tanking non tropical fish

[crazy_cavi]

hey there everyone im a newb to this site but im an avid aquariust i know i have the run of the mill fish 2 red oscars, 2 red tigers, 2 albino tigers, all about 6 inches and a few other live decorations.
this summer i was at my lake when possible and was trying to capture shiners for feeders and sucseeded amazing i caught some shiners that were larger then my oscars but all of them were eatin by a neighourhood bear when he was passing by the neighourhood and knocked my bucket over.

my question to you is what can i do to keep theese fish safe and alive the next time i try to do this. i also caught a 4-5 inch walleye (pickeral) and i just want to know what i can do to keep them alive for a 1 hour trip home to the city. i only have a 55 gallon thats free at the moment but if the pike/walleye/shiners idea works id kick the oscars outta the 250 and trade them at pet stores.

id like as many pointers i could get on this subject. water conditions tank conditioning and such planted aquarium or not... tell me eveything i need to know because lake fish seem to die before i can get them home and i dont know how long they would last period. :thumbsup:

[id10t]

Those fish probably wouldn't do in your 55 - depending on what you call shiners. Down here in Florida, they are loong fish that like to cruise in schools, not something conductive to life in a 55.

You could do a bluegill though. Don't bother wiht a heater (assuming you are comfortable in the room too), give 'em some structure to chill out near, and a varied diet.

[guppy]

There are literally over a hundred fish called shiners, some get well over 12", pickeral will grow faster than the shiner s but if you can start the shiners bigger than maybe it will work, you would be better off with yellow perch than a walleye but maybe we are talking about different fish. the fish from your area might need a chiller and will definitely need strong filtration and good O2 levels, most shiners need very clean water and like plants and driftwood, you cannot stock a cold water tank to the same density as people do with tropicals
the guy is holding an average sized adult chain pickeral, the little drawing is a walleye

[sandtiger]

It Canada the fish we call walleye are called pike...I hate common names. Walleye grow really big, bigger then a 55g or even a 200g could handle for life. So do pike for that matter. Here is an example of what a walleye can become...
http://www.gregisfishing.com/WEB%20IMAGES/Dan%20&%20ND%20Spring%20Walleye.jpg

The shiners you are talking about are probably golden shiners...not sure but here is a picture. Notice the lateral line and where it is on the body. That is key for IDing the species. Golden shiners also get large and like to live in school. Won't work in a 55g. You could probably get away with a few in the 250 is the tank had the space for them.
http://cars.er.usgs.gov/pics/db_native0191.jpg

Now...as for feeders. I recommend not useing them. Wild fish can carry so much crap, I am sure you don't want your oscars getting worms, blackspot or some kind of parasite. Not to mention that the fish could be contaminated by pollution.

[natty99]

nice fish

[crazy_cavi]

thanks for all the info i know the shiners can grow extremely large, same as walleye.... well that picture u have has to be a record size fish.. ive only seen 5-10 pound ones here. well i liked the idea of pike because they are vicious carnivores.
so most likely im going to have to get a water chiller? somethign i know nothing of but it wouldnt be a bad place to start, since my tank water sits at around 74-76 when the heat is unplugged.

i dont know if anyone could help me with this but arent fish capped in their size for their habbitat meaning that if i had them in a 250 from small fry... like under 6" they would only maintain a 12" -20" size or would they just keep on growing until they would need to be eaten???

also are they the type of fish that has to keep on moving to breath or can they stay stationary.

if its too much of a task to keep them in a tank i will just stock my dugout with a few pike next summer instead of trout.

im sorry if i boggled your brains together but if you guys could just tell me what kind of a setup i would need and a good initial size of fish to use that would be great. im wanting to use pike more then pickeral since the northerns are alot prettier of a fish kinda like the barracuda of the great lakes...

the yellow fin baracudda is also a fish im considering im aware its not an authentic barracuda but a lookalike freshwater fish. their appetite would be an enjoyable experience. but ill save that for another post
thakns matt

[sandtiger]

thanks for all the info i know the shiners can grow extremely large, same as walleye.... well that picture u have has to be a record size fish.. ive only seen 5-10 pound ones here. well i liked the idea of pike because they are vicious carnivores.

Just making sure you know what your getting into. As you know pike also get large...so do pickerel. If you want something that can live in the 250g for life try the redfin pickerel.

so most likely im going to have to get a water chiller? somethign i know nothing of but it wouldnt be a bad place to start, since my tank water sits at around 74-76 when the heat is unplugged.

Depending o nwhat you ulimately decide you may or may not need it. 74-76 is not a bad temp for many natives but some like trout probably would not like it. I am not sure about pike, I have only kept pickerel and not for very long. Pike are cool water fish so you may need one.

i dont know if anyone could help me with this but arent fish capped in their size for their habbitat meaning that if i had them in a 250 from small fry... like under 6" they would only maintain a 12" -20" size or would they just keep on growing until they would need to be eaten???

You are refering to stunting. Stunting a fish is unhealthy for a fish. It deforms their body shape and messes up their internal organs. Some fish won't even stunt at all and just keep growing to large for the tank. You said "need to be eaten". Do you plan on eventually eating whatever fish you get?

also are they the type of fish that has to keep on moving to breath or can they stay stationary.

Pike often don't move at all and just hover around in the tank waiting for passing prey.

[joel]

i/ve had a N. American native tank for awhile. yellow perch chain pickeral, largemouth bass, rock bass, bullheads, never had a walleye though that would have been cool. all those fish grow very quickly, but are very interesting to watch especially the pickeral. one awesome predator. If you have a tank large enough go for it.

[crazy_cavi]

the "eat them" part had to do with a post about LMB that i read earlier this week on this website lol

well if you could give me an estimate of the size of tank i would need for a pair of northern pikes. i kow a 250 may not be big enough just so i know what id need if i would get into the ownership of two pikes. i may go ice fishing.. :P and the pike u catch ice fishing are perfect tank size 7-12 inches.

and how would i acclimatize a fish from 35-40' water?

[joel]

the "eat them" part had to do with a post about LMB that i read earlier this week on this website lol

well if you could give me an estimate of the size of tank i would need for a pair of northern pikes. i kow a 250 may not be big enough just so i know what id need if i would get into the ownership of two pikes. i may go ice fishing.. :P and the pike u catch ice fishing are perfect tank size 7-12 inches.

and how would i acclimatize a fish from 35-40' water?
very slowly. i pulled a yellow perch from the ice and slowly acclimated him to warmer water and it worked out great.

[guppy]

the "eat them" part had to do with a post about LMB that i read earlier this week on this website lol

well if you could give me an estimate of the size of tank i would need for a pair of northern pikes. i kow a 250 may not be big enough just so i know what id need if i would get into the ownership of two pikes. i may go ice fishing.. :P and the pike u catch ice fishing are perfect tank size 7-12 inches.

and how would i acclimatize a fish from 35-40' water?
I would go with pickerel instead of pike if you want to keep them very long, A pike can easily hit 2 kilo size in three years and then gain a kilo or more every year on up to 20 kg. Most of your slow water fish will adapt to room temps but like Joel says do it slowly, 2 degrees F a day is what I have seen written. Make sure you get good O2 levels so you might want a powerhead and areator. For a pair of northern pikes for life I would be thinking 4'wide, 3' deep, and 6'long as a minimum. I recently read about that shiner type called the yellowfin barracuda but I don't remember it's real mane a nice predaceous good sized fish.
Some his can be stunted but they die young, others keep growing in to small tanks and still die young.

[crazy_cavi]

what about transportation, the water in a smaller mass warms up quicker and cools down quicker how could i counteract that
or should i just do the smart thing and phone the saskatchewan fisheries hatchery and ask if i could purchase some fry or use them for a "educational purposes?" probably be alot easier then "Wild" wild fish

[sandtiger]

I think you should go with asking the hatchery, that way you can get them tiny and watch them grow. I would not get pike though, I know you want them bad but redfin and chain pickerel are much better for the size tank you have.