dinosaur eel?

[bermuda]

okay okay, no walmart fish. i know. what an awful way to start a thread XD but really, my walmart had some "dinosaur eels" and i was just wondering what they really are. they look adorable, i really want one. :) of course, walmart has no info whatsoever on the fish in their tanks so i was hoping someone could fill me in on what they really are and what they like in life; tank, tankmates, food, etc. anything?

[Oddball]

Since you didn't provide a pic or even a description, best guess is a species of polypterus. Last year, delhizi bichirs were the 'dinosar eel". This year...who knows? Some vendors are marking Polypterus senegalus as dinosaur eels.

[bermuda]

:P you could have said "hey do you have a pic or a description?"

they were grey and had spikes on their back, sat on the bottom with their front fins like feet to hold them up, swam like little snakes all over the place. and why would i have a pic if i don't know what it was? XD

[rumblesushi]

lol

[Oddball]

why would i have a pic if i don't know what it was? XD

Um...so maybe several thousand members could help ID the unknown fish for you.

It sounds like P senegalus. They prefer high neutral to alkaline conditions. They're predators so, they're best kept with fish around their size (grows to about a foot). They feed on bloodworms, ghost shrimp, raw market shrimp, live minnows, earthworms, clam/mussel meat, and can be trained onto sinking food sticks. They're not overly aggressive towards tankmates and conspecifics.
Check out the Polypterus forum for tons of info and pics of other species.

[bermuda]

ha, i meant i didn't take a pic of it at walmart, and i don't know what to look up to give you a pic. but thanks anyway, maybe i'll go buy one now and get you your pic. -.-'

[Oddball]

Does it look like the pic I posted above?

[Tongue33]

:P and why would i have a pic if i don't know what it was? XD

OH i don't know maybe because as Humans we can't give very accurate descriptions for the most part and also as humans we are for the most part unable to depict what the description given is, accurately all the time.. :) Even if the description is very detailed it tends to be hard for some allot of us ...

But also as if you are like me you have decided camera phones aren't so bad and have one? And also like me i carry my Digital camera around anyway.. But especially for questions that are more accurately answered with pictures.. You'll find that most of the people asking for ID's here have pics:) Especially "if they don't know what it was" :)

Just a suggestion for the future invest or start packin your camera with you :) Pro's are endless and not just for the hobby:) Cons are minimal and will probably happen anyway :)

[trying not to kill them]

right on the money. around here they're senegalus labled as dinosaur eels. hate common names!

[YOOPER]

In Iowa, Walmarts have Polypterus senegalus labled as the fabled "dinosaur eel". I noticed they were much cheaper at Petsmart.