One Male Rainbow Darter per Tank?
#1 Guest_minnowmizer_*
Posted 02 June 2008 - 03:53 PM
Do I need a larger tank, or is that just the way it is with male rainbow darters?
#2 Guest_drewish_*
Posted 02 June 2008 - 04:11 PM
#3 Guest_UncleWillie_*
Posted 02 June 2008 - 04:57 PM
Shiners are active fish, they need space for swimming. In addition, there is very little bottom for the darter(s) to use. I also suggest a larger tank - you and your fish will benifit. Best to be a fish-keeper, not a fish-haver.
#4 Guest_minnowmizer_*
Posted 02 June 2008 - 06:42 PM
Agreed. Waht drewish said is correct. 2.5 gallons is just not enough. You need a larger tank for your fish to be happier. In my opinion, only some species of killifish and pygmies can be kept in such conditions.
Shiners are active fish, they need space for swimming. In addition, there is very little bottom for the darter(s) to use. I also suggest a larger tank - you and your fish will benifit. Best to be a fish-keeper, not a fish-haver.
Thanks everyone.
So in a 20 gallon tank, what would be a good number of darters and shiners?
Also, my darters don't seem to like frozen brine shrimp. Should I get frozen bloodworms instead?
#5 Guest_NVCichlids_*
Posted 02 June 2008 - 06:48 PM
I would make sure you get a 20 gallon long fish tank. the 20 gal regulars do not have enough swimming space for the darters or the shiners.
BTW about the feeding, try live brine shrimp if possible, most good fish stores have it. Blood worms (live/frozen) would be a good alternative to try, or even go back out and collect some of the small invertibrates from where you caught the fish.
i will post pictures tonight of my tank in process.
NV
#6 Guest_UncleWillie_*
Posted 02 June 2008 - 09:31 PM
I would imagine a comfortable number would be 2M/4F rainbows, and 6-8 shiners (depending on size, sp, etc). Some folks may chime in and say differently, but I think once you have upgraded your tank size, you can play around and see how everything unfolds.
About feeding, my darters (snubnose and fantails) quickly excepted bloodworms. It took a few days, but what got them going was putting the worms into current of the filter or swishing your hand in the water to give them movement. If a worm stayed still or only floated, they never paid attention, but when it looked like it was wriggling they quickly grabbed them. Now, there is no trouble. Also, if you have only had them for a short period of time, they may not eat, but give it a few days, and they should eat.
Edited by UncleWillie, 02 June 2008 - 09:35 PM.
#7 Guest_NVCichlids_*
Posted 02 June 2008 - 10:55 PM
http://forum.nanfa.o...amp;#entry39183
maybe this will help maybe not, it is in a 20 gallon L
NV
#8 Guest_Nightwing_*
Posted 03 June 2008 - 09:35 PM
#9 Guest_minnowmizer_*
Posted 04 June 2008 - 05:56 AM
I have 4 males and 9 females in a 40 long(with a bunch of other fish) with no problem. Indeed, the "rock garden" they use is only about the equivalent of a 15 gallon in bottom coverage but the fish get along fine(often, the males are all in a group, oddly enough). In spring they get a bit snippy, but they then just spread out a bit(even into the driftwood and planted areas). Very little aggression even then between them.
I know our 2.5 gallon is small, but it's still pretty hard to see the darters in there. You have to look real close. It seems a 40 gallon would camoflague them out of view.
By the way. Everybody seems to be getting along fine in there and we have 16 fish. The water pump is powerful and it keeps them moving around energetically.
I can't identify one species of an elongated shiner minnow. It has a long white stipe and a black pin stripe above and below with gorgeous lemon yellow fins. The belly is blood colored. It seems to prefer the middle strata of the tank, and the large blunt nose minnow kind of hunkers down below them.
Edited by minnowmizer, 04 June 2008 - 06:03 AM.
#10 Guest_scottefontay_*
Posted 04 June 2008 - 06:34 AM
Edit: To be able to see the darters well is a matter of setting up the tank for good display. focusing the outlet of a powerhead at pebbles and stones, etc. that you can easlily see will help to put the darters in view as they will choose to stay in the current more often than not.
Edited by scottefontay, 04 June 2008 - 06:39 AM.
#11 Guest_nativeplanter_*
Posted 04 June 2008 - 10:03 AM
#12 Guest_minnowmizer_*
Posted 04 June 2008 - 10:29 AM
Minnowmizer, I'm thinking that the tank must be larger than you think. Really because with 16 fish, they would really look very crowded to just about anyone. Can you measure the dimensions of the tank (length, width, height)?
Here's a picture of my tank with minnows included. The male darter hides under the rock:
group2.jpg 44.02KB 4 downloads
Here's the male rainbow with a couple of immature females resting on a sandstone rock. He seems quite content to hang out in his cave:
rainbow_male_and_2_females.jpg 25.28KB 3 downloads
The male by himself:
rainbow1.jpg 16.62KB 3 downloads
Edited by minnowmizer, 04 June 2008 - 10:32 AM.
#13 Guest_killier_*
Posted 04 June 2008 - 04:03 PM
Blacknose(longnose?) dace
rainbow darters
is what I see
TN red bellies get 2-3 and half inches long
Blacknose dace get 3-4 inches and quite "stocky"
Longnose dace get 4-5 inches long
rainbow darters get 2-3 inches long
with a tank like that I would say a 20 gallon would work however I might shoot for a 30long or a 55reg. the advantage of a 30 long or the 55 is the fact that if you want more fish you have room and the tank would be more stable (as in water conditions)
#14 Guest_dafrimpster_*
Posted 04 June 2008 - 06:25 PM
#15 Guest_Nightwing_*
Posted 06 June 2008 - 08:43 PM
I think just the opposite is the effect..a tiny tank such as yours likely has them always on edge and spooky. My darters are very curious and gregarious, and are out in the open most of the time. Indeed, if I am in sight of the tank they(and about 30 other fish) are usually swimming up and down along the front glass, and if I stick even a finger into the tank, they will swim all the way to the surface to investigate it. I have a very mixed community of fish, and to date they all mix and seem to get along well(well..other then a poor bluefin killie who proved to be a bit on the small side, and ended up eaten by a mud minnow!).I know our 2.5 gallon is small, but it's still pretty hard to see the darters in there. You have to look real close. It seems a 40 gallon would camoflague them out of view.
By the way. Everybody seems to be getting along fine in there and we have 16 fish. The water pump is powerful and it keeps them moving around energetically.
I can't identify one species of an elongated shiner minnow. It has a long white stipe and a black pin stripe above and below with gorgeous lemon yellow fins. The belly is blood colored. It seems to prefer the middle strata of the tank, and the large blunt nose minnow kind of hunkers down below them.
#16 Guest_rockbassbud5_*
Posted 07 June 2008 - 09:25 AM
I think just the opposite is the effect..a tiny tank such as yours likely has them always on edge and spooky. My darters are very curious and gregarious, and are out in the open most of the time. Indeed, if I am in sight of the tank they(and about 30 other fish) are usually swimming up and down along the front glass, and if I stick even a finger into the tank, they will swim all the way to the surface to investigate it. I have a very mixed community of fish, and to date they all mix and seem to get along well(well..other then a poor bluefin killie who proved to be a bit on the small side, and ended up eaten by a mud minnow!).
I currently have about 10 rainbow darters in a 10g tank. I have 4 males and 6 females. I also have two blackside darters and a trio of banded killifish. This is just a temporary set up as i am soon about to get at least a 20g tank to put all of these guys in. I just wanted to say that I have never had any problems with my males being aggressive. I do have plenty of rockwork and fairly strong flow. I also however have to do water changes quite often due to the oversized bioload for this size of tank. I strongly agree with the others because 2.5 gallons for 16 fish is way too small. Your water is already looking slightly cloudy btw. You definatly need to consider a larger set-up.
Edited by rockbassbud5, 07 June 2008 - 09:26 AM.
#17 Guest_JohnO_*
Posted 07 June 2008 - 08:23 PM
No real agression, except a couple of the larger fantails can get a bit feisty from time to time. But, it's usually just a fin nip to get off of their favorite rock. I'm filtering the daylights out of the tank, with a reef filter plus a large canister filter and air stick. These are oxygen loving fish, out of a cold fast moving stream, so they really appreciate fresh air and moving water.
#18
Posted 07 June 2008 - 08:55 PM
I have around 8 rainbows, along with 8 fantails, plus six creek chub and one juvenile banded sculpin in a 75 gal. They're quite visible and quite active, to the point of swimming to the top when I walk up with a cup full of frozen bloodworms. They know what that is...
No real agression, except a couple of the larger fantails can get a bit feisty from time to time. But, it's usually just a fin nip to get off of their favorite rock. I'm filtering the daylights out of the tank, with a reef filter plus a large canister filter and air stick. These are oxygen loving fish, out of a cold fast moving stream, so they really appreciate fresh air and moving water.
Not to cast doubts on you or your fish, but in my experience, creek chubs will live in a mud puddle and eat all of the other fish in the puddle... I would be very careful housing creek chubs only with similar sized fish (which can be difficult as creek chucbs can easily grow from 3 to 8 inches while you not lookin'). Don't wanna rain on your parade, but I think that combo of fish will eventually be trouble (and the rainbows will loose).
#19 Guest_fundulus_*
Posted 07 June 2008 - 09:55 PM
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