Green Sunfish Growth

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Fishman0

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Aug 3, 2009
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New York
I had another thread prior to this, which i asked the growth rate of a Bluegill. But after the assistance of others, I find out the fish I had gotten was not a Bluegill but a Green Sunfish.

Heres my Questions;

How fast can I expect him to grow in a home aquarium? (As wild ones seem to become stunted due to overpopulation as I have learned)

How can I assist the growth? (Food, Temp, certain water params, etc...)

I will Post pictures as well
 
Water Params; Ammonia=0ppm, Nitrite=0ppm, Nitrate=Less than 10ppm, pH=7.5, WC's are 50% every 5 days, in a 10gal (for now until he reaches 4" then to the big tank, it is around 2.5-3" now)

First three are him, last two are what he can look like? Is that true?

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I had one for years. He got maybe 10/11 inches long and was a beast, lol. I kept him in a 55 but I really think the tank was too small for him. I would say a 75 would be better, but I'm not an expert. I had Gilbert (the sunfish, lol) since he was really little, maybe 2 inches, and I kept him for 6 or 7 years before i let him go in a pond on our property. (I'm still not sure if that was wise, i caught him from a nearby pond, never had him with any other fish, but at the same time I am against releasing fish back into the wild, I didnt really know better at the time)

The coolest thing was he would eat all sorts of bugs. We had him trained to jump 5-6 inches out of the water to grab grasshoppers it was really cool. (probably not wise once again, but it was sweet) We would also point a flashlight at his tank, so moths would fly over it and fall in the water and he would eat them all night long, lol. He would also eat cichlid pellets so feeding him was never a problem.

He also had a great personality. I would say equal to an oscars, but much more aggressive. I wouldn't recommend trying to keep one with anything else unless you had a pretty large tank. If you have any other questions feel free to ask. There are deffinately people who know more about them than me, keep that in mind. Oh and I'm afraid i dont have any pictures of him, i wish i did, but this was before i had a digital camera.
 
Ive caught tons of Greens, but never tried to keep one to maturity, because of their mean disposition. However ive had and still keep, Central Longears, Shadow Bass, Pumpkin Seeds, Warmouth, and Orange Spotted Sunfish , most ive had for a year now, and i feed, normally twice a day, dont wanna put too much bio-load on. they have grown about 3 inches or so, with exception of the Orange, which is at about 3 now and probably maxxed out.

I have access to some of the most beautiful Greens ive ever seen, in a private lake that is never fished and has gone almost back to nature, but its always catch and release there for me. I ,ay someday decide to keep a nice well colored and shaped Male/Female pair in their own tank, because i know that would be a beautiful fish to grow out and observe.
 
Mine is living in a 55g with angelfish and catfish at 77ºF and has grown from two inches to four+ inches in about three months. I feed once or twice a day, with one day fasts here and there. Change 50% water weekly, nitrates stay a little high but never over 80.

Mine is prettier than many cichlids. He shines purple in sunlight and is covered in squarish jeweled spots. And as of the last few weeks, the green striped on his chin are getting more numerous, wide and metallic. This guy is going to look like a disco ball if this keeps up. Your guy looks just as pretty from the chin shot and side coloration. Best of luck!
 
i don't have any experience with greens, but with sunfish in general a good varied diet will make them grow big and fast. oh and space too. they need lots of space, specially green sunfish and bluegill because the are some of the largest lepomis species out there, them and redear sunfish.

i suggest you get him out of the 10 gallon and into whatever "the big tank" is asap, instead of waiting for him to outgrow the 10 gallon.
 
Thanks for the input

What do you think the ideal tank size would be to house for life?

Just tryin to find out all I can on the care of the species... Not too much info online, but ive been looking through all of my fishing books.
 
As far as tank size, are you looking to keep him with others? If so, I would recomend a 6' tank with plenty of driftwood, plants or other decorations to provide refuge. I have some experience with natives, have kept most of the ones in my area over the years, and I can tell you that greens are the green terrors of the temperate world. The only fish that comes close in terms of agression is bluegills. If you want to keep him by himself, a 55 should be good for awhile, as most centrarchids slow down their growth at the onset of maturity. For bluegills, it's about 5" and they slow down, I would assume that greens are probably about the same. I would definately feed earthworms as part of their diet, centrarchids seem to really need them in their diet. Right now, I've got bluegills and a pumpkinseed, and they seem to do better when they've had some worms. Chrickets, bloodworms, chiclid pellets, carnivore pellets, shrimp pellets, flake food, even your finger are all taken with relish.
They are very worthy fish to keep, as they have a very interesting personality, and can live for a very long time. As mentioned above, they can also be trained to do "tricks".
Enjoy your greenie meanie, just remember to give him space with tankmates.
Oh yeah, I second the Nanfa link!
 
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