After reading about bichirs I heard that they sometimes enjoy "playing" in the bubbles of an aerator. Whether you believe the fish is simply investigating or really playing is up to you, but I do know that it cures a disease that has stricken many a fish. Boredom. How much fun would you think it would be to sit in a glass box day after day the same old neighborhood with nothing much to do? Now humans can go climb trees or play games with each other, but bichirs don't have the challenge of gravity and are not social animals. What would a bichir enjoy? Well that's what I'm asking you? Please give suggestions. I was thinking maybe some sort of ball with food stuffed in it. A ping pong ball maybe?
Bichirs and their toys
- Thread starter zippybomb
- Start date
Well, my bichirs really enjoyed playing with a rose minnow that shocked when we put them into feed the arowana this evening. They shook it, chased it, pecked it, and tug-of-warred it. They very much looked like they were playing! Couldn't take much off of it but they most certainly enjoyed trying.
zippybomb;4778720; said:
That's just asking for bad water quality...
I've never really thought of it that way though.
The minnow is a good idea but it could depend on the personality of the fish as some might ignore it and some might tear it to pieces.
i have 3 ping pong balls in my tank. i noticed some of my fish move/push it. might just be that they are investigating thinking its food. could also be they playing with it lol.
I really don't think bichirs are as inquisitive as say puffers, to require much stimulation.
They are so instinct driven that they seem perfectly content to having daily meals and clean water.
When I had my 120g wide setup with lots of plants, they would never roam around much except at feeding time, except for the senegals.
Most of the time they picked their favorite spot in the tank and would sort of wait for feeding time.
Now, if you did want to stimulate them with challenges, moving decor around could help (I've done this often not to stimulate them, but to try new things with my setup).
I think putting their food in different spots could also help, or forcing them to use their natural instinct to 'death roll' by not chopping up a fillet and letting them tear it apart (messy though, and could foul the water); doing that on water change day could fix the problem though.
They are so instinct driven that they seem perfectly content to having daily meals and clean water.
When I had my 120g wide setup with lots of plants, they would never roam around much except at feeding time, except for the senegals.
Most of the time they picked their favorite spot in the tank and would sort of wait for feeding time.
Now, if you did want to stimulate them with challenges, moving decor around could help (I've done this often not to stimulate them, but to try new things with my setup).
I think putting their food in different spots could also help, or forcing them to use their natural instinct to 'death roll' by not chopping up a fillet and letting them tear it apart (messy though, and could foul the water); doing that on water change day could fix the problem though.
they seem rather smart
