8 replies to this topic

[Hydrophilus]

Has anybody kept Mountain mullet, Agonostomus monticola, before? I noticed them on the SFC fish list and had to look them up. They appear relatively small for a mullet (36cm max, according to fishbase, maturity at half that size) and seem like they could make an interesting captive for somebody with a large enough tank. I have only seen wild mullet a few times but can't recall if they were particularly skittish.

[Betta132]

Don't mullet mostly filter-feed, though? They don't seem like the best aquarium fish. 

And I can't vouch for mountain mullet (odd name for an ocean fish), but striped mullet are a bit skittish. Also, they are very prone to jumping for little to no reason.

[Joshaeus]

Mountain mullet are a freshwater species...I looked this up as soon as I saw this post.

[Hydrophilus]

Yes, mountain mullet typically spend their entire adult lives in freshwater, apparently. They seem to spawn in freshwater and their eggs drift down into low-salinity estuaries before the larvae/juveniles start migrating back into freshwater.

 

I don't think mullet are filter feeders, at least not in freshwater. I have only ever seen them in fairly clear (i.e., little to no plankton to feed a filter-feeder) streams and rivers. My only experience with their feeding behavior is feeding them bits of bread tucked between my toes. It tickled a lot but was a fun experience. I expect that they usually feed on insects, small fish, and/or graze on plant matter occasionally.

[Dustin]

We caught tons of these in Central America but they are rare in the US.  They are upland stream fishes that still get relatively large by upland stream fishes standards.  They require cool water with flow, similar to what you might need for a blacknose or longnose dace except a much larger tank.  They are very nice looking when small with vibrant yellow and speckling but some of that fades as they get larger.  

[olaf]

I'll be darned. When I encounter "mullet" mentioned in a freshwater context, I generally read it as "sucker," as the old books (1800s through first half of 1900s) routinely called suckers (of all sorts) mullets. When they're not calling them carp, of course. Cool.

[dredcon]

I don't know about mountain mullet, but striped and white mullet are interface feeders. You see them feeding at the air/water, water/substrate, and water/plant interfaces much of the time. They will definitely eat algae, worms, bread, detritus in the water column. In area where people clean lots of fish they will attack the carcass when tossed in the water. When they are in the right feeding mode they are a blast on light tackle.

[Hydrophilus]

Dustin - Would they really need "cool" water like blacknose dace? The northern extent of their range seems to be North Carolina, so I would expect that they can tolerate fairly warm temperatures by upland stream standards, maybe low 20s Celsius/75°F.

Dredcon - sounds like if anyone ever tried keeping this species, they would be fairly easy to feed. And I bet they would be lots of fun to fish for!

[Dustin]

I don't think they would require lower temps especially since they migrate out through the lowland rivers in Central America to the ocean where temps hover in the 90's year round.  The streams were often very cool though even when the air was warm.