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brookies in a river setup

Started by Guest_BrookieMike_* , Dec 11 2009 11:42 AM

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18 replies to this topic

#1 Guest_BrookieMike_*

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Posted 11 December 2009 - 11:42 AM

hey just found out about this site from a guy at my lfs and wanted to run something by the guru's on here. i am planning on doing a brook trout aquarium done river style and had a few questions, i will be using a tank that is 6 feet long only thing is i am not sure if the slight width and height difference between a 125 and a 180 is worth going for the 180, i will also be running a chiller on it and probably a refugium of sorts if you see any flaw in my thinking please let me know. much thanks

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#2 Guest_andyavram_*

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Posted 11 December 2009 - 11:53 AM

The difference between the two was worth it for me and I am glad I went 180 instead of 125.

I have never attempted to keep trout before, but a nature center a little south of me has a reintroduced population of brookies and they had a few in a large, chilled aquarium. They lived together for a few years but they beat the snot out of each other all the time and eventually only the dominate one survived. Once that one died the staff only put one fish in there. So you might have one tank with one fish in it, which may help you decision on what size tank to get.

Andy

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#3 Guest_BrookieMike_*

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Posted 11 December 2009 - 12:36 PM

if i may ask what are you currently keeping in your 180?

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#4 Guest_andyavram_*

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Posted 11 December 2009 - 12:43 PM

Currently:
Ponds Snails
Cyclops
Nematodes
At least one scud
Blackworms?
other assorted invertebrates?
Slowly growing Vallisineria along with a few other plants

Once I get the invert populations up and the plants growing hard-core it will be an Ohio based stream tank of minnows, darters and other small fish.

I just put a post up this morning about it.

Andy

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#5 Guest_BrookieMike_*

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Posted 11 December 2009 - 01:57 PM

any idea if there are any other trout species that can live with each other?

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#6 Guest_panfisherteen_*

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Posted 11 December 2009 - 03:14 PM

they'll naturally be competitive since each trout wants its own territory (usually thats why there would only be one big fish in a single pool of a stream). You could possibly mix them when they are small, but they will compete for territory. Its best to keep maybe two at the most, also considering that brookies can reach 20"+ no problem

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#7 Guest_BrookieMike_*

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Posted 11 December 2009 - 03:50 PM

i take it what i'm looking at is a two fish max species only tank? and now that you mention it i do recall reading about either a private aquarist or a pubic aquarium that had a tank with a mix of trout but i thought brook trout were the only real aggressive ones at least for that story i beleive the brookie ended up killing any fish that wasn't removed from the tank even ones bigger than its self

Edited by BrookieMike, 11 December 2009 - 03:58 PM.

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#8 Guest_panfisherteen_*

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Posted 11 December 2009 - 06:25 PM

well eventually yea, brook trout get big, so soon there wouldnt be enough room unless there werent too many to begin with.

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#9 Guest_BrookieMike_*

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Posted 11 December 2009 - 08:24 PM

but there wouldn't be anything that could co exist with say two brookiesin a 180?

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#10 Guest_panfisherteen_*

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Posted 11 December 2009 - 09:07 PM

well you could add some shiners, chubs, minnows or darters but theres the obvious risk of them getting eaten (once the brook trout get bigger of course).

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#11 Guest_Kanus_*

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Posted 11 December 2009 - 11:28 PM

I would think large madtoms and largish suckers (near the same size as the trout) would probably be pretty safe too. I had a small one survive in a community tank for a while. He actually didn't bother anyone too big to fit in his mouth at all from what i remember

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#12 Guest_BrookieMike_*

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Posted 12 December 2009 - 11:21 AM

take it it just depends on the personality of the fish then and yeah the minnow and sucker idea sounds pretty good give it a little more movement. great i can already hear my wallet crying looking up prices for a chiller and the tank ah well no point in living if you can't do anything you enjoy. now for the real trick question what do you feed brookies i know in the streams and rivers they eat larva, bugs, and smallerfish but most of the stuff you can buy for live feed has 0 nutrients.

Edited by BrookieMike, 12 December 2009 - 11:37 AM.

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#13 Guest_FirstChAoS_*

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Posted 12 December 2009 - 12:33 PM

they'll naturally be competitive since each trout wants its own territory (usually thats why there would only be one big fish in a single pool of a stream). You could possibly mix them when they are small, but they will compete for territory. Its best to keep maybe two at the most, also considering that brookies can reach 20"+ no problem

Small brookies (2-4 inches long) will school in pools, and stocked brookies also sometimes school up, why are they so terretorial in tanks?

Edited by FirstChAoS, 12 December 2009 - 12:34 PM.

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#14 Guest_BrookieMike_*

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Posted 12 December 2009 - 01:58 PM

sorry but another quick question anybody know of any hatcherys around the the Detroit area I'm willing to go 100 miles to get there but the only one i've been able to find that has brookies is in Harrietta i believe

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#15 Guest_panfisherteen_*

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Posted 12 December 2009 - 11:29 PM

Small brookies (2-4 inches long) will school in pools, and stocked brookies also sometimes school up, why are they so terretorial in tanks?

actually come to think of it i remember back in nova scotia there was a spot in a shallow stream where all the bigger (6-10") fish hung out (either forced to or they chose to). I guess multiple fish will work, but i think when they get >15" things are gonna start getting cramped (tank width wise), by 18" i think you couldnt have more than 2 because of the amount of waste they would be producing

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#16 Guest_az9_*

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Posted 30 December 2009 - 04:46 PM

actually come to think of it i remember back in nova scotia there was a spot in a shallow stream where all the bigger (6-10") fish hung out (either forced to or they chose to). I guess multiple fish will work, but i think when they get >15" things are gonna start getting cramped (tank width wise), by 18" i think you couldnt have more than 2 because of the amount of waste they would be producing

With some species territorial behavior breaks down as numbers increase. Not sure if that is the case with brook trout. Spawning season can make male fish more aggressive too.

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#17 Guest_rockbassbud5_*

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Posted 30 December 2009 - 06:41 PM

take it it just depends on the personality of the fish then and yeah the minnow and sucker idea sounds pretty good give it a little more movement. great i can already hear my wallet crying looking up prices for a chiller and the tank ah well no point in living if you can't do anything you enjoy. now for the real trick question what do you feed brookies i know in the streams and rivers they eat larva, bugs, and smallerfish but most of the stuff you can buy for live feed has 0 nutrients.

I know that there are some people who have had success making a diy chiller using a refridgerator. I remember reading a step by step somewhere about using a very long tube coiled around and around inside of an old fridge, and adjusting the flow through speed of the pump to maintain the proper temperature. A chiller for a 180 is gonna be a nice chunk of cash!!

Edited by rockbassbud5, 30 December 2009 - 06:42 PM.

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#18 Guest_Doug_Dame_*

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Posted 31 December 2009 - 12:13 AM

A chiller for a 180 is gonna be a nice chunk of cash!!

It'd probably be very cost-effective to build a wood-on-five-sides box that provides much better insulation than an all-glass aquarium. I haven't seen a design for a double-glazed front but that might be a good idea too.

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#19 Guest_NateTessler13_*

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Posted 31 December 2009 - 08:22 AM

BrookieMike, I keep Brook Trout, Rainbow Trout, and Brown Trout in a 4,000 gallon aquarium with a large chiller system installed. The tank operates at 55*F all year 'round. The aquarium currently houses 3 Brook Trout (sizes 15" - 22"), 28 Rainbow Trout (sizes 18" - 24"), and 3 Brown Trout (all around 28"). Aggression is a major problem with these fish. Although, as you see in a cichlid tank having many together seems to reduce the odds of the fish picking on an individual trout enough to kill it. The largest trout in the tank undoubtedly will be the aggressor and fight to keep other trout out of its territory. Large male trout, when kept in proper conditions will develop a kipe that can pack some serious teeth and do damage to other fish in your tank. More than likely, any attempt in a smaller tank (such as your 180 gallon) would have you only able to support a few fish to adulthood, not to mention the high cost of chilling such a tank.

If you are set on keeping Brook Trout though, they appear to be the least aggressive species of the three...but my observations may be biased due to the fact that my Brook Trout are smaller than most of my other fish. Hatchery fish, like what you're looking for, are easily fed on commercial fish pellets. You can buy it in bulk and have them feeding in no time. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.

Edited by NateTessler13, 31 December 2009 - 08:24 AM.