4 replies to this topic

[joekel01]

I am looking to catch some spotfin butterfly fish for a native tank and I live in nj. Where can I find them, and how can I catch them?

[Matt DeLaVega]

Are they that far north?  Don't see too many people trying native saltwater tanks on here. Sounds neat. Someone was working on a really nice oyster reef tank. Chasmodes I think, but not sure. Sorry I can't be of much help, but good luck.

[littlen]

LOTS of Y.o.t.Y. sub-tropicals get caught up in the Gulf Stream and make it up to Long Island, NY each year.  I know folks at the L.I. Aquarium go out collecting up there for some really cool tropical fish around September but don't have the locations off hand.  It might be a little too late in the year now to find any as the waters are cooling rapidly. 

Joekel--I would suggest looking around jettys.  They really seek the protection of structure near shore and can be incredibly difficult to net!  

[zooxanthellae]

In North Carolina, we start seeing juveniles in early August. By now, they are starting to disappear or move offshore. I most often encounter them around man-made structures near inlets. Floating docks might be the easiest place for you to access them, but as littlen said, they really are a pain to catch! My observed/caught ratio this year was something like 12/0. 

[gerald]

Here's an off-the-wall goofy idea somebody could try:  Locate a dock or jetty where baby butterflies have been seen.  As the water cools in Fall and tropical drifters get desperate for warmth, place a 10 or 20-gal plastic tote on the bottom nearby, cut a butterfly-sized oval slot in the side, drop in some busted cinderblock chunks or holey limestone or similar material for cover and weight.  Then place a chemical hand-warmer pack inside a smaller container with some rocks or lead weights for ballast, seal it up, and place inside the tote.  Check it a couple times a day for butterflies, and replace the hand warmers as needed.  A thermal gradient of just a couple degrees might be enough to draw them in.  Placing a thermometer inside the tote might help for judging when to replace the heat packs.