New venture. - European perch (perca fluviatilis)

[esoxlucius]

Do you foresee any other species added to the mix?

If I add anything it'll be more perch, no other species. I reckon the nine I have will form a nice close knit shoal and I'm keen to see the behaviour they exhibit.

They are already exploring their new surroundings, large dorsal fin erect of course, to show their wariness.

I'm expecting them to max out around the 9-10" mark, though in the wild under favourable conditions they'll double that.

 

[esoxlucius]

Pic taken this morning. They're out and about now, becoming more and more confident, relying less on structure to hide away. Eating like little pigs too, love these guys.

 

[danotaylor]

Awesomeness mate. Cool lil boogers. That's pretty sweet that they're eating so quickly in captivity! What are are you feeding them?

Watching

 

[esoxlucius]

What are are you feeding them?

Worms will form the biggest part of their diet, and I have an abundance of those readily available in my wormery in the back garden.

Maggots from the local fishing tackle shop are another option, as are prawns from the supermarket.

I also have a feeling that these guys are going to love crickets and locusts which I can get from the reptile food dept at my local Pets at Home. I may even venture back into breeding crickets, though that is just an idea at the minute because the chirping used to drive us nuts!

I'll also be searching out for bugs in the garden as treats too. All in all it shouldn't be too difficult to give them a varied diet.

I draw the line at live fish feeding though for two reasons, even though that is probably what they would like the most. One, live feeding doesn't sit well with me, and two, I don't want to introduce pathogens into the tank.

As they get more confident, brashly coming up in the water column to feed, I'll do a feeding video which should be cool.

 

[danotaylor]

Awesome mate. Great plan!

 

[fishhead0103666]

I may even venture back into breeding crickets, though that is just an idea at the minute because the chirping used to drive us nuts!

Have you looked into Dubai roaches to breed instead of crickets? No noise, can’t climb as well, not as cannibalistic, less smelly, breed better, and some more that I think I’m forgetting

 

[esoxlucius]

Have you looked into Dubai roaches to breed instead of crickets? No noise, can’t climb as well, not as cannibalistic, less smelly, breed better, and some more that I think I’m forgetting

I'll look into those Brian, thanks for the heads up.

 

[jjohnwm]

Have you looked into Dubai roaches to breed instead of crickets? No noise, can’t climb as well, not as cannibalistic, less smelly, breed better, and some more that I think I’m forgetting

Well, cripes...you've gone and sucked all the fun out of cricket keeping now...

Esox, once you get them hitting food aggressively the instant it hits the water, you should try getting them onto pellets as well. It requires the application of a bit of pfish psychology, as they are a bit tougher to pellet-train than sunfish and the like, but once the first one hits a pellet, the rest just pile right on.

Mind you, I'm basing this upon the behaviour of my local Yellow Perch, but the two species look almost identical and I bet they behave the same way too.

It's great to read about your success with a project you've been thinking about for so long, even if it does turn out to be the final phase of the hobby for you...although I hope this re-invigorates your interest and maybe convinces you to keep a tank going in future.

 

[esoxlucius]

I used to love breeding crickets. I found them fascinating and boy could they reproduce. The only downside, for me, was the males constant chirping. Easy to house, easy to feed, there was no smell whatsoever, and my tropical fish loved them, as will my perch.

You can separate the males from the females to minimise chirping, you can reduce temps to stop them too, some even take drastic measures and cut the wings!!

One thing's for sure though. If my perch get a taste for my current shop bought locusts and crickets then I'll have to start breeding something because the cost will start adding up.

I've already looked into the dubia roaches and they seem to have different requirements to the crickets as regards keeping and breeding them.

 

[esoxlucius]

Confidence wise we're at the glass surfing stage now. My presence doesn't bother them one bit. Eating worms and small locusts at will.

At first they'd wait for the worms to sink to the bottom before nailing them, but now they happily rise up in the water column to snap them up. The locusts float but they will gingerly come to the surface and take them. It's great to watch them compete for the food.

I'm beginning to think that I could have put a few more in too. There are currently 10, not 9 as previously thought, I miscounted them!

My daily parameter checks are showing me that these guys are putting out a relatively small bio load in comparison to my previous bustling tropical com set up. I may add another half dozen or so, we'll see.

Pic below of them showing an interest in my fingers wiggling against the glass.