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#1 Dudley

Dudley
  • NANFA Guest
  • Valparaiso, Indiana USA

Posted 29 September 2018 - 10:27 AM

My father recently passed-away but one of the cherished memories I will always have is going fishing with him.

I would like to set up a "tribute" tank, containing some of the fish we'd seen together.

I have a 30 gallon "extra tall" (24 x 24 x 12)  planed with hornwort, fanwort, money wort and eel grass.

There is also a small cluster of shale forming a small "cave" and large piece of "driftwood".

I would like the fish to be accurate to our home region, US Postal Code 46410 (Northwest Indiana).

Any help you could provide is very much appreciated.



#2 Matt DeLaVega

Matt DeLaVega
  • Forum Staff
  • Ohio

Posted 29 September 2018 - 11:28 AM

http://fishmap.org/w...ml?huc=04040001

 

Here is a good start.


The member formerly known as Skipjack


#3 centrarchid

centrarchid
  • NANFA Guest

Posted 30 September 2018 - 04:38 PM

Longear and Stone Cats would be at top of my list.  Next would be Rock Bass and Bluegill.  Locally sourced of course.


Find ways for people not already interested in natives to value them.

#4 Dudley

Dudley
  • NANFA Guest
  • Valparaiso, Indiana USA

Posted 01 October 2018 - 09:00 AM

Very helpful, so far; thank you!

 

Quick questions...

Would I be albe to house a pair of Longear with only a 24" x12" tank footprint?
If just one, which would you suggest... male, female or would it matter?

Would I be able to put a few blackstriped or starhead topminnow in with them (how many)?

How about a couple of Johnny darters?

Would adding the Stonecat disrupt (eat) the smaller fish?

 

Again... thank you very much for your imput!



#5 gerald

gerald
  • Global Moderator
  • Wake Forest, North Carolina

Posted 01 October 2018 - 09:46 AM

I think Centrarchid may have overlooked the part about your tank size.  A mix of darters, minnows and topminnows would be better for a 24 x 12" tank bottom.  And maybe one female orangespotted sunnie, but not the larger Lepomis.


Gerald Pottern
-----------------------
Hangin' on the Neuse
"Taxonomy is the diaper used to organize the mess of evolution into discrete packages" - M.Sandel


#6 centrarchid

centrarchid
  • NANFA Guest

Posted 01 October 2018 - 09:53 AM

I could do it with ramped up filtration and more fish rather than fewer.  Would not look all that natural.


Find ways for people not already interested in natives to value them.

#7 Dudley

Dudley
  • NANFA Guest
  • Valparaiso, Indiana USA

Posted 01 October 2018 - 10:34 AM

I like the idea of an all-minnow tank.

How about this... ?

 

A male / femal pair of each:

 

blackstripe or starhead topminnow

 

blunt or pug nose minnow

 

central mud minnow



#8 lilyea

lilyea
  • NANFA Member
  • Peace River Watershed, Central Florida, USA

Posted 01 October 2018 - 05:10 PM

Dudley - thank you for your service and welcome to the forum!  Although your tank holds 30g of water, because of the extra high dimensions and realizing that minnows (and most fish) primarily swim horizontally, your tank is more comparable to a 15g tank from a swimming perspective.  That doesn't make your tank bad in any way, it's just something to keep in mind when you are selecting the fish.  I really like the idea of a tribute tank and I look forward to hearing (and hopefully seeing) more of you fish adventure!

 

Bruce



#9 Dudley

Dudley
  • NANFA Guest
  • Valparaiso, Indiana USA

Posted 01 October 2018 - 07:23 PM

Actually, based on my experience with Amazon biotopes, I was aware of the "footprint" issue.

That's why I questioned the sunfish / catfish recommendation and decided to go with minnows.

Part of the reason is that my Dad told me about when he and his Dad would go fishing, his Dad would scoop a hatfull of minnows and take them back to the house and put them in a "Mason" jar to watch together until the fish expired.

(Dirt-poor share cropers in the 1930s.  That's all they could afford.)

So... minnows it will be, I believe.

Again, because of the foot print I decided on topminnows early, on, so as to make best use of the full water column.

I'm happy to replort that the plants, which have been growing in an uninhabited tank since January, are fully rooted and a full 24" tall.

I told Matt in a PM that I already enjoy this NANF thing more than I ever did my Angels or Apistogramma.

BTW:  My Dad is the one who deserves "Thanks" for his service... 43 years, two complete careers... 20 as an enlisted man, 23 as a Warrant Officer.

We used to joke about the Army being "the family business".



#10 lilyea

lilyea
  • NANFA Member
  • Peace River Watershed, Central Florida, USA

Posted 01 October 2018 - 08:45 PM

That is a great example of service by your father - similar to my own experience - and yes, I believe that all of us who have volunteered deserve a level of recognition.

 

I am glad you have already figured out the plant thing for that tank - tall plants in an extra high can be visually striking, however figuring out the lighting so that it penetrates deep enough into the water without giving the fish a "sunburn" can take a little work  :smile2: .

 

I am curious what species of topminnow that you have selected for your tank - am I correct in assuming that you are referring to the Northern Topminnow (Fundulus dispar)?  At some point you may also want to consider adding a bottom dwelling fish or invert to complement the fundulus which will likely stay primarily in the top part of the tank.



#11 keepnatives

keepnatives
  • Regional Rep

Posted 01 October 2018 - 08:45 PM

If you include some sand in your substrate I'd consider a 4 or 5 silverjaw minnows which spend a good deal of time in the bottom third of the tank, also a trio of Tessellated darters,  and 4  - 5 southern redbelly dace along with your topminnows, a pair of mudminnows (just provide a heavily planted area) and unfortunately pugnose minnows  are protected in Indiana I believe.


Mike Lucas
Mohawk-Hudson Watershed
Schenectady NY

#12 Dudley

Dudley
  • NANFA Guest
  • Valparaiso, Indiana USA

Posted 02 October 2018 - 04:43 AM

Here is the line-up so far:

Starhead topminnow

Bluntnose minnow

Johnny darter

Banded pygmy sunfish

This is working off-of the link that Matt posted (IMO very, very helpful link).



#13 gerald

gerald
  • Global Moderator
  • Wake Forest, North Carolina

Posted 02 October 2018 - 07:10 PM

Make sure the pygmies get enough food.  That can be a challenge when keeping them with other kinds of fish.  They cant eat much at one time and need to eat small amounts frequently.  Some darters are like that too.


Gerald Pottern
-----------------------
Hangin' on the Neuse
"Taxonomy is the diaper used to organize the mess of evolution into discrete packages" - M.Sandel


#14 Dudley

Dudley
  • NANFA Guest
  • Valparaiso, Indiana USA

Posted 04 October 2018 - 09:31 AM

I have a ten gallon with Heterandria formosa, Grass shrimp and "Cajun" dwarf crayfish.

Would the Elassoma be better-off in that tank?



#15 lilyea

lilyea
  • NANFA Member
  • Peace River Watershed, Central Florida, USA

Posted 04 October 2018 - 11:33 AM

I will defer to any feedback Gerald adds, but from my experience keeping most all of the fish in question I would suggest that housing elassoma and heterandria together is an improvement. That said, I would still push you toward a separate species-specific elassoma tank. Elassomas are typically a shy fish with fascinating behaviors and beautiful markings so the more comfortable they are in their surroundings the better.

#16 Dudley

Dudley
  • NANFA Guest
  • Valparaiso, Indiana USA

Posted 05 October 2018 - 03:14 AM

Hmmm... the stand for my 30 gallon has space and weight capacity for a 10 gallon...

Setting up a species specific tank for them sounds like a good ide.

Thank you!



#17 gerald

gerald
  • Global Moderator
  • Wake Forest, North Carolina

Posted 05 October 2018 - 02:20 PM

Agree with Bruce .. . Elassoma will probably live OK with Heterandria (and/or Swamp darters or Lepolucania), but if you ever want to see babies, give them their own tank.


Gerald Pottern
-----------------------
Hangin' on the Neuse
"Taxonomy is the diaper used to organize the mess of evolution into discrete packages" - M.Sandel




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