Chinese HiFin Shark, Myxocyprinnus asiaticus...what to do, to to do...

[kendragon]

So what's the secret to success?

Is it skill? I know many novice not on forums have grown them for many years and grown large. (Busted)
Is it temperature? I've seen them live in my area (San Diego) in shallow ponds and grown large. (Busted)
Is it pond vs tank? I've seen tank raised ones grown quite large as well as pond raised ones. (Busted)
Is it the need for algae? Tank raised ones don't get fresh algae. Maybe algae tablets? (maybe)
Is it filtration? I've seen them in simple to complicated setups (Busted)

My personal conclusion is attitude. So many people are expecting the worst. Oh, I have no success keeping them. Oh, I think it will die on me. Just waiting for the day. Naming it Darcula (Prince of Darkness) could mean it likes to hide but it sounds like such a downer. Should be something like Mary Poppins.
BE POSITIVE! I'm counting on you. No stress. Just do what you're doing and have fun.

 

[jjohnwm]

So what's the secret to success?

Is it skill? I know many novice not on forums have grown them for many years and grown large. (Busted)
Is it temperature? I've seen them live in my area (San Diego) in shallow ponds and grown large. (Busted)
Is it pond vs tank? I've seen tank raised ones grown quite large as well as pond raised ones. (Busted)
Is it the need for algae? Tank raised ones don't get fresh algae. Maybe algae tablets? (maybe)
Is it filtration? I've seen them in simple to complicated setups (Busted)

My personal conclusion is attitude. So many people are expecting the worst. Oh, I have no success keeping them. Oh, I think it will die on me. Just waiting for the day. Naming it Darcula (Prince of Darkness) could mean it likes to hide but it sounds like such a downer. Should be something like Mary Poppins.
BE POSITIVE! I'm counting on you. No stress. Just do what you're doing and have fun.

Lol, so the secret to success is not worrying? Well...that means I'm hooped...

Most oddball fish I have owned were obtained after a great deal of reading and research. The HiFin is not something I ever really expected to own; it just showed up in a net while cleaning out a friend's pond, having been tossed in by his son a few weeks earlier. It is now the sole survivor of an original quartet that had been purchased together by that son.

I couldn't find out much about the species when I got it home...or at least not much that didn't detail how poorly the described specimens were doing. Not encouraging.

The name was chosen by a granddaughter and is non-negotiable; maybe a bit of a downer, but I've always been a horror fan and she knows it.

Dracula has been a bit of a PITA when it came to getting him started feeding; he can't compete...with anything!...and has only recently begun to be somewhat less flighty around me...after more than a year in my care!

So...be positive? Believe it or not, I am! I am finally starting to feel comfortable with the idea that I am not killing him; that's sorta positive...a bit...I think...?

Saw him again today; it was nice.

Next goal: removing him, still alive, from the pond at the end of September or October of this year. Just bought myself a new seine net specifically for that purpose.

 

[jjohnwm]

An interesting couple of days here. We have had a few days of blistering (by our standards) heat, with actual temps in the 95F range and humidexes in the 110F range. Fortunately, before this hit I had supplemented the aeration in my otherwise completely natural pond, first with an ongoing trickle of water and shortly afterwards with an airline run out from my basement air pump. I have never seen any sign of distress amongst my goldfish but I had convinced myself that Dracula looked a wee bit "off" earlier in the spring during our first hot spell, so some artificial aeration seemed like a prudent move.

Two days ago, I went out after breakfast to check out the pond and found no bubbles occurring. Turned out to be a minor issue and easily corrected, but I noticed that while the goldfish continued to be unaffected Dracula was gasping at the surface. His colour was very pale and blotchy and he didn't look good. I restored the aeration and also turned the garden hose on with a fine mist spray into the pond. The fish responded almost immediately by submerging to the bottom and disappearing (into his coffin?); haven't seen him since, but that long a period with no observation is not at all unusual so not necessarily a cause for concern.

The inground pond is of course much less sensitive to overheating during hot spells than the stock tanks. Surface temps have not exceeded 80F and the bottom is closer to 70F. My aeration is set up specifically to circulate the upper half of the water column while not significantly disturbing the deepest part of the pond (only about 3 feet); took a fair bit of experimentation and monitoring. I would have gotten more effective aeration by placing the airstone right at the bottom but that would have mixed all the water more thoroughly and thus warmed up the deepest stuff more than I wanted.

Fingers crossed for the HiFin; when I saw him in distress it really hit home how disappointed I would be if I lost him.

 

[jjohnwm]

My wife was meandering about the yard this morning, taking advantage of a coolish overcast but with minimal mosquito activity, and she stopped a bit at the pond. When she came inside, she said "I just saw that weird fish in the pond you're always going on about. He's still alive, and wow, he's grown a lot since you brought him home."

I actually rushed out to see him but he was already invisible again. He's usually spotted when eating algae off a water lily stem near the surface, or perhaps from the big chunk of root that stubbornly continues to float. But she said he looked good!

But...wow! I've had Dracula for over a year now, and have spent so much time and energy fretting over him and protecting him from competition and getting him to feed and generally kissing his azz...that she's grown accustomed to hearing me comment on him with things like "Hey! He's still alive!" to the point where she is also saying it.

I've gotta take kendragon 's advice and try to think more positively.

 

[tlindsey]

My wife was meandering about the yard this morning, taking advantage of a coolish overcast but with minimal mosquito activity, and she stopped a bit at the pond. When she came inside, she said "I just saw that weird fish in the pond you're always going on about. He's still alive, and wow, he's grown a lot since you brought him home."

I actually rushed out to see him but he was already invisible again. He's usually spotted when eating algae off a water lily stem near the surface, or perhaps from the big chunk of root that stubbornly continues to float. But she said he looked good!

But...wow! I've had Dracula for over a year now, and have spent so much time and energy fretting over him and protecting him from competition and getting him to feed and generally kissing his azz...that she's grown accustomed to hearing me comment on him with things like "Hey! He's still alive!" to the point where she is also saying it.

I've gotta take kendragon 's advice and try to think more positively.

Great to hear Dracula is alive and well.

 

[jjohnwm]

Great to hear Dracula is alive and well.

But is he alive...or is he undead...?

 

[kendragon]

Any updates? Give us some good news. Observations?

 

[jjohnwm]

Any updates? Give us some good news. Observations?

You must be psychic. I hadn't seen Dracula since my last post; our Manitoba heat wave continues, daytime temperatures 85-90F. Don't laugh...for us that's hot. The Goldfish pond in which he is the guest of honour is cursed with green water now for the first time in several years. We had two wicked rainstorms which overflowed all my ponds and stocktanks, washed away 90% of the duckweed, and flooded the ponds with sunlight. I also got carried away while trimming the overhead branches last fall, reducing shade considerably. Most of the tanks look terrible.

But the makeshift aerator works like a charm, the Goldfish look great, act fine, eat like pigs. And today Dracula was out in full sunlight...I guess he never read the novel...working over the algae-covered stump. He looks terrific, has definitely grown since spring, has great colour. I can't really get a good look at his tummy profile, but he sure didn't look skinny from where I was standing. Very encouraging. He has at least 8 - 10 more weeks to enjoy the sunshine before he goes indoors for the winter.