Inactive barred bichir

[Ricardo quezada]

Is there a way to make them more active? They just stay at the bottom of the tank and don't do much. They are juveniles about an inch in length. Water conditions are fine. Living with plecos and feeder guppies. TEMPORARY HOUSING . Eventually moving to soemthing large with other predator fish.
I have feed them sinking shrimp pellets, carnivore pellets, and a piece of ham occaiclaly. I've only seen them eat the ham.

 

[Thyroyalgeek]

Beautiful fish! I'm no expert but is it endlerichi? Although it might decrease their lifespan, if they're not that sensetive you could up the tank a few degrees maybe? It could also be they're a bit lethargic because they don't move very much in the first place! They are a rather inactive fish.

 

[Thyroyalgeek]

And one more thing, you do realize you posted this in the marine section? If it was accident, don't worry I did it once too, so don't let it bother ya.

 

[tlindsey]

Repost your thread under Ancient fish click Polypterus and start new thread .
As for the Endli's they are not active all the time like most poly species.

 

[magpie]

Agree - this won't get much traffic here. A mod might be able to move it to the polypterus subforum?

Anyway, the previous poster is correct. These guys just aren't active fish. Did you research before you bought them? What behavior are you expecting? The ones you got in particular are supposed to be log-like. Senegals and Pollis are more active bichirs.

Most people here do the pellets like you, and tilapia or silversides/smelt. They also love live earthworms. I'd skip the ham, as it's not really made to be fed to fish.

 

[Thyroyalgeek]

Exactly like what the above folks said, if I was gonna get a bichir I would get a Senegalus, because at our local petsmart, which I hate because big box petstores and they stink, when we go to buy dogfood I'll glance over at the tank to see if they have a mono or something like that and the senegals, which are called dinosaur bichir there, are very very active.

 

[Ricardo quezada]

Oops did not realize I posted under marine