bichir tank

[kraker1983]

i am upgrading my 55gal bichir tank to a 75 gallon and wanted to hear some ideas on how i should set it up (items in the tank to make it look natural)

[Just1nK4ng]

you should add a lot of rocks because they love going under something or drift wood would do good too

[Loubard]

You should take a look a the :
Ancient Fish
Discussion of Ancient fish such as Arowanas, Gars, Lungfish, Polypterus, Knives, etc.

Forum.

Instead of looking for answers @ Comments, bugs and suggestions zone!

Jou will find lot of info and lot more response :headbang2 !

[beblondie]

Here you go
Tank set up
Bichirs are low light loving fish as many are nocturnal and some dinural . The tank
needs a secure top or lid with any opening plugged as some species are escape
artists and others can jump well.The water level needs to be 2-3 inches below normal
as bichirs need to breathe air from time to time. The substrate should be sand or finely
crushed gravel. driftwood with short bushy plants.attached or anchored under it.
In general I find it hard to have live plants as bichirs tend to uproot them searching
for food, floating plants are a good option though ,I silicone silk plants to nylon needlepoint
canvas and bury it in the substrate in one square foot sections makes it easier to
remove to clean and rebury in the substrate. One last point no sharp edges
bichirs tend to move close to things and sharp edges remove slimecoat
BICHIR BIOTOPES
African River
West and Central Africa are full of rivers. Within each of these river systems are
numerous biotopes -- this description will focus on species found in slow-moving
sections and side streams.
WATER:
pH 6.9-7.2,
3-8 dH,
temp;75-81F (24-27 C)
TANK:
The tank should be furnished with wood for hiding places, and fine gravel or sand for a substrate.
The lighting should be muted, and the water should have a slight current.
PLANTS:
Bolbitis heudelotii , Anubias, Vallisneria, Eleocharis.
FISH:
African tetras, Mormyrids, African tetras African Knifefish, African Butterfly fish,
Synodontis, Hemichromis, Pelvicachromis,

African Swamp
The waters support a variety of species and vigorous plant growth making it an ideal subject for a biotope aquarium. Reedy plants line the shores of waterways
WATER:
pH 7.2-7.8,
2-8 dH, 7
Temp:70-75F(21-24 C)
TANK:
The tank should have fine gravel, sand, or clay for a substrate.
Dense vegetation and floating plants help recreate the natural setting.
Use submerged wood to provide hiding places.
The lighting should be bright and the water should be clear.
PLANTS:
Bolbitis heudelotii, Ammannia, Marsilea, Eleocharis, Anubias, Nymphaea, Water
Lettuce
*FISH:
Mormyrids, African tetras, barbs, spiny eels, Haplochromines, Tilapia, Hemichromis, Synodontis,
other African plants you can use
SIMPLE FLOATING PLANTS
Azolla africanas (tropical Africa)
Azolla nilotica (Eastern africa)
Azolla pinnata (africa)
Azolla filiculoides 9Africa
Salvinia natans (Northern Africa)
Ricciocarpus natans (cosmopolitan)
Ricca fluitans (cosmopolitan)
Lemna gibba (cosmopolitan)
Lemna pauciocostata (cosompolitan)
Lemna minor (cosmopolitan)
Lemna Angolensis (cosmopolitan)
Wolffia arrhiza (middle and south africa)
TRUE FLOATING PLANTS
Eichhornia crassipes (egypt)
Eichhornia natans (africa)
Trappa natans (eastern africa)
Utricularia vulgaris (north africa)
Utricularia platytera (nigeria)
Utricularia neottioides (africa)
Utricularia stellaris (africa)
Utricularia flexousa (africa)
Utricularia foliosa (africa)
Utricularia exoleta (africa)
Utricularia gibba (africa)
Utricularia neglecta (africa)
Najas minor (africa)
Najas pectinata (africa)
Najas falciculata (africa)
Najas graminea (africa)
FERNS
Ceratopteris thailctroides (cosmopolitan)
Bolbitis heudelotii (ethiopia-south africa)
Marsilea diffusa (tropical africa)
Ceratopteris cornuta (africa)
Ceratopteris pteridoides (cosmopolitan)
Ceratophyllum demersum (africa)
Ceratophyllum submersum (cosmopolitan)
MOSSES
Riccia fluitans (cosmopolitan)
Leptodictyum riparium (cosmopolitan)
Riccia rhenana (cosmopolitan)
ROSETTE PLANTS
Anubias hastifolia nigeria cameroon ziare ghana togo
Anubias afzelii (senegal,guiena,mali )
Anubias congensis (west africa, congo river)
Anubias nana (west africa, congo river)
Anubias lanceolata (west africa, congo river)
Anubias nana (west africa, congo river)
Anubias frazeri (west africa, congo river)
Anubias coffeeolia (west africa, congo river)
Anubias barteri (west africa, congo river)
Anubias giantea (west africa, liberia cameroon ivory coast)
Anubias heterophylla (senegal,cameroon)
Anubias pyaertii (senegal,cameroon)
Anubias gilletii (west africa)
Blyxa radicans (africa)
Blyxa orzettrum (africa)
Crinum calamistratum
Crinum natans (cameroon)
Crinum tortifolia (africa)
Eleocharis minima (tropical africa)
Eleocharis parvula (africa)
Aponogeton distachyus (south africa)
Aponogeton abyssinicus
Aponogeton pusillus (africa)
Aponogeton boivinianus
Aponogeton ulvaceus
Aponogeton madagascarensis
Aponogeton longiplumulosus
Aponogeton capuroni
Nymphaea alba (algeria,tunis)
Nymphaea lotus (east africa)
Nymphoides indica (tropical africa)
Vallisneria spiralis (central and east sudan)
PLANTS WITH LONG STEMS
Brasenia schreberi (west africa)
Hydrilla verticillata (cosmopolitan)
Hydrocotyle vulgaris (northern africa)
Hyrgrophila corybosa (senegal)
Myriophyllum spicatum (central africa)
Myriophyllum verticillum (africa)
Nesaea pedicellata (east africa)
Nesaea crassicaulis Africa)
Potamogeton perfoliatus (africa)
Potamogeton crispus (africa)
Potamogeton lucens (africa)
Potamogeton natans (africa)
Potamogeton malaianus (Africa)
Potamogeton schweinfurthii (africa)
STEM PLANTS
Ammannia gracillis (tropical africa)
Ammannia senegalensis (senegal)
Bacopa crenata (africa)
Bocopa monnieri (africa)
Lagarosiphon major (south africa)
Lagarosiphon muscoides (south africa)
Lagarosiphon cordofanus (africa)
Nitella gracilis (cosmopolitan)

Ranalisma humile (west africa)
Elatine macropoda (east africa)
Limnophila indica (africa)
Ranunculus delphinifolius pond plant
Zosterella dubia star grass
Otelia alismoides (tropical africa)
Lindernia parviflora (africa)
Lophotocarpus guyanensis (tropical africa)
REEDS
Sparganium ramosum
Lilaeopsis mauritiana

plants considered cosmopolitan (found almost everywhere)
SIMPLE FLOATING PLANTS
Ricciocarpus natans (cosmopolitan)
Ricca fluitans (cosmopolitan)
Lemna gibba (cosmopolitan)
Lemna pauciocostata (cosompolitan)
Lemna minor (cosmopolitan)
Lemna Angolensis (cosmopolitan)
FERNS
Ceratopteris thailctroides (cosmopolitan)
Ceratopteris pteridoides (cosmopolitan)
Ceratophyllum submersum (cosmopolitan)
Ceratophyllum demersum
MOSSES
Riccia fluitans (cosmopolitan)
Leptodictyum riparium (cosmopolitan)
Riccia rhenana (cosmopolitan)
STEM PLANTS
Alternanthera sessilis
Nitella gracilis (cosmopolitan)
PLANTS WITH LNG STEMS
Hydrilla verticillata (cosmopolitan)
Potamogeton acutifolius
Eichhornia crassipes-Water Hyacinth-Anne

[vzgoth]

The lady knows her fish!

That's for sure.

:clap :clap :clap :clap :clap :clap

[repair]

The lady knows her fish!

That's for sure.

:clap :clap :clap :clap :clap :clap

She's the man.... I mean the woman :thumbsup: ... makes my hands tired to look at her posts. :ROFL:

[Just1nK4ng]

She's the man.... I mean the woman :thumbsup: ... makes my hands tired to look at her posts. :ROFL:

*cough* *cough* copy paste copy paste :ROFL:
pretty good info though

[beblondie]

Hell yes cut and paste it rules i wrote it once so now i cut and paste it when needed-Anne

[kraker1983]

ty for all the info, i will try and get some pics up when i get the tank up and going

[wism_chan]

Add driftwood and gravel....

[Gooda]

If you do end up using sand for a substrate put it in a bucket and stick a hose in it and let it run for a while to get a lot of the particulates out before you put it in your tank. Otherwise you end up with cloudy water, and you will have to put chemicals in your tank to help the filter get it out.

I don't know if that is common knowledge, but when I first started out, I had to figure it out the hard way. I wish that I had a high quality forum like this when I started.
MFK rocks my socks

[beblondie]

I don't use gravel for 1 simple reason i've heard of too many bichirs dieing because of ingestion of gravel.-Anne

there is fine crushed gravel thats a little larger than sand granules that works great