Elopichthys bambusa care advice?

JonAsher611

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I have some Yellow Cheek Carp (Elopichthys bambusa) and was wondering if anyone has some info on their care. I have had them for some months now and although they seem to be thriving they haven’t grown much and I want to make sure what I am giving them is proper for their well being. Was specifically wondering about their temperature, current, and feeding requirements as well as their growth rate.
 

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thebiggerthebetter

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Howdy, neighbor! You must have gotten them from Rod and Lisa :)

Here is my thread: https://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/...s-bambusa-1-for-5-so-far.688009/#post-7754740

It should answer your questions more or less.

My two main pieces of advice would be to house them with the most timid or indifferent of tank mates and to provide plenty of swimming space, IMHO they require about 10x more than an average fish we keep.
 

sunnysjourney

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Thank you both. Your threads have me some knowledge on their care. Do you recommend a dark background to decrease their tendency of running into the wall?
Don’t know if there’s a correlation between lighter backgrounds and skittishness of fish... my guy was in a dark background tank and was still pretty skittish. Do you mind posting some pics of your fish and a full tank shot?
 
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thebiggerthebetter

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Thank you both. Your threads have me some knowledge on their care. Do you recommend a dark background to decrease their tendency of running into the wall?
In general I think fish do better in ponds than in transparent tanks but since we need to see them at least one side should be transparent. For skittish fish it should make more of a difference. In general.

IME, yellowcheeks don't run into walls, at least not in the lethal fashion the ATF do, not as much or not at all, but they do earnestly try to swim through / against the walls head first and at length in an attempt to swim away from perceived danger and as a result they rub bad sores on their snouts. I believe they won't do it or would do it less if a wall was not transparent. Better yet, far, far better yet, is to give them ample swimming room. Hence my advice above citing the unusually large space requirement.

Don’t know if there’s a correlation between lighter backgrounds and skittishness of fish... my guy was in a dark background tank and was still pretty skittish. Do you mind posting some pics of your fish and a full tank shot?
Agreed, the innate skittishness may not be alleviated (but the behavioral could be) but the question here is about the consequences of it, that is the darting, the swimming away, or other avoidance of perceived danger, I think.
 
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JonAsher611

Jack Dempsey
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Ok sounds good. I have them in a 90 gallon right now and eventually plan to move them to my 1000. I grew them from tiny in a small tank so I’m sure that contributed to the sores on their lips from trying to swim through the glass. They seem to be doing well now so I will keep you updated. The trying to swim through the walls and rubbing sores on their faces is what I meant by running into the walls btw. Thanks again
image.jpgimage.jpgimage.jpg
 

thebiggerthebetter

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They look good to my eye. Nice plum tummies. Swimming at the glass might be unavoidable in any smallish tanks but as stated they would be unlikely to do it if a wall was not transparent. Please come back to this thread with updates so we enjoy them with you and learn from your experience too, hopefully for many years to come.
 
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