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Fw pipefish


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#1 Guest_critterguy_*

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Posted 18 November 2008 - 01:21 PM

Anyone with any exp. with Sygnathus scovelli here?

#2 Guest_AndrewAcropora_*

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Posted 18 November 2008 - 06:16 PM

They're easy to keep if you can provide an adequate amount of live food. I've also heard they do best in full strength seawater.

#3 Guest_critterguy_*

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Posted 18 November 2008 - 10:05 PM

What kind of live food and how much is needed? Is it possible to raise them without hatching brine shrimp every day?

If they do best in full strength seawater...are they really FW pipefish like some of the others sold in the trade? Any experience with African/Asian sp. would be nice too.

Btw, we have a pipefish(unknown sp.) at the lab right now. He feeds readily on adult brine shrimp, and also BBs too. I've heard some sp. can't take larger food items though.

#4 Guest_Clayton_*

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Posted 19 November 2008 - 09:47 AM

The SW varieties we kept when I worked at a fish shop seemed to do well on cyclopeeze. They are very small, but very easy to deal with. I'm not sure how useful that is for your FW species, but we just mixed them with water and gave a liberal squirt to the tank and the pipefish would do the rest. We fed in the morning and then again at close, but I've read that most people who do any sort of breeding or serious keeping with seahorses feed them a lot more often.

#5 Guest_fishyz_*

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Posted 21 November 2008 - 09:30 PM

I remember reading about a native freshwater pipefish in tropical fish hobbyist one time. They did best in brackish water that would change in salinity. When the author did water changes he would sometimes replace with full fresh, full salt, of mixtures of the two and random.

#6 Guest_AndrewAcropora_*

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Posted 22 November 2008 - 04:23 PM

You said we were dealing with Sygnathus scovelli in your opening post. Sygnathus scovelli are found in estuarine to full-strength seawater environments. And yes, they will require daily live foods. In my experience, getting seahorses and pipefish to switch to dry foods is nearly impossible.
Depending on the size of your fish, live brine will *probably* suffice. Like I said, they are easy to keep if you can satisfy their demand for live food.

#7 Guest_critterguy_*

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Posted 23 November 2008 - 11:19 PM

You said we were dealing with Sygnathus scovelli in your opening post. Sygnathus scovelli are found in estuarine to full-strength seawater environments. And yes, they will require daily live foods. In my experience, getting seahorses and pipefish to switch to dry foods is nearly impossible.
Depending on the size of your fish, live brine will *probably* suffice. Like I said, they are easy to keep if you can satisfy their demand for live food.

The one in the lab is not S. scovelli, we caught it in long beach harbor. I've heard that they can waste away without enriched brine(soaked with Selcon or similar). True, false?

I was mainly wondering if they'd be good captives after reading this article. Anyone here have access to them?

http://www.fishchann...hwater-pipefish

#8 Guest_travishaas_*

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Posted 24 November 2008 - 12:24 AM

There are at least two breeding populations of truly freshwater Syngnathus scovelli in Louisiana. One occurs in Lake St. John, the other in Lake Bruin - both are oxbows of the Mississippi River. The collection and aquarium husbandry of one of these populations was the subject of a recent article in the Spring 2008 issue of American Currents: "Syngnathus scovelli, the Elusive Freshwater Pipefish" by Mike Hellweg (reprinted from Livebearers, the bulletin of the American Livebearer Association). You could contact the American Livebearer Association or NANFA to request a back issue, if you're interested.

Travis Haas

Livin' below sea level in New Orleans

Edited by travishaas, 24 November 2008 - 12:26 AM.


#9 Guest_PhilipKukulski_*

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Posted 24 November 2008 - 01:28 PM

There are at least two breeding populations of truly freshwater Syngnathus scovelli in Louisiana. One occurs in Lake St. John, the other in Lake Bruin - both are oxbows of the Mississippi River. The collection and aquarium husbandry of one of these populations was the subject of a recent article in the Spring 2008 issue of American Currents: "Syngnathus scovelli, the Elusive Freshwater Pipefish" by Mike Hellweg (reprinted from Livebearers, the bulletin of the American Livebearer Association). You could contact the American Livebearer Association or NANFA to request a back issue, if you're interested.

Travis Haas

Livin' below sea level in New Orleans


I can't find that issue, but I seem to remember that Mike Hellweg's collecting location was hit hard by Katrina.

I have researched FW pipefish locations. Those references are decades old. Last year, I called a state park on one of those lakes; they never heard of any pipefish in the lake.

#10 Guest_critterguy_*

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Posted 20 March 2010 - 08:52 PM

Just thought I'd bump this up and se if anyone here has any more experience regarding pipefish...or knows where to get some(brackish watr species preferable to full salt). I actually saw many today helping with a wetlands seine but with our laws they are off limits to mere amateurs like myself. I have a 5 gallon that might do for a pair I figure...could probably rear some copepods in buckets outside and try to convert them over to cyclopeeze as mentioned in the previous post.

Edited by critterguy, 20 March 2010 - 08:53 PM.





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