Rebel's right. Not a pygmy sunfish. It is a Lepomis. It could be a variety of things, but even at that age, it looks like a tiny warmouth.
GA Fish ID
- Thread starter MadDog24
- Start date
Well, in the process of finding live feeders these little guys unfortunately died. :/ No one sold anything small enough for them to eat and I was gonna release them, but they died before I could.
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Ok first thing is don't release the natives back again after they have been in your care due to pathogens that may harm the native fishes in the waters.
I'll remember that. That makes sense really. I don't know why I didn't think of that. Any suggestions for the future. One I'm assuming is being prepared before bringing fish home.
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You should breed scuds or daphnia. Also they will eat insect larvae like mosquito larvae. You could try to culture those as well by leaving out a bucket of water for them. Female mosquitoes are attracted by the scent of the bacteria in the water, so you will need some rotting vegetation/detritus inside. Just add some kitchen scraps like cucumber peelings and lettuce etc. Sometimes if you go to a pond or river and collect some mud or water they have tiny invertebrates that your fish will eat and you can culture these as well. It takes a little care to be successful in breeding all these things but is not too hard once you know the basics. A small container with food and the right temps is all you really need. Also try frozen foods too the daters will take it.
Also a note on collecting invertebrates/larvae in the wild. Some of them can be predatory so make sure to get some things ID'd cause you don't want those in your tank. Water beetles and dragonfly nymphs are just a few things you do not want in your tank.
Also a note on collecting invertebrates/larvae in the wild. Some of them can be predatory so make sure to get some things ID'd cause you don't want those in your tank. Water beetles and dragonfly nymphs are just a few things you do not want in your tank.
Thanks for that. I thought both fish had died, but my darter is actually still alive. I'm going to get some frozen blood worms today for him. I'm going to try to collect and culture a few of the inverts from the pond as well. Are there any that you would suggest as best?
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Scuds and daphnia are great but are not usually found everywhere. There are all types of tiny inverts in ponds and rivers. Tiny crustaceans like seed shrimps or similar would work too and can be found in the wild. If you feed frozen foods the darter may ignore it several times but keep trying and it will take it. Try tiny amounts of food at first. Also if you do not see the darter eat it it may eat it later when you aren't looking. So just add tiny amounts enough for a bite or 2. You can buy some starter cultures of both daphnia and scuds online. If you decide to go that route you should learn about how to keep them before purchasing so that you have everything set up.
