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Darters not eating well

Started by Guest_p3purr_* , Feb 10 2008 01:48 AM

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6 replies to this topic

#1 Guest_p3purr_*

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Posted 10 February 2008 - 01:48 AM

I have a 4 Roanoke and a chainback darter that are starting to not eat well. The Chainback and the smallest Roanoke is getting thin. The Chainback spits out most if not all the food he takes in. I'm getting concerned about those two especially.

I'm feeding frozen brine shrimp, mysis shrimp and white mosquito larvae. I've tried tubifex but they don't like that. I got them during the convention in Greensboro this past summer. They all ate great from day one but the past 2-3 weeks they are all starting to eat less. For the most part they seem to be hungry but not interested in what's offered.

Any help would be apprecialted.

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#2 Michael Wolfe

Board of Directors

North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage

Posted 10 February 2008 - 01:39 PM

I'm not sure that I can be much help, but I'm just curious... has anything happened with your weather (either the actual temperature or the length of day... or perceived length of day)? The reason I bring that up, is I have noticed that my darters in the basement tend to slow down their eating when it gets cold (which seems normal enough)... but also they seem to eat less if the days get shorter, or even if it is consistently overcast.

The other thing is have you changed the time of day that you feed them? I have noticed that since I consistently feed in the evenings after work, that if I decide to try to feed early in the day on a Saturday or something, that the fish seem to be unprepared for it or are just not ready to eat.

Just some thoughts...

Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin

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#3 Guest_Casper Cox_*

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Posted 10 February 2008 - 02:34 PM

Darters are big feeders of frozen bloodworms... they all like those. that is the most common darter food among their keepers. also they cant resist chopped up earthworms. i buy smallish red wigglers ( not giant nightcrawlers ), rinse them off, grab one end w/ a pair of tweezers and start snipping them into pieces directly into the tank. this is a great way to kick off a new captive darter to tank life and get him to eating. they cant resist the squirming blood frenzy.
you also might try keep a tank outside and having sponges and water mosses in the fishless container. bring a big piece in every once in awhile and squeeze and flush it out. they love that too. sometimes i bring home some of the underwater mosses i find and they really go to picking. just because we cant see these tiny edibles does not mean the darter cant!

but mike might be right w/ temps and lights. if it is real cold they will slow down eating. by the same token if it too warm it means death for a lot of darters. lights, room temp, powerheads all add heat to a tank. the folks that seem to do best are nothern folks w/ tanks in their basements for darters... just a general statement but one to consider. dont let the tanks get warm.

casper

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#4 Guest_Nightwing_*

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Posted 10 February 2008 - 09:39 PM

I am by FAR not a darter expert. But..I had to comment on the warm statement. First, of course, IF you can keep darters at cool(under 70) temps, that's no doubt the best. However...I have an un-cooled tank in an apt. that does NOT have A.C. and last year I had several days when the tank temp was in the mid 80's. The darters(rainbows and a greenside) never showed a bit of stress, and went right on going on as if nothing was amis. Now...I do NOT of course recoment those temps if they can be avoided, but with good O2 content in the water, and good movement..I t hink darters can be kept at suprisingly balmy temps.

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#5 Guest_nativeplanter_*

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Posted 11 February 2008 - 01:26 PM

I am by FAR not a darter expert. But..I had to comment on the warm statement. First, of course, IF you can keep darters at cool(under 70) temps, that's no doubt the best. However...I have an un-cooled tank in an apt. that does NOT have A.C. and last year I had several days when the tank temp was in the mid 80's. The darters(rainbows and a greenside) never showed a bit of stress, and went right on going on as if nothing was amis. Now...I do NOT of course recoment those temps if they can be avoided, but with good O2 content in the water, and good movement..I t hink darters can be kept at suprisingly balmy temps.

I had a similar experience as a grad student. We had AC, but couldn't afford to run it much. Being in Georgia, it got pretty hot in the summer. Darters seemed to be OK, but I too had good current going. They always ate well and were trained to a feeding station that got the bloodworms to the bottom (so they wouldn't get snatched up by the shiners). I really need to make one of those tubes again soon.

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#6 Guest_p3purr_*

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Posted 11 February 2008 - 10:54 PM

Thanks for the great info!

Seasons might have something to do with it, tank is a lot cooler than during the summer. My lighting schedule hasn't changed.

I was feeding bloodworms for a while and just didn't get any more. I picked some up today and will see how that works.

During the summer my tanks got way too warm, sometimes 80 and a few times 82. I cut the lights back some, had a box fan aimed at the tank and added a few airstones. They faired very well. I had asked which fish would fair the best in the heat when I collected them (ok, just tried not to get in everyones the way to often).