fish to go with my mata mata
- Thread starter snakeguy101
- Start date
I have personally kept Silver dollars and Pacu with matas. Not only did I keep them together, but the matas were hatchlings. Trick is to find a balance. Enough space, good amazon black water environment and they are good. I did however take out the Pacus and then the silver dollars as the matas grew cuz I did not want to overcrowd them. Who knows what would have happened had i left them in... Just sharing my experience.
Deep water is cool, just as long as you have driftwood going from the bottom of the tank all the way up. They like climbing something sturdy and secure as opposed to them trying to latch on to something that is floating. Its cool if there is some water movement, although I would not run a super strong filter in their tank. Always ran small filters on mine. I'm sure bigger matas would handle more of a current in the water.
Biggest thing with Mata is keeping the water acidic and offering tons of live food!
My friend got a several Mata eggs this year. They were not good, but hey, its a start. These were the Amazon Matas too, they stay a lot smaller than the ones that are being imported.
Deep water is cool, just as long as you have driftwood going from the bottom of the tank all the way up. They like climbing something sturdy and secure as opposed to them trying to latch on to something that is floating. Its cool if there is some water movement, although I would not run a super strong filter in their tank. Always ran small filters on mine. I'm sure bigger matas would handle more of a current in the water.
Biggest thing with Mata is keeping the water acidic and offering tons of live food!
My friend got a several Mata eggs this year. They were not good, but hey, its a start. These were the Amazon Matas too, they stay a lot smaller than the ones that are being imported.
The mata mata does not have to swim for air, instead, he leans on the log on one side of the tank or the cypress knee (added after the picture) on the opposite side of the tank and is able to get to the surface easily that way. During the day he stays on the wood but as soon as the lights go out, he ventures into the deeper water to trap the minnows kept in there for him. It is interesting how he will lift his shell up on one side making a wall and herd the fish into a corner to eat them. He goes through about 500 minnows a month.
I am keeping the water acidic, i just added another 100ml of blackwater extract today and am keeping a close eye on the water quality. Also, i am running a powerhead on the surface of the water to give it more DO but the lower levels of the tank are rather stagnant and good mata mata conditions.
Mata mata eggs are very difficult to hatch (or they must be because no one has yet to do it) i have heard that they can stay viable for over 5 years but still not hatch according to my friend in the jacksonville zoo. good luck to who ever is trying to hatch them.
I am keeping the water acidic, i just added another 100ml of blackwater extract today and am keeping a close eye on the water quality. Also, i am running a powerhead on the surface of the water to give it more DO but the lower levels of the tank are rather stagnant and good mata mata conditions.
Mata mata eggs are very difficult to hatch (or they must be because no one has yet to do it) i have heard that they can stay viable for over 5 years but still not hatch according to my friend in the jacksonville zoo. good luck to who ever is trying to hatch them.
snakeguy101;3245714; said:
Your mata enclsosure sounds good. Yeah, they like eating mostly at night.
Do you here the popping sound at night when they catch the fish? I would here that all night long when i had mine.
The San Diego Zoo has hatched out Mata already. I think I read that it took them over 10 years to actually reproduce after being setup in the enclosure they are currently in. There is an article about it in the TSA newsletter. A couple more individuals and institutions have bred them also. From what I have been told, a deep water habitat is key to breeding them. Hatching the eggs must be difficult too, a lot of the South American turtles are super tough to hatch out.
cobra blitz;3245739; said:
I had heard rumors about the Sand Diego zoo hatching them but it came from the same guy who told me he caught a fly river in his back yard so i did not believe him. Breeding and hatching are two different things completely though. thank you for the info.
oh, and it is not so much of a popping sound as a ker-plunk or big splash. it used to scare the hell out of me when i first got him, especially when the woke me from a dead sleep!
Yeah, the San Diego Zoo hatched out matas from their longterm adults that they bred. Story was published in the TSA(Turtle Survival Alliance) newsletter, and thats a pretty reliable source.
I'll try and dig it up. Chances are it is only in the newsletter as you have to pay to be a member and receive the newletter. I'll look for that same article or another one though.
