New oyster toad, new tank, and update on the old

Some interesting doings lately -

First, I caught a fish I've been after for a while, an oyster toad. Like all of my best fish, he wandered into the minnow trap that sits by my boat, unbaited, all the time. This little fellow is 3.5 inches long.

Here's the problem: I set up my 40-gallon with the intention, from day one, to put an oyster toad into it. I know they are voracious predators, but I don't mind a little Wild Kingdom going on inside my tank. However, while waiting for my oyster toad to come along, I caught a lot of other interesting gobies, a blenny, and a few other characters. She-who-must-be-obeyed became very attached to said tank denizens. When I plopped Mr. Toad into the 40-gallon, therefore, she assured me nights would be cold and lonely for a long stretch of time should any of her new friends wind up in his gullet. It didn't help that the kids had begun naming all the critters, either.

To be honest, I am a bit attached to Penny the Blenny myself.

So...it was time for a lickety-split emergency new tank setup for Mr. Toad. I had two candidates, both donations that had been sitting in the garage waiting for me to finally get around to setting them up properly. One was a 30-gallon, and the other was a 10-gallon. Obviously, the 30-gallon was the best candidate. However, it would take much longer to set up, especially since I don't even have a proper stand for it at the moment. So the 10-gallon got cleaned up and put into action as a stopgap measure. I read that this family of fish like a soft substrate for burrowing, so I got myself some beach sand, conditioned and added some water, put one of the pads from the 40-gallon's tank into the 10-gallon's filter, added a few oyster shells for hiding purposes, and plopped in Mr. Toad. True to my reading, he immediately burrowed himself into the sand with just his eyes and gargantuan mouth showing. So that's where he sits. Obviously, I'm hoping for a quick cycle with the old filter pad and the live sand. He showed no interest in the shrimp pellet I put right in front of his face. Tomorrow I'll try a piece of actual shrimp, and I'll stock the tank with some live grass shrimp as well.

Any suggestions for improvements?

Two other developments:

- I came home from lunch the day before yesterday to find Penny the Blenny stuck into one of my faux oyster reef creations. Only her (his?) tail was protruding, and she wasn't moving much at all. I managed to pry her out, and she darted to a corner of the tank and sat there, obviously not herself. She was still there when I got home from work, and she showed no interest at feeding time (she is normally quite aggressive). I was afraid she was a goner. Next morning, however, she seemed her old self, and today as well. I've got my fingers crossed for her and hope she has learned her lesson about poking her head into tight crevices.

- My 30-gallon came with an Emperor 280 filter. I hadn't messed with it because I figured it was basically the same as my Skilter. Ha! I cleaned it up and got it running (I still need a bio wheel) in the 40-gallon, and it has literally quadruple the flow of the Skilter. It is a far superior piece of equipment. Right now, I have both of them running. When I get the biowheel for the 280 and allow it to condition, it will become the new filter. All the reviews I read on the web are raves. Just thought I'd pass that along.

This evening, Mr. Toad happily gobbled a piece of shrimp I had thawed for him. I then went to the boat and collected all the grass shrimp from my traps and brought them home. I also found a baby (pea-sized) blue crab I figured he'd like. I put most all of this in his tank and a few shrimp in the 40-gallon, hoping the snapper would like them.

Mr. Toad snapped up the crab immediately and began hunting the grass shrimp. He hasn't had luck so far with them, but I suspect he will after lights-out.

Snappy the Snapper shows real interest in the live shrimp but, except for the tiniest, he seems to get right up on them and then chicken out. He apparently will only go after things he can swallow whole. I have never witnessed him eating a thing. I do have some suspicions, however, that I'm going to place in a separate post hoping for some responses.

thats cool I wish I could catch blennys. I can catch tons of oyster toads but never blennys. If you catch anymore you should send me some .

Love the toads!

You should have no trouble getting the toad to eat any meaty food you throw in. Actually, if he has good hiding places, you won't see him except to eat.

I know you're aware about toads being predators, but don't underestimate the size of their mouths, the size of their stomachs and the size of their appetite.

thats cool I wish I could catch blennys. I can catch tons of oyster toads but never blennys. If you catch anymore you should send me some .

So far, I've only caught the one blenny. If I hit the mother lode, I'll let you know!

What I'd like to catch next is another skillet fish. Very cool looking. My one and only previous example died, and I'm not sure why.

Love the toads!

You should have no trouble getting the toad to eat any meaty food you throw in. Actually, if he has good hiding places, you won't see him except to eat.

I know you're aware about toads being predators, but don't underestimate the size of their mouths, the size of their stomachs and the size of their appetite.

Glad to hear someone else appreciates them. Have you kept them together with other fish, or do you keep them from temptation?

You're right--he likes to hide!

Toadfish are awesome fish! Im trying to get a chance to go and catch one but I havenet found the time. They can live in bad water conditions because they are extremely hardy to. they have been known to live in trash and dirty water.
doesnt mean you should give them bad water though.

I'm not sure I understood what you said about the blenny. She was stuck inside an oyster?

I'm not sure I understood what you said about the blenny. She was stuck inside an oyster?

Sort of--Not a live oyster, but a faux-reef formation I built by mortaring together loose oyster shells. I gapped the openings various widths, and this one was too tight for her to enter. I don't know whether she was chasing something or just curious, but she was wedged in there good. Happily, she seems fine now.

I actually tried at first to reach in with a screwdriver and break open the shell, but that contraption I made is STRONG! So I wound up just reaching up under her at an angle and applying some pressure while she wiggled, and she eventually popped out.