skipjack_*

Guest_Skipjack_*
  • Guests

Posted 19 September 2013 - 07:09 PM

Seems like flake would work well, or almost anything small and buoyant. I would have to wonder about daphnia as well.

Catfish guys also use bait saver with them, so if nothing else, I would guess that a fair amount of pure non-iodized salt would be very helpful.

Mike, what is the reason for your interest in this?


#13 Guest_Elassoman_*

Guest_Elassoman_*
  • Guests

Posted 24 September 2013 - 10:42 PM

Thanks again folks!
Reason for interest: I am mostly just curious. I don't know much about them other than they are great catfish bait. Been a while since I have tried something new... I have thought about some ecological questions, but don't really have time for another research project.





0 user(s) are reading this topic

0 members, 0 guests, 0 anonymous users