Baby bass questions

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NatashaAliza

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Sep 6, 2009
554
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Pance, Colombia
So I decided to go to my grandpas private lake and take an aquarium net through the reeds and catch some minnows and grass shrimp for my 5in jag. Don't worry there in a quarantine take and being treated for parasites and all that nasty stuff. But once i got home and put them in them in the tank I realized that some of my minnows are actually 1/2in and smaller baby bass... Complete accident btw. And I have no idea if there large or small mouth bass.

Now my question is how fast are these little guys going to grow, I've read that its about an inch a month. But does that count for a bass that small? I think they would be a pretty neat addition to my tank but the largest tank I own is a 250g (in storage)... Which I can't set up for a couple months till we buy our new house. The QT tank is 30g and the largest tanks I have set up is a 75g with my Jag, a 75g African cichlid community and a 55g with my female GT and firemouth.

And I don't know if I should release them because they are already being treated will meds.

Just weighing out my options... I'd just feel bad feeding these potential monsters to my jag :[
 
You certainly shouldn't release it. Now that it's been in your tank it could be carrying a tropical illness that could decimate the waters you would return it to.

I keep my (also, given to me as a minnow) LMB at about 64ºF and he is growing very slowly in spite of a steady parade of mealworms, blackworms, gut-loaded fry, frequent water changes, etc. So if you have a basement, you might try using the cold as a time slower on the growth. Then again, there might be some other reason he is growing so slowly. I mean, he was an inch long when I caught him, and he's only now reaching three inches. I think it's been longer than three months. Anyway, you could use them as feeders or have yourself a new monster. Just know what you're in for as he outgrows every tank you've got. The 250 will work for a very long time, but eventually he'll even outgrow that.

If it's a private pond, you are a little more out of the red for returning him to the water. But remember that birds and other wildlife can carry things from water to water, so it's never really a private lake any more than the air in your lungs belongs only to you.
 
That's what I figured about the release. I think I'm just going to keep them. 6 out of about 100fish I caught are baby bass. I don't figure all of them will survive just because they are so tiny. I think I'm going to do my best to keep them. I know I can house them for a while, and a primitive pond doesn't seem to out of the picture. I'm sure I could work something out. And if not, I'm sure I can find an MFK'er who will buy it.

But as I live in FL should I try to keep the tank at 64F anyways? Right now they just have a filter and are sitting on a counter under a window for natural light with some floating aquatic plants.

So you think its going to take a few months till they even reach about an inch? I'm really just wondering about growth rate at such a small size and when it might start to pick up a bit.

And do you think I should separate them from the feeder guppies? Or should I leave them so they can learn to accept the pellets by watching them? Because the guppies are starting to nibble at the NLS and its been about 24hr since I got them all.
 
Hee hee. Sounds like a good time.

I'd leave them with the guppies so they can eat fry at will. What size tank is this? You'll want no smaller than a thirty, for waste management of a cloud of guppies and some growing bass.

Yeah, higher temps are fine for bass from your area. You can keep them around 75ºF or a little higher without trouble I'd say.

My bass also loves daphnia and eats until he's just round with them.
 
Yeah the tanks a 30g. I think I might add a couple more filters... Can't hurt right? Right now I have a 20-40whisper, I think I'll add one more. Pretty soon the guppy numbers will go down because they are intended for my jag and I'll leave the smaller ones for the bass. I'm actually really excited :] This should be fun, growing my monsters from less than half an inch!! I'll post some pictures soon of the little guys.
 
Natasha since your in Florida and its a pond the odds are that you have a Florida LMB. The Florida Subspecies can handle higher temps and grow faster than the Northern strain, they also get to be a bigger max size (lucky you). They are very intelligent and I believe (but Im unabashedly prejudiced towards natives) one of the most beautifull fish out there (if you like the color green like I do). Congradulations!
 
warmouth;4465166; said:
Natasha since your in Florida and its a pond the odds are that you have a Florida LMB. The Florida Subspecies can handle higher temps and grow faster than the Northern strain, they also get to be a bigger max size (lucky you). They are very intelligent and I believe (but Im unabashedly prejudiced towards natives) one of the most beautifull fish out there (if you like the color green like I do). Congradulations!
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Thank you! I am really happy that I got these little guys. I'm going to try my hardest to keep them alive. And yes I love green :]
 
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