Is it worth attempting to get grass pickerel onto pellet?

[screaminleeman]

I did not research enough as to how voracious of appetites that these little monsters have. I am having a nearly impossible time maintaining a large enough supply of gut stuffed and fully quarantined minnows for them. I was also under the impression that while they were certainly cannibalistic, one day without food would not be enough for them to resort to this. That was a very bad mistake.

I lost 3 of 10 pickerel to cannibalism. They are homed by themselves with only minnow/ guppy feeders and a tight fitting lid providing zero exit. (I even drilled holes in the plastic portion extender to run the air lines through to the internal sponge filters.

The couple of times I attempted floating and sinking pellets did not get any action and I had to remove them later that evening each time.

The only thing that has saved my seven on a number of occasions are Canadian night crawlers that I get in bait shops.

What other feed has anyone had any success with young grass pickerel? I got the 10 at 1" and they now range 3.5" - 5".

 

[JasonsPlecosCichlids]

Anything is worth trying. My Musky so far hasn't ate any pellets but he goes up to them and nudges them sometimes. I don't have any experience with Picks but most say use small feeders such as rosy reds, minnows, etc.

 

[MN_Rebel]

Welcome to the esox keeping world! It's bound for everyone to lost some pickerel to the cannibalism and it's really common problem for us esox keepers. YOY esox will committed more cannibal acts on their siblings.

Some members have successful results with feeding the esox on the pellets but it's long process. Others fed their esox with raw shrimp and frozen foods.

 

[screaminleeman]

Welcome to the esox keeping world! It's bound for everyone to lost some pickerel to the cannibalism and it's really common problem for us esox keepers. YOY esox will committed more cannibal acts on their siblings.

Some members have successful results with feeding the esox on the pellets but it's long process. Others fed their esox with raw shrimp and frozen foods.

Thanks, I do so love these little guys/ gals. I just wish that I had done more research of proper "husbandry" prior to getting them than I did.

I am halfway nutty, and have tried cutting Tilapia fillets into slender Minnow shaded pieces to attempt to entices these mini monsters and even attempted the wooden stick method that has never failed me with YOY Gar to date, but to no avail.

A few general characteristics that I have found in my extremely short duration of Esox keeping but would like to share and get more experienced keepers opinions on are noted below.

1. I have found with a zero survival rate in my attempt at keeping Redfin pickerel (That I got from a vendor in Waldo Florida) that they are unlike Gar and will eat themselves to death with both quantity of small feeder fish and attempting to swallow larger feeder fish than they can handle at their size. (This mistake I am being cautious to not make with my little grass Pickerels.) I am fairly comfortable that feeders 1/3rd the size of the Pickerel is a decent rule of thumb, but am open to advice. I am clueless as to a quantity of feeders best suited to allow these beasts better than adequate food source without the possibility of terminal overeating. At 1" the 10 would take 80 feeder guppies in minutes.

2. They appear to be nothing whatsoever like the Gar that I have raised and seem 100% cognizant of the glass barriers of an Aquarium. To date I have nevver seen these lightning quick predators so much a touch the glass much less suffer potential broken back like the LNG and even a Florida gar once. I feel that I have done them an injustice by keeping them in tiny aquaria and mooving them frequently into larger as they grow like it seems to be better with their distant cousins in the Lepisosteus genus.

3. I have read and also found to be true in my limited experience that thick surface cover of plants and plenty of live plants anchored make these fish far more comfortable. I have yet to experience the fish leaping out of the tanks when I open the lid to feed.

4. They put the Florida gar to shame in their efforts to "steal" the catch from their Essox A.V. tankmates. And I do mean these fish will seriously fight over the last feeder(s) in the tank.

 

[Aquaculture Tyler]

have you tried shrimp or floating brine shrimp my 6 inch northern pike took shrimp the first day he was in my tank my silver hujeta gar would take floating brine shrimp

 

[twilight zone]

I know someone got his on dried krill.

 

[screaminleeman]

have you tried shrimp or floating brine shrimp my 6 inch northern pike took shrimp the first day he was in my tank my silver hujeta gar would take floating brine shrimp

I tried frozen arctic krill (thawed) but they sink. I removed the krill after a couple of hours.

 

[budoboy]

I tried my grass pickerel on frozen fish once. Waited till he was hungry and dropped one in. He went right after it and ate it. Never touched another one though after he figured out what happened I liked mine but he got too big for a 60 gallon breeder. He liked to rest in the plants and would dart at any fish I put in the tank. He even got some visible teeth when he wss about 7" long

 

[johnny potatoes]

I am halfway nutty, and have tried cutting Tilapia fillets into slender Minnow shaded pieces


I would cut the pieces to the same size as the guppies you are feeding them. Then throw in only ten pieces at a time, five guppies and five pieces of cut fish. Maybe even in front of a power head to make the pieces move horizontally across the tank. I've not done this with pickeral but it's worked for other predators.