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My Bluegill

Started by Guest_dsaavedra_* , Dec 18 2009 04:46 PM

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37 replies to this topic

#21 Guest_centrarchid_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 12:49 PM

If your tank is large enough, get six or so more little ones and grow them out. You should be able to ID likely males after only 60 days growth if they grow like the dandy you have now.

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#22 Guest_dsaavedra_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 01:50 PM

i only have a 55gal, and i think its overstocked as it is with a 6" bluegill, 4" pumpkinseed, 3.5" pumpkinseed, and a 3" redbreast

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#23 Guest_centrarchid_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 02:14 PM

i only have a 55gal, and i think its overstocked as it is with a 6" bluegill, 4" pumpkinseed, 3.5" pumpkinseed, and a 3" redbreast

Your being overstocked is more a function of the systems biofiltration capacity and husbandry than volume of tank. It has been a while since I ran a stand alone tank but what you have in your tank is roughly 1/4 what I could support if filtration and water changes pushed to high end.

Do you know how to calculate system filtration capacity? Your filter package should have information that help.

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#24 Guest_dsaavedra_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 02:22 PM

Your being overstocked is more a function of the systems biofiltration capacity and husbandry than volume of tank. It has been a while since I ran a stand alone tank but what you have in your tank is roughly 1/4 what I could support if filtration and water changes pushed to high end.

Do you know how to calculate system filtration capacity? Your filter package should have information that help.

not sure i've ever heard the term system filtration capacity. what is this?

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#25 Guest_centrarchid_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 03:33 PM

not sure i've ever heard the term system filtration capacity. what is this?

What is size of the tank your filter recommended for?

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#26 Guest_dsaavedra_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 03:41 PM

70-110 gallons

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#27 Guest_centrarchid_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 04:00 PM

70-110 gal

The following is greatly over simplified but can do your job. See link: http://www.firsttank...t/capacity.php.

Assume your sunfishes are oscars. Best to base considerations on total weight of your sunfishes rather than length. What is the length of each of you sunfishes? Do you have Microsoft Excell?

From that we can estimate weight of each and add them up. Then we can see what percentage of 500 g you have in your combined sunfishes. Take the time to follow links concerning the different types of filters. Your system already has a filter capable of supporting more than the maximum (based on chart) oscar biomass of 500 g. Generally speaking, doubling the filtration does less than double the carrying capacity of your aquarium because other factors can involved.

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#28 Guest_dsaavedra_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 05:11 PM

your link isn't working for me. i don't know the exact lengths of each of my fish, i've never actually measured any of them these are just rough estimates from looking at them with a ruler in hand. i do have have microsoft excel.

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#29 Guest_centrarchid_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 05:48 PM

your link isn't working for me. i don't know the exact lengths of each of my fish, i've never actually measured any of them these are just rough estimates from looking at them with a ruler in hand. i do have have microsoft excel.

For the link, remove the period at the end. What are the approximate lengths of your fish?

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#30 Guest_dsaavedra_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 07:42 PM

i only have a 55gal, and i think its overstocked as it is with a 6" bluegill, 4" pumpkinseed, 3.5" pumpkinseed, and a 3" redbreast

these are the approximate lengths.

i found the site in the link through a google search. the table wasn't very clear though...

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#31 Guest_centrarchid_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 11:18 PM

The chart is a bit complex.

I hope you can see the following chart I made attached from an older Power Point version. You largest fish likely weighs around 86 g, pumpkinseeds 22 and 15 g, and the redbreast less than 10 g. Redbreast typically weight less than similar length bluegill or pumpkinseed.

L W CHART.ppt 183.5KB 2 downloads

You appear to have about 86 + 22 + 15 + 10 = 133 g of fish in your 55 gallon tank. Your tank should be able to support 500 g of fish if your have a modest sized power filter. You should be able to nearly triple your present fish biomass.

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#32 Guest_dsaavedra_*

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Posted 20 December 2009 - 11:37 PM

centrarchid, thats very helpful. do you think i'll be able to keep these fish for their entire lives with my current setup (this is what i had planned on doing, and i fear it may be over stocked as they get bigger)

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#33 Guest_centrarchid_*

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Posted 21 December 2009 - 07:41 AM

With regular water changes, your system should be able to support four large sunfish totaling about 500 g. You might consider increasing your power filtration capacity or restrict feed application which could enable doubling the fish biomass. You must remember with bluegill and redbreast, they can get large enough to have trouble turning around in a 55-gal aquarium even if water quality adequate. They would be 1 pound plus by that time.

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#34 Guest_dsaavedra_*

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Posted 21 December 2009 - 12:19 PM

yeah that is what i was worried about, was that they'd just get flat out to large for the tank, not necessarily bioload. and with the driftwood i have in there they have even less swimming room.

Edited by dsaavedra, 21 December 2009 - 12:19 PM.

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#35 Guest_centrarchid_*

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Posted 21 December 2009 - 05:01 PM

Something likely to prevent your tank biomass from maxing out with your assortment of sunfishes is the pumpkinseeds. One might be a male, get the need to breed, and damage tank mates. A 55-gal tank not big enough for one nesting male pumpkinseed, but might be for 3.

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#36 Guest_dsaavedra_*

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Posted 21 December 2009 - 07:22 PM

Something likely to prevent your tank biomass from maxing out with your assortment of sunfishes is the pumpkinseeds. One might be a male, get the need to breed, and damage tank mates. A 55-gal tank not big enough for one nesting male pumpkinseed, but might be for 3.

i'm sorry but this isn't making much sense to me. you're saying that my tank isn't big enough for one pumpkinseed, but it would hold 3? are you saying that since i have 4 fish in there, it will keep them all relatively small?

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#37 Guest_centrarchid_*

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Posted 21 December 2009 - 08:28 PM

i'm sorry but this isn't making much sense to me. you're saying that my tank isn't big enough for one pumpkinseed, but it would hold 3? are you saying that since i have 4 fish in there, it will keep them all relatively small?

With a small number of sunfishes in a confined environment, you are likely to have aggression become a limiting factor before water quality. The strife is a function of more than one fish one of which is likely to be a male, without enough targets to spread it aggression on or to suppress the agression tendencies. At some point you will wish you had only one or several more sunfish in the tank or they all be of one sex or the other. Have you never had one sunfish become overly aggressive? See thread on "bluegill growth".

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#38 Guest_dsaavedra_*

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Posted 21 December 2009 - 09:42 PM

okay i gotcha. this is what i thought you were saying. i haven't had one fish display excessive aggression, all of them have shown some aggression, but its mainly just one fish snapping at another and the other swimming off, end of fight.