Doing It Right!

[bangerang103]

Ok So I have a 10x10 room..


Shark tank/pond was thinking 8 foot long 6 foot wide and 3 foot high..

How many gallons would that be.. this is going to be a DIY Project my father and I will be building. and would this be ok for like 2 brown bamboo's or maybe 3 marbles from eggs?


or maybe even one smoothhound.. and is quater inch liner ok for the tank if i build it?

 

[Brenden]

Bangergang103 - That is a very nice foot print, with the dimensions 8'x6'x3' you are looking at 1,080 gallons. With that system you would be able to keep any of the Bamboo species, any of the Epaulette species, and any of the Cat species. Unfortunatly becuase of the dimensions Smoothhounds are out of the question. You would need to go 12'x8'x3' if you wanted a Smoothhound. As for lining I would use a pond padding first and then the pond lining over the padding. So yes I would think a quater inch would be fine. What are your thoughts for filteration, lighting, and building?

 

[krj-1168]

A 8' x 6' x 3' pond would likely work for a Smoothie pup - but not an adult. And they tend to grow fairly fast - usually reach maturity within 2-3 years.

As for Bamboos or Coral/Marbled Catsharks in a pond of that size. It fine for the adults. But way too large for pups. Bamboo & coral/marbled cats are only about 4-7" long(depending on the species) when they first hatch. As a result - put them in a pond that size would make it practically impossible for them to find food - and very tough for you to find them - to attempt to feed them.

And also hatching them out yourself - isn't the best idea - unless you already have some practical experience doing so. New born Bamboos are known for being difficult to get to feed.

It's actually best to raise the Bamboo or coral/marbled catsharks pups in a tank until they get to be at least 12-18" long. Then you could put them in a pond that large.

 

[Scuba Kid]

As a result - put them in a pond that size would make it practically impossible for them to find food - and very tough for you to find them - to attempt to feed them.

What do you expect them to do in the wild? They're not hand fed in a small enclosure there. Granted, there is a more abundance of food but I find it hard to believe that feeding baby catsharks in a pond that size can be deemed impossible.

 

[Brenden]

I would not grant it impossible. However I am sure you can agree that getting new born pups to accept food is not the easiest task varying from specimen to specimen. I believe what Ken is pointing out is in such a large pond, ensuring they are eating and getting the right amount of food will be more difficult. If you place a bowl of cereal in your house for your kids eventually they will find it and eat it, but it would be alot better for you to keep them on the same routine by placing it at the dinner table where they are sure they can find / get it. That may not be the best example but it gets the point across.

Also to address your "in the wild" comment. The survival rate for new born pups in the wild I can assure is not close to 100%, so yes its not impossible to feed those pups in such an enclosure. But deemed this is not the ocean and in a pond, and deemed that most aquarists want their animals to thrive and not just survive like some of the specimens in the ocean, ensuring they are feeding on the right amount of food when ever needed is the right route to go.

 

[krj-1168]

Ok- impossible may have been the wrong choice of words. But the point - I was attempting to make is at least it would be alot more difficult than attempting to raise a shark pup in a smaller tank.

Case in point - keeping a 18" Benthic Shark in 1,000 gallon pond is roughly similar to keep a 6" bamboo,eppie, or coral cat in a 75 gallon tank.

The pups would use up much greater amounts of energy in the attempt to find food in a large pond then they would in a smaller tank. As Brenden was pointing out with the "Kids and bowl of cereal" example.

Also in the wild - shark pups have a very low survival rate - maybe only about 10% of shark pups reach adulthood.

 

[bangerang103]

ok so Ill just stick with a smaller type of shark, What are my choices?


Also I Where do I get a heater for something this large....?

And im going to make the tank smaller now that you said that

 

[krj-1168]

Well - an 8'x6'x3' pond gives you several options.

basically any benthic shark that stays under 42" would be ok.

The more commonly available species include -

The Epaulette - (Hemiscyllium ocellatum)- 42"
The Brown-banded Bamboo - (Chiloscyllium punctatum) - 40-41"
The White-spotted Bamboo - (Chiloscyllium plagiosum) - 37-38"
California Horn Shark - (Heterodontus francisci) - 38-39"
Gray Bamboo - (Chiloscyllium griseum) - 30"
Coral Catshark - (Atelomycterus marmoratus) - 27"
Marbled Catshark - (Atelomycterus macleayi) - 24"

As for heaters - they do make heaters for ponds that large. But generally your filtration system will heat the water to few degrees above the room temperature.

 

[bangerang103]

What do you own and what do you think would be the best? and I need a big light what are suggestions...

 

[Zoodiver]

For sharks, you can use florescent lighting and it will work just fine. No need to spend lots of money on top end set ups as far as that goes. A few 48" strips will work well.

As for the heater question, a good sized pump will indeed give you a lot of thermal gain. I'd run it that way and see what your temp comes up to. If it's not enough, Aquatic Eco has some nice sized titanium heaters for large scale set ups.

Keeping the pups in a smaller tank helps for the reasons listed. Feeding them can be a bugger - so anything you can do to get them eating well prior to adding them to a large system would be helping both them and you out a lot.