I want to start a new tank (36 Gall) and catch just some small minnows from a local canal or lake - in South Florida. This is freshwater. Has anyone done this - and if so, will these minnows eat flakes or frozen brine shrimp ?? I figure I'm doing these fish a favor as most of them would likely end up being eaten by bigger non native fish in these local canals, which range from Oscars and other Cichlids to Pirhanas !! Thanks.
New tank with minnows from Florida canals
- Thread starter ODPILOT
- Start date
All of the typical shiners, chubs, dace, etc that I've kept would accept any food I would throw at them. Darters among others can be a bit more finicky about food that isn't a whole little animal like a frozen bloodworm, brineshrimp, etc. If you want info on North American native fish check out www.nanfa.org The North American Native Fish Association.
Darn dude?
Why aren't you selling the Oscars, etc. on here? You are too rich to use the money?
Why aren't you selling the Oscars, etc. on here? You are too rich to use the money?
Catching oscars from the wild (where they have established themselves in Florida due to fishkeepers releasing them) and then selling them on here hardly seems easy to me...would have to QT them, medicate to remove any parasites, then there is the trouble of shipping them, acquiring supplies, etc.
Of course, maybe you were joking
I too, live in Florida, and have tried tanks with mosquitofish...not very exciting, they are plain silvery fish, but there are some really pretty other fish. Check it out: http://plants.ifas.ufl.edu/guide/fish.html
They will eat prepared food. Not fussy about water quality, generally. I would recommend you seek out some wild mollies - they are lovely! We have them in the Silver River here, have always wanted to make a tank for them.
One word of caution: I wouldn't assume you are doing fish a favor by taking them out of the wild. Getting eaten is part of their natural life cycle, and by keeping them in captivity you are keeping them from doing all sorts of natural things they are meant to do, such as pass along their genes. One person won't make a difference, you are only catching a handful of fish, and I believe it's important for people to learn more about their local fauna.
But taking them out of an endless body of water where competition for food is tough and then putting them in a very small (by comparison) glass box where you feed them regular meals...is not really a favor to them. Keeping native fish doesn't hurt anything, and you will probably be enriched by the experience, but don't think of it as benevolent.
Of course, maybe you were joking
I too, live in Florida, and have tried tanks with mosquitofish...not very exciting, they are plain silvery fish, but there are some really pretty other fish. Check it out: http://plants.ifas.ufl.edu/guide/fish.html
They will eat prepared food. Not fussy about water quality, generally. I would recommend you seek out some wild mollies - they are lovely! We have them in the Silver River here, have always wanted to make a tank for them.
One word of caution: I wouldn't assume you are doing fish a favor by taking them out of the wild. Getting eaten is part of their natural life cycle, and by keeping them in captivity you are keeping them from doing all sorts of natural things they are meant to do, such as pass along their genes. One person won't make a difference, you are only catching a handful of fish, and I believe it's important for people to learn more about their local fauna.
But taking them out of an endless body of water where competition for food is tough and then putting them in a very small (by comparison) glass box where you feed them regular meals...is not really a favor to them. Keeping native fish doesn't hurt anything, and you will probably be enriched by the experience, but don't think of it as benevolent.
Catching oscars from the wild (where they have established themselves in Florida due to fishkeepers releasing them) and then selling them on here hardly seems easy to me...would have to QT them, medicate to remove any parasites, then there is the trouble of shipping them, acquiring supplies, etc.
Of course, maybe you were joking
Absolutely NOT joking. Drop some fish traps in the water, empty the catches now and then. Dump 'em in a childs swimming pool to quarantine. Get some cheap meds from a farm-livestock store, if necessary, sell 'em!
In fact, you could just sell them stating them may need to be medicated on arrival.
hmm, as crazy as that is, it sounds like it could work... why do the crazy ones always come up with the best ideas?
People -- Somewhere along the line, this thread got messed up. I'm not looking to catch and sell Oscars or any other fish from the Florida canals -- just want to have a freshwater tank with some local minnows in it -- but was wondering if - since they were wild - they might not wanna eat regular processed fish food??