6 replies to this topic

[Evan P]

I have a 70 gallon rubbermaid stock tank that I originally planned to spawn Checkered Madtoms in, but my male and one female jumped out during a rainstorm, so I'm left with only one gravid female. I plan to remove her, add some more plants, and throw in my school of Golden Topminnows and hope for a spawn. Are there any other species that would do well with Golden Topminnows that wouldn't eat all of their fry?

[Dustin]

Elassoma, Heterandia, Lucania goodei are all found together with goldens and are small enough not to eat the golden fry.

[Michael Wolfe]

Really? I think Elassoma are pretty effective at eating anything small... Even snail eggs or baby snails... do the Fundulus guard their eggs well enough.

[gerald]

I'd expect the Lucania to be more predacious on fry than the Elassoma.  But the Fundulus themselves are the biggest threat.

[Sean Phillips]

I'd expect the Lucania to be more predacious on fry than the Elassoma.  But the Fundulus themselves are the biggest threat.

+1 it took me forever to get fry from my Bluefin pair because they'd constantly eat there own fry before I could fish them out. Elassoma don't seem big enough to me to predate on fry but I've never kept them either.

[Dustin]

Evan's original post asked for species that would not eat ALL of the golden fry.  These species are all found together in the wild in surprisingly high densities at time so there have to be some fry making it to adulthood regardless of predation.  If the container is adequately planted and there is sufficient invertebrate food supply, I see no reason why these species wouldn't thrive together and produce fish that would survive to become adults.

[gerald]

Yup, that's the ticket ... keep them so full of bugs and worms that they don't bother chasing fry.

 

... adequately planted and there is sufficient invertebrate food supply ...