Water changes for 90 gallon Oscar

pops

Alligator Gar
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I would agree, this thread been hijacked bad. :nilly:
 

pops

Alligator Gar
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hopefully the OP got enough info so his fish not end up looking like this.
 

robham7770

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Rob, perhaps you missed this?

Butterfly Peacock: Cichla ocellaris

State record is 9.08 pounds, but fish up to 12 pounds have been caught; current IGFA all-tackle world record is 12.6 pounds (caught in Venezuela); 13 of the 16 current IGFA world records caught from Florida waters

............................................................


I believe that there are currently 15 species that have been described withn the Cichla genus, with some believing there will be more to come in the future. FYI - they don't all reach the same size in the wild. :)

The species that I linked to averages 5-7 lbs in the wild, and maxes out at 12 pounds. (IGFA record)


I think that we have now taken this topic within a topic as far as it will go. lol
Yes I did miss the species, and googled the common name. I think the OP has plenty to digest, and should form his own opinion about wc. IMO oscars are one of the best, and hardiest fish you can get, and would encourage anyone to get one.
 

mudbuttjones

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Jul 29, 2014
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Wild caught fish arent always the best control group. Depending on the habitat, food may be scarce/inadequate, temperature fluctuations, predators, parasites, drought, and seasonal changes bear a great deal of significance.

In an aquarium lack of space and water quality are the only tangible "natural" enemy.

My north american natives naturally winter over in shallow bodies of water inb northern Wisconsin where suface temps dip well below 0* F before the windchill for months at a time. . Their metabolism dips to nearly shutoff and food is hard to come by. They are practically born just to die. Lol. Who's to say that fish has a better chance of reaching maximum size when kept at 65* year round with ample food.

Its genetics plain and simple. Dont stunt your oscar with poor living conditions, and he will have a better chancd of reaching his full potential.

Sent from my SCH-R950 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
 

David R

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Lol wat?! Apples and oranges.
Yeah bad analogy and not particularly serious, but the point about the average maximum length vs ultimate maximum is still valid I believe.

Darth that oscar in the video with the Asian aros is certanly a brute. The owner should chuck a line in an claim the IGFA record... :p
 

Drstrangelove

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Oct 21, 2012
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Thanks for crunching the numbers Dr, but the one flaw I see is that an adult oscar (along with most tropical species) does not require a diet containing 50% crude protein.
Good point.

It's true that many fish don't need that amount of protein. I tend to choose baselines for my analysis and then work from there depending on the specific fish or subject. Some people use higher protein foods, some lower, and so forth. In the case of oscars, the protein amount could be lower and that would reduce the nitrogen input to the tank, etc. I certainly didn't mean to imply that 50% is the proper amount.
 

suprd71

Jack Dempsey
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Nov 27, 2012
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something about that pic looks fishy.
Indeed.. a 7+lb Bass, being palmed by the gut, at 3/4 arm length by an 11yr old. Fish is stiff as a board. Nice fish, but suspicious photo(shop). Good job by the Oscar experts in this thread. And hey RD.. "who gives a crap?" Apparently you did until proven blatantly wrong. I have read many a post and thread from you. Quite factual and informative for the most part, but your attitude on this one is flat out immature. You are not the all knowing fish guru of the entire hobby. Oscars aren't your specialty. Instead of "who gives a crap", how about something along the lines of, "well I certainly stand corrected, thx for the information."
 

RD.

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suprd ........... my point with the bass pic was referring the weight, and overall healthy appearence of the fish caught in a Fl canal, not how the photo was taken. That particular species of Pbass is actually not very tolerable to cool water temps, so it proved the point rather well. I have zero experience with photoshop, and I'm not sure why a fish that large (over 7 pounds) would be photoshopped??? The weight kind of says it all, and that should have been pretty obvious to anyone that was actually paying attention. Most "fishing" photos online has someone holding a fish out at arms length. Big deal, fisherman like to exaggerate. And that is what, somehow going to discredit what I stated, and/or the point that I clearly made. Buy a clue.

Some of these SA species have been in Florida waterways since the 1950's, a time when I was also walking this earth. Perhaps I should have stated from the get go that "according to my 45+ yrs of keeping fish" blah-blah-blah.
Would that have somehow made my comments in this discussion more credible? You don't know squat about me, or what I have kept over the years, so keep your personal snipes to yourself. I've never claimed to be an expert on anything, not in this thread or any other, but I've been kicking around this hobby a very long time & certainly know a thing or two about fish. This isn't me being immature, this is me growing weary of debating ignorance.

SA fish have been living, breeding (and mass producing) in FL for several decades, and to suggest that these wild feral fish in Florida cannot for some reason reach their max potential is assinine. I don't care how many years anyone here has been keeping fish - the gators aren't wiping out the mature breeding adults in Florida, nor are these fish shriveling up en mass due to the winter water temps, or anything else. For those that think otherwise, seriously, do a little homework before spouting off about something you clearly know nothing about.


As far as credible proof of size, this isn't exactly rocket science, if someone owns a tape measure they can get a pic of their fish lined up against it.




If not, how exactly can one state with certainty that their fish is 14", or 16", or better? You must somehow measure a fish to determine its length or girth. That, or it becomes a guesstimate of sorts. Perhaps the fish is 18", we won't know if nobody measures it. Tape mesaures don't lie. And yes, in my 50+ years of kicking around this hobby, probably seeing (up close) and online, hundreds of different O's kept in tanks. I have never seen an O that has been confirmed 16" long. 13", yes, some that were close to 14", yes, but never any that were 16" or better. And this isn't the first time that this subject has come up on MFK over the years. Still, no pics that involve a tool of measurement. So for myself, personally, they still might as well be a unicorn. YMMV



Now, if you have something constructive to actually add to this discussion, please do so sir.
 

RD.

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Good point.

It's true that many fish don't need that amount of protein. I tend to choose baselines for my analysis and then work from there depending on the specific fish or subject. Some people use higher protein foods, some lower, and so forth. In the case of oscars, the protein amount could be lower and that would reduce the nitrogen input to the tank, etc. I certainly didn't mean to imply that 50% is the proper amount.

Thanks for responding, Doc. I wasn't trying to nit pic, I just found your overall numbers higher than they would typically be as I don't believe that the vast majority of oscar keepers are feeding foods with a crude protein content of 50%. I hate math, or I would have re-crunched the numbers using 35 & 40%. :)
 
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